Say the words "168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Metal Slug" in a group of old-school gamers and more than a few eyes will light up. The franchise arguably perfected the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:run-andꦍ-gun formula begun on home conso♔les by the NES classic Contra. A soldier with a gun, running across the screen and shooting the bad guys, with increasingly more bombastic weapons. Simple yet effe𒊎ctive, and fans loved it.
As the flagship title for 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:SNKꦓ, one of the biggest𓄧 developers of that era, Metal Slug holds an important place in the hearts of gamers every🔜where. With 13 ma🉐inline titles in the series, the progression is fascinating to track from simple 2D side-scrolling shooter all the way to its only 3D entry.
Updated July 21, 2021 by Stephen LaGioia: Despite its crude retro style — and perhaps even because of it — the Metal Slug series has maintained a certain charm and appeal even after over two decades. It's hard not to be drawn in by the delightfully old-school pixel art and the frantic run-and-gun insanity. Though SNK has thus far mostly stuck with the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mantra regarding the series' formula, Leikir Studio and Dotemu look to venture into new territory with a roguelike RPG twist on the franchise, Metal Slug Tactics. Little is known about this anticipated release, but what is known is the timeless draw of this feverishly addictive sidescrolling shooter. With that said, it seemed appropriate to refresh this list and equip it with even more notable titles in the series.
14 𝕴 Metal Slug ꧅Advance
Once upon a time, handheld gaming technology had lagged quite a bit behind its console and PC counterparts. This typically led to ports, spinoffs, and sequels that weren't always up to snuff. And while there are better options when it comes to Metal Slug, this '04 rendition by Dream Vision Games stands as a fairly underrated, overlooked portable shooter.
The game scarcely strays from the tried-and-true style of sidescrolling gunner action; a trait that most fans are likely to be fine with. It does include a couple of small additions though, with a more minor tweak in the form of a life bar replacing extra lives. The second is a bit more significant: a collectible card system, which can be scored from certain hostages and shooting obscured background parts. Tꩲhese obtainable cards vary in their use, ranging from player abilities and buffs to item and character information and even new slug unlocks.
13 🌊 Metal Slug 5 ༒
This entry offered more of the same run-and-gun action but stripped out a lot of the systems put in place by the ღgames that came before. Nearly all the transformations were gone, ✱there were no supernatural characters, and the medal system was removed as well.
The penalty for death was practically nonexistent, as ammo w♎as refilled and damage inflicted was retained in boss fights. This led🐷 to grenade-spamming and very little difficulty to be found in a game that was already shorter than usual. Not the worst, but certainly not the best.
12 ꦉ Metal Slug 🦹3D
The only detour from the 2D roots of the game's lineage, Metal Slug 3D was released for PlayStation 2 in Japan but never came ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚto the West. The graphics were nothing to write home about, and likely disappointing for both 2Dꦍ and 3D adherents.
The idea of rankings was first introduced here, with the now typical S-Rank being the best. Semi-RPG elements such as skill points and Slug upgrades were introduced in Metal Slug 3D as well. The prevailing opinion was that this release was better than it was expected to be but just didn't feel like a Metal Slug game overall.
11 Metal Slug 2 ♛ 🔴
Though this 1998 release for Neo Geo MVS tends to show it𝔉s age with some brutal slowdown, it remains a classic relic of 2D action games, even if the "action" is often literally brought to a crawl by its performance issues.
Still, those who can get past these rough patches will find a pretty entertaining experie🌳nce buried underneath. This sequel builds on the solid foundation of the original, while subtly sprinkling in some amusing details and features. With this game comes the introduction of avatar transformations, along ဣwith the fan-favorite SV-Camel, a Vulcan-laced animal that makes the experience all the more enjoyable.
10 Metal Slug 🍸4 ༺
This 2002 iteration tends to get somewhat lost in the shuffle, being the first entry following SNK's bankruptcy, and crafted mostly independent of the company's reformation as Playmore. Still, Mega Enterprise and Noise Factory manage to come out with a bang here, proving they've got what it takes to keep this franchise chugging.
With that said, Metal Slug 4 certainly plays it safe, and there's little that can be considered innovative or even evolutionary; weird monkey transformations notwithstanding. It's one of the more chaotic, unforgivable entries too, though the inclusion of infinite continues tends to balance this out.
9 🧜 Me🍃tal Slug Anthology
The Anthology is the best way to play the first six games in the franchise on modern consoles. The🦹re are actually seven games included, as both Metal Slug 2 and Metal Slug X are part of the collection. Why anyone would want to play 2 with all of the slowdown issues is unclear, but co𒐪llectors will be happy to have it.
Comℱpletionists and fans of the series will be excited for the carrot at the end of the stick. Defeating each game will give tokens that can be used to purchase galleries, music tracks, and other assorted goodies to enjoy🌊. Unlimited continues were included to make the collection accessible even for those new to the rigors of classic gaming.
8 🐟 🏅 Metal Slug 6
The s🌸ixth installment of the series was an improvement over 4 and 5, but Metal Slug was starting to show its age a bit by this point. It offered some innovations on the original formula, giving a total of six playable characters and an Easy mode for beginners.
Two new systems appeared, one to allow two different gun upgrades at once, and a score multiplier system that rewarded kill streaks. It was also the first game to include button-combo techniques innovation, but this one probably gets a bump from fans 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:due to a heavy dose of nostalgia.
7 ✅ 𒉰Metal Slug 7
One of the four 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:handheld-exclusive titles in the franchise, Meta🍨l Slug 7 offers a lot of fun over a short length. The onﷺly title to appear on the Nintendo DS. this entry is notable for using the second screen as a map to make navigation easier.
Metal Slug 7 utilized some of the same systems as the sixth game, keeping each player's unique characteristics, as well as the two-upgrade capability and score multiplier. It was unfortunately hurt by a lack of multiplayer options, though, and a very short length did nothing to help the value proposition.
6 🌃 Metal Slug: 1st Mission ♌
This was the first attempt at making Metal Slug portable, and SNK came out of the gate firing. They simplified things from the console versions by offering just one playable character but gave gamers 17 missions with branching paths. There were only two Slugs on of🌟fer here, but just having a game of this caliber on a handheld devicꦜe was revolutionary at the time.
The only knock on the game was that Metal Slug: 1st Mission didn't look quite as good as it could have. The developers had to program for the original and Color versions of the Neo Geo Pocket, and the overall graphical quality suffered a bit as a result.
5 Metal Slug: 2nd Miss🎐ion ꦫ
The second of what would become four handheld-only entries in the series, 2nd Mission is the best of them all. Unlike its predecessor, this one had the benefit of being designed exclusively for the Neo Geo Pocket Color, therefore it didn't have to accommodate the lesser hardware of SNK's original color-less handheld.
Featuring a massive 38 missions, the game had a branching structure that meant it could be beaten without even seeing some of the 🍃levels. Two playable characters (with a third being unlockable upon game💙 completion), each with their own plots and exclusive weapons, and a total of three Slugs meant there was a ton of action built into a tiny package.