Runnin’ and Gunnin’, tactics style.
Leikir Studios may not be a name you’d recognize despite their fairly expansive catalog of Indie titles. From Synergy to Rogue Lords, their games have shown promise and potential, but if any game was to make them a studio to watch out for, Metal Slug Tactics is certainly it. While the Metal Slug series has been entirely about running and gunning, one would have to wonder how that would translate to a tactics-based game, and yet, it’s a match made in heaven due to a few smart ideas.
Metal Slug Tactics takes the run-and-gun nature the series is known for and adapts that to the gameplay of taking turns, moving across the map, and utilizing synchronization attacks with your teammates to take advantage of clever thinking and problem-solving. Each battleground is a puzzle waiting to be solved, a battle requiring the combined efforts of each member of your three-person squad. And, as each outing is a do-or-die scenario, the roguelite elements allow you to earn progress, reap its rewards, and dive back in to stop the diabolical Morden from his evil plans.
Spread out across a small handful of biomes, from Deserts, Tombs, and Jungles, each objective within that area is to complete missions that will raise the alert status and summon the boss. These missions vary from killing designated enemies, and protecting an ally, to just surviving a set number of rounds. Each area has a set number of locations, so it is possible to find the same map being used for another objective during your run.
Where you’ll need to be strategic is that while the base objectives can be enticing or easy enough to pull off, each objective will have a secondary reward that is only redeemable should you pull off a certain task. From tackling the objective in a certain number of turns or kills with a specific character, these objectives will have you looking at the battlefield in different ways, especially as some objectives allow you to “contribute” to a certain number of kills, meaning the synchronization kills count. This is where you’ll earn extra XP, or better yet, money or the ability to reload, which will prove crucial as while your main weapon, such as a pistol or grenade, will have unlimited ammo whereas your secondary, such as a grenade launcher, shotgun, or machine gun, is extremely limited. Showing up at the boss with only a few rounds in the chamber can be disastrous.
You’ll place your three-man squad in a designated starting zone, often in the thick of things. Once placed, you’ll likely want to take cover, which is indicated by a blue aesthetic. Most attacks will then chip away to protect your health bar. There are your standard tactics-based solutions here as while the game doesn’t do anything original with its cover or level design, it does have a trick up its sleeve that keeps you wanting to move around the map and play on the offensive.
Each turn allows you to control each of your three characters and position them where you’ll benefit from their skills. As you move them within their maximum distance, you’ll gain adrenaline to power their special attacks. This also grants them a bonus shield that will negate some incoming damage. This prevents you from hiding in a corner and making the enemies come to you or other tactics that benefit from holding your ground. This is where the ‘running and gunning’ of Metal Slug comes into play. Being aggressive and moving around the map is crucial to staying alive and pulling off a victory.
Part of winning comes from using your team correctly and benefitting from their unique skills and weaponry. You’ll initially start with Marco, Eri, and Fio, and through multiple completions, you’ll earn more. Tarma is the easiest to unlock as you simply just need to unlock all the key areas, which is done very quickly. Marco and Fio both rock a machine gun to start and are your long-range damage dealers, whereas Eri, for example, uses explosives either via tossing out a grenade or her launcher which has a bit more distance. Each has unique skills that you’ll equip as the run continues, such as Marco being able to move a few extra spaces or Fio gaining a bonus shield to take one incoming hit. While some of these won’t benefit too much during the more simple encounters, bosses, on the other hand, can be devastating and will require everything you have at your disposal.
Combat plays out once you have set your units down and then taken their first steps within the round. How far you have moved will determine how much adrenaline you have for your special attacks, and your placement will determine if any characters will pull off any synchronization attacks that have them teaming up. However, one thing of note is you can actually damage your teammate in these team-up attacks, such as Eri’s grenades can ding her teammates. Once you have taken your turn, then your opponents will as well. Thankfully, there is a speed-up button if you need it, allowing you to get back to your turn far more quickly. Depending on the objective, you may play to kill everyone around you or just take on the objectives, such as destroying the caravan in three rounds, thus ignoring everyone around you as you simply rush the vehicle.
The environments you do battle in have different levels of elevation. You’ll usually have grenade tossers taking to the high platforms, chucking out explosives, but are often easy to kill with a few good shots or an effective use of synchronization. Some maps will continue to have enemies spawn in while others will see new areas tacked on, such as when you need to escort someone or destroy an enemy caravan, as I have mentioned previously.
Bosses, for the most part, are a treat. The first boss is merely destroying a ship, but the real appeal of it comes from having to keep moving as the platforms you are on will be destroyed by it. The second boss, a giant mechanical snake, was my favorite. This fight constantly shuffles around the map, keeping you on your toes. Even your fallen squadmates may see their body suddenly appear closer to you, allowing you to revive them and consume one of your limited revives. The remainder of the bosses are enjoyable, albeit difficult, but once you have built up your team, outfitted them properly, and pulled off a last-minute objective to refill your ammo, then you’ll likely pull it off.
I’ve had the chance to play Metal Slug Tactics on both PS5 and PC. I spent about 8 hours on the PC version before wanting to check it out on PS5 to play on my TV. While I have spent more time on the game on the PS5 version, at the time of this writing, it suffers from significant performance issues. Currently, the game stutters and locks up quite often between turns and while it is still playable, I am hoping that this version sees these issues addressed for launch. I also tried the game out on Steam Deck, but the incredibly tiny font made it nearly impossible to understand what upgrades I was choosing or even the tutorial prompts. If you only have a Steam Deck, I strongly suggest not playing it there.
As you continue to win, the roguelite elements then start to appear. You’ll choose from various upgrades such as new adrenaline skills or upgrades and enhancements to your core weapons. Eri, for example, has a grenade launcher, and it normally has a fixed pattern for where the damage will occur. One of the upgrades you can choose is to change that pattern, giving it a whole new purpose for that run. As you earn money and return to camp after a run or a failed attempt, you can then use that gold to purchase new guns, mods, and abilities, which are then added to future runs. Again, this game doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but the aesthetics of Metal Slug are so well implemented here do a lot of the heavy lifting to make the most genre-known elements still remain engaging.
Visually, Metal Slug Tactics is everything anyone should want from it. The pixel art is superb, and frankly, if the artist who did the character shots ever penned a Metal Slug comic, I’d preorder it right now. While I do wish there were some additional biomes to flaunt some extra variety, level-wise, what is here is still solid and there is nothing really I can criticize when it comes to the game’s visuals. While I addressed my concerns performance-wise already, I’m hopeful that the launch will address those issues in a patch, because it is extremely frustrating to see a game that should be running like a dream be hampered by significant performance woes.
Metal Slug Tactics is gorgeous, it may have some entry-level appeal in how its tactics are concerned, but the fundamentals are solid and the gameplay is remarkably satisfying. With a ton of mods, weapons, and characters to unlock, I look forward to what additional runs may offer for my enjoyment of the game going forward. While I do wish there were more areas to break up the level variety, Metal Slug Tactics is nonetheless a joyous experience that is good to the last round.
Developer - Leikir Studios
Publisher - DotEmu, Gamera Games. Released - November 5th, 2024. Available On - PS4/5, Xbox One/Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC. Rated - (E10+) - Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood. Platform Reviewed - PC and PS5 versions were both tested. Review Access - A review code was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.
Jeff is the original founder of Analog Stick Gaming. His favorite games include The Witcher III, the Mass Effect Trilogy, Hi-Fi Rush, Stellar Blade, Hellbade: Senua’s Sacrifice, and the Legend of Heroes series, especially Trails of Cold Steel III & IV.