Since the buzz of its announcement, Metal Slug Tactics has captured our interest, blending SNK’s beloved classic with a strategy-driven turn-based approach. The idea of fusing it with a roguelike, reminiscent of Into the Breach, elevated our anticipation to sky-high levels. We’re pleased to confirm that the game fulfills these grand expectations.
At its core, Metal Slug Tactics delivers exactly what fans might hope for: a tactical game set in the vibrant world of SNK’s Metal Slug. You’ll guide a team of three characters through four distinct regions to defeat Morden, who’s seized control of the city. Initially, you’ll start with Marco, Eri, and Fio but, over time, you can unlock additional Metal Slug characters and even some SNK crossover figures.
Each character you employ boasts unique skills and weaponry, offering three extra loadouts per character. This provides an impressive variety of 36 distinct classes across the nine available characters. These characters range widely, from those skilled in balanced gunnery and explosive tactics to close-quarter combatants who charge in armed with only a knife, a shotgun, and sheer determination.
Diverging from Into The Breach’s inherently defensive strategy, Metal Slug Tactics leans into the dynamic essence of its source material, encouraging a daring approach. By venturing further from your initial position, you rack up adrenaline – crucial for skill usage – and dodge points, which minimize incoming damage. Simply staying put isn’t a viable option here. Effective team placement is also key, as it permits the execution of Synchronisation attacks, where two teammates can engage adversaries within their reach.
As you progress through the game, you’ll tackle three missions in each region before taking on its boss. You have the option to confront the final boss after completing just one other region, should you choose to take that path. The missions vary, from diminishing enemy forces to escorting objectives, each offering rewards like XP, supply drops, and ammunition. Adding to the challenge, missions also include secondary objectives that enhance the potential rewards.
Yet, during our review, we faced an issue with prolonged loading times during combat scenes on both the PS5 and PS4 versions, although the problem wasn’t present on PC. Fortunately, the developers are aware and have released patches to address the issue, improving the situation slightly (previously, it would freeze during these loads). However, the lengthy load times remain as the game hits launch.
Hopefully, a resolution will arrive soon, as this issue currently mars an otherwise exceptional gaming experience.
