Metal Slug 3

"This game is good, but damnit, why does it have to be so HARD!!!"

Metal Slug. The SNK franchise which follows the footsteps of shooting sidescrollers (OK, I have no idea what genre this type of game is under) such as Gunstar heroes, has come up, at last, with a 3rd game (actually, this is the 4th game). While metal slug X was slightly disappointing, due to the fact that it was merely metal slug 2 with more weapons and some rehashed graphics, metal slug 3 provides far more additions compared to it's predecessor.

Mission one, START!

As in previous games, you can choose 4 characters, namely: Marco, Fia, Eri and Tarma. Who you choose doesn't matter, since it makes no difference. Your mission, as usual, is to save the world (again) from those irritating Nazis (who apparently haven't learnt how to behave like good little boys). Taking any of the characters mentioned above, you run around shooting giant crabs, flies, eels, squids, Nazis and aliens. Yes, metal slug 3 has FAR more oddball enemies, like those mentioned. I have no idea if there is any connection between those creatures and the aliens or Nazis, since there is so little story behind this game (not that most will expect one, anyway). Thus, gameplay is exactly similar to it's predecessors, i.e. run around shooting enemies while trying to prevent yourself from getting hit.

Still, there are far more extras, enough to differentiate it from the older metal slugs. The weapons haven't changed much: they are mostly similar to metal slug X. However, there are more vehicles in this game now. Remember the old plane you could sit on in metal slug X? There's a helicopter now. Other odd vehicles are a tunneler, an ostrich with a gun attached to it (really, really odd), submarines (yes, there are underwater stages now), and even spacecraft (yes, you can actually go into outer space now). The sheer variety of new vehicles will make up for the lack of new interesting weapons, and there are far more vehicles on every stage now. In addition, there are also additional items to find, one of which is a satellite that follows you around.

As mentioned, you can go underwater, into space now and take to the skies as well. The underwater areas play like a submarine shooter game, the aerial battles play like your typical airplane-shooter type games (the horizontal type), while the space battle actually plays like a metal slug version of asteroids (except you fight aliens as well as asteroids). Interesting change of pace from the usual ''run around and shoot'' theme that the previous metal slugs employ, and it adds quite a lot more variety in the game. Oh, and another thing: a completely new change to the game is the ability to choose your path. Yes, you heard right. You can choose where you want to go. Hence, despite the fact that SNK did not make any new stages (Capcom's stuck at 3; SNK, apparently, is stuck at 5), there are quite a lot more locations for you to visit. The first stage alone has 3 different paths, one underwater, where you face giant eels that eat giant Portuguese man-of-wars for breakfast (told you the game had odd enemies), little man-of-wars and more giant crabs, while the other 2 paths are above land, but one on a ship and the other on land. SNK, in making this one change, has effectively increased the replay value of metal slug 3 far above it's predecessor. Previously, the prisoners, the various secret parts of the stages and secret items are the only secrets. Now, in addition to all those, you have new paths to go. Some of the parts are completely different stages altogether (one stage leads to a maggot lair with killer plants and killer maggots, another leads to mummies and a desert area). Thus, despite having only 5 ''official'' stages, SNK has effectively doubled the number of stages (or perhaps even tripled) using this method.( And note too that the stages are far greater in length, especially the last stage). Smart move SNK, real smart. However, you still can't count past 5......

Unfortunately, metal slug suffers from one great failing. This game is too damn hard! If you though metal slug X was difficult, wait till you see this game. The first boss itself is a major pain in the butt, as are many of the other bosses, and the last stage is ridiculously difficult. For those who remember that you can change into mummies in metal slug 2 and X, you can change into zombies this time, as well as changing to mummies on the desert stage. That itself creates additional difficulty (though the zombies are immune to gun shots, they are remarkably slow). Yes, difficult games are challenging, but this is ridiculous. The game is far too hard. To make things worse, you still don't gain any lives while playing. Fortunately, SNK has managed to reduce the amount of slowdown you get when there are too many sprites on screen, so that removes a major problem.

On the whole, gameplay is more of the same, but with more vehicles, and the ability to choose your route makes it far more interesting and increases it's replay value. The new underwater, space and air battles provide a welcome change of pace, while the new stages are eccentric and interesting at the same time. Now, if only the game were easier......

SNK does wonders on an eleven year old board. I wonder how they managed it

Graphically, metal slug 3 is identical to it's predecessors. Nothing has really changed much, and the MVS board is getting rather old. Still, since the original graphics were rather nice, metal slug 3 still looks pretty. The animations of the enemies are well detailed, from the crab's snapping pincers to your character shivering in the cold. Backgrounds, however, are rather plain to me. Nothing special, and certainly not done as well as in SNK's fighters.

The sound hasn't changed either. In fact, several of the tunes are exactly the same. The Nazi grunts still sound the same, creatures and aliens still sound funny when they die, explosions sound as they should.....you get the picture. The music isn't that great, mainly because the MVS board is unable to handle higher quality music. Still, despite being rather mediocre, most of the tunes do suit the atmosphere...somewhat.

Controls are fine. Most arcade games are dependent on the machine's quality when it comes to control, anyway. The game controls exactly the same was as it's predecessors, so veterans should feel comfortable immediate. Even if you are a newbie, they are relatively easy to understand.

Story? What story? Seriously, the metal slug series doesn't have much of a story. This time round, there is one small surprise, though. Still, it winds up having to save the world (again) from aliens. Typical. Replay value, as mentioned above, is higher this time as there are more paths (some are not obvious), in addition to all the other hidden stuff similar to the previous games (hidden prisoners, items, etc).

Concluding thoughts:

Metal slug 3 on the whole proves to be enjoyable, if somewhat overly difficult. There are new additions to the game, and the different paths and more varied gameplay will make you come back for more, despite having similar gameplay to it's predecessors.

Final Scores:

Gameplay : 8.0
Graphics : 7.0
Sound : 7.0
Music : 6.5
Control : 10
Story : 5.0
Originality : 3.0
Replayability : 7.5

Final Score : 8.0

MISSION ALL OVER!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/01/01, Updated 12/01/01