As a kid, whenever I saw an arcade cabinet of Metal Slug, I would flock to it begging my parents for just a quarter so I could play a bit. At the time (and perhaps still today) Metal Slug was one of my favorite arcade games of all time. But because I was a kid, and this was an arcade game, getting around to finding an opportunity to play it was really hard.
In this case, having metal slug on a portable system such as a Neo Geo Pocket Color would have been more than serviceable to me between the moments of not being able to play the arcade game, and would've loved owning Metal Slug: 1st Mission. A portable Metal Slug, but rather being a downgraded port, it is it's own unique game.
The title implies this is a prequel to Metal Slug, but like who cares the story in Metal Slug doesn't really matter anyway. It plays exactly like metal slug except the physics are a little weird. The turns are a bit delayed and not as smooth and the jumps are a little higher and longer due to this game having more of a focus on the platforming element.
The arcade games being known for their beautiful pixel art animations are not found here. Of course, this is expected from portable titles at the time, but the pixel art animation is 90% of the Metal Slug charm, so you just gotta accept that you won't be getting that going into this game.
So what we have left is serviceable portable 8 bit graphics, barely any animation - mostly being choppy, and okayish feeling floaty controls. The only stand out difference in it's design is the level design. I guess because this is not an arcarde title, there is less focus on the run and gun and more of a focus on platforming. I don't mind this change, as verticality means good level design, but some of the later levels go really crazy with some of the jumps and platforming sections to the point it doesn't become fun.
I would have loved having this as a kid, but today this is just more of a product of it's time. Today there are many ways to play the arcade Metal Slugs portably, so there's no real reason to visit this one unless you are a die hard Metal Slug fan that just wants new levels and bosses.
In this case, having metal slug on a portable system such as a Neo Geo Pocket Color would have been more than serviceable to me between the moments of not being able to play the arcade game, and would've loved owning Metal Slug: 1st Mission. A portable Metal Slug, but rather being a downgraded port, it is it's own unique game.
The title implies this is a prequel to Metal Slug, but like who cares the story in Metal Slug doesn't really matter anyway. It plays exactly like metal slug except the physics are a little weird. The turns are a bit delayed and not as smooth and the jumps are a little higher and longer due to this game having more of a focus on the platforming element.
The arcade games being known for their beautiful pixel art animations are not found here. Of course, this is expected from portable titles at the time, but the pixel art animation is 90% of the Metal Slug charm, so you just gotta accept that you won't be getting that going into this game.
So what we have left is serviceable portable 8 bit graphics, barely any animation - mostly being choppy, and okayish feeling floaty controls. The only stand out difference in it's design is the level design. I guess because this is not an arcarde title, there is less focus on the run and gun and more of a focus on platforming. I don't mind this change, as verticality means good level design, but some of the later levels go really crazy with some of the jumps and platforming sections to the point it doesn't become fun.
I would have loved having this as a kid, but today this is just more of a product of it's time. Today there are many ways to play the arcade Metal Slugs portably, so there's no real reason to visit this one unless you are a die hard Metal Slug fan that just wants new levels and bosses.
what the hell? turns out metal slug can be pretty darn competent as a handheld title. devs did a really good job of bringing over the feel of traditional metal slug gameplay while also making enough adjustments to have the game feel at home on a system like the NGPC, though some button assignments feel a bit awkward (doesn't feel great having to switch weapons in order to throw bombs.). very replayable and definitely recommended for metal slug fans that don't mind playing easy video games.
Review PT-BR //// English
Lesma de metal: Primeira Missão
Tenho que admitir que apesar desse jogo ser bonzinho, bem feito e um verdadeiro exemplo de como portar uma franquia pros 8-Bits eu não consegui curtir tanto ele, talvez pelo fato de ele ter algumas fases labirinticas, talvez pelas fases de shooter aereo. Não sei....algo nele não me pegou. Mas como disse não é um jogo ruim, da pra se divertir principalmente se você é fã da franquia.
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I have to admit that despite this game being quite good, well-made, and a true example of how to port a franchise to 8-Bits, I couldn't enjoy it as much. Maybe it's because of some of the maze-like stages, maybe it's the aerial shooter stages. I don't know... something about it didn't captivate me. But as I said, it's not a bad game, and you can have fun with it, especially if you're a fan of the franchise.
Lesma de metal: Primeira Missão
Tenho que admitir que apesar desse jogo ser bonzinho, bem feito e um verdadeiro exemplo de como portar uma franquia pros 8-Bits eu não consegui curtir tanto ele, talvez pelo fato de ele ter algumas fases labirinticas, talvez pelas fases de shooter aereo. Não sei....algo nele não me pegou. Mas como disse não é um jogo ruim, da pra se divertir principalmente se você é fã da franquia.
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I have to admit that despite this game being quite good, well-made, and a true example of how to port a franchise to 8-Bits, I couldn't enjoy it as much. Maybe it's because of some of the maze-like stages, maybe it's the aerial shooter stages. I don't know... something about it didn't captivate me. But as I said, it's not a bad game, and you can have fun with it, especially if you're a fan of the franchise.