This was the game where Metal Slug clicked for me. The fast-paced bullet blasting bloody hellscape within this world seeped itself into my mind and it was exhilarating. The rush of fighting massive killer mechs and slime-spewing aliens was in my grasp. This is the game that represents these things the best out of the whole series.

What starts out as a simple military operation becomes a planet-threatening nightmare. Shooting soldiers, to slicing zombies, to blasting the ever living hell out of aliens. The natural progression should speak for itself.
Levels are laid out in a fashion where you’ll never be burnt out or bored. There’s a perfect balance between navigating the level route and blasting enemies, not to mention the enemy patterns that keep you on your toes. The extremely detailed cartoony semi-realistic graphics create an immersive experience all the way through. Every enemy you kill feels so satisfying because of their wonderfully animated deaths. That’s the thing that I believe sets this game apart from other side scrolling military shmups; the presentation. Everything has such vibrance and character that the whole world feels alive. You can interact with the terrain in unique ways that always put a smile on my face. Putting this together with the killer soundtrack makes these contextualized areas pop. Mellow atmospheric tunes, heavy metal slaps, dramatic edge-of-your-seat beats; it’s all here in full force and I can’t get enough.
One of the main gimmicks that sets this game above the rest in the series is the level structure. As you go through levels eventually you’ll come to a fork in the road, leading to multiple different paths each with their own charm and uniqueness. Replayability is heavily encouraged due to this and it is definitely worth it to see all the areas. You can go from a scorching desert straight to a murky underground hidden cave filled with hostile natives. Or if you choose, you can continue through the desert and eventually scale a huge pyramid filled with enemies and traps. It creates a whole interconnected world that’s intricacies are beyond me. I especially LOVE the final mission in this regard. Going from the skies to forest to riding missiles up into space leading up to the obtuse pathways of the Alien base. Finally concluding with an epic showdown with the mother of all aliens falling down from space at mach speed.
Everything in this game fits so well together and I just love it. Maybe I’m biased but dammit this game rules. Play it!