Welcome soldier to our list of the 10 Best Metal Slug Games of All Time. If you’re familiar with the series then you know the drill.
The Metal Slug games give you a pistol with unlimited ammo, a jump button and the ability to toss the occasional grenade or two as you move to the right in these 2D run and gun action games.
What makes Metal Slug special however is how the simplistic mechanics are paired with gorgeous pixel art, frantic pacing and bags of humour that parodies war across a plethora of different locations.
From the arcade to your pocket, let’s kick off with the first title in our list!
1. Metal Slug X (1999)
The best Metal Slug Game of All Time is Metal Slug X.
Metal Slug X, in a similar fashion to Metal Slug XX further up this list, takes one of the best Metal Slug games and polishes it to near perfection. In this case, Metal Slug 2 gets an impressive glow-up with the switch to a modified game engine from Metal Slug 3.
Metal Slug X also brought forth numerous gameplay and design changes to the game.
Aesthetically superior to its predecessors, stages throughout the game benefit from new art direction that shifts the time of day from either day or night, to the more atmospheric dusk, twilight or sunset settings.
Gameplay tweaks include more power-ups, items, and POWs hidden in each level along with additional enemy types and enhanced weaponry to dispatch them.
The remixed soundtrack is a joy to listen to and perfectly punctuated by the sounds of booming shotguns, the rattle of machinegun fire and the screams of your foes.
If you only play one Metal Slug game, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better one than Metal Slug X.
2. Metal Slug Advance (2004)
Narrowly missing out on the top spot in our list, Metal Slug Advance for the Game Boy Advance’s shining strength is how it mixes up the run and gun formula.
Metal Slug Advance encourages exploration and multiple replays with its collectible cards. While blasting through levels, players can now uncover cards that provide extra details on the Metal Slug universe.
Simply finding the cards doesn’t add them to the players collection however, and levels must now be completed within one life or the pending collectibles are dropped and need to be found again.
The extra level of challenge encourages exploration and strategy and adds genuine stakes to the consistently tight and enjoyable gunplay.
3. Metal Slug 3 (2000)
Considered by many to be the pinnacle of the early Metal Slug games, Metal Slug 3 polishes the gameplay of the previous two entries in the series while simultaneously cranking the madness up to max.
Battles with opposing military forces are frequently sidelined for skirmishes against truly unnerving aliens, crab monsters, zombies and other horrific monstrosities.
Metal Slug 3 also spins the 2D side-scrolling ninety degrees as players move up the screen to fight UFOs and dodge asteroids in space levels for the first time, adding welcome variety to the chaotic bullet hell.
Gamers picking up ports of Metal Slug 3 should also consider a nice herbal tea and a scented candle as the game features one of the hardest and most punishing campaigns in the series that will leave even die-hard fans wanting to pull their hair out!
4. Metal Slug 2 (1998)
The sophomore effort from developer SNK delivers an expanded roster of playable characters over the original Metal Slug while introducing the ability for characters to transform, including bulking up if the player eats too many food items or being wrapped up as a mummy in the Egyptian-inspired levels.
The plot of the series starts to veer into bizarre territory with aliens being introduced to the series for the first time. Taking place two years after the events of the original Metal Slug, the separate factions that supported the evil Morden have joined forces and the resilient dictator is still alive, despite being presumed dead at the end of the first game.
Thankfully players will also be able to jump aboard the titular Metal Slugs throughout each level, acquiring their destructive firepower in the process.
The gameplay remains tight and immediately playable and the addition of NPCs that can help players is great fun, even if persistent slowdown in busy scenes can ruin the experience occasionally.
5. Metal Slug 4 (2002)
New protagonists Trevor and Nadia make their first and only appearance in the series, joining veteran run and gunners Marco and Fio for the fourth installment in the Metal Slug franchise.
In a similar vein to the aforementioned Metal Slug 5, Metal Slug 4 included a smashing soundtrack, this time with a more synthesizer-based, occasionally orchestrated soundscape for players to eviscerate enemies with ever-increasing firepower against.
Metal Slug 4 narrowly pips Metal Slug 5 in our list because of its marginally longer runtime and higher difficulty level that requires players to engage in some on-the-fly strategic designs to avoid death.
A newly incorporated bonus system that rewards players with additional points for dispatching a certain amount of enemies within a set time limit successfully ratchets up the tension making each encounter a frenetic firefight.
6. Metal Slug 5 (2003)
2003 saw the release of Metal Slug 5 in arcades and while it does little to innovate on the series trademark run and gun gameplay, it does everything to an exceptionally high standard.
By this point in the series timeline, we’d seen mummies, monsters, and aliens opposing our quartet of heroes. Metal Slug 5 ups the ante even further with the introduction of hellish demons for Marco, Tarma, Eri and Flo to battle.
Metal Slug 5 is a considered too easy by many, even for a game originally designed to vacuum coins out of your pockets in the arcade, and with only 5 levels to blast through most players will see the end credits within an hour.
Where Metal Slug 5 truly excels is with its killer soundtrack, full of squealing electric guitars and thumping double bass drums that complement the frenetic action perfectly and wouldn’t be out of place booming across Download Festival.
7. Metal Slug 7 (2008)
Metal Slug 7 reverts to the classic Metal Slug formula after the poorly received PS2 Metal Slug game failed to land the transition to 3D.
While Metal Slug XX reintroduced co-op a year later, Metal Slug 7 is one of the DS titles most loved by Nintendo fans and brought some innovations to the series gameplay by allowing players to carry and swap between two weapons on the fly.
Another big shake up for the series was the inclusion of coins that would drop from fallen enemies and would bolster a score multiplier, introducing a risk/reward complexity to proceedings as players chased the top spot on the leaderboards.
Combat School mode returned from the PS1 and Sega Saturn ports of the original Metal Slug, adding much needed longevity by offering players challenges such as completing levels against the clock or with a certain number of objects destroyed.
8. Metal Slug (1996)
The game that launched the franchise, Metal Slug debuted in arcades in 1996 and offered players a more violent and humorous run-and-gun alternative to Konami’s Contra.
The hand-drawn sprites and fluid animations enamoured players worldwide and saw the game become one of the highest-grossing arcade games of 1996 in the US.
Themes and characters from the original Metal Slug persist far into the franchise with series mainstays Marco and Tarma appearing for the first time to do battle with General Morden and his Rebel Army for control of the titular Metal Slug weapon.
The original Metal Slug stands the test of time as a fun single player or co-op shooter that features a wide range of environments and inventive mechanised enemy design.
9. Metal Slug XX (2009)
Almost a remake of Metal Slug 7, Metal Slug XX brings the action from the Nintendo DS game to home consoles and PC.
The transition to bigger screens wasn’t perfect with Metal Slug 7’s 4:3 aspect ratio appearing in the centre of the screen with borders on every side or stretched to fit widescreen displays, which is rarely a good look.
Metal Slug XX makes up for its slightly lacklustre presentation by reintroducing the series trademark co-op mode, which was absent from the DS version for obvious personal space infringement reasons.
DLC character and King of Fighters brawler Leona Heidern joins the cast and sports several buffs including her Moon Slasher attack and health boosts when riding in vehicles.
10. Metal Slug 6 (2006)
Originally released in arcades in 2006, Metal Slug 6 begins with the series traditional Vietnam War-inspired setting and sees players tackling hoards of enemies and rescuing prisoners of war, but quickly evolves into an intergalactic skirmish with human and mechanical enemies making way for grotesque and gruesome monsters and aliens.
Combat expands beyond unloading round after round from your pistol with new vehicles to pilot, including the bipedal mech, that grants the ability to jump around while firing lasers, and a rocket launching outhouse pulled by a donkey.
A direct sequel to the events of Metal Slug 3, General Morden returns once again and brings his alien allies into yet another conflict with our heroic runners and gunners.
Encountering the wonderfully designed bosses is a highlight however the flat and lifeless backgrounds mean Metal Slug 6 sits at the bottom of our list.
