Metal Slug Tactics

Metal Slug has been synonymous for decades with frantic run and gun action, hand-drawn art, and over-the-top weapons - the last thing anyone would expect is a move into the turn-based strategy genre. Yet that's exactly what happened with the arrival of Metal Slug Tactics, which took the series' familiar characters, vehicles, and enemies and rearranged them into isometric maps divided into turns and a hexagonal grid. Publishing was handled by Dotemu, a studio that had previously also been behind re-releases of older entries in the series for modern platforms, so it understood well what makes Metal Slug's visual style so distinctive.

The game keeps the series' speed and audacity through a combo action system - characters move across the map by leaping between cover, and every move can trigger a chain of bonus attacks from teammates, so even a turn-based battle plays out surprisingly dynamically and rewards aggressive, well-planned moves over cautiously waiting in cover. The iconic humor, cartoonish bosses, and the option to hop into the legendary SV-001 tank all remain - only instead of pulling a trigger, the player now thinks about position on the grid, turn order, and the combination of each fighter's abilities, each of whom has their own upgrade tree. The game was released simultaneously on PC and the current generation of consoles with no differences in content between versions, though the PC version offers higher resolution, shorter loading times thanks to more powerful hardware, and support for keyboard and mouse alongside the gamepad. Roguelite elements with a procedurally generated campaign and permadeath for units ensure that no run is ever the same as the last, forcing players to rotate through favorite characters instead of relying on a single proven lineup.

Why play it: Metal Slug Tactics will appeal both to series fans curious about an unconventional genre detour and to turn-based strategy lovers looking for a fresh take on the rules, fast matches, and a distinctive visual style.