News from the BCR official blog fills us in on this gung ho attitude and just makes me feel a little warm and fuzzy inside. I think it’s great that they’re willing to not only put a lot of polish into this product, but also maintain a level of conviction to it’s source material. Now I can’t wait to punch somebodies face in with a mechanical arm!

If you are a fan of SNK’s venerable series or any old skool 2D run and gunner then this is a no brainer for you. But if you’re a youngster, or noob, or any other reference to being uninitiated to this type of gameplay, or if you just think this is a Contra knock off then pay attention. While the franchise was obviously inspired by Konami’s classic side scroller, the Metal Slug team saw fit to evolve the gameplay with vehicular additions, as well as ramp up the level of sprite animation to 11. This is one of the best in the series with tight classic gameplay, a good set of weapons upgrades, multi-path level design and visuals that have recieved a modest “HD” upgrade but still shine due to the afformentioned level of detail, as well as added humor. It’s really a shame we seldom see this kind of attention to detail in 2D sprite based games anymore. Seeing your character get turned into a zombie, or pudge up from eating to much food may sound silly, but if you appreciate games as art then this is a shining example. But if none of this sounds like your bag, then you may be wondering if the game is “fun” enough for $10. The game is solid, but on the short side. Two player Co-Op is fun, and offers online play as well, which I was unfortunately unable to test, due to none of my friends have yet purchased this game. Any level of the adjustable difficulty is insanely challenging, but you can set the credits to free-play to avoid frustration. Although the majority of achievements will be attained only by the most hardcore.

If you’re comparing this to other XBLA classic releases, then it definately trumps most of old arcade rehashes. If you’re comparing this to playing it in the arcade, it would probably cost the average gamer at least $20 in quarters, or anywhere from $500-$1000 for a Neo Geo unit and the old cartridge. This series is one of the few recent “classics” that doesn’t need to be retouched too much visually, and still holds up well for fans of arcade gameplay. As a fan of SNK games it was nice for me to finally get through the whole game without dropping 2 rolls of quarters in some smelly arcade while some pimply faced kid breathes down my neck reminding me to “shoot that guy.” On free play my wife and I played through in just about an hour and had a blast. So let’s all give some props to old Skool gaming and kick it funky fresh with Metal Slug 3. Peace!