Metal Slug Tactics There’s a lot of pressure on your shoulders. THE Metal Slug the series hasn’t seen a new mainline release in many years, so fans of the incredibly animated run and gun games are hopeful that Tactics will be the kind of spinoff that captures the excitement of the franchise in a new format. Developer Leikir Studio is aware of these expectations, but instead of backing down in the face of pressure, it’s using this collective passion to create something unique.
Metal Slug Tactics is a reimagining of the beloved series in a genre that may initially seem at odds with the overall premise of run-and-gun action. Gone are the high-octane races to the finish line, with enemies and vehicles exploding every second. Instead of, players are encouraged to think carefully about their next move as they weave through an isometric map to join your team. It’s a far cry from what fans expect from Metal Slugbut in practice the transition between genders works. Even better, it works great.
Screen speech spoke with Leikir Studio’s creative director, Aurélien Loos, and talked about the challenges of bringing Metal Slug Tactics for lifetranslating run-and-gun tactics into a tactical RPG and the lessons the team learned from the previous game Dishonest Gentlemen.
Leikir Studio had a clear vision from the beginning
Screen Rant: What was it like working with such a beloved franchise? Metal Slug It’s been around for decades and is known as one of the best shoot ’em up games of all time. Was that intimidating?
Aurélien Loos: I wouldn’t say it was intimidating. We were all very passionate about it, because we grew up with the Metal Slug seriesand we were really confident that we could do something amazing with it in the tactical RPG genre. When we started talking to SNK and Dotemu, we knew we wanted to make a Metal Slug game because the series is really, really fun.
If you like run and gun games, just open one and it’s a lot of fun. But we have no experience in [the] genre, so it would be really weird or pretentious for us to say, ‘Oh, we want to make a new run-and-gun game.’ Obviously, they are the experts in the run-and-gun genre. So I think what helped us was focusing on our experience with a new genre. And then it was just excitement and not so much fear.
Screen Rant: How did the idea for Metal Slug Tactics it happened? It’s a big change of direction: was this the original proposal?
Aurélien Loos: From the beginning we wanted to make a tactical game. At the beginning of the project everything came from the desire to work together, because SNK loves working with Dotemu, and Dotemu and Leikir Studio really wanted to work together. When Cyrille Imbert, CEO of Dotemu, spoke to me, he said, ‘Oh, we want to do something with SNK, because they’re great and we have a great relationship with them. But it’s very difficult, because when you think about SNK’s cool IP, they’re all fighting games, and obviously you need to have a studio that specializes in fighting games, or Metal Slug.’ And like I said, Metal Slug is already the perfect run-and-gun series.
So I just proposed, ‘Ah, but we can play a tactical game because it’s our expertise.’ And the Metal Slug universe is really great for a tactical game because you have the military parts and great characters. So it’s really interesting from a gameplay point of view: you have a lot of weapons, a lot of vehicles, bosses and things like that. So it could be perfect. And Cyrille said, ‘Yes, yes, we can do that! We just need to ask SNK,’ and I said, ‘Okay, before we ask SNK if they want this project, let’s make a graphic prototype, because Metal Slug is the pinnacle of pixel art, so you need to be good enough to work. with IP, and in a tactical RPG, we need to do this in an isometric view. It’s a big challenge.
So we started making a graphic prototype to send a love letter to SNK saying: ‘Hey guys, we want to do this and we’re going to show you what we can do, do you love it or not?’ And they loved it! So we were very, very lucky with that..
Screen Rant: I’m glad they were on board with the idea because I know a lot of publishers can be very strict with their IP. In addition to Metal Slugwhat were some other inspirations behind Tactics? Playing, I couldn’t help but think In the gap and Final Fantasy Tactics.
Aurélien Loos: It’s a really good question because the tricky part of the gameplay part… our first idea was to ask how we can inject the philosophy and themes of the run-and-gun genre into a tactical RPG, and that shaped the whole project. For example, in Metal Slug Tactics, movement is everything. It’s very important. You need to move to protect yourself and accumulate energy to use your abilities. So it’s a very different way to play a tactical RPG because you still have to be careful, but you have to move a lot. It was our way of bringing the run-and-gun genre into the tactical RPG. So we were really different. We didn’t have many games that could help us with that.
Into The Breach had a big influence on one specific point: we knew it was important to have short missions to maintain the pace of the game. We want players to be fast because you want to have the run-and-gun spirit. So the inspiration for Into the Breach was more in the rhythm of the missions and nothing else because the game is very specific. So that was a tricky part of the design phase. We were doing something new. It’s always very exciting as a creator, but it’s very difficult because you have no real reference.
Screen Rant: Which character was the hardest to figure out? Balance is obviously a fine line for a rogue game. I’ll say one thing: if I don’t have Eri on my team, there’s a good chance I won’t win this race!
Aurélien Loos: I think the hardest were the first two of the game. For example, Marco was quite difficult. As we design for each character, we start by investigating their history and want to know everything about their past. We want to design mechanics, skills and abilities that are closely tied to the character. Marco is a leader, so at the beginning he was very, very dominated, and after that we tried to find a good balance.
But the thing is, it’s the first character you have in the game, and its mechanics were complex as a starting point. So I think the most challenging characters were the first couple because they set the stage. They are like prototypes. Some of the characters are really tricky to play, but they are designed later in development, so you have time to think about how they should work. So yes, I think Marco and Tarma were perhaps the most difficult.
Lessons learned from Rogue Lords and challenges faced
Creating something new
Screen Rant: Leikir Studio also developed Rogue Gentlemenand I can see some of the DNA of this game in MSTspecifically when it comes to the character’s advanced combat system. What lessons did you learn Rogue Gentlemen when it comes to developing Metal Slug Tactics?
Aurélien Loos: I think we learned two big lessons. The first was the tutorial, because Rogue Lords was a very different game, very innovative, and we didn’t have time to create a big tutorial for it. Thus, half of the players understood the game and discovered how to play as the Devil and “cheat”. When they discovered it, they loved the game and the difficulty. But the other half of the players didn’t understand the need to change the UI and manipulate the game, so they didn’t have a very good experience because, obviously for them, it was too difficult. This was a very difficult lesson for us. We were traumatized by this!
We spent a lot of time on the Metal Slug Tactics tutorial because we needed people to understand that this was a different take on tactical RPGs. As a creator, you want to do something new and different, but that’s always a risk because people are used to playing a certain way. That was the first lesson, the second lesson was more about the roguelike part in terms of game balance and pacing. It was great to have previous experience in this part.
The funny thing is that I think I can say this now, but the first prototype of Rogue Lords was a tactical RPG. It was really different from the game that was released. So yeah, it was really fun to have that connection between the two projects. I think those were the two main lessons.
Screen Rant: What was the most challenging aspect of doing Metal Slug in a new direction? I have to imagine the sprite work and pixel art would have been daunting, given how detailed it is and the franchise’s reputation.
Aurélien Loos: Pixel art was very difficult. From the beginning, we said we wanted to give Metal Slug fans something amazing. That’s why we want to use pixel art, but if you’re asking someone, ‘Do you want to make pixel art of Metal Slug?’ they want to run. And if you ask them, ‘Do you want to do this in isometric view?’ they say, ‘No. Nobody wants to do that. You will suffer! It’s very difficult! But we wanted to do this because, as fans, we wanted to have a pixelated game in the Metal Slug universe. That was the first challenge.
The second challenge was to make a game for fans that didn’t play like a normal Metal Slug game. We were really scared that people would just say, ‘I don’t want that. I really hate it. When we announced the game, we hadn’t even finished pre-production yet, but it was amazing. People loved it and we got some great messages and stuff like that. So we were very happy that fans were open to Metal Slug Tactics. It’s a big difference, but it’s another way to discover this super fun universe. So maybe one day we’ll have a new Metal Slug. But yes, we were very scared.
Screen Rant: I remember watching the ad trailer that came out a few years ago and I remember sitting at my desk thinking, ‘A Metal Slug Tactical RPG? I don’t know…’. And the more the concept crossed my mind I thought, “That’s actually a really good idea!” With all the different weapons and enemies, the zones and levels, it settles right there, you know? It’s there to be done. And clearly, it works!
Aurélien Loos: It’s really funny you said that because we had exactly the same feeling when I said the idea to Cyril. I said, ‘You know, man, we need to make a tactical game in the Metal Slug universe.’ It was just silence and we were looking at each other, and he said, ‘Yes, you’re making a lot of sense!’ Just like you!
Screen Speech: Metal Slug Tactics It’s the kind of game that lends itself to expansions and additional content. Can you give a hint if there are plans for DLC?
Aurélien Loos: I don’t know, to be honest with you, we haven’t thought about it, because we’re just focused on the base game. The game is really huge and on average we were six people working on it, so it was quite a challenge. So if we have something to do, it would make sense. If we have something fun or really relevant to do, and people are asking for it, then maybe, but really, I don’t know.
Screen Rant: Finally, as a creative director, do you have any tips or suggestions for Metal Slug fans who may feel intimidated by Tactics angle?
Aurélien Loos: Yes of course. I think you need to understand that you need to move. Because when you move, you generate two resources: You generate dodges that protect you from enemies and generate adrenaline that allows you to unleash your best powers. So you need to move.
More than that, you have a mechanic called Synchronization that can give you a free attack. But you need to move and set up correctly. Positioning is important because it allows for better defenses and timing kills. I think if you do that, everything will be fine and you will look great. Be on the move, run and shoot, and everything will be great