If any one game truly defines the much-used term old-school, I think that game would be Metal Slug. Throughout its seven-year history (which is now on game number five in the arcades), it has barely changed at all. It remains one of the most difficult yet simple games around and uses only a couple buttons and has only five levels... is it for everybody? Not at all.

Even on the easiest difficulty the game is quite challenging, giving you up to five lives per level (one hit loses you a life) and three continues (although the continues send you back to the beginning of the level so they're fairly pointless). The idea is the same as it always has been; you travel through a series of very different levels, shooting the life out of different enemies either by yourself or with a friend. You're equipped with a limited amount of grenades and a pistol with infinite ammo but you won't use that much, as littered through each stage is a variety of different weapons including machine guns, shotguns, lasers, rocket launchers and some other crazy blasters. Finally, each stage has some sort of vehicle to pilot such as mechs, submarines, and even giant elephants or camels.

Each of the five levels is completely different in setting, enemies, vehicles and even weapons. For instance, some levels throw groups of scared military men at you who scream like little Japanese schoolgirls from an anime movie when you approach them, while others have zombies that shoot sludge from their intestines at you that turn you into a zombie on contact. With only five levels it's reasonable to expect that they're different and offer new things, and each one certainly does. Not only that, but they all have multiple routes to take that involve different weapons and enemies, so you'll want to play through each level several times until you've fully explored and found the bits you missed.

Graphically, Metal Slug 3 better look good for being a 2D side-scroller on a next generation console and, aside from a few moments of pixelated graphics, it does look good. All of the four playable characters move very fluidly and the enemies are even smoother and have a lot of lovely (and quite gory) animations. I would have preferred a little more animated background eye-candy, but then again it may have made the game even more difficult, as there is already plenty happening on screen. While all the playable characters look different, there is very little, if any, difference between them when it comes to how they play and control.

The sound in Metal Slug 3 is very arcade like, which means don't expect anything truly amazing out of it, but it does get the job done. Each time you pick up a weapon you hear a voice say the name of it and when the enemies think you've died only for you to re-spawn right next to, their shrieks of alarm are quite funny.

For people who can stick it out, Metal Slug 3 has a bit of replay value for you. Each level has multiple routes to take and two new modes are unlocked upon completion of the final level. It's even more fun when playing through with a buddy, so it makes a good multiplayer game to have a blast with now and then. It's certainly not a doddle, as it can take up to a couple days to beat one level on the hardest setting, which certainly makes it last longer. However, it just doesn't offer enough to warrant the price; unless you're a hardcore fan of the franchise, old-school games or side-scrollers, just make this one a rental.

Reviewed by Christopher Martin for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).