Another Day, Another Strategy

Another day, another strategy

Marco, Eri, Tarma, and Fio are in the strategy room, planning their attack against another Rebel Army base. They're almost done strategising, but Tarma realises that something important is missing in the plan.

Tarma: Something is off here...

Marco: *lets out a heavy sigh, anticipating his response* What is it this time?

Eri: *crosses her arms and gives Tarma an unimpressed look* Let me guess… It’s-

Before Eri can say anything else, Tarma slams a toy version of the SV-001 into the centre of the map that's sprawled out across the wooden table.

Tarma: Y'all are forgetting about the Metal Slug, the most precious thing on the battlefield.

Eri smacks her forehead with the palm of her hand as she and Marco want to approach this as a stealth mission. Meanwhile, Fio places Peppino, her teddy bear, on a toy version of the SV-001 for laughs, but it only elicits a chuckle from Tarma.

Marco: Tsk… Fine! We’ll include the SV-001 into the plan.

Tarma: Hell yeah! *he proclaims in triumph as he excitedly run towards the garage*

Eri: For fuck’s sake! I swear on my mother’s grave that Tarma gives me a brain aneurysm.

Fio: It’s okay, Eri. I bet he’ll take good care of it. *patting Eri on the back as a way to comfort her*

Fio grabs Peppino and leaves the strategy room, then makes her way to the garage, where Tarma is checking on the SV-001.

Eri: *she firmly grasps the toy SV-001 in her left hand and glares at it* That son of a bitch will most likely destroy the slug again.

Marco: *he lets out another heavy sigh and covers his face with his hands, regretting his decision* I’m beginning to question why I brought him into this unit…

A few months old assortment of MS Related sketches.

redraw + tarma

..now i wanna draw marco as a plant angel

Cutting up an onion

After a long day of training and strategizing with the new recruits, Trevor and Nadia, everyone agreed it was the perfect time for a barbecue. Eri assigned Nadia to onion-cutting duty…

Nadia is cutting the onion, but starts to sniffle and her eyes water from its potency. However, this is clearly an act, meant to deceive. An oblivious Fio doesn't suspect a thing. As Fio is about to walk past her, she hears Nadia's sniffling and feels compelled to help. Nadia can't help but smirk slightly, before quickly changing to a neutral expression as Fio approaches her.

Fio: Hey, Nadia? Are you okay?

Nadia: *stops cutting and looks up at Fio, wiping away a couple of tears trickling down her face* I’m fine. It’s just that this onion is so damn strong!

Fio: Want me to cut it?

Nadia: Yeah, sure thing, Fi-Fi!

Nadia gets out of the chair and steps aside, giving Fio the opportunity to sit down and chop the onion. However, to Nadia's utter shock and surprise, Fio barely makes a few cuts before bursting into tears and sobbing uncontrollably.

Nadia: Eh?! What the hell was that, Fi-Fi?! You didn’t even cut the goddamn onion!

Fio: *begins to speak through her tears as she puts the knife down on the cutting board* Onion… too… strong… It has scary power! Too much! *sniffles shortly after*

Nadia puts her hands on her hips, pouting slightly. Suddenly, she comes up with a great idea.

Nadia: Trevie! *takes a deep breath* TREVORRRRRR!

Trevor: What do you want?! I’m busy updating the security systems!

Nadia: Get your ass over here! We need help ASAP!

Trevor immediately runs over with swift precision, knowing that Nadia's call for help is urgent and serious. As he approaches Nadia and Fio, he slows down, his expression changing to one of slight confusion, his brow furrowed in puzzlement.

Trevor: Why is Fio crying?

Nadia: *she lets out a heavy sigh* The onion is too strong for Fio’s poor eyes… Can you cut it?

Trevor: *pauses for a brief moment before answering* Sure thing. Let the master of cutting handle this tricky situation. *pointing at himself with confidence as he said that*

Fio moves out of the way, giving Trevor some space as he snatches the knife and begins to cut the onion. He starts off confidently, slicing through the vegetable with ease, but his composure is short-lived. As soon as he catches a whiff of the potent onion, he dramatically passes out, falling to the floor with the knife still clutched in his hand. This sudden collapse scares Nadia and Fio, leaving them in shock.

Nadia: *she falls to her knees and tries to wake up Trevor by shaking him, but nothing happens* Oh, shit! Man down! MAN DOWN!

Fio: That onion is diabolical! *she says this in a nervous manner*

Tarma suddenly arrives at the scene, drawn by the commotion coming from the garage where the SV-001 is stored.

Tarma: Holy fuck! What happened to Trevor?

Nadia and Fio fearfully point at the onion without saying a word.

Tarma: Okay…

Tarma tries to remain calm, but he can't help feeling a tad irritated by all this "drama". Just then, Fio rushes over to him, using him as a shield to hide from the onion as Nadia continues to gently shake Trevor.

Tarma: *he looks at Fio with a raised eyebrow* You want me to cut up the onion?

Fio: Y-yes…

Tarma: Alrighty. I got you covered.

Tarma approaches the cutting board with Fio staying close behind. He pulls out his combat knife and proceeds to silently slice the onion into bite-sized pieces, his eyes remaining dry and unaffected. Just as he finishes, Eri arrives right on time.

Eri: Urm… *she points at Trevor* Is this why it took so long to cut up the onion?

Fio explains the whole ordeal to Eri.

Eri: … Why are Nadia and Trevor so fucking dramatic over an onion?

Fio nonchalantly shrugs.

Nadia: The onion was too strong.

Eri: So what? I fucking told you to cut up the damn onion and, of course, you had to get Fio involved.

Tarma notices the situation is becoming increasingly awkward, so he decides to leave and walk back to the garage. Eri rolls her eyes as Nadia remains silent, then takes the cutting board laden with onion and walks over to Marco. Meanwhile, Trevor finally wakes up and begins giggling with Nadia.

Trevor: That was amazing!

Nadia: It sure is! You killed, Trevie! At least I didn’t have to cut up the onion this time. *bursting out into laughter*

Trevor: *he pats Nadia on the back* You always have a trick up your sleeves.

Fio gives them a shocked yet unimpressed look, then casually walks away from the two. Fio tells Eri that it was apparently a trick Nadia used to avoid cutting the onion. After dinner has been served and everyone's appetite has been satisfied, Eri unleashes an earful on Nadia and Trevor, one they will never forget. Later that day, Fio took a moment to thank Tarma for cutting up the onion, feeling grateful for his help.

Metal Slug X: Completion Review + Other Thoughts

I've finally completed the last game that the Metal Pack emulator has to offer.

I decided to skip the Current Review this time because I honestly don't have much to say. I also chose Eri for this run.

Review:

When playing through the game, I realised that my skills from the original Metal Slug 2 have slightly improved. If I'll be honest, due to playing Metal Slug 2, I had a somewhat easier time anticipating enemy attack patterns and spawn locations. With the skills I've slowly developed, I was able to go through the game with slight ease. I still died many times throughout my entire playthrough, but it felt like less compared to playing through Metal Slug 2. I've been hoarding bombs like a madman most of the time (I try to save them for bosses). I've also been trying my best to manage bullets and keep the vehicles as damage free as possible.

I'm glad the framerate issue has been dealt with, making it easier to get through. I also like how SNK was willing to add more stuff to Metal Slug X than the original and rearrange a few things. It makes Metal Slug X a far more enjoyable experience compared to the original.

I managed to rescue Hyakutaro twice for this run, which is amazing! I was pretty surprised that I saved him this time...

I recaptured 70 prisoners and got a high score of 3656220! I did a much better job with recapturing prisoners compared to my first run of Metal Slug 2. I almost failed the final boss and a small part of me wanted to give up. However, I persisted through the fight because I wanted to try and not lose a decent amount of recaptured prisoners.

Overall, this is one of the better Metal Slug games out there and I'm glad that SNK gave Metal Slug 2 another chance.

Other Thoughts:

I still have a Metal Slug OC I need to complete, but I don't have a lot of ideas for that as of late.

I'm glad that they put some effort into the end credits. It's not as good as the first, third, and fifth games. However, I did enjoy looking at the concept art they provided for the end credits.

I do plan on replaying a couple of the games, primarily Metal Slug 3.