I love ridiculous plots and good gameplay. When you can create that type of duo for a game, then you’re in for a treat. And this game, dear readers, is a treat.
Metal Suits: Counter Attack from developer Eggtart is a side-scrolling, 2D platformer that is packed with action and all of it is driven by a variety of suits. The game is fast, furious, and a low-grade difficulty Mega Man. Packed with interesting bosses, clever levels, and so-so-repetitive enemies, the game hits the right marks more than it misses.
So, sit back, make sure to watch out for that missile heading towards your ship, and let’s get this review on!
Story
Simple story, simple pleasures, but also a simple tragedy. You play as Kevin, a space military retiree minding his own business with his best dog at his side when out of nowhere they are attacked by an alien race called the Golida. The alien race decides to approach Kevin’s ship and blow it sky-high, which sends Kevin and his dog out and about through space. Floating in space, slowly charging toward death, Kevin is rescued and rebuilt by an AI and he soon becomes a different, deadlier Kevin who is mostly a cyborg but all killing machine, and he’s in the mood for revenge.
This story screams, “I just need a reason for action”, and it gives you one. The structure of this action-packed adventure is similar to any action film from the 80s. It sets up a ridiculous scenario for the hero to overcome by bringing the bad guy in with a violent swoop and getting shit started for no good reason. It’s just so darn simple, which makes it so darn entertaining. And you have to appreciate that simplicity just a little, especially when it comes to the one reason that Kevin is truly pissed – the death of his dog.
Much like John Wick, Kevin’s need to get revenge on an entire race of aliens because they killed his dog is enough to drive the entire adventure. You want these yahoos to be taken out in memory of a cool poodle that broke apart in the black void of space. In all honesty, the story is ridiculous but also fun. It sets the tone for the rest of Kevin’s mayhem and doesn’t apologize along the way.
Is it the most compelling video game story? Not at all, but it’s good enough for a game of this type. It gets the setup done quickly and beautifully. And do you want a longer story attached to this? This isn’t a Kojima game, so no. Give the player a reason through Kevin’s grief and that’s enough to go blow some shit up. Easy-peasy.
Gameplay
Metal Suits: Counter Attack is a love letter to every 2D platformer from the early PC/NES days. It’s got a little Commander Keen going on with a heavy dose of Mega Man. The former is more about how Kevin can traverse different locations and must figure out the best methods and strategies to survive. Commander Keen lived off that concept for years and was wildly popular because of its consistent structure and endless action.
Now, shares a lot with Mega Man because of the suits included in the game. While it would have been easy just to throw in a few guns and call it a day, the good folks at Eggtart seemed hellbent on creating entirely different weapon experiences with every new acquisition in the game. Kevin has his choice of weaponry through drops where he could put on a suit for bombs, a suit for light-sabering (so much fun), a suit driven by an electric guitar using an electric beam, and even a giant bear suit that tosses out explosives. There are more than just those, but you get the picture. The suits drive the action and they give the player a choice of how they want to approach a situation. Suits do not drive solutions through levels of the game, which means you won’t depend on them to progress, rather they drive the action. The levels and how those play out are wholly other beasts.
Speaking of beasts, the aliens you use the suits on are probably the weakest part of the game. While you progress through the game, the Golida empire will spark new aliens but mostly you’ll just be slashing and bashing your way through the same types of enemies throughout the experience. While that never really gets old due to other gameplay factors, it is still noticeable. That’s a minor complaint in the scheme of things, as your attention will be turned to completing complicated and fun levels, but it’s still one that exists.
While the lower enemies are the same, thankfully the actual bosses are creatively different from each other. For example, there is one level that features a flying mechanical octopus-type creature that has lasers for tentacles. It’s got a variety of moves that can keep you on your toes and the level built around it is purely based on the idea of the robot’s design. This means you have lots of up/down escape routes to avoid lasers and crushing blows the beast might attempt on Kevin. There is also another boss that looks like a weapon of war (tank) that is fast, furious, and unforgiving when you don’t time your jumps right. And that level contains high platforms that you can jump up to avoid the boss when it decides it wants to ram you. Each level features a boss like these and that boss is built for the level that surrounds it, which makes the boss fight different and engaging. In short, the bosses are so well done and unique, but the lower enemies are kind of dull. The latter are still fun to take out.
Regarding those levels, the designs for each stage are cleverly and carefully executed. You will have stages based in the wild where there are large ledges and climbable areas where you have to think on your feet to get through. You’ll have other levels that are more mechanical and have a bevy of explosives and light beams to take you from stage to stage. The coolest level I played during this review period was a level that featured transporter doors that would take you to other doors on the stage. The doors were everywhere and you had to figure out which went to where to get through the level. It was clever, and fun, and it never got old. Whatever part of the dev team was in charge of level design deserves a raise. They did a phenomenal job of laying this game out from chapter to chapter (always different).
As for other odds and ends in the game, there are a series of collectibles for Kevin to find and snag. You can find badges in secret places, extra lives, and ammo refills. The former will bring a slight amount of exploration to the experience, which is always good with a 2D platformer. You never want your player to get bored and Metal Suits: Counter Attack does a wonderful job of taming that feeling.
Finally, the controls in the game are so smooth. They feel comfortable and don’t get in the way of the fast action. Jumping, climbing, shooting, and charging are laid out well and complement whatever action is going on. I can’t remember the last 2D platformer where I didn’t have to stop and think about controls to pull off moves and avoid gunfire. I didn’t think about these controls at all, as their simplicity allowed me to stay focused on level traversing and enemy disposal.
The level design, bosses, controls, and suits, as well as the ridiculous and fun story, make the overall gameplay of Metal Suits: Counter Attack a treat to play. This is more than the typical 2D platformer, as the folks at Eggtart did a great job of putting together a fun and thrilling action game. I enjoyed this experience more than I thought I might. I will certainly be back to play the game once this reviewing thing calms down. So, see you when I retire, Metal Suits: Counter Attack.
On that note, let’s wrap up this review.
Conclusion
Metal Suits: Counter Attack from developer Eggtart is a clever and fun 2D platformer packed with good action, clever weapons, and wonderful boss and level design. While the common enemies in the game aren’t anything to write home about, the overall body of work is very well done.
