Developer: Open Corp. Publisher: Daou Infosys Released: 05/94 Genre: Action
I don’t know when I became aware of bootleg/unlicensed video games but it was when I was very young. We always knew there was something off about the Tengen NES titles that came on black cartridges. But it really came to a head when we somehow got hold of a Korean multi-cart. The world of unlicensed video games from Korea is utterly fascinating, especially on the NES. You can find such gems as Final Fantasy 7, Street Fighter IV and innumerable versions of Contra. Most of these are awful but you can see their hearts were in the right place. Occasionally a gem would come from these unlikely sources and Metal Force might be the best. This Mega Man inspired title is better than it has any right to be and is a great game.
One could easily mistake Metal Force for a Mega Man title. The graphics and their style are similar and even the enemies skew a little too closely to Capcom’s designs like Krion Conquest. But the comparison is only surface level. Metal Force has its own mechanics to stand on its own and despite being an unlicensed title is far better than many of the platformers in the NES library.
Despite its look Metal Force does not have an extensive array of weaponry. There are no colorful bosses to steal weapons from. You have a choice between two: the default wave attack and a boomerang. The boomerang will follow you in an arc once thrown which can be a help or hindrance depending on the situation. It is not much but they get the job done. Technically you can power up each one twice although I never noticed a difference. Power-ups drop often enough that you can and should switch frequently. While it is disappointing that there is not more the game is good enough without more options.
The level design is generally excellent. The stages in Metal Force are not themed although you travel to different planets. While the general gameplay differs from Capcom’s title the stages are where the similarities lie. You will recognize many of the same traps and pitfalls. But unlike Krion Conquest Metal Force does a better job with balance and enemy placement. The levels are long with multiple paths that hide plenty of secrets. The pace is slower than your typical action platformer, more akin to Shatterhand.
If I have one or two criticisms it would be stage length and variety. The levels are massive and although there are multiple routes they become repetitive in short order. You will see the same rooms repeated often as though they had a minimum length quota they wanted to meet. The game would have been better off with shorter stages and more of them. In addition enemy variety is lacking. You will see the same five or six enemies in every stage. One of the best aspects of the Mega Man titles is that aside from each boss having a theme there were similar enemies to match. That feature is sorely missed here.
Metal Force can be on the difficult side at times but I found it fair overall. Both weapons are viable at all times and are reasonably powerful. The various enemies inflict different amounts of damage but never to the point of ridiculousness. Health pills are not too common but seem to drop when you need them. Checkpoints are spread evenly so you won’t have to cover much ground after death. Even though continues are few most will have this licked in an evening which feels about right.
The bosses are an absolute joke and not even worth talking about outside of that fact. Their patterns are so easy to recognize and they never deviate. In fact most of the bosses resemble regular enemies! One in particular looks like a mouser taken from a TMNT title which is not surprising if true. Usually you look forward to and dread boss fights. When they are cool they help elevate the game but if unbalanced can ruin it. In this case they are so thoroughly unremarkable that they simply…..exist.
In Conclusion
Metal Force is the rare unlicensed title that is legitimately great. High production values and polished gameplay make it better than the official titles taking up space on store shelves. This could easily sit alongside the system’s greats if it saw an official release. You will have to turn to emulation or a reproduction cart to play this one but it is worth it.
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