Metal Slug Anthology makes it’s way to the Playstation 2 this month and promises to bring all the arcade action that you remember from yesteryear to this fantastic console. The game takes the seven previously released Metal Slug arcade titles and puts them all together in a nice little package and with it’s vehicle combat, explosions and gun blasting action, this was always a game which was popular with the masses.

So how does it fair now that it has reached our Playstation 2? well let’s just say that there are a few issues, to start there is nothing new, all that has happened is that all the previous arcade games have been put on one disc in their original form, nothing added, nothing taken away, although this will probably please the purists, it wont be for everyone. The loads times can also be frustrating, although this is probably more due to the fact that these games are straight ports rather than redesigned classics.

Having got the negative part out of the way though, we have to say that these are still pretty enjoyable games considering how old they are, the action is fast paced and great fun. Each mission is made up of various stages and obviously your goal is to get through these and then meet up with the Big Boss at the end, who is waiting to pummel you into the ground, as you progress through each stage you will collect powerful firearms, grenades, and drive some odd vehicles (battle camel anyone?). The good thing is though that you can distract yourself by doing things like rescuing hostages  and playing mini-games. Each game gives you the option to play by yourself or with a friend and they all follow a similar pattern making them easy to pick up and play.

Although 2D games may be a bit old school for some, you can guarantee some great fun from these games, they are a bit like PS2’s answer to an Xbox Live Arcade game,  although they may be more for fans of the series rather than your casual gamer.

Whether you would like to spend the cash on this game or not, it offers great value by managing to pack in 7 games on one disc, which while quite old still manage to stand up to the test of time, sure they may not be everyone’s idea of fun, but for some this is a bit of a bargain.