In some fashion, Metagal is to Megaman as Lego Movie 2 is to my sister. Except I don’t have a sister so Meta will have to suffice till eternity. Metagal is, of course, filled to the top with Megaman style and features. It could probably even pass as a Megaman spin-off featuring the lesser known younger sister that never had a chance to step out into the limelight as her big brother did. But it’s not; Metagal is its own title created by different people. This doesn’t mean that Metagal is not without its own bag of tricks.

Developer: Retro Revolution

Publisher: Ratalaika Games

3 Hours Played // Review Copy Provided // $4.99

A nemesis by the name of Creeper has turned your sisters against you in an unimaginative plot to rule the world. It is up to you, Meta, to save them all and put a final end to Creeper’s mad plans. This is about as close as you get to the Metagal story. It must be pretty emotionally wrenching to have to set off on a journey to save your sisters only to find out they have been cybernetically programmed against you and you must fight them. You’ll have to fill in the rest of the story as Metagal won’t provide it for you till the end. It’s extremely light on the story but its also extremely light on the price tag. We can’t win them all so let’s check out what might make Metagal the newest solid title in your Nintendo Switch library.

Some of the level elements are really fun to play with . . . especially the gravity pads that turn on and off at will

Metagal comes complete with a variety of different weapons to use on top of the normal blaster. Now, I haven’t played a Megaman game in quite some time but some of these weapons come off as pretty imaginative. Ignore my ignorance if we have seen any of these within the past 20 years. The highlights of Meta’s weapon arsenal include the Plasma Shield which provides a temporary front shield to deflect bullets as well as make your shots automatically home onto their targets. This thing is a blast to sit back with and fire away, clearing the screen of enemies before they become a problem. One of my other favorites is the warp bomb which allows you to warp not only yourself but also enemies to the spot your standing while switching places. Powers like this make Metagal just that much better and turn it from a jumping blaster bore fest into a more interesting experience.

“Throughout the game, you will find themed levels with randomly placed and dropped rebirth gears”

Throughout Metagal ‘s levels, you will find a liberal sprinkling of golden gear/ cog-looking pickups. These are “rebirths” and allow you to restart at the nearest screen transition after dying instead of starting over from the very beginning. From all of us that don’t want to play a tough-as-nails Megaman shooter, thank you! Let’s not stop there! Metagal also comes complete with checkpoints at pre-defined locations in each level. Both of these are welcome additions for me. This means we all can spend less time re-playing the same level portions we have mastered and more time making actual progress.

All the hardcore speed-running stats for your crazier folks

All you hardcore purist fans out there are screaming at your screen, I can feel it from here. There’s something in Metagal for you as well. Upon completion of the level Metagal provides you with a results screen which lists your kills, deaths, power used, time, par time, hits, and power level and then assigns you a letter score. Speedrun till your heart is content! I’m not one for speedrunning or trophy chasing though. All of my runs have ended with F or E letter scores. Feel free to let me know how much I suck on Twitter with pictures of your best runs. Considering there are only 8 levels the score and stat tracking might help some gamers get more out of Metagal.

The platforming sections are fun with each having their own unique element

Metagal is a good enough game, but it’s not excellent (or the best thing since sliced bread). I didn’t encounter any real glaring issues other than minor annoyances. For instance, the ability to hold down the shoot button and have it repeatedly shoot would be a nice addition to the already casual-like gameplay that Metagal offers. It also feels like the controls are there to make things more difficult with the slide button being X and the jump button being B. This makes for an awkward dash + jump combination and I didn’t find any button mapping options available. I’m awarding this one a Nindie Nexus half heart. I think Ratalaika Games could have another small hit on their hands; the gameplay just wasn’t extremely enjoyable for me. I’m not daft, I realize Metagal is well-built and offers solid gameplay for those that are interested. If you are a really big fan of Megaman games, you should definitely get this for less than the price of any Venti item on the Starbucks menu. There are definitely worse ways to spend $5 on the Nintendo Switch eShop.

Make sure to swing by the Nindie Nexus Youtube channel and watch a few videos. Wouldn’t you know it, we are also on Twitter! I’m kidding a little there and truly hope you know our Twitter by now. You should also read our review for Angerforce: Reloaded, Zach really seemed to like this one and awarded it the coveted Nindie Nexus Golden Heart.