Metal Slug Ultimate Collection Sets 2027 Return With New Game Tease

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Store links: Metal Slug Ultimate Collection on Steam

SNK is packaging the arcade run-and-gun era for 2027

SNK has announced Metal Slug Ultimate Collection for 2027, and the hook is bigger than another retro bundle. According to SNK details reported by Invision Community, Nintendo Everything, Inven Global, DayOne, TheXboxHub, and Push Square, the compilation will collect 10 Metal Slug releases across arcade, handheld, and console history for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.

The immediate tension is in the name. “Ultimate Collection” sounds like a vault being thrown open, but the confirmed lineup is specific: the mainline run from Metal Slug through Metal Slug 7, Metal Slug Advance, and a Metal Slug Location Test Version. Inven Global’s headline describes the package as featuring every title in the franchise, but its own article text narrows that to nine major entries plus the previously unreleased location test version. Based on the sourced lineups, readers should treat this as a 10-title anniversary collection, not confirmation that every spin-off or later project is included.

That still makes Metal Slug Ultimate Collection the most aggressive modern push for the series’ classic identity in years. The first Metal Slug launched in arcades in 1996, and SNK is positioning this as part of the franchise’s 30th anniversary push. For a shooter series built on tight screen control, brutal enemy pacing, and instant punishment, the appeal is clear: SNK is putting the cabinet-era skill check back in front of current console and PC players, then pairing it with quality-of-life systems that could make the games less hostile to newcomers without sanding off the scoring chase.

The confirmed lineup runs from the 1996 arcade original to Metal Slug 7

The announced list starts with Metal Slug, released in 1996 for NEOGEO MVS, then moves through Metal Slug 2, Metal Slug X, Metal Slug 3, Metal Slug 4, and Metal Slug 5. Invision Community and DayOne both identify those early entries as NEOGEO MVS releases. The collection then stretches beyond the arcade baseline with Metal Slug Advance from Game Boy Advance, Metal Slug 6 from PlayStation 2, and Metal Slug 7 from Nintendo DS.

That spread matters because Metal Slug’s reputation is often frozen around the first few arcade games, especially the original, X, and 3. Those entries define the series for many players: heavy weapons that chew through waves, prisoners who become upgrade routes, vehicles that change the tempo, and bosses designed to fill the screen with readable but punishing patterns. Bringing Advance, 6, and 7 into the same package gives the collection a wider historical arc than a simple NEOGEO sampler.

The extra draw is the Metal Slug Location Test Version. Nintendo Everything’s quoted description calls it legendary and rarely shown to the public, while Invision Community says it has never been officially released. Inven Global adds that the location test version of the original Metal Slug was presented for testing before the arcade launch and was never commercially released, making it difficult for ordinary players to experience. Push Square describes it as the first ever console release of the build.

For longtime arcade fans, that is the collector-grade piece. Location test builds can expose balance, level, enemy, or presentation choices that changed before final release. None of the provided sources detail exactly how this Metal Slug build differs from the final arcade game, so that remains an open question. Still, official access to a pre-release arcade build is a rare preservation move, and it gives the collection a reason to exist for players who already own individual Arcade Archives versions or older anthologies.

Modern features aim at practice, scoring, and survival

SNK is adding modern options to a series that was designed to eat credits. Invision Community reports quick save, quick load, and rewind functionality, with rewind allowing players to step back a few seconds after a mistake. Nintendo Everything’s quoted information confirms the same quality-of-life features and says available features and game modes vary by title.

That last caveat is important. Metal Slug’s difficulty is part of its identity, but the games were built for arcade throughput, not frictionless home completion. Rewind changes the training environment. It lets players drill grenade timing, boss safe spots, jump arcs, and weapon routing without restarting a full run. For score-focused players, quick recovery tools can become practice aids rather than replacements for a clean run, assuming leaderboards and attack modes maintain their own rulesets.

The collection is also set to include Score Attack and Time Attack modes, according to Invision Community, with online rankings or leaderboards reported by Invision Community, Nintendo Everything, Inven Global, and Push Square. That is the right competitive pressure point for Metal Slug. The campaigns are short by modern standards, but the ceiling comes from routing prisoners, managing weapons, milking or deleting enemies efficiently, and keeping deaths off the board. Score and time modes turn the package from a nostalgia lane into a place where old hands can actually compare execution.

Combat School Mode is also returning. Invision Community describes it as a mode designed to teach basic controls and techniques, while Nintendo Everything’s quoted info says it will cover fundamentals and advanced techniques. Inven Global reports that Combat School returns with expanded content. If SNK lands that mode properly, it can solve the franchise’s onboarding problem: Metal Slug looks readable and cartoonish, then immediately demands movement discipline, jump control, weapon priority, and threat recognition.

Co-op is confirmed in coverage, but the scope still needs precision

For a run-and-gun series, co-op details are not a side note. Push Square reports that the collection will feature online co-op. Nintendo Everything’s quoted description also lists co-op play, and Inven Global says online multiplayer is supported. The provided sources do not specify which titles support online co-op, whether every included game will have it, or whether rollback netcode or another networking model is being used.

That uncertainty is worth flagging early. Metal Slug co-op lives and dies on latency because the screen is dense, enemies can appear from both sides, and boss patterns punish late reactions. A rewind button helps solo learning, but online co-op needs clean input response and stable synchronization to feel right. The sources confirm co-op support in some form, but they do not provide netcode details, lobby structure, cross-play information, matchmaking options, or whether local co-op is present across all applicable titles.

Push Square also reports that the collection is being handled by M2, identifying the studio as known for retro re-releases. That is a notable production detail because a collection like this is judged on input latency, scaling, screen options, emulation accuracy, button mapping, and how extras are integrated. The source material does not provide technical specifications, frame pacing claims, display filters, platform performance targets, or controller features, so those remain practical questions for later trailers, store pages, or hands-on impressions.

The useful read for now: Metal Slug PS5 Xbox classic games support is confirmed through the announced platform list, Switch and Switch 2 are also in, and Steam covers PC. The deeper buyer questions, especially online feel and version-by-version feature support, are still unanswered.

The new Metal Slug game tease changes the collection from archive to reboot signal

The collection announcement landed alongside a tease for a new Metal Slug game. Push Square reports that SNK announced Metal Slug Ultimate Collection as well as a brand-new entry in the arcade shooter series, and says the new game is only briefly mentioned at the end of the trailer with no details revealed. Inven Global connects the announcement to SNK’s previously discussed 30th anniversary project, noting that SNK had shown “MISSION REBOOT” and “A NEW MISSION AWAITS” in an anniversary video and said it would pursue multiple projects, including new games, aimed at reigniting the franchise.

That is the part arcade fans should watch closely. A preservation package can celebrate the past, but a new Metal Slug game has to answer a harder design question: what does this series become when it is no longer tied to coin-op economics? The classics are fast, punishing, readable, and packed with animation. Their pacing is built around short missions, escalating chaos, and the constant tradeoff between aggression and survival. A modern entry has to respect that snap without turning into a museum piece.

No platform, release window, developer, gameplay format, title, price, or footage for the new game is confirmed in the provided sources. It is a tease, not a full reveal. That distinction matters because Metal Slug’s recent public profile has included different kinds of revivals and adjacent projects, and fans will naturally wonder whether a new entry means a traditional side-scrolling shooter, a reimagined format, or something else. The sources do not answer that yet.

Still, the timing is deliberate. By putting the 2027 Metal Slug collection in front of Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC players, SNK is rebuilding the reference point before asking fans to judge a new mission. If the collection lands well, it creates an active audience that remembers how the weapons, vehicles, enemy pressure, and co-op chaos are supposed to feel.

Release timing, price, and buying advice for now

Metal Slug Ultimate Collection is scheduled for 2027. Invision Community, Nintendo Everything, Inven Global, DayOne, Push Square, and TheXboxHub all report the 2027 window, but none of the provided sources include a specific release date. Inven Global explicitly notes that a specific date has not been announced.

The confirmed platforms are Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam, according to Invision Community and Inven Global. DayOne also lists Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, and PC via Steam. No source material provided here confirms price, physical editions, collector’s editions, upgrade paths between Switch and Switch 2, cross-buy, Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, demo plans, or minimum PC requirements.

If you are already deep into Metal Slug through older anthologies or individual releases, the strongest reasons to watch this package are the Location Test Version, M2’s reported involvement, online rankings, attack modes, and any eventual confirmation about input latency and online co-op quality. If you are new, the value will likely come from the training tools and rewind support, provided the collection still preserves the clean arcade rules for scoring and leaderboards.

The smart move is to wait for SNK to clarify three things before treating this as a locked purchase: which features apply to which games, how online co-op works, and whether the new Metal Slug game tease turns into a concrete reveal. For now, Metal Slug Ultimate Collection is confirmed as a 2027 anniversary collection with 10 announced titles and modern support features. The comeback story is larger than the box, but the next round depends on execution.