Metal Saver

The appearance of Metal Saver on personal computers was an accident. The game developer, the South Korean company First Amusement, specialized in arcade machines and produced products exclusively for them. And Metal Saver, his third game, was apparently an experiment in moving to other platforms. His success can be judged because this has never happened again.

The game is a platformer with a significant combat component, but it is somewhat unusual: each level is a separate screen with its architecture and opponents. The stage is considered completed as soon as all the enemies are defeated, and it may seem that you can complete Metal Saver quickly and confidently, but we will warn you right away: this is not the case. It's all about the very high difficulty of the battles: even though each defeated foe drops a nice bonus that has a positive effect on the hero's "characteristics", it is not easy to cope with them. Here's what we can expect: large portions of incoming damage, the need to quickly move to a more advantageous position to resist a superior enemy. The lack of any stunned reaction from enemies after a missed hit may shock many fans of the genre. And just one attempt, after which you will have to start all over again...

Theoretically, a co-op in hot seat mode can make the passage easier: you can play in it as a boy or a girl (who can shoot) of your choice, but both simultaneously. In this case, tactical opportunities expand - and victory becomes quite likely, and if not, then at least there will be a friend who will console and support you.

Unfortunately, the game did not reach computers in its entirety and does not contain all levels of the original: this is something like a demo version since a full-fledged commercial release for DOS, alas, never took place. But this does not mean that fans of complex action-oriented platformers and beat-em-ups should bypass Metal Saver. On the contrary, acquaintance with this rare curiosity will enrich their experience, and for other oldgamers, it will be an interesting excursion into the "past that never was."

Review by: Sharp_ey