The latest Nintendo Direct didn’t have many surprise releases, but the one game that did come out immediately after the presentation caught my eye. Metal Slug Attack Reloaded from SNK recontextualizes the classic side-scrolling shooter series with gameplay more reminiscent of tower defense auto-battle games. Its roots go back to a 2016 mobile game called Metal Slug Attack; while that revelation might make you want to click off the page, you shouldn’t because this game is surprisingly entertaining. Metal Slug Attack Reloaded is a textbook case of how you can take the core ideas and aesthetic of a classic, reinterpret it with a new style of gameplay, and still feel faithful to the franchise at large.