Nearly 200k sprites are featured in Metal Slug Tactics

There was a time when videogames used sprites and nothing else. Platforms like the NES and Super Nintendo feature games made exclusively with sprites. You absolutely had to have multiple people on your team who knew how to craft and animate sprites to make games, and that’s how things remained for nearly 2 decades.

As the industry moved on, the focus shifted over to polygons instead of sprites. While there was a time when it seemed like spritework would be a lost art, indie devs pushed back hard. That helped shift the tide to the era we’re in now, where both big-name game devs and indies alike recognize sprites as not an antiquated method of showcasing visuals, but an art style in and of itself that’s more than worth continuing.

One brand-new game that’s showcasing sprites front-and-center is Metal Slug Tactics, which has been obvious from the various trailers and screens released. The Metal Slug series is known for its absolutely gorgeous spritework, and Tactics very much keeps that tradition alive. As a matter of fact, in an interview with Nintendo Life, developer Leikir Studio and creative director Aurélien Loos pulled back the curtain on the insane amount of pixel work the game features.

According to the team, Metal Slug Tactics features 181,511 in-game sprites and 217,701 lines of code, including 158,337 for gameplay only. Some gamers may think of sprites as an “easier” method of game development due to their retro nature, but those in the industry know they can be as taxing as polygons, if not more so in some instances. With nearly 200k sprites featured in Metal Slug Tactics, we can only imagine how stressful it was crafting every pixel-perfect asset.