Metal Slug 3 (Neo Geo)

Metal Slug 3 - it's big, it's hard to the core, and it's awesome.

Unused Sound
The game's title announced out loud in a bombastic way, similar to the previous Metal Slug games. Funnily enough, the trend of silent Metal Slug title screens began with this game.

Unused Stage
Warping to 2: 2 2-1 with the stage select debug will lead you to this one-and-only true unused stage of the game. This is similar to the first part of Mission 3 in Metal Slug, albeit looking a little evening with some girders added here and there. There are only one type of zombie here with no items, aside from the unique lifts which are only seen here and the transport pod at the top.

Using the pod will warp you to 2: 3 1-1, the area near the Girida-Os. With the amounts of lifts on both sides of the area, it may be used to test elevators in 3: 3 1-3.

Debug Mode
It is worth noting this Debug menu is shared by Metal Slug 2, X, 3, 4, and 5.

To access the debug mode, open the game in Console Mode and set debug developer mode On at the Neo Geo boot-up screen: this can be done via the Kawaks emulator, the Nebula emulator or using the NeoGeo UniBios.

Enter the game, and press COIN up the game twice during gameplay: after pausing, the debug menu will appear - with options to activate the debug dipswitches (which can be activated separately through other options using Kawaks) and even the ability to play on any regular level, and even some test levels not available in the actual game. There is also a Sound Test screen. Starting from this game onwards, the color test option is no longer available.

SET DEBUG DIP

 * ムテキ - Invincibility
 * VIEW INFOMATION - View debug information.
 * イシデモＰＡＵＳＥ - Pause at any time?
 * VIEW GEO SCROLL A - 1st plane check, shows the walkable ground, makes the foreground choppy as it scrolls when activated. May linger around if not turned off proper.
 * VIEW GEO SCROLL B - 2nd plane check, makes the background choppy as it scrolls when activated.
 * VIEW ATTACK RECT - View attack hitbox.
 * VIEW BODY RECT - View body hitbox.
 * VIEW PUSH RECT - View hitboxes for certain enemies.
 * ムセイケソ　ゾレネード - Infinite grenades.
 * ムセイケソ　ＰＯＷガソ - Infinite ammunition.
 * ＶＩＥＷ　ＰＡ　ポイント - A sprite appears, showing the player's respawn point.
 * Ｄボタソ、テキ　ゼソメツ - Press D to destroy all onscreen enemies (no score bonuses)
 * ＰＡＵＳＥ - Disables the blinking pause message.
 * BGM OFF - Turns off the BGM.
 * WARN - Purpose unknown.

STAGE SELECT
A stage select screen can be accessed from the debug menu. Unlike Metal Slug X, there is only one unused stage in 3.



Skipping straight to areas after the kidnapping in 5: 3 1-2 will default the kidnapped character to Marco. Bizarrely, even if you rescued Marco the zombie clones will be Eri. And she also pilots the UFO at the end. On the ending, both Marco and Eri will be at the ending.



TEST STAGE
This set of bizarre test stages can also be played from the debug menu.




 * Andy the Wizard is an empty Mission 2, with only a Type-R Metal Slug with regular color at the start of the level. The level is completely silent from music, and the level stops scrolling somewhere after the area with the Girida-Os.
 * FOR 2 is the area if you take the upper path in Mission 1, with the barrels of flying piranhas. Scrolling is absent here and the only object available is a Rebel Armour. The level is silent again and you parachute in, strangely.
 * FOR 3 is the same area as FOR 2, but instead of a Rebel Armour, there’s two giant crabs there. After killing them, you can scroll right and find two more spawning from out of nowhere, and once they’re vanquished, the level stops scrolling.
 * FOR 4 is the area where you rescue General Morden from the aliens' torture chamber (5: 8 1-7), but it stops scrolling before the machine he’s trapped in would be, and the only objects are those sinking tanks you find in Mission 3. Weird.
 * FOR 5 is the same area as FOR 2 and 3, but there’s no objects anywhere at all, you can scroll all the way to the end, and the boss music plays here.
 * MEE HER appears to be the same as the area you see in FOR 5 and more, but it has the objects you find when you go there in the actual game. There are some minor differences however, like finding an ordinary prisoner instead of Uka, getting access to a Mobile Satellite, and finding Satiko Suzuki (the girl from Metal Slug's ending), near the prisoner. Level is completely silent (again) and when you reach the end, you will restart the area again.
 * FOR 7 is exactly the same as the warehouse area in Mission 3 (3: 3 1-3). If you reach the end you will restart the test area.
 * FOR 8 is simply an empty Mission 2. Boring.
 * FOR 9 is Mission 2 again, but now has a Slug Flyer, a Metal Slug which behaves like a Type-R, and a Type-R Metal Slug to choose from at the beginning. Otherwise, The level’s empty up until the area where you find the Girida-Os, where a number of them will spawn to attack you and then the level stops scrolling.
 * FOR 10 is the area in Mission 5 (specifically 5: B 1-A) right after you fight the Rootmars for the first time. Oddly enough the ending music plays here. Like MEE HER and FOR 7, the level loops back as you reach the end.

SOUND TEST
SFX and BGM test screen. Unlike the previous games, Metal Slug 3 actually has a coherent sound test menu. Exiting this screen will boot you back to the title screen.

RESET
The final option in the debug menu will reset the game.