Metroid 5 Review

It is not an understatement to say that despite being overshadowed by Mario and Link, Samus and her adventures have had an enormous impact on the gaming space. Particularly in the indie developed renaissance we are currently experiencing. It has never been a better time to be a Metroidvania fan. But in a market saturated with excellent examples of the genre, can the progenitor of the style still compete? Can a game with fifteen years of expectation live up to the hype? I have to admit that as October approached I was pretty nervous, maybe even dreading that Metroid 5 would not live up to the impossibly high expectations I had put upon it.

But first some history. Metroid 4 or Fusion as it is better known, released in 2002. That is almost 20 years ago and a true sequel has been a long time coming. It is true we have had a few games in the series since then. A couple of excellent remakes and the much disfavored Other M. Personally I did not hate other M, but it was much more of a sequel to Super Metroid than a continuation of the series and it certainly will never completely live up to the legacy of the other 2D games in the series. The announcement of Dread first happened in 2006 but the game was greenlit and canceled twice. I still remember seeing concepts for Dread on forums and getting excited only to slowly realize the game was just never going to happen.

Then, this year, a Dread trailer dropped! I was over the moon excited but also a little worried. I mean I had played Hollow Knight and Ori one and two over the last few years and while Samus Returns was a nice diversion, it did not quite compete with those giants or even Metroid Super, Fusion and Zero Mission. Mercury Steam had done a good job for sure but I would not call Returns an all time great. Something was just missing, at least for me, and I was worried that Dread would not be able to live up to the hype or expectations.

I got my copy last week, I picked it up a little late to coincide with my birthday and sat down to play it. I should also say that I completed the game on my Switch light. My daughter is also a huge fan of Metroid and Metroidvanias and since I was going to play it first I did not want her to be subject to too many spoilers. So being a good dad I played on the portable. I will go ahead and say that I do not think this was the way the designers intended the game to be played and it largely handicaped me based on the small size of the character on screen and size of my hands being a factor with the small buttons and stretched layout. But these issues are hardly the fault of the developer and in spite of them I am happy to report that Dread did not disappoint.

You can feel the DNA of the whole franchise in this game. The most obvious influence is Metroid Samus Returns of course as the omnidirectional aiming returns as well the melee counter. But the large cohesive world of Super also makes its presence known and the environments really shine. The ambiance rivals even the Ori series with constant little touches in the background of scenes. It truly for the first time since super captured that cohesive world feeling. It really does feel alive and in some cases I wished I could explore down corridors in 3D because the locals were so fully realized. The only thing holding back the game in this department is the inconsistency of fluid transitions from area to area. Elevator and train rides are just a bit too long and even moving from one area of a map to another can sometimes take a few seconds. These would be nitpicks of course if Ori did not closely match the games richness of environments yet still manage to seamlessly, for the most part, transition from area to area. That said the maps are very large and while it is difficult for me to compare them directly to Ori’s in scope, they sometimes felt bigger or more complex than was needed. At times I felt like snaking through areas was a bit tedious, especially when I was item hunting later in the game.

Fusion's influence is the second most prevalent force in the game. It affects the game narratively of course being a direct sequel but even in its presentation and execution it draws on the previous entry for influence. The E.M.M.I. you encounter are very reminiscent of the SA-X from Fusion and instill the same level of tension when you are forced to encounter them. I was worried this mechanic would grow tiresome with so many of them running around each area, but was pleasantly surprised by the variety sprinkled into each encounter with them. Each is unique in some facet made evident by their abilities and the terrain you encounter them in. Acquiring the omega cannon to take them down each time always made me sweat because while I had the power to kill one it meant I needed to find a place to utilize the cannon without getting killed in the process. It was a puzzle and it felt good to solve them. But each time I would charge the cannon it was assured by the design of the environment that it would be a desperate encounter. The progression of Samus in power also plays into these encounters. Each time you grow they grow until one final incredibly cathartic encounter later in the game which I will not spoil. Suffice to say though they feel good to take down.

Another Fusion influence is the difficulty. Hard mode is not unlocked until after you complete the game once so I played on normal. Some of my deaths I am sure were because of the tiny buttons, but others were just because the game's bosses can be particularly relentless. They hit hard and each boss encounter really feels like an event, even if a few are reused from time to time. That did not bother me though because it meant that there were lots of bosses. This game has to have more bosses than any other in the series and none of them felt cheap, too easy or too difficult. On normal mode at least I found the game well balanced and enjoyable. I did not want the game to end when I reached the final area.

So I kept playing, I went item hunting which is not always something I do on an initial playthrough of a game. But I was having fun and wanted more out of the game and in the end I was glad I put in the extra effort. It made the final encounter much easier than I think it would have been otherwise. Not to say the fight itself was easy, far from it, it stands as the most challenging final encounter in any Metroid game to date but I will circle back to that. Some of the collectables are deviously hidden behind skill based challenges reminiscent of Zero Missions. Some of them were so difficult to figure out without guidance and then even harder to pull off. But I got them all and It felt good to get that 100% completion mark on the save file.

Lastly I want to mention the stand out story elements, so if you do not want spoilers skip this paragraph. Raven Beak is an incredible antagonist and foil for Samus and as I stated earlier his final encounter rivals any Ridley or Mother Brain battle in the series. At the end of the second phase, when he ripped off his remaining wing, my jaw dropped. He just feels powerful and intimidating. The story is one of the best in the series, but I like how it really is not the focus, just the vehicle to drive Samus forward. Some may say it is not overtly compelling but I would argue that Metorid M tried and proved that a complex narrative and character development does not a good Metroid game make. That said it does expand the lore in some interesting ways which are compelling and ends in a way much like Fusion did, open. Where will Samus go from here? She is the last remaining Metroid, what does that mean for the galaxy and for her? It feels like a chapter closed on the story of Samus, but a new chapter begins.

In summary I loved Dread. I love the atmospheric storytelling, the sense of dread associated with the encounters and the fully realized world the game takes place in. I love the speed at which Samus moves in this game and the scope added by the zoomed out perspective. I love the art and presentation of the characters and the environments. I love the soundscape and mixing of new and familiar tunes and sounds with totally original tracks. If I had any critiques it would be in the excessive loads, on this hardware and with solid state it really should not be an issue. I understand that the Switch has a little less horsepower to play with then many of its competitors but it stands that other games on the system with similar size and scope play seamlessly, transitioning between areas easily and considering that most of the games in the series felt like fully realized world’s with limited loading of area or at most quick elevator rides the game feels like it could be more optimized than it is. But that is really my only nitpick. The game stands as one of the best in its genre and while I am loath to admit it considering the level of reverence and nostalgia I hold for Super, Zero Mission and Fusion, today right now it may be my favorite Metroid game to date. I will return to it very soon but until then see you all next mission.