#surely this cute baby will be in every metroid game after Super Metroid

[maburito]

My Metroid experience so far :

[artistsystemhub]

Metroid stuff and uhh yeah

So we've finally played through all the 2D metroid games, including AM2R, and I've had such a blast. I tried my best to go through the orignal 1 and 2 but just couldn't because of the lack of map, but Zero Mission, AM2R and the official Metroid 2 remake were fantastic anyway.

Honestly I just loved each of the games more and more as I played. So here's a few points about each game.

SPOILERS

ZERO MISSION

Honestly, made the original actually playable for me. It was the first one I played and how I got into the series. It's pretty simple compared to the other ones, but the final section after the escape sequence was just phenomenal.

I do think the zero-suit portion went on for just a little too long but it was worth it just to get the power suit back. Awesome shit. Fuck the mother brain fight though, that thing can just BURN.

SAMUS RETURNS

Samus Returns for the 3DS was really, really fun. I didn't play on hardware (please don't tell on me) so I can't say if the original controls were bad or not. I just love all the little mechanics they added, so many that came back improved in Dread like the parry.

I just didn't quite enjoy some of those metroid fights, and the powerbomb spiderball move was just so obscure and... strange. Also, please stop with the touchscreen stuff, it was so damn hard to change weapons in the middle of a fight.

That being said, I love the final section with the baby metroid. The cutscene was actually pretty cute imo, and a nice contrast against all of the great glory kills you'll see throughout. Great stuff all around, even if Ridley was a liiiittle bit ham fisted into the story.

SUPER METROID

This one is alright, I guess.

I'm kidding, obviously. It's a fantastic game. Now, I wouldn't exactly say it's the best as I personally enjoyed Fusion and Dread more, but I do not blame the people who find this their favorite. Playing through this I felt like that puzzles had just the perfect mix of obscure, foreshadowed and intuitive. It felt fair for the most part, and I just had a lot of fun.

The level design was great, the secrets felt great to find and I just loved exploring each and every new area. Plus with each entry the controls felt more and more refined. Incredible game. Also I saved the animals and that made me feel happy on the inside which something I cherish very much.

Oh and of course the ending + escape sequence, superb stuff.

METROID FUSION

Metroid Fusion really had me hooked with its plot and presentation. The opening cutscene, Samus's new suit design, the concept of the X and SA-X, it was all very intriguing to me from the get go.

Even with Adam telling me where to go at each turn, I felt the frustration Samus probably did. I think the linearity of the game helps its narrative quite a lot, and it was what had me glued to my screen, wanting to see what would happen next to the plot.

The two things about this game I didn't like very much were:

Anything that happened between that shitty spider boss and getting the plasma beam.

Sometimes I felt like I couldn't explore as much as I wanted to, and that I would just have to wait until the end to see most of the secrets.

Probably had my favorite ending yet, though. It was my favorite one until...

METROID DREAD

Metroid Dread was just the pinnacle of everything I played in each of the other games. The game and level design were on point, the narrative and writing were at their best and I just couldn't wait to play more everytime I put the game down.

The controls are snappy, along with the animations. It's for sure the best metroid game mechanics wise. It's responsive, it uses the upgrades in very interesting ways, the shinespark puzzles are the best in the series so far and everything I loved about the previous games was just amplified here.

Can't recommend this game more than I already have, and it seriously made me fall in love with the franchise even more.

AM2R

This fan remake was genuinely really well done. It feels almost official to play, even adding some QOL changes that not even Nintendo did. There's plenty to enjoy here from faithful recreations of particular rooms, to new mechanics to the metroid fights being a bit more interesting due to their arena changes.

Not to mention, it's not made obsolete by the official remake and it doesn't make that obsolete either. It's a lot more faithful to the original and has value on its own even if you've already played the one on the 3DS.

Every single one of these is absolutely worth a playthrough. An incredible series through and through, and I just cannot wait to see what they do with Dread's sequel and Metroid Prime 4.

Oh yeah, the Prime games. I gotta start those.

I hope they're not as bad as people say they are.

- Leaf