9. Metroid Dread (2021)
- Final score: 53 points
- Total placements: 5 lists
- Highest placement: #5, Q
Casey writes:
The first fully new 2D Metroid game since 2002’s Metroid Fusion, Metroid Dread takes place at what is currently the end of the chronology of the Metroid series. It’s got a lot of plot, I guess, though to be honest with you I don’t remember a lot of the details. There’s an evil Chozo guy and he’s trying to use all the evil pre- and post- Metroid organisms that Samus has been worried about, and possessed by, since the franchise realized it needed to expand beyond “Metroids bad”. He’s also reprogrammed these weird robot things to stalk through specific sections of the map, turning an otherwise standard 2D Metroid game into an occasionally terrifying and frequently frustrating series of chase sequences.
That said, it’s interesting to see the series iterate and make use of the increased capabilities of the Switch over platforms like the SNES and Game Boy Advance, and overall the game is very cool, very satisfying, and has the usual well-distributed collection of optional secrets and challenges to upgrade your character, letting you decide whether you prefer to try and max out your character’s capabilities or charge ahead through tougher boss battles.
Schnei writes:
This game does a lot of things right and is an absolute joy to play. The confident nod to speedrunning/sequence breaking with the Kraid bomb kill getting a unique cutscene tells me that they respect their audience, which I appreciate all the more, coming from a Nintendo first-party(-ish) release. It just doesn’t stretch boundaries in the way or to the extent that Super Metroid did, much less HK or Animal Well. I would have adored this game in 2005. I refused to let my nephew play it because the EMMI death spike is just yikes. WTF. Super effective storytelling through gameplay though!