![]() ![]() What better way to refresh the series than to let you play as another character while Samus becomes the villain in Prime 4? She’s a Metroid, after all. Samus is great, but it’s time for a new protagonist. ![]() Nowadays, that twist probably wouldn’t fly, but in 1986, this was groundbreaking and novel. In fact, the original Metroid game ended with Samus taking her helmet off, revealing you were playing as a woman the whole time (gasp). It wouldn’t be the first time a Metroid game surprised us with some sort of big character reveal. Or perhaps you play as a “good” clone of Samus sent by the Galactic Federation Army. Better yet, the big twist could be something like we get in NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… where the villain and hero are essentially the same characters reincarnated. It’s possible Nintendo could revisit this general idea in the next Prime game.īut with Samus as the villain, who would you play as? What if you could take on the role of another bounty hunter whose goal is to defeat Samus? This would be a switcheroo on the same level as Metal Gear Solid 2, subverting expectations and putting us into the shoes of another protagonist. There’s obviously also Dark Samus and SA-X, both of which are evil doppelgängers of the character. But in this game, space pirates temporarily turn Samus into the villain by using mind control. It’s one of the worst games in the series, so many players skipped it. Interestingly, Nintendo toyed with this idea briefly in Metroid Prime: Federation Force. So what if that Metroid power overtakes Samus, turning her into the antagonist in Prime 4 at a point in time after the events of Dread? That’s right, she not only has Metroid DNA in her body, but she is a Metroid. Metroid Dread ends with Samus unleashing her true Metroid powers. This would be an unexpected twist, but could certainly make sense. With that in mind, it’s perfectly reasonable that Prime 4 could take place after the events of Dread, which is the newest game in the timeline. A lot happens between those two points, and since it’s unclear when Prime 4 will actually take place, we can’t assume it will pick up right after the events of the third Prime game. The Prime series canonically takes place shortly after the very first Metroid game, but before the second mainline installment, Metroid II: Return of Samus. I'm all the more impressed that it did.At the end of Dread, Samus’ Metroid powers come through with full force. With Dread, MercurySteam made a game that feels like a true successor to the Metroid games of old. A new 2D Metroid game after all these years? One with this level of care and attention? Featuring rock-solid performance, HD graphics, and the most fluid movement and combat the series has ever had? It's insane. That's why Metroid Dread was such a revelation. Who knows, maybe it'll be the next big release after TotK. Perhaps Tears of the Kingdom will bring back proper dungeons and be acclaimed as a true blend of old and new that brings the series around full circle.Īnd yes, Metroid itself branched out with Metroid Prime and its sequels taking the exploration of alien worlds into first-person and full 3D. Even more than the myriad possibilities of Fuse, I'm intrigued by the implications of the new Ascend mechanic in the sequel. It's also the subject of endless debates over how it diverges from the traditional Zelda formula. We all know that Breath of the Wild is considered one of the greatest games of all time. I have yet to be impressed by a modern Pokemon game on Switch. And Pokemon Scarlet/Violet are an incredibly disappointing excuse for mainline games, full of performance issues and cut corners. Though Legends: Arceus was an interesting experiment that does something different with the series, completing the Pokedex got too repetitive for me. Brilliant Diamond was a halfhearted remake that I sold off immediately after finishing. Pokemon Sword and Shield were okay, but felt too streamlined. But the last 2D Mario game (not counting Super Mario Maker 2) was a Wii U port originally released in 2012. Mario went on to be ever more successful in some of the best 3D platformers around. The Wario Land games were abandoned long ago. Over 20 years later, all of those franchises have evolved and changed in many ways. Wario Land 3, Super Mario Bros 3, and Super Mario World. When I was a kid, the GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance were my introduction into gaming. It's also got me thinking about the games I loved growing up and where those franchises are now. Now this is a first-party Nintendo title of the highest quality. I just finished Metroid Dread a couple weeks ago and it's fantastic, obviously.
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