Metroid Dread Producer Hopes Fans Look Forward To "Future Episodes" Once The Current Story Arc Concludes

I'm passing on this one but good luck to them, hope it does well 👍.

Don't care about the franchise enough to spend $60 on a 2D platformer.

After playing games like Hollow Knight and Ori that cost a fraction of the price I cant justify paying so much for this.
Will grab it once it's pre owned, that way I'm not supporting Nintendo's over pricing strategy.

Since I've never been really interested in Metroid before, I'll probably pick it up in a sale instead of at full price. Am very excited for when that happens.

Huge fan of the series.
Honestly, I'm not bothered if this is the last chapter of an arc or something. As long as they keep the series mood and quality, the more games the better

It has to live up to the standards set by modern metroidvanias. It has to match or even exceed the world building and gameplay of hollow knight and axiom verge. If it can do that I'll pay whatever absurd prices Nintendo asks for.

Yes, I'm looking forward to it! Day one.

I'll be getting this day one, slightly cheaper than $60, about $45 at retail. I hope that there are more 2D games after Dread. While I don't think any game at all on Switch is worth $60, this game is special and a day one buy for me. I hope Nintendo surprise me and release a 2D Metroid game that has a scope and level of production value that justifies $60. I hope it has the AAA scope that can be seen in games like RDR2, Horizon Zero Dawn, Breath of the Wild, multiple, massive locations, multiple endings, customization, interactivity like piloting Samus' ship and other vehicles etc. If it is the Same scope as Fusion, Zero Mission, or Samus Returns, then I'll still enjoy it, but it wont be worth $60.

I would like a Metroid "Maker" game a bit like Mario Maker, that's one way the series could go. I would totally buy a BOTW engine 3D 3rd Person Metroid Game. I think it would work really well. I also wouldn't mind a mercurysteam remake of all the other 2D Metroids.

Could we have a little article or video to summarise the series so far? I'm sure pre-recorded Jon is dying to make one.

@Restryder As someone who spent 80$ on a 2D platformer back in the day when games cost that, this mindset baffles me. Why does something being 2D instantly make it worth less? I'd argue some of the greatest games of all time are 2D still.

It's interesting how many people I've seen complain about Nintendo pricing this at $60 (just like pretty much all of their other first party Switch games). But they have no problem dishing out $60 for completely soulless titles like the recent Pokemon games or pretty much anything with the word Mario in it.

I don't understand why people don't think 2D games are worth full price. Why does it matter?

@link3710 it's mainly down to personal preference but take BOTW for example, a full AAA game with 3D graphics and a huge open world to explore.

You know that the time and effort that has gone into developing that would be 3 times as much as the time and effort that goes into a 2D platformer (trying to pretend otherwise at this point, with the Indie market in clear view of us, would be silly now).

My question to you would be how you can justify spending the same on a 2D platforming game when you know it has less effort put into it than other games priced the same?

@link3710 it's not that being 2D makes it worth less, it's just when you compare it with whats readily available a metroidvania isn't on the same scale as something like BotW or other AAA games. Ori, iconoclasts and Hollow Knight were all under £20 so will Dread include 3x more content?
Would you have paid £50 for Bloodstained and been happy with the value if it had the Castlevania licence for example?

Nintendo's pricing structure is just crazy in general. Look at the SS remake, that's the same price that EA (one of the greediest publishers) was able to release Mass Effect Legendary.

Given the rate of output of Metroid titles in the past 15-20 years, I’m not holding my breath…

Clicked article, intrigued by what others think the story arc conclusion might be or where it will go; instead first comment is complaining, followed by even more complaints. Good times.

I'll try it out sometime later. But I'm afraid it will be like Samus Returns. Much too difficult for me, even with amiibo support. Counter Attack is annoying, too hectic, all it got me was pain in my fingers. A convulsive experience in which some bosses are way too tough. You won't reach the masses like this, a game has to be accessible to everyone. Not only for those who are looking for a tough challenge. Maybe Dread will be more accessible this time around, but I'm not assuming that.

I’ve been a fan of the original 2D Metroid series since the original on the NES. I’ve played Metroid 2 on the Game Boy, Super Metroid on the SNES, and Fusion on the Game Boy Advance. in other words, this will be a day one purchase for me.

also…has anyone played Samus Returns on the 3DS? I’m tempted to purchase since I’ve yet to play it.

@link3710 When you have games like BOTW, Skyrim, AC Valhalla, GTA 5, and Dark Souls, asking for $60 (at launch) and delivering with thousands of hours of content, and then you have games like Ori, Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, Owl Boy and Dead Cells each going for $15-$30, it makes you wonder about the price of a game like Dread.

I paid $60 for Skyrim and $40 for Dark Souls at launch on PC. They both launched in 2011, and I have played those games almost every day and literally every week since launch. That’s value, because that means I have gotten 10 years of entertainment so far for only $100. Nintendo is absolutely daft to ask $60 for a game that we all know will have a sub-3 hour completion time.

@idork99 I played it but got tired of it halfway through. As a long-time Metroid fan, I greatly disliked the changes to the core gameplay that the new studio made to the game. I’m avoiding Dread because it’s made by the same studio that made Samus Returns.

@idork99 Samus Returns is good but I will caution you that it's a bit of a departure from the other 2D Metroid games primarily due to the inclusion of the melee counter and greater emphasis on action/combat. The fact that you have to defeat 40 Metroids makes the game feel a bit repetitive but the later boss battles really crank up the difficulty and I'd say the endgame itself is worth it.

@NinjaGuy69 Fellow Ninja, I have a problem with the price point for Metroid Dread, and I can assure you I steered as far away from Pokémon as I possible could. Nintendo is milking the fans for money, making the same cocky mistakes Sony made during the PS3 era.

@LXP8
A lot of people forget about development costs for a game to the point where they start factoring play time to price. 2D games aren't as immersive and don't give players as much freedom to move and explore as 3D games do. Not being able to look around limits the environment they are looking at, so it would feel like a cheaper game.

It's baffling to me how many of you guys in the comments put so much value on the amount of time you get out of a game. Each to their own, of course, but I just don't consider that at all when I buy a game.

I guess it's because I'm not one for putting hundreds of hours into anything. I want to finish a game, enjoy it, then move on to the next thing. I'm too susceptible to hype not to.

I'm more interested in if a game is going to give me a quality experience. If I enjoy a game, that's enough for me, whether it lasted 10 or 100 hours doesn't affect me. In fact, with my busy life, I'd rather a game was shorter.

Genuine question: would you hold a movie to the same standard? Would you pay more for a 2-3 hour Marvel epic than a 90 minute acclaimed drama? Because less budget and production time went into the latter film, is that lesser and therefore not worth a standard ticket price?

Anyway, when it comes to Metroid, I can tell you I've had far more mileage out of the 2D games than I have any of the Prime trilogy. I associate Metroid (aside from a few titles) with a really solid gameplay experience. I'm happy to pay for that 2D or not.

Just another day in the comments section of 'I'm-not-paying-60-dollars-for-that-life.com.'

@Restryder Can you elaborate on how the indie market makes clear that 3D games require "3 times as much" development as 2D platformers? Did Fall Guys have 3x the effort put into it as Hollow Knight Silksong?

I get that your initial comparison was BotW, but obviously games of all genres vary wildly in density, replayability, and design quality. Just because one game has a 100 person Monolithsoft team making an enormous open world of questionable moment to moment interest, does that make it more valuable than say a tense horror game? Or tight multiplayer experience?

I don't get this trend of gamers triangulating development costs when evaluating games. I just got beat to this analogy, but nobody complains that a movie ticket to The Lighthouse costs the same as one to Avengers Endgame, when their production budgets vary so wildly.

I can't remember the last time I bought a game on day one or at full price. eBay is your friend

"No Man's Sky costs $60 and let's your explore 18 billion entire planets. By comparison, Breath of the Wild 2 only lets you explore Hyrule and it's surrounding lands - therefore, it isn't worth $60."

^ Basically this comments section

Dwarf Fortress has unlimited replayability, gets updated with new content (and will do for years to come) and is free. Every other game in the world is overpriced

@Skeletor1979 There is gameplay from the E3 Treehouse. Maybe that could help you with your doubts. They did say they improved the counter but who knows if it's enough for people like you.

I know it might be an unpopular opinion,but personally i would want Ridley to die permanently.So Samus finally avenges her parents.And that way the other space pirates leaders would come back in the spotlight,especially Kraid.He never showed up in 3D outside Smash (animatronic Kraid in Nintendoland doesn't count,not actually him)

I want to be here for the METROID movie . Oscar Winner Brie Larson in electric blue body suit is ready . LETS GO!!! yolo @Nintendo

@swoose The analogy has only one flaw in that movies are a one-sided entertainment medium. Your interaction with it only goes as far as consumption and what you get out of it. With video games, your own participation is added to the mix as a requirement.

That makes the stake in the game far more personal, so asking more from the experience makes sense.

That said, I agree over all with your post.

I have wanted Metroid Dread from the time when it was just vapourware rumoured for GBA and then DS. Looking forward to it and will get it upon release. Hope it's great and does well enough for us to get new games more frequently. Thoroughly enjoyed Metroid 2 Remake on 3DS so I trust Mercurysteam.

@KingChiliPepper Quality over quantity, definitely agree.

@BloodNinja They have expensive day-one DLC instead.

@Restryder Yes... because of the market. The ONLY reason AAA games make money is because they sell insane numbers. They need multimillion sales to even break even. And those sort of games are unsustainable. Plus, they're boring, since they need to play super safe and sell well every single time, otherwise it will destroy companies. That's not okay. I'm not going to pretend that 2D games are worth less because of that model. And on top of that... that 3x number is BS. Yoshi's Wooly World vs. Super Mario Bros U. I'd wager the former cost at least 2x more than the latter and... they're both 2D. Compare A Hat in Time to Rayman Legends. I'd wager that Rayman Legends cost far more to make from those two. 3D isn't inherently more costly, especially when you proceed to reuse those assets over and over and over again (Like BotW -> AoC -> BotW2). Here's a counter argument. BotW, from what we know of it's dev cycle, likely cost at least 3x more than an Assassain's Creed game. Does that mean you can never buy one of those again? It also likely cost significantly more to make than Sony's Spider-Man, probably 1.5-2x. Is that game out too? BotW was a game with a hilariously long dev cycle, multiple prototyping stages, and was likely incredibly costly. But it's still the same 60$ as a fully 3D game that was rushed out in 2 years, like Pokemon Legends, or one with a normal dev cycle like Super Mario Odyssey. Dev cost has little to do with pricing for 3D, so why is that suddenly an issue for 2D?

And that's not to say there isn't anything good AAA out there (there is). But you

@Mr-Fuggles777 ...Yes? You don't even need the title. I happily would've paid 60$ for Bloodstained if that's what it had been priced at.

@BloodNinja Yeah but... Quite frankly, Metroid Dread is likely to be way more fun than a game like Assassain's Creed Valhalla. Heck, I'm likely to rank it above BotW. I'd rather have an actually well made game instead of another open world title that's designed solely to suck up your time with endless mediocre timesinks. Sure BotW isn't like that but... GTA 5 was hilariously bad IMO (I don't get it, but I also really only enjoyed III / San Andreas of the games I've played in that series), Assassain's Creed is literally the same thing every year with a new coat of paint, and Dark Souls is shorter than Hollow Knight.

Don't get me wrong, the value proposition on Hollow Knight was insane. By far. Way underpriced for it's value. Ori though? The first game was priced right, but it was also really freaking short. Will of the Wisps should've been $40 imo, based on the content. But I still expect Dread to be a little longer than the length of Will of the Wisps (which took me 15 hours to complete, compare 12 for Samus Returns, which I expect Dread to handily be larger than from what we've seen.) But on top of that, Metroid games are incredibly replayable. Whereas I touched BotW once, and will never ever replay it (there's no point, I tried once), I'll replay Dread likely every 4-5 years for the rest of my life if it's really good. I already do that with Super and Zero Mission (...not Fusion, it's not really great for replays, but I'll likely add Samus Returns tbh).

@BloodNinja I totally agree that Nintendo is milking the fans for money and I can understand if some people want to wait for a price drop or just skip the game entirely. I think it comes down to a larger problem of Nintendo not being held accountable because fans just buy everything they dish out at full price and everything on Switch sells millions of units. I truly hope they stay grounded and work to ensure quality in their games moving forward, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

@NinjaGuy69 Couldn’t have said it better myself.

NINJA APPROVED

@Iggy-Koopa Some games have expensive DLC, mainly fighting games, to be exact. Most games do not have day one DLC, and most of the time it’s very reasonable for what you get. Other times, it’s not worth the cost. Depends on the game.

Gimme me anything! I'll swallow any Metroid game they want to release!
So far I liked EVERY Metroid I've played, being some of them simply master pieces.

Just hopes this doesn't mean they're sidelining Samus. Especially not killing her off - her becoming a commander/mentor for a future protagonist could be cool, actually! But she absolutely should stay around in some form; I think she's much more crucial to the Metroid brand than the Metroids themselves are. (Though I guess they could always bring her back from anything with clone nonsense.)

@BloodNinja Point being that £60 is rarely £60 any more, it's actually £69.99 in most cases for next gen and that doesn't factor in DLC. People defended Returnal to the grave, a roguelike in pretty skin, but if they found value at £69.99 then more power to them. Value is subjective, but people sure do like to be hypocritical when it comes to the price if their games.

Is Metroid Dread worth £40-50? That remains to be seen, but as of now I have the special edition and Amiibo ordered as it's a ****ing event. Metroid Dread, who'd have thought it.

@Iggy-Koopa 60 = 60, not sure what you mean by that.

@moodycat other M was good

@link3710 I'd wish for Dread to be within the 30/35 hours to complete with a little more if you want to unlock all endings and some prologue/epilogue as DLC but I know most of this (if not all) is wishful thinking

@Iggy-Koopa How does having DLC change the value of the base game? If the standard game is 60€ then it is 60€. You can consider the DLC not worth it, but that still is optional.
Dread also has amiibos which pretty much work the same as day one DLC and also ramp up the price even more if you want to go by that analogy.

I don’t remember seeing this argument about the price of 2D platformers when Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Yoshi’s Crafted World or Kirby Star Allies came out - why is it just Metroid getting all this unwarranted hate.
Also, this article was f*** all to do with the price so get a grip and move on already.

@EriXz Unlikely. I'd say a decent time is 20-25 hours for a first time 100% completion, that's in line with the length of the Prime games, and still significantly longer than most metroidvanias (that aren't Hollow Knight). We're looking at 7+ areas, with each one probably being around twice the size of one of Fusion's 6 areas if the treehouse is anything to go by, but that was only an ~8 hour game.

But yeah, this will be by far the longest 2D Metroid, without question.

...though, if we have optional objectives, sidequests, scans, boss rushes, fighting arenas etc, that number could easily increase. As of now though, it looks like there won't be though.

@BaeDanvers no thanks.

@moodycat Other M is a fantastic game.

Wow, the comments... Yo see, I accept complaints for Zelda Skyward Sword HD being 60$ (it's just a remaster), for the next Mario Party, the Pokemon remakes and Advance Wars being 60$ (they are very simple remakes), the WiiU ports being 60$, the Mario All Stars being 60$, heck even the latest Mario Golf being 60$ with so little content.
But a brand new Metroid game, the first one in 19 years, build from the ground up?? The most ambitious game Nintendo has made this year (that's why is being sold along with the OLED model)???
No way. If there is a first party game this year that deserves 60$, is this one.

It's pretty sad to see that people immediately say a game has less value just because it's 2D and that doesn't justify the price. Yeah it doesn't justify it for YOU. YOU don't like 2D games so no duh, but don't state it has less value like it's a fact because it's not. While you may get bored after beating the game the first time, there's thousands of fans who will replay the game over and over again with enjoyment each and every time. And I wish people would stop saying it needs to live up to modern metroidvanias, this is Metroid, it STARTED metroidvanias. Don't limit the game to the experience of modern games that tried to copy it, it can be whatever the hell the devs want it to be. Just because you think Hollow Knight is the best metroidvania doesn't mean Metroid games need to live up to that standard the hell? That's like telling a singer "Hey I get that you started this genre but I like what modern singers have turned it into so you're not relevant anymore unless you do it their way".

These negative opinions are nothing more than an asinine case of "That type of game doesn't interest me so it's bad". Just because you enjoy Open World Platformers like Mario 3D World doesn't mean a 2D platformer like Sonic Mania sucks. Just because you like Open World Shooters like Call of Duty, Battlefield, Halo, etc doesn't mean 2D Shooters like Metroid suck and have less value. Just because you like modern game's take on metroidvanias doesn't mean Metroid is irrelevant unless it mimics modern metroidvania style.

I can't wait to see what the future for Samus holds. I will leave the creative storytelling to Nintendo!

I wonder what the next chapter would be. Perhaps Samus vs the Federation? The Federation has done some shady stuff in both fusion and other m (and maybe in dread), so I wonder if they'll finally clash with each other.

@Mr-Fuggles777 Metroid games were always full-price, right? I don't see what the big deal is.

@Randomname19 Both Ridley and the space pirates were destroyed since super metroid. The only reason they appeared again was because the Federation intended to produce more for military reasons. I really believe the Federation will end up becoming the bad guys.

@MajorTom the problem with the DLC metagame that nintendo is playing is that the product itself isn't finished if they have to release DLC to continue it.

It'd be like releasing zero mission without the post game, then selling the post game separately in a sense.

Its a grey area of "what is actually considered a complete game" if DLC comes in the conversation cause at that point you're just buying a product and then using micro transactions to unlock content, something gacha games are notorious for. It makes sense to do something like that for smash, but for a metroidvania, if there's DLC that means new missions/areas that probably should've been in the game to begin with like zero mission's post game.

@MajorTom Because the whole model is designed to wring more cash out of you, especially when there is day-1 DLC with story arcs, season passes for online or 'exclusive content' etc. The Amiibo have tiny functionality and are basically for collectors, there's nothing in the way of meaningful content in there. I'm just saying that value is subjective, and it's become and industry standard to cut out content and drip-feed it to you in the form of an extra payment. Dread is between £40 and £50 in the UK, and what?

@Mr-Fuggles777 Yeah but we all underpaid for Hollow Knight, didn’t we?

Look at it this way... you’re paying $32 each for all 3 games. Easy to justify with the value HK and Ori brought;)

It’s the same argument made when it was Castlevania Symphony of the Night vs Castlevania 64.

@Moistnado it sure Is a damn fine game

@Kainbrightside Metroid has that kind of schedule after Prime’s success - Prime 2, Zero Mission, Hunters, Pinball... as a fan it was great but I don’t think it was good for the series’ health.

@RundasXXIV yes, this thing I can't understand, I value my games based on the amount of fun I have with em rather than be 3A or open world/ mega budget experiences. it has been talked to death but hollow knight been prime example I game I would have pay more than for example Destiny

@Moistnado Where are you finding the game for $45?

Really looking forward to the future of Metroid stories post Dread. Especially since Dread is already shaping up to be one of the higher selling enteries in the series.

I just hope it sells.

The hardest thing about being a Metroid fan ... games SO freaking good they defined their own genre, is that the simple, unavoidable reality is that the games don't sell.

How bad is it? Well, if you take the sales of all 17 Metroid games and add them up .... you get less then what AC:NH sold.

in 3 months.

@Restryder have you played Puppeteer by Japan Studios? That 2D game puts to shame many 3D games and you can see the effort and resources that were put into it.
2D doesn’t instantly means less effort than a 3D game.
Dimensions are not synonym of effort or budget.
You can’t compare a 2D indie game to a 2D AAA game. Just like you can’t compare a 3D indie game with a 3D AAA game.

I'm interested to see how lore shapes up in Dread with regard to lead ins for what's next, but I do feel like 2D Metroid needs to branch out more like the Primes have done ever since the original. Its universe in comparison feels limited. As far as what I would like to see, I think the series is due for a massive Kriken invasion event especially if the Galactic Federation and its ace, Samus Aran, aren't on good terms.

@NinjaGuy69 Just call it inflation and move on. Most of the people complaining about the pricing of these things live in America, and it is well known in my circles that the minimum wage did not grow when the prices of goods skyrocketed.

The prices of Videogames reflect this inflation, but your paycheck has not. It is not Nintendo's fault but your own.

@Restryder Metroid Dread also has 3D graphics.

@VanishStampede I make enough money to live comfortably so income isn't an issue to me and it's ignorant to speak as if you understand others' situations, especially that of an entire nation. Sure, you can say it's economics and Nintendo refuses to drop the price of their games and hardware due to the insane demand. But how much of that demand is from Nintendo's core fanbase and how much of it is from casuals who just buy up everything that Nintendo spits out? Furthermore, how long can Nintendo make it last?

It's not only bad business to keep the price of games consistently $60, it also doesn't help when you're trying to build goodwill amongst your audience. Just read pretty much any comments section or go on YouTube and you'll find a litany of complaints regarding Nintendo's pricing habits. You'll find that most of the comments that call Nintendo lazy for releasing half-baked ports and bare bones titles are justified. It isn't the consumer's fault for calling out Nintendo and trying to holding them accountable. It's Nintendo's fault for engaging in these practices and apologists like you only make the problem worse.

I'm excited to see where the series goes from here!

I was a little worried that this was going to be the end and that everything would just merge on over to Prime (which I don't want... I'm not all that big on the Prime games like I am with the 2D games).

Nintendo's biggest mistake was giving this series to Yoshio Sakamoto

My hot take is that Samus Aran has become ill from the procedure done to her during Fusion, and with her health in decline, she sacrifices herself at the end of the game. The following installment will take place decades later with the next protagonist who stumbles upon her power suit in some Chozo ruins.

Maybe I need to go open a FanFiction.net account to flesh this all out more

@avocadopear Metroid may not have been a series if not for Yoshio Sakamoto directing the first Metroid game. It has continued for 35 years due to the great foundation he played a major role in creating.

@NinjaGuy69 What you are describing is the economic hardships people are going through. Everyone collectively was under the understanding that workers needed to be paid, and Nintendo agreed, so it placed prices at 60$. Inflation has yielded this number due to time having an effect on money. Bad business is how Telltale games handled their IPs. Nintendo's approach may not be the best, but it certainly is not the worst.

On the other hand, Nintendo has to navigate an increasing number of entitled people that grew used to the prices of 20$ and 30$. They had to make a Decision whether paying their devs more(which IS scummy but money is money and who knows how many other games they are funding/developing) and sacrifice some of their fanbase financially (which happens already with the new Xbox and PS5s that were introduced) or let the people and their IPs die. Nintendo is the one bankrolling Metroid Dread, and I understand not all of us like fun, but if you don't want to pay to get in, You should talk to Nintendo about it directly, and leave the people whom will buy the game alone. We will have fun despite your spite.

@I-U Yoshio Sakamoto did not direct the first Metroid game. That was Satoru Okada. Sakamoto was just a character designer on that game. His first time directing a Metroid game was the third one, Super Metroid, which in my opinion is horribly overrated.

Something in her zero suit, I hope <3

@avocadopear You're right, I had the wrong information. He did still play a role in what would become a series of 35 years, and as you pointed out is responsible for Super Metroid, generally the favorite of the series.

@I-U True, I guess I just wish the games were more consistently good over the years and more innovative gameplay-wise. With a different producer I think maybe they would be. I think Sakamoto puts more emphasis on the story rather than gameplay mechanics.

@VanishStampede Nintendo priced their games at $60 before the economic downturn caused by COVID and they're doing it now that the pandemic is receding. This has nothing to do with inflation - I have a minor in economics and I currently work in the financial industry. I have no issue with Nintendo pricing their games at $60 if they choose to do so, plus it's an industry standard. The issue at hand is pricing ALL their games at $60 dollars including the barebones titles that don't deserve it.

For example, Mario Golf Super Rush released at $60 even with all the criticism Nintendo received about the game lacking content. Yes, I'm aware they said they would release free DLC for the game but how many months/years is it going to take for the game to feel like a $60 game? Many major retailers here in the US were even allowing customers to pre-order the game for $49.99 a few weeks prior to its release. Now the game is back to $60 and it's going to remain at $60 for years, just like all of Nintendo's first party releases. That's anti-consumerism at it's worst. It's always been a problem with Nintendo and it's a completely fair criticism to make. Nintendo won't change these poor practices if we stay silent and just let them continue doing this. Silence only opens the door for even worse behavior down the road.

I’m not a Metroid fan, but I’m super excited for fans of the series getting a new entry. I just hope it doesn’t take another 20ish years for them to get episode 6

@NinjaGuy69 Metroid is not Sonic Boom

@sketchturner I live in Hong Kong. Retail games tend to go for 40-50 when they first come out and stocks are high. Sought after games then become really overpriced when stocks are lower or hard to find.

@DudeshootMankill I wouldn’t set the bar that high. It can be its own game. I would say, though, that it needs to be better than Samus Returns. I really enjoyed it, but it was a 3DS game at the end of the day.

@NinjaGuy69 @BloodNinja The price war was lost when people eagerly bought The Link’s Awakening remake at $60.

The new Super Monkey Ball game coming soon feels like a bargain at $40.

At least Dread is a new game.

@Skeletor1979 all games do not have to be for everyone. Where ever did you get this idea? Some genres are niche for a reason, and trying to please everyone, pleases no one.

Game is going to be tremendous.

Sounds like he'll be killing off Samus in this one, unless his intention is to carry Metroid on with other characters and give Samus an "offshoot" series of games (which to be fair, would work).

@Gigagash But what does the genre have to do with the level of difficulty? I love Metroid and Metroidvania. Making a game difficult, however, does not allow a selection of the level of difficulty for each skill. Is just to say: hey we want to sell fewer copies than we could. Or hey let's increase the risk of it becoming a financial flop.

I just find it sad how some games remain closed to so many gamers.

@Skeletor1979 it has to do with the fact that the "difficulty" in metroidvanias comes from the small amount of guidance which is integral to the game genre since those games are all about discovery and exploration. In terms of punishment, nearly no metroidvanias are punishingly difficult in any sense, except for maybe Hollow Knight.

Some people just don't like the mininal amount of guidance. That's just the way it is.

Also, the counter mechanic in Samus Returns is VERY forgiving with the counter mechanic. And it's really not that hectic, but maybe the game just isn't for you, which is dissapointing, but you know that happens.

In addition, making a game for a smaller and more niche fan base has nothing to do with going bankrupt or doing bad business overall.

There are countless of examples where a smaller franchise have tried to get more popular, and they immediately lost the very essence that made them loved in the first place.

I really recommend you to watch a presentation called "Why dark souls is the Ikea of video games", if you are more interested in the topic.

@Tandy255 That’s a good point, that remake was over priced, for what it was.

@Gigagash I don't mean all of that in a negative sense. I loved Metroid Fusion and Zero Mission. Zero Mission even played through several times. That's why I was looking forward to Samus Returns so much.

The first disappointment came when I realized that it is nice when a handheld like the 3DS has so many buttons, but it is just painful for the fingers to play a game this way. It requires a convulsive posture all the time. It wouldn't have been a bad thing with an ordinary controller.

And then the boss fights. I gave up at some point. I don't know which boss anymore, but if you don't make it after countless attempts, it's no longer fun. Even though I used the amiibos.

It would be nice if Dread would have an easy mode. That wouldn't be a problem and wouldn't harm the gaming experience. Since it's primarily about exploring and the atmosphere. Not about dying as often as possible in a boss fight.

@Skeletor1979 I do get your complaints here, but I do have to say that having a game with the title DREAD, which seems to be all about a stalker chasing you, would lose its core if it had an easy mode, right? Because if you know that its easy then you have nothing to fear?

Just like a horror game would lose its whole horror element if you had an enemy chasing you, and you could just easily shoot it or something like that? Right?

And sure Metroid is not a horror game but it has been heavily influence by the Alien franchise and this game is clearly something they've wanted to do ever since SA-X was introduced in Fusion.

Make more special editions so hackers can't profit. Idiots.

@Kainbrightside From your mouth to Nintendo's ears!

Ever since the Necrodancer x Zelda game, I've been dreaming of Nintendo partnering with indies on their franchises. Team Cherry on Metroid is a slam dunk. My latest "dream team" is having Prime/3D Metroid title from the Subnautica dev Unknown Worlds. Have you ever played it? It nails so much about what makes Prime special for me. Exploring and alien world, the sense of isolation and dread, the exploration-upgrade-exploration loop, scanning your environment for insight, etc. I think they could do something great with the Metroid IP.
Maybe when Nintendo gives you and I the keys to their franchises, I'll pitch it haha.

@Kainbrightside

A new Zelda every year since the switch released? Is that true? It doesn't sound right

@Tandy255 Looking back on the historical releases of first party Switch titles, I'd have to say you're spot on. The thing that bothers me most about this situation is that it makes me feel like a helpless observer. I can only stand by and watch the masses eagerly consume everything Nintendo releases at the full $60 price without any thought as to what the consequences of their actions will lead to. At least we're getting a new Metroid.

@Nontendo_4DS Thanks. The plot is explained in detail all over the internet, but I thought a 10 minute video from Jon would have been really nice. Who knows, maybe he will make one before Dread is released

@Kainbrightside @Classic603 It is almost every year. I can’t think of a Zelda release for 2018. 2019 had Cadence of Hyrule and Link’s Awakening. 2020 had Hyrule Warriors.

Not that I would count DLC, but BOTW DLC was still 2017. Smash is 2018, but that doesn’t count either.

@Kainbrightside BOTW was such a big release, it easily carried 2017 and 2018.

@Tandy255

Ah okay I was looking at mainline releases. Forgot about cadence and the hyrule warriors games

@Skeletor1979

I actually agree with you here. I wouldn't complain about a toggled easy mode, I'm too old to spend my days on the same task. But I don't want to breeze through a whole game. So after X amount of attempts, I'd like an easy option

Correction: This is the first 2D Metroid game with a new story in 19 years. "Prime 2," "Prime 3," and "Other M" are all more recent than that, not to mention that the spin-offs "Hunters" and "Federation Force" technically have new stories, as well.

So will Nintendo continue to use "Metroid" as an artifact title in future games despite them not involving Metroids? I don't know what else they could do to ensure customers connect them as part of the same series, though.

@BulbasaurusRex I don’t see why not. Sword Art Online was only about SAO for half a season. I’m sure there‘s other examples, especially in manga/anime.

@Shadowthrone I can't stand all the complaining. Nintendo is doing a fine job right now

Here is my prediction. If I'm right, it'll prove I guessed it first.

Metroid Dread will end similarly to the end of the original Metroid with a surprise reveal that, under the suit, she's female. But... this time it will be revealed that Samus is now transformed into a human/Metroid hybrid. This could mean that while Metroids are extinct, Samus will become the last Metroid. I'm thinking this will be a result of the special relationship Samus has had with the baby Metroid as well as her Metroid DNA transfusion. Perhaps, this is why the EMMI are after her. That's my theory.