Ranking The Metroid Games
I absolutely love Metroid, it's my favorite franchise of all time. So I decided to rank every Metroid game I've played. Keep in mind I have not played Prime Pinball or AM2R, but I wouldn't put AM2R on the list anyway since it's not an official Metroid game. That's not to say it's bad or unworthy of being as such, I just wouldn't put it on the list. I'm also not including the Prime Trilogy since it's a collection, but if I did rank it, it'd be pretty high since it's three great games in one with a new control scheme. Oh, I'm also not including Federation Force. MAJOR SPOILERS FOR METROID IN THE NOTES.
12 Games
Takes full advantage of its linear design with a stronger narrative, strong setting cohesion and progression, and generally amazing atmosphere. It's the black sheep, but that doesn't mean it's bad, quite the contrary. Fusion emphasizes combat encounters and gradual increase in difficulty rather than exploration which initially seems weaker in concept, but since Fusion does a great job with the enemy and boss encounters, it works very well. The linear sense of progression in this game is also a nice change of pace since you can feel substantial growth at a consistent rate alongside the narrative that justifies the purposes of becoming stronger. Not that other Metroid games don't do this, but rather they let their environments speak for themselves to justify progression and furthering capabilities. Fusion is constantly changing the environment due the narrative, thus the new capabilities you receive just feel more significant and necessary. Fusion is my number 1, but objectively speaking, it probably isn't, I just love how it took advantage of its changes extremely well.
1
One of the most influential games of all time. The quality is unmatched, the non-linear progression combined with the very strong progression of your capabilities make this game timeless. The reason it's not number 1 is simply because the game is limited with what it can do as a non-linear game. For example, when you power bomb the glass tube to Maridia, water isn't spilling out throughout the other sectors. This can be attributed to its age, but it'd also make it potentially impossible to complete if the areas changed drastically. So if you never grabbed Gravity Suit and flooded the planet with the glass tube, the game could potentially not be finished. So for that reason, I find Fusion superior despite it being linear. Otherwise, Super Metroid is objectively the better game in every other aspect, and would be number 1.
2
Masterful adaption of Metroid's non-linear exploration into a 3D First-Person Shooter. Tank controls aside, the atmosphere is deeply rich with an amazing story that can be discovered through the discretion of the player through scanning. Even if a player never scans or reads a single lore log, the environments speak for themselves and can be deeply appreciated, which is a huge plus. Beams feel more unique and individualized with their elements and mechanics tied specifically to them. Samus herself feels very much like her own character with agency, but also is blank enough for the player to imprint their own agency and thoughts as her as they play through her perspective. Add onto the amazing soundtrack with ambiance included within the tracks to make the world feel more alive is another huge plus going for this game. The reason it's not higher is literally just due to that control scheme, as platforming feels harder and stiffer than it should, but it's such a negligent problem in the grand scheme of this game, I don't really mind it, but it's good to be aware of it as an issue.
3
Dread truly felt like the next step for Metroid while feeling familiar. It took many ideas from Samus Returns, like the melee counter, and refined it to work in tandem with the fast nature of Metroid, and especially for Metroid Dread. The new power-ups felt classic, but others like flash shift show that Metroid is not leaving behind the innovations the genre has seen recently, like with Hollow Knight. Combat is not nearly as focused here like Fusion, but more realized than Super's, making for an excellent balance. Dread seemed much more puzzle-oriented at times like Prime, which I appreciated for a 2D entry, and was a nice change of pace. Coupled with a high difficulty surprisingly for the first playthrough as well, really made ZDR feel threatening and like the odds are against you, which I really loved. EMMI's being the evolution of the SA-X mechanically was a treat, though narratively and how they're presented is much weaker than the SA-X. Just as well, EMMI's being contained to zones makes those areas more stressful, but unlike fusion, that fear and stress isn't always present because you always know where the EMMI's are, unlike SA-X which could show up at any moment. Everything else Dread does feels like a substantial improvement otherwise, amazing controls, great level design, fantastic enemies and bosses, and a great way to see this arc of Metroid be closed. (Such a shame that OST is not up to par at all compared to other Metroid games though)
4
Prime 2 is such a departure from other Metroid games, it's very much welcomed. The atmosphere of this game is top-notch, Dark Aether especially with the toxic atmosphere that is a literal metaphor about the nature of Dark Aether as well is just magnificent. The new beam concepts are fun, while the ammo system makes using them feel too scarce and limited, so they become reservations to use only in emergencies, compared to the power beam with infinite ammo, but less firepower. Prime 2 stepped it up with bosses and puzzles as well, though some bosses can be a nuisance, overall they're a fantastic improvement to Prime's in some ways, though maybe not always as grand as Prime's. Puzzles have gotten a lot better, and more difficult, which I appreciated, the music is also stellar of course. The reason Prime 2 ranks so low is really just my preference, I think the game is amazing besides the ammo. I loved the emphasis of horror in this entry, reminded me a lot of Fusion with the body horror and more mature themes overall.
5
A fantastic remake of Metroid that felt incredibly substantial. Zero Mission to me really feels like Super Metroid 2 in a lot of ways, with the sequence breaking and techniques especially. Zero Mission however is much more keen on guiding you where to go but not how to get there which is fine for new players, but a nuisance to veterans. Prime also has this guide feature, but you can turn it off, and while some of Zero Mission's are optional, not all of them are, which is a bummer. Level design is fantastic, bosses leave a lot to be desired unfortunately, general combat is also just very weak in this entry overall compared to Fusion, Dread, or Prime. The stealth section was awesome and an amazing addition to the game that I wish more Metroid games tried to do. Honestly, I do really like Zero Mission, but it just feels so forgettable to me, I never could really figure out why. The game looks good ,plays well, great music, it has everything it needs to be amazing, but something about it just falls a bit flat for me. Still a great game I recommend, but damn.
6
I adore Prime 3's more cinematic approach to Metroid. I think this game does a great job with its story as the conclusion to the Prime series. Even the bounty hunter allies turned evil was an awesome idea, even if they're very flat characters and the emotional resonance in killing them is extremely low. Prime 3's biggest issue is the motion controls and Hypermode. Motion control integration feels tacked on and not substantial at all, all the menial tasks you do with them feel like they don't need to be there at all, and dampen the experience a bit. Hypermode makes the game so easy, I don't know how you could get a game over, or even be in danger of dying. Every boss boils down to "hypermode die" and it is incredibly disengaging and disconnected with the stakes the story is trying to present about phazon and how it corrupts others. I love seeing Samus slowly be subdued by corruption with physical alterations to her eyes and such, it shows that despite how unrelenting and powerful she is, she too is only human and can be killed/corrupted like anyone else. That plays into how dangerous phazon is, but since there's a huge disconnect between narrative and gameplay, it doesn't feel as substantial as it should. Everything else about Prime 3 is fine, it's pretty linear for the most part, bosses are fun puzzles with the exception of hypermode, and the music and worlds are amazing. Of course, you could choose to not use Hypermode, but it's required in certain sections regardless, that's why I think it's a huge negative plastered on the game,
7
It's definitely a remake of Metroid 2. This game just feels too clunky for its own good a lot of the time. I think everything presented here reached its true potential with Dread, but as the first outing for the newer Metroid experiences, yikes. Best word to describe this game is just "tedious" with the Metroids, the level design, the few boss fights that aren't Metroids etc. It all feels so tedious, and really isn't all that satisfying. Samus has one of the absolute best suit designs I've ever seen so far, the cutscenes are badass, the inclusion of ridley at the end, while key jangling af, I still loved. It's not a bad game, it just isn't amazing and has more than its fair share of frustration.
8
Ugh, I get it's the first Metroid, but man. I don't fully hate this game, and I actually like the idea of drawing out your own maps to figure this game out, because I loved doing that as a kid. In practice, the game is too cryptic, everything looks the same, traversal is a nightmare, you start with 30 energy and it takes forever to fill back up. Since it's an NES game, everything is barebones simple with little depth, it just isn't fun. I respect the hell out of it for starting Metroid, but it has since become something amazing, and not this. Still a game you should play just to understand where it all began with Metroid, but nothing more than that.
9
It's fine. I do not expect this game to be amazing or anything, and I love how this game gave Samus's iconic suit due to hardware limitations to visually show Samus becoming stronger. I can appreciate the idea of the game itself, with SR388 and the Metroids evolution, all of that was incredibly ambitious at the time. It all served to develop the universe of Metroid, so for that, seal of approval. Actually playing it though? Naw, no thanks, definitely not for me. Bosses are repetitive, exploring the planet is tedious, having to swap beams all the time is annoying, the music is grating, but I don't hold that against the game too much since it's a GB game. It's just not for me, I do once again recommend playing it just to appreciate the history, but nothing else.
10
For a DS game it's impressive, and the Multiplayer is actually insanely fun. That's where it all ends for positives, I'm afraid, besides maybe Sylux. The controls are garbage, I could never ever get far in this game because of the controls. The areas all feel soulless and like a hallway simulator, the music is forgettable, the plot is a meme. Nothing works here for me as a Metroid game, it's a marvel though as a DS game to show off what the system could do, but wow it's bad. This might be the first Metroid game I don't recommend since all it does is introduce Sylux as a potentially important character, but that still has yet to be seen. Otherwise? Does nothing for Metroid.
11
Legit one of the worst games I have ever played. Character assassination, ridiculous plot elements, full-on contrivance, fucks up the timeline, plot holes for Fusion with poorly executed consolation explanations that are terrible. Shitty control scheme, playing a 3D game on a wii remote sideways, and then first-person perspective to use missiles and super missiles? What were they thinking, seriously? My God, the music is forgettable as hell, the suit design is garbage, and wish Smash would do away with it already, it hurts my soul to look at. They absolutely spat in my face as a gigantic Ridley fan, they turned him into a fucking Pokemon. The recycled idea and setting of the Bottleship trying to capture the pure excellence of the B.S.L and fails in every conceivable way with shitty jumpscares and B-horror setups that make me want to scream. Weird moments in gameplay where you move like an inch every minute that disrupts gameplay to try and make the narrative more important and immersive, when really all it does is piss me off and want to turn the damn game off. Don't waste time giving the story time to shine for me, because it sucks, and I hate it. The boss battles, actually some of them are okay, and there's a lot of familiar faces here, it's too bad they're in this game, so they'll never live up to their potential and end-up being soulless copies of previously loved bosses in Metroid's history. The highlights? Anthony was a good character, and uhh... I guess the Ridley fight is actually pretty damn good, but those were the only two things out of the entire game I can say are "okay" the rest is garbage. DO NOT play this game, avoid it at all costs, this game nearly ruined my perspective on Samus as a character, but Dread has saved me from that nightmare by actually respecting Samus as a character, and Metroid's history.
12
2 Comments
@Ptcremisi I couldn't agree more, Fusion is really just built different
Ptcremisi
5 months ago