It's been 19 years since the release of Metroid Fusion, the last major installment of the 2D games, and Metroid Dread picks up exactly where we left off Samus Aran after killing the entire X parasite species, or so she believed. On a mission to the planet ZDR, she'll have to deal with the new, terrible threat of the E.M.M.I., very agile robots of frightening power. The huntress becomes prey again.
Metroid Dread is the new chapter designed to be a valid start for anyone who has never touched the series (also thanks to a brief introduction on previous events) while also being able to give an experience worthy of its name to those who already had the opportunity to play all the others. Dread contains all the features that made its predecessors great: the disturbing atmospheres and the strong narrative imprint of Fusion, the huge, complex and interconnected game maps typical of Super Metroid, the 360° aiming mechanic of Samus Returns and a really satisfying control feedback.
Throughout the adventure we'll find ourselves exploring rooms and corridors that make up a large map, divided into many areas all connected to each other by teleportation and rapid navigation systems. MercurySteam has created a game world full of secrets, where the player will probably want to return to explore even after completing the story (about 8 hours), and its immensity is not intimidating to navigate: with or without the help of marks that can be positioned at will on the map, the main objective will never escape from our eye, and the sense of progression flows at a constant pace; those moments of frustration and total loss are decimated here, without appearing excessively linear. As in Fusion, the instructions and orders are given by Adam, the AI we find in specific rooms of the map, but unlike the previous game, he leaves more freedom to roam without marking the precise place of destination, but giving only an idea of where to go to continue. It is also given an idea of the position of the points that hide a secret through flashing areas on the map: in this sense the player is perhaps too helped in finding all the hidden objects, but this does not detract from the general "pleasure of discovery".
Obviously like all the other Metroid games it is necessary to reacquire all the abilities in order to progress, and in Dread in addition to the classic, iconic abilities there are new ones, which expand the possibilities of attack and movement. A fluid movement that is very highlighted by introducing the possibility of sliding while running and shooting at the same time, thanks to the free aim. From Samus Returns it also inherits the possibility of performing a parry, whose execution window is so wide that it can forgive a slight delay in pressing X, even if in any case it is not that easy to do especially in boss battles, where the attacks are very fast.
A huge part of the map is formed by the "E.M.M.I. zone", an area where the robots run undisturbed, in order to find and hunt Samus, who can only escape or hide. They are agile, fast and indestructible, and can only be defeated with a particular single-use weapon. If Samus is captured, the player has only two chances of being able to free himself via a parry, but, cleverly, the timing required is extremely precise (but not impossible), and the window for the parry is random. Once you have defeated one E.M.M.I., it's up to the next one, even more powerful than the other. A repetitiveness that fortunately does not persist throughout the game, since starting from the second half the threats and the stakes become even higher, and there is room for a greater variety of bosses.
Not all boss or miniboss battles are memorable, but one thing is certain: they are fast-paced, intense and make spectacularity their strong point. It can be said that Metroid Dread is very scenic and full of cutscenes, enhanced by a shining artistic direction, thanks to different settings and an aggressive use of colors. The technical side is also remarkable: the animations are incredible, and the game runs at 900p and 60 fps in docked mode, and at 720p in handheld, but (personal note) the frame rate drops during the cutscenes bothered me, and these are the cases that make me want a Switch hardware upgrade to enjoy these jewels to the fullest.
So, Metroid Dread enters into the list of the best Switch exclusives: fast-paced, strong replayability, damn fun gameplay and a great atmosphere.
Metroid Dread is the new chapter designed to be a valid start for anyone who has never touched the series (also thanks to a brief introduction on previous events) while also being able to give an experience worthy of its name to those who already had the opportunity to play all the others. Dread contains all the features that made its predecessors great: the disturbing atmospheres and the strong narrative imprint of Fusion, the huge, complex and interconnected game maps typical of Super Metroid, the 360° aiming mechanic of Samus Returns and a really satisfying control feedback.
Throughout the adventure we'll find ourselves exploring rooms and corridors that make up a large map, divided into many areas all connected to each other by teleportation and rapid navigation systems. MercurySteam has created a game world full of secrets, where the player will probably want to return to explore even after completing the story (about 8 hours), and its immensity is not intimidating to navigate: with or without the help of marks that can be positioned at will on the map, the main objective will never escape from our eye, and the sense of progression flows at a constant pace; those moments of frustration and total loss are decimated here, without appearing excessively linear. As in Fusion, the instructions and orders are given by Adam, the AI we find in specific rooms of the map, but unlike the previous game, he leaves more freedom to roam without marking the precise place of destination, but giving only an idea of where to go to continue. It is also given an idea of the position of the points that hide a secret through flashing areas on the map: in this sense the player is perhaps too helped in finding all the hidden objects, but this does not detract from the general "pleasure of discovery".
Obviously like all the other Metroid games it is necessary to reacquire all the abilities in order to progress, and in Dread in addition to the classic, iconic abilities there are new ones, which expand the possibilities of attack and movement. A fluid movement that is very highlighted by introducing the possibility of sliding while running and shooting at the same time, thanks to the free aim. From Samus Returns it also inherits the possibility of performing a parry, whose execution window is so wide that it can forgive a slight delay in pressing X, even if in any case it is not that easy to do especially in boss battles, where the attacks are very fast.
A huge part of the map is formed by the "E.M.M.I. zone", an area where the robots run undisturbed, in order to find and hunt Samus, who can only escape or hide. They are agile, fast and indestructible, and can only be defeated with a particular single-use weapon. If Samus is captured, the player has only two chances of being able to free himself via a parry, but, cleverly, the timing required is extremely precise (but not impossible), and the window for the parry is random. Once you have defeated one E.M.M.I., it's up to the next one, even more powerful than the other. A repetitiveness that fortunately does not persist throughout the game, since starting from the second half the threats and the stakes become even higher, and there is room for a greater variety of bosses.
Not all boss or miniboss battles are memorable, but one thing is certain: they are fast-paced, intense and make spectacularity their strong point. It can be said that Metroid Dread is very scenic and full of cutscenes, enhanced by a shining artistic direction, thanks to different settings and an aggressive use of colors. The technical side is also remarkable: the animations are incredible, and the game runs at 900p and 60 fps in docked mode, and at 720p in handheld, but (personal note) the frame rate drops during the cutscenes bothered me, and these are the cases that make me want a Switch hardware upgrade to enjoy these jewels to the fullest.
So, Metroid Dread enters into the list of the best Switch exclusives: fast-paced, strong replayability, damn fun gameplay and a great atmosphere.