Metroid Fusion is a must-play for Metroid Dread fans

Back in 2002, Metroid fans learned a lot more about the series’ mysterious heroine Samus Aran. That year’s first-person shooter, Metroid was released on November 18. Metroid Prime — developed by Retro Studios and recently remastered for the Nintendo Switch — put players inside Samus’ suit for the first time, allowing them to scan her surroundings, enemies, and objects, and learn more about Metroids, the infamous Space Pirates, and the ancient alien Chozo race that raised Samus. The day before was different. Prime’s debut, a 2D platformer called Metroid Fusion came out on Game Boy Advance, and it was this game that truly let players inside of Samus’ head.

Metroid FusionSamus can now access the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack to get her voice. In diary-like text logs about her enemies and the strange space station AI that she nicknames “Adam” (after a former commanding officer who gave his life to save hers), Samus Aran opens up more than ever before about her emotional state, her past, and her journey forward. The game’s storyline may seem sparse to modern players who are used to chatty protagonists, but compared to previous Metroid games, Fusion It was a significant shift. The laconic heroine used to be a cypher. This was an object on which players could project feelings. You can find the In FusionSamus shares her feelings through her short, haunting missives.

Image: Nintendo

In a journal entry included in the game’s manual, she describes the planet SR388 – the birthplace of the Metroids — as “that forsaken rock,” a phrase charged with refreshing, relatable enmity about the horrors she has repeatedly faced there. In Fusion’s opening text crawl — another first-person monologue from Samus — she gets philosophical about how the Metroid species has both haunted and saved her. In fact, it’s DNA from a baby Metroid she once spared (during Metroid 2She was saved from death by the aforementioned (). Fusion: “I survived, reborn as something different. When I reflect on this, it dawns on me… I owe the Metroid hatchling my life twice over.”

All throughout Fusion, Samus also ponders the nature of the AI that keeps giving her orders — a conceit that returns in last year’s Metroid DreadThis is the direct result of the events of Fusion. The end result of this overarching plot point is a tremendous emotional win. It is a terrible placeAnd although It is a terrible place’s story works well even for players who haven’t experienced FusionIt is much more difficult for people who have experienced it.

Not only are the story details important, but so is their ability to communicate. It is a terrible place Fans to Play Fusion, though. It’s also a showcase of the early design concepts and sensibilities that later appeared in It is a terrible place — specifically, the Fusion Samus is pursued relentlessly by enemy SA-X. Before the release Metroid DreadPolygon interviewed Yoshio Sakamoto about his role as director and producer for several Metroid mainline games. It is a terrible place’s deadly EMMI robots, which took direct inspiration from Fusion and its SA-X chase scene: “The whole entire concept hasn’t changed over these 15 years. In reality, Samus would have to face some formidable enemy who would chase after her. That was the idea.”

Image: MercurySteam, Nintendo

Both Metroid Fusionnor It is a terrible place are exactly scary — though they do have some high-stress, close-quarters moments, taking a cue from the 1979 horror film Alien, This The first game was inspired by it. It’s almost like Alien Horror games set in sci-fi and space. Dead Space, Fusion It is more tightly planned and linear than Metroid Games. Samus explores key locations one at a time, instead of navigating through a large map in a series. This is another reason why the game has such a fast pace. Fusion is so different from other Metroid games; it’s an unusual choice that allows Samus Aran’s personal thoughts to stand out even more, since each discrete area involves a new conversation with the AI, or perhaps a new diary entry from Samus. It’s these additional details, as well as the deviations from the Metroid formula, that make Fusion Still worth it to play right now.

The success of Metroid DreadThe reintroduction and maintenance of Metroid PrimeNow! Metroid Fusion on Switch, it’s all the more frustrating that several excellent Metroid games are still missing from current hardware. The original Metroid From Switch Online, the more user-friendly GBA remake of 1987, is now available Zero Mission remains unlisted in the eShop (except via the Wii U’s Virtual Console). The Game Boy classic is available in the interim. Metroid 2: Samus returns got added to the Switch last month, which has only caused fans to clamor even louder for MercurySteam’s Metroid 2 remake, Samus ReturnsTo get its Switch version. This original release was on the 3DS. Not least of all, the Nintendo DS classic Metroid Prime Pinball, the best-ever use of Samus Aran’s morph ball??

All that said, with so many Metroid games now readily available on modern devices, it’s hard to complain much. After Metroid Dread fans finish Fusion, though, I suspect they’ll want more. It is my hope that Nintendo will answer this inevitable call.