Metroid Dread (Switch)

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MSR1701
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby MSR1701 » October 16th, 2021, 9:21 pm

We'll see more Metroid in some fashion, especially if Metroid Dread sells.

Fire Emblem was not selling to meet where Nintendo viewed it should have been, and they were going to wrap it up with one more game. The devs put a LOT of love into the game, and long story short, Fire Emblem Awakening sold much more than Nintendo anticipated, giving the green light for the series to continue.

Could Prime 4 still come out? Sure, though between the core teams reluctance to acknowledge the sub series and the complete hate that Federation Force received (the source of the hate doesn't matter, but the lack of sales makes an impression), there may be another decade, but it is not impossible.

Could another 2D Metroid come about? Certainly. The story arc as it was is ended, and a new one could be started. Or a remake of an existing game could occur (for those that don't know, Zero Mission started as a project to port Super Metroid to the GBA).

At some point, Metroid will return. Until then, between Randomizers (in addition to Super Metroid Randomizers, the three main Prime games have Randomizers, and Fusion now has a randomizer) and Indie games (Axiom Verge 2) can fill the void.

Herschie
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby Herschie » October 16th, 2021, 9:25 pm

Matchstick wrote:
Plus, the whole series is all wrapped up, right? Right?? I just feel like asking for a Metroid Prime 4 is like asking for a Star Wars Episode 7. Be careful what you wish for...


Oh yes. 4 is never any good after so many years. Was Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull any good? No!

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MSR1701
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby MSR1701 » October 16th, 2021, 9:29 pm

Herschie wrote:
Matchstick wrote:
Plus, the whole series is all wrapped up, right? Right?? I just feel like asking for a Metroid Prime 4 is like asking for a Star Wars Episode 7. Be careful what you wish for...


Oh yes. 4 is never any good after so many years. Was Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull any good? No!

Star Trek IV, Final Fantasy IV, Phantasy Star IV, Super Mario World (project name was Super Mario Bros 4), Metroid Fusion, Breath of Fire IV...

Voor
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby Voor » October 17th, 2021, 10:06 am

Lol. I love Indiana Jones and I really liked Crystal Skull. It’s not as good as last crusade and has some really silly parts, but I thought it captured the spirit of the franchise well. I was actually thinking it was time for an IJ marathon. I did the Lord of the Ring series and Harry Potter earlier this year.

Regarding Dread, I’m very excited it’s selling well and everyone I have talked to has said it’s very satisfying to play. I’ve watched some Speedruns, and the record is around 1:30, but anything under 2:00 is really good. If it’s anything like super Metroid speedruns, there will be revisions to the route for years. It’ll probably be whittled to under an hour one day.

It sure has its annoyances—EMMI sections, quick time sections, more maze-like than other metroids—but it controls so well and the movement is so satisfying, lots of people who had no intention of running it are.

I’m not really any a mood for a metroidvania, so I decided to hold off on this for a while. Maybe one day next year.

But if it makes you sick (which I’ve experienced with other games), just put it on the shelf and move on. As a big fan of the Oddworld series, I was really excited for Strangers Wrath, but after throwing up and having to lay down for 3 hours, I decided to never play it again. Not worth hurting yourself over. You can probably watch playthroughs without an issues.

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Matchstick
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby Matchstick » October 17th, 2021, 8:38 pm

Heh - I, too, liked Crystal Skull just fine. I put it on par with Temple of Doom. For all of Skull's stupid scenes (swinging with monkeys to catch up to a car chase in a forest) Doom is right there with it (the kid with the voodoo doll that messes with Indy while he's fighting). Both flicks are just hokey as all Hell after a certain point.

I think Herschie's original point was that sequels that are made far, far after the fact often feel pointless. I mean, Indy literally rode off into the sunset with his dad and best friends at the end of Crusade. Why oh why would you even attempt to follow that up with something?

(Also, MSR... no love for Rocky 4?? You're lettin' me down, man :lol: )

I'm fine with fans that are excited with a possible Prime 4. But me, I just don't care. Prime 3 felt like pulling teeth after playing the other two games, and I didn't enjoy playing through the game as much as I just wanted it to end...

...which is almost exactly how I feel about Dread! Nope, I still haven't attempted to beat the last boss again. I may have reached my limit with the game. Unlike others, I am quite capable of just walking away from something that I've invested a great amount of time in, rather than feeling obligated to see it through until the end. I know I'm contradicting some of my earlier posts, here, but the fact of the matter is, I play games to have fun. Getting dizzy - with a migraine on top of that - is not my idea of fun.

If I were The Critic, I'd give Dread a B as a game, itself. Well-made, great animations and gameplay, challenging bosses, and lots of secrets to find. But as far as me being able to play it, it gets an F. With the "May Cause Nausea," "May Cause Pain," and "ET Award for Extreme Disappointment." There's a good game buried in here, but I'll be damned if I'm ever able to play it without noticeable personal discomfort.

I feel like I might as well play it blindfolded. It might make finding my way around a bit more difficult, but a least I know I won't get a headache from any wobbly camera angles or pounding flashing lights!

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DrLitch
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby DrLitch » October 17th, 2021, 9:42 pm

Finally playing this now, approx 7 hours game time, and Metroid Dread is the real deal IMO. Considerably better than it's predecessor Samus Returns on 3DS, while chronologically, hits parity or perhaps even slightly better than it's predecessor Metroid 4 aka Fusion. I know some folks did not like Fusion, citing it's linearity, but Fusion excelled on the tension front, more so than Dread IMO. Something about facing your doppelganger...

My only real complaint with Dread is the music, while appropriate, is not particularly memorable. No Kraid's lair theme to hum to here.

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Matchstick
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby Matchstick » October 17th, 2021, 10:15 pm

Glad to hear you're enjoying it, Litch! No argument on the "real deal" front here - it's definitely a true Metroid game, and a good one, at that. Even with all my physical trials and tribulations, I personally like it much better than Fusion and even some of the Prime games. I've never played Samus Returns, but I also never had a 3DS. Probably never will, so I'm content to let that one pass me by.

DrLitch wrote:My only real complaint with Dread is the music, while appropriate, is not particularly memorable.

Couldn't agree more. I had the same gripe with Fusion, and some of the Prime games. To me, Metroid has always had plenty of heroic themes and appropriate music for the occasion. I don't mind some spooky / moody tracks in some areas, but when it's late in the game, and you're all powered-up and ready to kick butt, I want the heartracing soundtrack to match!

I'll admit that I was lulled into a false sense of hope with the crushing remix of the title screen music, and the Super Metroid theme in the into screens. Aside from a clip of the Maridia soundtrack playing in a few spots, I don't recall hearing any other musical callbacks to the earlier games, and the new music is forgettable, to say the least.

I, too, enjoy the OG Kraid's Lair theme quite a bit. I also like the Upper Brinstar song from Super Metroid (the one that plays near the plant boss, near the beginning rooms with all the vines, thorns, and showers of pink petals) as well as the remix of the starting area theme that plays in Zero Mission, when you first beam down to Zebes and start exploring. And the song from the starting area in Metroid 2 is an all-time favorite of mine.

All the composers had to do was go back to the original games for inspiration. Instead, we got an understated, generic, and dare I say boring soundtrack for Dread. A pity.

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DrLitch
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby DrLitch » October 18th, 2021, 11:42 am

Matchstick wrote:I've never played Samus Returns, but I also never had a 3DS. Probably never will, so I'm content to let that one pass me by.


It's a decent game in the B range. Fun to play but time will forget it since there is nothing memorable to point to.

Matchstick wrote:Instead, we got an understated, generic, and dare I say boring soundtrack for Dread. A pity.


Agreed. The soundtrack to Zero Mission and Super Metroid help seal classic status for me, I will always be able to associate the soundtrack and playing these games. Dread, as good as it is right now, I fear in 5 years I will only recollect it being a good game, one easily lost in a crowd of decent titles. Fusion soundtrack I must disagree politely - this tune really set the atmosphere for the game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2hgVSJ7VBs

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MSR1701
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby MSR1701 » October 18th, 2021, 11:48 am

DrLitch wrote:
Matchstick wrote:I've never played Samus Returns, but I also never had a 3DS. Probably never will, so I'm content to let that one pass me by.


It's a decent game in the B range. Fun to play but time will forget it since there is nothing memorable to point to.

Matchstick wrote:Instead, we got an understated, generic, and dare I say boring soundtrack for Dread. A pity.


Agreed. The soundtrack to Zero Mission and Super Metroid help seal classic status for me, I will always be able to associate the soundtrack and playing these games. Dread, as good as it is right now, I fear in 5 years I will only recollect it being a good game, one easily lost in a crowd of decent titles. Fusion soundtrack I must disagree politely - this tune really set the atmosphere for the game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2hgVSJ7VBs


Samus Returns is good, though I am VERY biased to the original (it was my first Metroid game), and there are elements that were introduced in Samus Returns that I do not care for (the Quick Time Event fights with bosses/enemies can die in a fire...)

The Soundtrack in Dread seemed to take a page from Fusion, where you had a few memorable tracks (usually the bosses, see Serris and Ridley-X in Fusion and Kraid in Dread) and a LOT of environmental tracks, most of which are either forgettable or barely noteworthy; that said, they did not distract in Fusion, and there were a few decent tracks (though the Sector 1 theme got old FAST when you had to sit thru it each time you booted up the game at the unskippable intro movie...).

Again with Samus Returns, there were a few nostalgic themes (such as awesome remixes of Lower Norfair and Red Brinstar), and a few nice remixes of Metroid II tracks. The fight music was also decent, though the crowning jewel is the final phase of the final boss by far.

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m0zart
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Re: Metroid Dread (Switch)

Postby m0zart » October 18th, 2021, 4:03 pm

I am really loving Metroid Dread so far. I actually kind of enjoy the addition of stealth. I'm still wondering what the story is going to unfold into.

I actually don't have a problem with the counter move for killing creatures. I don't love it, but it's not terrible to me.

I didn't have any real issue with it in the Metroid 2 remake either ("Samus Returns"). Overall, I think "Zero Mission" was a much better remake of the original Metroid than "Samus Returns" was a remake of Metroid 2, but I still thought it was amazing in its recreation and reimagining of the environs and gameplay of that Gameboy game.


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