Metroid Dread is a 2021 action-adventure game created by MercurySteam and Nintendo EPD. It was released by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch on October 8, 2021. This game is the ninth main game in the Metroid series and takes place after Metroid Fusion, which was released in 2002. Players control Samus Aran, a bounty hunter, as she explores the planet ZDR to find the source of a mysterious signal. The game uses the side-scrolling style of earlier 2D Metroid games and includes stealth gameplay. Metroid Dread was the first new main series game since 2010, following Metroid: Other M.
The Metroid series producer, Yoshio Sakamoto, first planned Metroid Dread for the Nintendo DS in the mid-2000s. However, development stopped because of technical challenges. Many industry experts wanted a new 2D Metroid game and added Dread to their "most wanted" lists. After working on Metroid: Samus Returns in 2017, Sakamoto chose MercurySteam to develop Dread, which would be the first original side-scrolling Metroid game since Fusion. The game was announced at E3 2021.
Metroid Dread was named one of the best games of 2021 by several outlets. At The Game Awards 2021, it received two nominations, including Game of the Year, and won the Best Action/Adventure Game award. It became the fastest-selling Metroid game in Japan, the UK, and the US. The game has sold more than three million copies, making it the best-selling Metroid game to date.
Gameplay
Metroid Dread is an action-adventure game where players control bounty hunter Samus Aran as she explores the planet ZDR. The game keeps the side-scrolling gameplay style from earlier Metroid games and includes features like free-aiming and melee attacks introduced in Samus Returns (2017). As players explore, they find new tools and weapons that help them reach new areas.
The game includes stealth gameplay. Samus must avoid E.M.M.I. robots by hiding, reducing her noise, or using the Phantom Cloak, which makes her invisible but slows her movement. If an E.M.M.I. catches Samus, the player has two short chances to perform melee attacks and escape. If they fail, Samus is killed. E.M.M.I. robots can only be destroyed after Samus gains the temporary "Omega Blaster" upgrade. This upgrade disappears after destroying one E.M.M.I., but defeating one gives Samus a permanent new upgrade. Upgrades can also be found by interacting with Chozo statues or destroying Core-X enemies, as in earlier games. Players earn images in an in-game gallery based on how quickly they finish the game, the difficulty level they choose, and the percentage of items they collect.
Plot
The Galactic Federation receives information that the X, a dangerous parasite that can copy any creature it infects, lives on the faraway planet ZDR. They send seven E.M.M.I. (Extraplanetary Multiform Mobile Identifiers) robots to ZDR to investigate, but lose contact. The Federation sends Samus Aran to ZDR to look into the situation.
Underground, Samus meets a Chozo warrior who blocks her exit, fights her, and removes most of her suit’s abilities. Her ship’s computer, Adam, tells her to find another way to the surface and return to her ship. Samus is attacked by the E.M.M.I., which have been reprogrammed. She escapes and takes energy from one of the planet’s central units. This energy temporarily activates the Omega Blaster, which she uses to destroy the E.M.M.I. and regain some abilities. During this, she discovers that her old enemy Kraid survived the destruction of planet Zebes and defeats him in battle.
In Ferenia, Samus is captured by another E.M.M.I., but a Chozo named Quiet Robe saves her by turning it off. Quiet Robe explains that long ago, two Chozo tribes, the scientific Thoha and warrior Mawkin, worked together to trap the Metroids on planet SR388. The Thoha planned to destroy SR388, but Raven Beak, the Mawkin leader, wanted to use the Metroids as a bioweapon to control the galaxy. He killed the Thoha tribe and left Quiet Robe alive so the Metroids could be controlled using his Thoha DNA. Raven Beak planned to use ZDR to house the Metroids but had to stop an infestation of the X while Samus destroyed the Metroids on SR388. He reprogrammed the E.M.M.I.s and lured Samus to ZDR to take Metroid DNA from her, which would let him revive the Metroids.
Quiet Robe opens a barrier for Samus to continue, but he is killed by one of Raven Beak’s robotic soldiers. Adam tells Samus to defeat Raven Beak and destroy ZDR. In Elun, Samus meets the X parasites and accidentally releases them across the planet. One X infects Quiet Robe’s body and reactivates the remaining E.M.M.I. robots. Samus reaches the surface and is attacked by the last E.M.M.I. She destroys it by taking its energy with her hand, a power given to her by her Metroid DNA. As a result, Samus is slowly becoming a Metroid.
On the floating fortress of Itorash, Samus faces Raven Beak, who has been pretending to be Adam. Raven Beak admits he let Samus live so she would awaken her Metroid powers, which he planned to use to clone her and create an army of powerful Metroids. Samus fights Raven Beak and is almost killed, but her Metroid abilities give her great strength. She attacks Raven Beak, takes energy from Itorash, and causes it to crash into ZDR. Raven Beak is infected by an X that had taken over Kraid’s body earlier, and Samus uses her new powers to destroy the X. As ZDR begins to destroy itself, Samus reaches her ship, but Adam warns her not to use it because her Metroid powers drain energy. The X, pretending to be Quiet Robe, lets itself be absorbed by Samus to stop her Metroid abilities. This allows her to escape the planet before it explodes.
Development
The Metroid game Metroid Dread was first planned by its producer, Yoshio Sakamoto, for the Nintendo DS handheld console. The idea came from the concept of Samus exploring an unfamiliar planet, with the word "dread" reflecting the fear she might feel. Sakamoto wanted to improve the stealth gameplay from Metroid Fusion and mix it with traditional Metroid elements. Although he did not intend for Dread to be a horror game, he aimed to create gameplay that would make players feel uneasy.
Development for Dread began around 2005. The title first appeared on an internal Nintendo list of important DS games to be announced in the future, leading to expectations that it might be revealed at the E3 conference. No public announcement was made, but a plot summary was shown to some journalists at E3 2005. Later in 2005, rumors spread that the game was canceled or delayed. A release date of November 2006 was listed in a magazine in February 2006, and another date for 2006 was mentioned in March 2006, but the game did not appear. According to a podcast, Nintendo canceled the DS version of Dread at the last minute.
A message in the 2007 game Metroid Prime 3: Corruption stated that the Dread project was close to completion. The game’s director and producer denied any connection to Dread, calling the message a coincidence. Some fans and writers questioned this denial. In the Japanese version of Corruption, the message was changed to refer to a "dread class turret." Fans visited Retro Studios in Texas to ask about Dread, and Nintendo later denied that a 2D Metroid game was in development.
A second attempt to make Dread began around 2008. A playable prototype was shown to Nintendo staff at E3 2009. At that time, the project no longer used the name Dread and had an art style similar to Metroid Fusion. However, the prototype did not meet Sakamoto’s expectations, and development was stopped. A major challenge was that the DS hardware could not create the intimidating, unsettling enemy Sakamoto wanted.
In 2010, Sakamoto said Nintendo would need to start over if they returned to Dread and mentioned they were watching fan feedback. He also said Metroid: Other M (2010) and Metroid: Samus Returns (2017) were not connected to Dread. In 2010, a journalist said the story for Dread was complete and that Nintendo could release it anytime.
Critics and fans expressed interest in Dread or a similar 2D Metroid game. In 2011, IGN listed Dread as a "game in danger," and some writers included it in lists of games they wished to play. Others felt disappointed by Other M and wished for a return to Dread. A magazine writer included Dread in a list of famous canceled games, and critics criticized Nintendo for focusing on other games instead of Metroid. In 2015, a researcher contacted former journalists who had worked on Dread in the 2000s and shared findings that were later confirmed when Dread was revived.
At Nintendo’s E3 2021 presentation on June 15, Metroid Dread was revealed for the Nintendo Switch, with a release date of October 8, 2021. The game was developed by MercurySteam, the studio behind Metroid: Samus Returns, and Nintendo EPD. Sakamoto said Nintendo revived the project after seeing MercurySteam’s work on the Switch. Metroid Dread is the first original side-scrolling Metroid game since Metroid Fusion.
Release
Metroid Dread was released for the Nintendo Switch on October 8, 2021. The special edition included a 190-page art book, holographic art cards showing the covers of the five 2D Metroid games, and a steelbook case. Two Amiibo figurines were also released.
Reception
On the review website Metacritic, Metroid Dread has a score of 88 out of 100, which means most reviews are positive. Samuel Claiborn of IGN said the game’s boss fights are strong, noting they include both traditional enemies with patterns to learn and battles similar to those in Smash Bros. Chris Carter of Destructoid stated that Dread does the Metroidvania style of gameplay very well, adding it rarely makes mistakes. PJ O’Reilly of Nintendo Life praised the game’s mix of returning features and new additions, saying players feel they have many choices for exploring detailed environments. Joe Findly of CGMagazine called Metroid Dread a great, modern version of a classic game. IGN also noted the game brings back the fun of exploring and progressing while combining it with strong modern combat and excellent boss fights.
Metroid Dread was the top-selling game on Amazon’s Video Game Best Sellers list in the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan. It was also the most pre-ordered game after E3 2021 at GameStop.
In the United Kingdom, Dread had the highest physical sales launch for the Metroid series, reaching number three on weekly video game sales charts. Including digital copies, it became the fastest-selling Metroid game in the UK. In the United States, it debuted at number three and sold 854,000 copies in its first month, making it the fastest-selling Metroid game, according to Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser. In Japan, it debuted at number one, selling 86,798 retail copies in its first week. Including digital sales, Dread sold more copies in its first week than nearly all other Metroid games combined in Japan. As of December 2022, Metroid Dread had sold 3.07 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling Metroid game.
At The Game Awards 2021, Metroid Dread won the Best Action/Adventure Game award. At the Golden Joystick Awards, it won the Nintendo Game of the Year category. It was also named Game of the Year by Time and Digital Trends.