Metroid Dread

 Switch
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2790 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,386 out of 2790
  2. Mixed: 158 out of 2790
  3. Negative: 246 out of 2790
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. TitaniumDragon
    Oct 23, 2022
    7
    Metroid Dread, AKA Metroid 5, is at least the sixth mainline Metroid game. Given that Metroidvania is right there in the name of the genre, you know what you’re in for – you start out weak, conveniently deprived of all your weapons and gear from the previous game by the Inciting Event, after which point you then have to go around the environment, beating bosses and finding rooms to collectMetroid Dread, AKA Metroid 5, is at least the sixth mainline Metroid game. Given that Metroidvania is right there in the name of the genre, you know what you’re in for – you start out weak, conveniently deprived of all your weapons and gear from the previous game by the Inciting Event, after which point you then have to go around the environment, beating bosses and finding rooms to collect items which allow you to explore more of the game, unlocking new areas to explore and bosses to beat, resulting in you gaining an ever increasing amount of power until you beat the game.

    You are Samus, a bounty hunter whose job seems to really be professional exterminator. You have an arm cannon you can shoot, more powerful missiles you can launch, and you can slide to go under short things.

    Of course, as the game goes on, you gain the ability to charge your arm cannon, get stronger missiles, can jump infinitely in the air, underwater, go through hot lava and frigid cold areas, dash, run super fast, curl up into a ball and drop bombs, and countless other upgrades. If you’ve played previous Metroid games, or even played Super Smash Bros, you probably have a good guess as to what kind of things you’ll be getting, as it isn’t anything new.

    That said, the game is pretty competent. It manages to be linear despite being a heavily non-linear environment, with you criss-crossing back across areas you completed previously to reach new places. Instead of tedious direct backtracking, the levels keep looping back on themselves, allowing you to get to where you need to go pretty quickly – a good bit of game design.

    Unfortunately, the game still has the other, tedious kind of backtracking to collect secrets you missed, and this is not much fun. A lot of them are just “use the new power up here to collect the item” and the only real puzzles that aren’t are running/shinespark puzzles, a mechanic you unlock a way into the game that allows you to propel yourself at high speeds which does not have a very good control scheme. Because of the tediousness, I would recommend mostly not backtracking until the end of the game, but even then, it’s still going to be annoying because of how spread out the game’s “fast travel points” (which are only unlocked at the VERY end of the game) are.

    This left me with something of a sour note at the end of the game; the game actually is not very great for exploration, and while it does an okay job of making you feel clever as you are going through sometimes, oftentimes it is just “I need to do this next.”

    That being said, it didn’t spoil the game for me as a whole. The core mechanics are mostly fairly decent, and the game has a whopping 30 bosses – which, considering it is less than 14 hours to beat the whole game 100%, means you are fighting 3 bosses an hour or so, more if you don’t bother to go back and 100% it. That’s a quite dense game, and it works very well – you are always running into new things, and while a lot of the bosses aren’t super remarkable, some of them are very well done, and the final few bosses in particular are quite neat to fight and do a good job of rewarding you for remembering all the game’s mechanics.

    The story and plot, however, are quite terrible. I had only briefly played previous Metroid games, and while I was aware of the metaplot, I had zero investment in Samus Aran. There’s only really three characters in the game, and one of them appears very briefly, and Samus herself is near-mute and has almost no dialogue whatsoever – which is very awkward as there’s a lot of moments where you’d expect her to say something, and she just awkwardly, silently stares at whatever it is she’s seeing. This at least makes some sense with the monsters, but there’s a few times where she SHOULD have replied and didn’t, and it felt really weird.

    The plot itself is mostly an excuse to make another game, and it didn’t really connect with me on an emotional level at all; it is mostly just throwing you around to the next challenge, with no real attachment to anything you’re encountering. This is quite the contrast with other games I’ve played recently, and with AAA games in general these days – and while it isn’t strictly necessary, it definitely can make games stronger, with games like Celeste and Hollow Knight giving you some emotional investment in their world and characters, and games like God of War pretty much carrying the game on its back with the quality of the work and characters.

    The best feature of this game, however, was its brevity. Where so many AAA games feel it necessary to stretch themselves out endlessly, Metroid Dread was always moving towards its end point, and at less than 14 hours in length, I was very happy with how long it was – it had the amount of content it needed, it didn’t throw in a ton of filler (though the backtracking for items was annoying), and the pacing was very good.    … Expand
  2. max1c
    Oct 27, 2021
    7
    This game is very good until you start taking into account complete shi tier controls and cheating AI. Emmi mechanics are also pretty mediocre design wise. The double jump mechanic is literally the worst implementation of any platformer in history ever. Everything else in the game is pretty high quality.
  3. Renzokuken
    Oct 29, 2021
    7
    Metroid dread is on its surface a good, classic Metroid game all about exploring, finding powerups, becoming stronger and conquering bosses in order to reach your goal. Then they added in the EMMI sections and ruined it. They frequently and repeatedly throw you into giant areas of the map where the goal is to stop exploring, stop looking for power ups, and to start running for your lifeMetroid dread is on its surface a good, classic Metroid game all about exploring, finding powerups, becoming stronger and conquering bosses in order to reach your goal. Then they added in the EMMI sections and ruined it. They frequently and repeatedly throw you into giant areas of the map where the goal is to stop exploring, stop looking for power ups, and to start running for your life from a huge one-hit-kill murder robot until you can find the powerup to kill the murder robot (and it's the same power up every single time you just lose it after each kill for no real reason). These sections are very frequent, very annoying, and run contrary to the entire point of a metroid game, exploration. The game tells you that escaping from these robots if you're caught (and you will be caught, since they can engage in all sorts of environmental shenanigans) has a 99% chance of failure. This isn't hyperbole, the window for parrying these enemies to escape is randomly generated, and requires you to pre-input a button press within such a small frame window, it makes Dark Souls' parry system look generous.

    Graphically the game is fairly good, I've noticed some frame drops, but it's very playable. Audio wise it's just OK some classic tracks, mostly ambience, as expected.

    Buy it if you're a die hard Metroid fan, newcomers to the series would probably be better off with one of the older classic style Metroid titles.    … Expand
  4. AVdE
    Oct 14, 2021
    7
    I absolutely loved it. Controls were fantastic, the EMMI's are a really cool creepy addition, the bosses were large and in charge, and it's just so great to see a home console 2D Metroid game again. If you've played a Metroid game before, especially Samus returns, you'll know what to expect and look forward to.

    But, being a home console game, Dread has way more ambitious set pieces and    I absolutely loved it. Controls were fantastic, the EMMI's are a really cool creepy addition, the bosses were large and in charge, and it's just so great to see a home console 2D Metroid game again. If you've played a Metroid game before, especially Samus returns, you'll know what to expect and look forward to.

    But, being a home console game, Dread has way more ambitious set pieces and excellent backgrounds that sometimes foreshadow things to come. I love that. Cutscenes are great and the game just looks fantastic in general, proving there is still a place for AAA 2D games on the big screen.

    The melee counter is also back but not as OP as in Samus returns, meaning there's way less stop-and-go, and the flow overall is just so much better than in that game; Mercury Steam clearly listened to feedback.

    However, I do have 2 important issues.

    First off, difficulty. I don't mind a good challenge, but I feel like pattern recognition bosses where you have to try a few times works way better in say, a Cuphead or a Megaman than it does Metroid. Enemies do ludicrous amounts of damage, and near the end there were bosses that just two shot you. And that kind of takes you out of the experience. I want to be creeped out by the bosses and feel like I'm in a struggle for survival. Having to replay every fight at least a few times until I get the pattern right completely ruins that atmosphere and makes me think about attack cycles, boss phases and not wanting to see that Game Over screen again instead of weird creepy alien creatures in a hostile environment. Especially with how long fights can go on. It is very satisfying to finally take them down however.

    Second, the exploration is a bit underwhelming. I liked how they tried to handle backtracking: you take the elevator/train to the next area, to then find a dead end with a portal to another area where you continue onwards with the new abilities you just acquired. It's a neat idea, but it still felt extremely linear. Hell, maybe even more so than Samus Returns. There is very little to none sequence breaking. Yes you can wall jump and bomb hop, but I can't recall a single instance where I got to a place or even an item earlier than intended. They tried to make backtracking feel more organic, but it's really no different than how it used to be, and just makes things more confusing.

    Overall, a great game. I do feel like the user and critic score is a bit elevated because people want to send Nintendo a message to keep making Metroid games, and so do I, if they continue listening to feedback and improving on what they have instead of just making it flashier. This special franchise deserves nothing but the very best, and with Mercury Steam, it's certainly in capable hands.    … Expand
  5. Hackattaque
    Nov 22, 2022
    7
    Dread…? more like Metroid kitchen sink. It’s not easy updating a franchise that’s decades old and hit 2D perfection before Gen Z was even born, especially now that so many Indie metroidvanias exist. This game gets a lot right but ultimately can’t decide what it should be and tries to do everything at once. The overall arc remains the same as Super Metroid, but so much is thrown at theDread…? more like Metroid kitchen sink. It’s not easy updating a franchise that’s decades old and hit 2D perfection before Gen Z was even born, especially now that so many Indie metroidvanias exist. This game gets a lot right but ultimately can’t decide what it should be and tries to do everything at once. The overall arc remains the same as Super Metroid, but so much is thrown at the wall: the new EMMI sections are repetitive and gimmicky like the Batmobile in Arkham Knight, the parry-based combat tries to ape Dark Souls but slows the exploration to a crawl, and the map is so complex and bitty that power-ups unlock inches rather than miles. It’s not a bad game and there are some great moments, especially some of the bosses. But finicky controls and quick-time parries make this a frustrating, flawed experience.… Expand
  6. upThere
    Oct 11, 2021
    7
    I'm Conflicted.
    Recursive exploration, 2D platformer-pathfinding and incremental combat-abilities-which-double-as-traversal-mechanics are the legacy of the Metroid & Castlevania series'. This game does those. You're a bounty hunter - work alone, backtrack, find a new way forward & hunt the next objective... It's a refined formula.
    What Dread introduces is portions of the game with an    I'm Conflicted.
    Recursive exploration, 2D platformer-pathfinding and incremental combat-abilities-which-double-as-traversal-mechanics are the legacy of the Metroid & Castlevania series'. This game does those. You're a bounty hunter - work alone, backtrack, find a new way forward & hunt the next objective... It's a refined formula.

    What Dread introduces is portions of the game with an awesome redefinition of that formula - the hunter becomes hunted! All your exploration, traversal + combat abilities are now leveraged toward narrowly escaping aggressively intelligent agile and relentless pursuers.... Heart-pounding adrenaline spikes - what a rush! ... but

    ...7/10 - because it feels like these portions are tacked on, confined to their own mini-games at specific junctures. Otherwise it's business as usual. It leaves me wanting to know what if this awesome reimagining were at the core of the game itself rather than a side-dish - Nintendo could achieve a true redefinition of this otherwise stale genre. . .?    … Expand
  7. Bryon
    Oct 12, 2021
    7
    I have mixed feelings on this one. It's very good for what it is, but it isn't exactly what I was hoping for.

    I'm about 3/4ths of the way through. I'll start with the the good stuff. The graphics are great and the music and sound effects are very good. The movement and control of Samus is the best that this series has ever seen. I am enjoying the story as well. So your basic    I have mixed feelings on this one. It's very good for what it is, but it isn't exactly what I was hoping for.

    I'm about 3/4ths of the way through.

    I'll start with the the good stuff. The graphics are great and the music and sound effects are very good. The movement and control of Samus is the best that this series has ever seen. I am enjoying the story as well. So your basic production value is a solid A.

    There are many intense battles that force you to use all of Samus' impressive array of abilities. Most battles are pretty tough and you feel good when you eventually win.

    Samus is a badass. She is finishing off her boss kills in style. She has all the awesome attitude you would hope for in the galaxy's greatest bounty hunter.

    Now for the bad stuff.

    I've felt from the very beginning like there was a hand on my back pushing me forward instead of letting me explore and discover on my own. That's a HUGE loss from previous Metroids. The game usually doesn't allow you to backtrack easily or at all. I've often acquired a new ability and thought I would go back through previous areas to see what I can open up, but the way is blocked. And the blocking doesn't feel natural. Oh, there is a red statue thing I can't kill. Oh, this door is just shut. I guess it will open when I advance far enough. At this point I'm resigned to just keep moving forward. The game automatically moves you back and forth through the areas. That isn't how Metroid is supposed to work though.

    Unless you are a top level gamer, you will die over and over and over and over again. I don't mind dying some in the beginning, or needing a few tries on a particularly tough boss, but I don't feel like a badass when I die, die, die, die, die, die, die, die, die, die, succeed. And then do that again for the next EMMI or major boss, and then again and again.

    For games like this where you constantly upgrading, I take enjoyment out of finding all of the upgrades and feeling near invincible in the latter half of the game. But the difficulty stays pretty much the same throughout. Many people like that, but I prefer the extremely powerful feeling I had in the second half of Super Metroid or BOTW.

    So for what it is, Metroid Dread is great. Unfortunately it has lost some of the freedom of exploration and the feeling of power as the upgrades stack up. It's a fun time, but ultimately lost much of what Metroid used to be in favor of more modern quick twitch fights and flights.    … Expand
  8. ahmadhz1999
    Nov 2, 2021
    7
    For me, the game is too simple to be a masterpiece. It was definitely a fun experience but the maps and the boss fights were super simplified.

    First of all, the maps for each area are very small, so you will never feel alone or scared. Second of all, the location of hidden items is so obvious that you can find most of them without any problem, and this takes the feel of discovery out of    For me, the game is too simple to be a masterpiece. It was definitely a fun experience but the maps and the boss fights were super simplified.

    First of all, the maps for each area are very small, so you will never feel alone or scared. Second of all, the location of hidden items is so obvious that you can find most of them without any problem, and this takes the feel of discovery out of the game. Lastly, the platforming sections are just too easy. In the entire playthrough, there were only one or two parts that had challenging platforming and in other sections, you only had to jump once or twice and pass the location easily.

    Boss fights had the same problem. The only boss fights that were actually interesting and satisfying to beat were the first and last bosses. Other bosses had only three or four attack patterns and you could learn all of them after a few tries (usually less than 5 tries). Also, the game gives you so many health packs and missiles that sometimes you don't even need to learn all the attack patterns.

    Some people might say that if I play it on hard these problems will go away, but that is not true because these are design problems, and increasing the damage of enemies will not solve anything.

    I would say the best part of this game is the gameplay. It feels very smooth, and you can run around the map super fast. This becomes even more fun when you get new cool abilities. Also, unlike most people, I liked the EMMI encounters because they felt intense in some parts and made the game more engaging.

    Overall I recommend this game, but I think 60 dollars is too much for such a simple and short game, so wait for the sale if you want to save money.    … Expand
  9. metaknightmare
    Oct 15, 2021
    7
    + One of the best, if not the best, stories in the series. The most digestible as well.
    + Tight, polished gameplay
    + Excellent art direction - $60 for a game that plays almost the same as the $40 3DS Samus Returns game, yet Dread is shorter. - Speed Boost puzzles are the absolute worst in the series, 99% chance you will be looking up answers online if you are trying to 100% the game.    + One of the best, if not the best, stories in the series. The most digestible as well.
    + Tight, polished gameplay
    + Excellent art direction

    - $60 for a game that plays almost the same as the $40 3DS Samus Returns game, yet Dread is shorter.
    - Speed Boost puzzles are the absolute worst in the series, 99% chance you will be looking up answers online if you are trying to 100% the game.

    It's a great game and Metroid is probably my favorite franchise but I wish it did a little more and after 100%'ing it in 10 hours (I don't count the filler like Hard Mode which is cheaply hidden behind a Normal playthrough and the speedruns) it doesn't feel worth $60.    … Expand
  10. residentvl
    Oct 13, 2021
    7
    This game is beautiful and can be a ton of fun to explore and play in the world created. But this is far too difficult. I should be funneled into multiple boss fights without a save point so I can actually take a break. This game made me less of a fan of the metroid franchise. I'll stick to the first person ones and hope 4 isnt as disappointing
  11. dr0nzer
    Oct 17, 2021
    7
    It’s alright, and not really anything special to be honest. Okay at full price, better during a sale.
  12. Arma15
    Oct 19, 2021
    7
    In general, the game is good. The visuals, known weapons, bosses. What was a huge let down is that the game is extremely short. I never realized how short until it was like… clear time: 9 hours… WHAT?! And with 100% items 11 hours. I’ve spent more time in good indie games metroidvania style for something as 5 usd. They should have made something much longer or at least bring new regionsIn general, the game is good. The visuals, known weapons, bosses. What was a huge let down is that the game is extremely short. I never realized how short until it was like… clear time: 9 hours… WHAT?! And with 100% items 11 hours. I’ve spent more time in good indie games metroidvania style for something as 5 usd. They should have made something much longer or at least bring new regions for free through DLC. They also spoiled map exploration. Since the game was so short, now getting the 100% of the map is almost impossible, being your moves extra zoomed”, having to jump to explore completely regular spaces. So no having the map exploration as usual in a metroidvania style was a let down.… Expand
  13. SavageReviews1
    Oct 14, 2021
    7
    I was really looking forward to this game. I even played all the 2D ones over again in preparation, which might have been a mistake because after playing the previous 4 entries and then playing this one it felt sort of repetitive. It does a few things new but not much. I like the flow of movement and the updated visuals but for better or worse it is still a Metroid game. Its a solid gameI was really looking forward to this game. I even played all the 2D ones over again in preparation, which might have been a mistake because after playing the previous 4 entries and then playing this one it felt sort of repetitive. It does a few things new but not much. I like the flow of movement and the updated visuals but for better or worse it is still a Metroid game. Its a solid game but it doesn't do much new with the formula. After playing games like Ori and Hollow Knight this game just feels lacking in comparison when it comes to new ideas and revitalizing the series. Took me 7 Hours and 35 Minutes to Beat.… Expand
  14. ThoughtfulScore
    Nov 3, 2021
    7
    Metroid Dread is a 10 hour action, puzzle, exploration game, with some tricky bosses, and easy trash mobs. The checkpoint/save system is very forgiving, and the level design is intuitive, so pacing is good.
    Replay value is low, as there is basically no story, and little in the way of cool things to discover that aren't part of the main campaign. It feels more like a great GameCube    Metroid Dread is a 10 hour action, puzzle, exploration game, with some tricky bosses, and easy trash mobs. The checkpoint/save system is very forgiving, and the level design is intuitive, so pacing is good.
    Replay value is low, as there is basically no story, and little in the way of cool things to discover that aren't part of the main campaign. It feels more like a great GameCube game, rather than a $60 triple A title in 2021. I enjoyed it, but you don't get great bang for your buck.    … Expand
  15. eded9999
    Oct 12, 2021
    7
    Good controls compared to other Metroid games.
    Difficulty is good.
    Bosses are good, but there's too few of then compared to others games of this style. Story is average. And the premise is becoming way too repetitive: Go to a planet, loose your equip so go get the Suit, Morphball, Rays all over again... Music is not specially good. A bit too short and there's no real extra content    Good controls compared to other Metroid games.
    Difficulty is good.
    Bosses are good, but there's too few of then compared to others games of this style.
    Story is average. And the premise is becoming way too repetitive: Go to a planet, loose your equip so go get the Suit, Morphball, Rays all over again...
    Music is not specially good.
    A bit too short and there's no real extra content like most metroidvanias, no alt endings or secret bosses, areas or quest.

    Not bad, but not specially good either, it's ok.
    I wish they would try to push some boundaries with Metroid, indie games are doing amazing things with the genre.    … Expand
  16. GabiTheRabbit
    Nov 8, 2021
    7
    It's a fun game, but that's pretty much it. It wouldn't get quarter of the praise it receives, if it wasn't named metroid and if it wasn't from nintendo. But hey, if sentiment can sell patriotism, it surely can sell games. Gamers will rant about whatever good or bad ubisoft would do, but nintendo can make what basically is an indie game, advert it as if it was AAA title, and sell it forIt's a fun game, but that's pretty much it. It wouldn't get quarter of the praise it receives, if it wasn't named metroid and if it wasn't from nintendo. But hey, if sentiment can sell patriotism, it surely can sell games. Gamers will rant about whatever good or bad ubisoft would do, but nintendo can make what basically is an indie game, advert it as if it was AAA title, and sell it for the price of AAA, and gamers will thank nintendo for screwing them over.

    I had fun playing it, I enjoy the general mechanics of it. I got stuck a few times, and solutions were very unintuitive. It's very frustrating at the times. EMMIs are just annoying - it's not a good stealth design. Some decisions regarding controls are just awful. you can transition from walk / run into ball - you need to stop to do that, which is ridiculous in such dynamic game. Often controls felt unresponsive - often I couldn't duck or enable rockets in time, because game was not reacting on my input. Nintendo also forgot, that there is another joystick on switch, and you run and aim with just 1 stick, like a simpleton. To double jump its not enough to press jump twice - you also need directional, which is very unintiitive too. I don't think many people actually finished the game, because last boss is crazy difficult for some reason.    … Expand
  17. Pan_T
    Nov 13, 2021
    7
    Overall, I enjoyed the game, but by the end it was a little repetitive, and most importantly, the whole time I was playing, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was playing a 15-year-old game, not a new full-price AAA game. Even indie games are beyond that now. 7/10
  18. Distrial
    Oct 26, 2021
    7
    Generally speaking the game is great, looks very nice and the exploration is really fun. However three things are in the way of it being fhe best it could be. In order of severity first is EMMI zones, way too much trial and error to find your way through their zones without getting caught sometimes and dying repeatedly just to learn the layout of their area is immersion breaking. Second isGenerally speaking the game is great, looks very nice and the exploration is really fun. However three things are in the way of it being fhe best it could be. In order of severity first is EMMI zones, way too much trial and error to find your way through their zones without getting caught sometimes and dying repeatedly just to learn the layout of their area is immersion breaking. Second is the optional upgrades, too many of them require endgame stuff to be able to grab them so you get left pretty weak until right at the end unless you're doing TONS of backtracking which sometimes isn't possible because the path backwards gets cut off. The biggest offender here is all the speedboost block puzzles to get some of the best items since a lot of them require the upgrades you get just before the final boss. Lastly and most obviously, the boss's difficulty is frankly way too much higher than the rest of the game. They're definitely beatable but every boss is extremely fast and deals an entire lifebar of damage with every hit more often than not so you die repeatedly just to learn patterns and to me at least, after 15 or so deaths I'm simply not having fun any more and I don't feel accomplished for beating such a boss because it seems to me I beat it out of luck and persistence rather than skill and preperation. All in all enjoyable but the game likes to roadblock you with overly tricky parts way to often for anyone who isn't able to put in hours and hours of time .… Expand
  19. bancandrei
    Mar 13, 2022
    7
    What Dark Souls accomplishes in two hours and a first time frustrating boss this accomplishes in 10 mins. Not really a fan of the genre but this formula is crafted very well.
  20. Phils
    Oct 20, 2021
    7
    I finished and enjoyed the game overall, but was left disappointed in many ways. I loved the NES and SNES games back in the day, and appreciated how Dread seemed to mostly maintain that gameplay formula, however things added and changed made Dread more of a disappointment to me. Dread felt imbalanced with so many boss fights that seemed much more challenging than the rest of the game.I finished and enjoyed the game overall, but was left disappointed in many ways. I loved the NES and SNES games back in the day, and appreciated how Dread seemed to mostly maintain that gameplay formula, however things added and changed made Dread more of a disappointment to me. Dread felt imbalanced with so many boss fights that seemed much more challenging than the rest of the game. There was a point starting about halfway in where it seemed like it was one boss battle after another, which became very annoying and frustrating. Unlike past games, backtracking in Dread to find more power-ups yielded few to no rewards as doors are sealed and invulnerable creatures are deliberately placed to block key paths. Only until right before the final boss did I feel like I had the freedom to fully explore, but by then I was eager to just finish this. It was often weird to enter a new map, only to be forced to return to a previous map just a few corridors later. The EMMIs became more annoying than something to dread. I missed Samus's journal-like narration and the game almost never lets us know what Samus is thinking. The story left a lot to be desired as much isn't explained; I expected a lot more considering this was the final story to an ongoing saga. The music wasn't anything great; most was too up-tempo and weren't like the ethereal music of previous games. And maybe the most egregious problem is maybe a light spoiler, although Nintendo confirmed this before release (which apparently I missed then), is that there are no metroids in the game! I really missed seeing and fighting those mysterious energy suckers alike at the end of the NES and SNES games. Sadly, Dread hardly lives up to the original games.… Expand
  21. Awanka
    Apr 27, 2023
    7
    Pretty good Metroidvania that gets the basics of the genre right. My main complaint is the same as Doom Eternal. There are too many abilities to remember, and too many complicated controls. Press 2 buttons and you fire missiles. Press another 2 buttons and you launch a grappling hook. Press another 2 buttons and you turn into a ball and drop a bomb. It gets confusing.

    The EMMI    Pretty good Metroidvania that gets the basics of the genre right. My main complaint is the same as Doom Eternal. There are too many abilities to remember, and too many complicated controls. Press 2 buttons and you fire missiles. Press another 2 buttons and you launch a grappling hook. Press another 2 buttons and you turn into a ball and drop a bomb. It gets confusing.

    The EMMI robot sections are awful. Like the worst stealth sections you've ever encountered x6. There are some great boss fights in Metroid: Dread that are dances of death like Hollow Knight, but then there are a lot of gimmicky boss fights that depend on using a grappling hook to hop around, or hit some weak spot. Overall, this game is still a lot of fun, and a fine addition to the Metroid series.    … Expand
  22. ConradReview
    Oct 23, 2021
    7
    I liked it, but I have no intention of playing it again or on Hard. If you like Metroid you'll like it, but it's not going to blow you away.
  23. piglordofallham
    Apr 17, 2023
    7
    its not as if Metroid is out of ideas, its just getting very good at reincorporating the same old ones to suit a narrative that is frankly just getting more embarrassing as time goes by and each subsequent post-Other-M title comes out. Is Samus just a legacy character now? Was their really enough there after all these years to continue writing a plot for her in these action games? Asits not as if Metroid is out of ideas, its just getting very good at reincorporating the same old ones to suit a narrative that is frankly just getting more embarrassing as time goes by and each subsequent post-Other-M title comes out. Is Samus just a legacy character now? Was their really enough there after all these years to continue writing a plot for her in these action games? As convoluted as most, if not all of them are, I'd dare say it may be time to let this character retire. Gone are the days of merry, even carefree adventuring with occasional puzzle elements like the Metroid Prime games, instead we get an actual action game based more off the weird pseudo-remake of Metroid 2 from the original Gameboy.

    The Gameboy, in all its black and white glory was incredibly limited, but at the time they made do with what they had. It turns out, some of the simplest elements from the Metroid II - Return of Samus original stick out in my mind a whole lot more than the things they added to elongate a rather short affair in the remake on the Nintendo DS. Color is always a good addition, but some of the other things are kind of irritating. Manually aiming is cool, but finicky and the original control scheme going back to the Gameboy Advance series was intuitive enough. Desiring more complexity for no reason isn't exactly the best goal for a Metroid title when so much that works for the series is KISS. Keep it simple, stupid.

    Metroid Dread, sounding more like a black metal band than a proper sequel to any Metroid game in general, is one of the more bizarre and genuinely bland experiences I've had with the series. From the opening cutscene I think something got lost in translation, because nobody has been playing the Metroid Fusion timeline nor was anyone particularly attached to that timeline either. In short, the intro is terrible and makes the Galaxy that Samus roams rather small and inconsequential. Everything is Chozo now. Everything is connected to metroid or metroid DNA or metroid this and metroid that. Its silly, its been done to death. Its just recycling older and better ideas to cram into your tired narrative, as mentioned above.

    The game play is tedious. I have no other real word for it. I suppose if you were really hoping that Samus Aran would become Megaman overnight, then I guess you got your wish, but I don't like Megaman games. I kind of enjoyed that Super Metroid game on the Super Nintendo. Having all of these new features slapped onto Mrs. Metroid's move-set is exhausting. Mostly due to the fact that the analog stick is required for everything now, which is so foreign of a concept to me in a Metroid game that I just still can't understand why its so necessary. The parrying is silly, the power ups all end up being the same or with a slight twist, but they are only exclusive to this one game, and will I'm sure strangely disappear when the next sequel comes out.

    Lets talk about the bots. No, I don't mean the bots on metacritic, I mean the robot adversaries in this game that are copy-pasted with all of your abilities that all have to be beaten the exact same way, and all feature the same gameplay loop up until the end of the game. The EMMI or EMMI'S, are the same robot thing that pursue Samus in order to give you a big hug and then want to either inject you with something or steal your virginity. Its tough to tell because the screen fades to black. You can QTE them away, but the timing window to stop them and escape is rather short. These are flat out the most boring element about this game. its actually kind of sad that this was the best they could come up with while recycling boss encounters from even older games for no real reason.

    As far as I'm concerned, this game ends on the most ridiculous premise ever. Samus is now some sort of Jesus figure with the blood of the metroids or something blah, blah, blah. Its garbage. This series is over. What else can you even do now besides remake the older games?    … Expand
  24. Zski
    Nov 8, 2021
    7
    Metroid Dread feels like a modern sequel to Super Metroid. The game really stands out in the gameplay which is very true to the series, everything from the exploration, the backtracking, and the problem solving (which I think is the more appropriate term in these games, as opposed to puzzles). Everything feels very true to the series, including the difficulty. I found myself dying a lot,Metroid Dread feels like a modern sequel to Super Metroid. The game really stands out in the gameplay which is very true to the series, everything from the exploration, the backtracking, and the problem solving (which I think is the more appropriate term in these games, as opposed to puzzles). Everything feels very true to the series, including the difficulty. I found myself dying a lot, but I never got frustrated because I enjoyed the sense of progression as you figure out the patterns of the enemies and bosses. The gameplay and controls are super tight and well designed and everything looks and feels silky smooth. The controls feel particularly tight once you unlock all of the abilities, you really feel in control over Samus in the environment. However, the game did take a hit in the atmosphere. While the graphics are decent, the setting does not do the game any favors because most of it is that industrial setting that does not vary that much throughout the game. The music also adds to the inability to differentiate between areas of the game, as it is incredibly forgettable. But the part of the game that really annoyed me the most were the EMMI sequences. They are so bad, they really feel like they are 50% luck based on where the EMMI spawns, and the fact that they are so frequent really interrupts from the sense of exploration that Metroid games are always about. Metroid games usually have great atmosphere, whether it is created by the music or subtle design in the levels, this game unfortunately lacks that atmosphere that really pulls you in, and replaces them with pretty frustrating EMMI sections. All in all, its a fantastic game and a very exciting release for fans of the old 2D Metroid games, but it does fall short in several areas which takes away from the elements that makes the series great. I was very much into the first half of the game, but the second half really lost my interesting because of the boring atmosphere and the repetitive bosses, the only thing that really kept me entertained was the extremely precise controls. It’s a great game, but it was lacking in many ways.… Expand
  25. Edgardmichel84
    Nov 1, 2021
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Metroid Dread é um jogo muito bom. Mecânicas simples no estilo 2D.
    Level design está muito bom.    … Expand
  26. Lugia5O
    Jan 11, 2022
    7
    It is 2d metroid game which will be a very fun and amazing game. I want to give it 8, but since i played all the past metroid games and my best 2d metroid was metroid prime, i feel something off with this game + emmi was not fun at all. But its a good experience after all. If it is the first 2d metroid you play i recommend playing the older ones.
  27. markusjoh
    Oct 12, 2021
    7
    The game would be amazing if it wasn't for two major things and one lesser.
    EMMI sequences, they are simply not fun.
    Quicktime events (and the counters system). Heavy rain was a great game despite qt, not because. Never use qt in games and if you do, make it possible to turn them off. The third, and not as big of a problem as the two above, is that it is quite linear. The game keeps    The game would be amazing if it wasn't for two major things and one lesser.
    EMMI sequences, they are simply not fun.
    Quicktime events (and the counters system). Heavy rain was a great game despite qt, not because. Never use qt in games and if you do, make it possible to turn them off.
    The third, and not as big of a problem as the two above, is that it is quite linear. The game keeps blocking the way back to force you do into.a certain sequence. The old great metroid games didn't do this. Once you open something up, you are free to move around as you please.
    Given these I think Im nice when I give it a 7.    … Expand
  28. Koldor
    Oct 18, 2021
    7
    Mercury Steam’s second outing with the armor-clad bounty hunter, while much improved from their previous 3DS entry, leaves much to be desired. Clunky world design, frustrating stealth sections and annoying quick time events are just a few issues in store for Samus’ first Switch outing.
    In 2021 the MetroidVania genre is incredibly saturated with phenomenal titles such as Hollow Knight,    Mercury Steam’s second outing with the armor-clad bounty hunter, while much improved from their previous 3DS entry, leaves much to be desired. Clunky world design, frustrating stealth sections and annoying quick time events are just a few issues in store for Samus’ first Switch outing.
    In 2021 the MetroidVania genre is incredibly saturated with phenomenal titles such as Hollow Knight, Axiom Verge, Cave Story, Ori and the Blind forest and many others providing stiff competition. Dread does not do anything to stand above its peers, coupled with a much higher price point of 60 USD, it provides little incentive for both long time fans and new players to pick it up. According to developer interviews, this game is Yoshio Sakamoto’s original idea for Metroid Dread from all the way back in 2005 for the Nintendo DS. After completing Dread, I think it was an idea best left in ’05.    … Expand
  29. RatherRipped
    Oct 20, 2021
    7
    Dread is a solid game held back by repetition, frustrating encounters and a hefty price tag. If you've ever played a 2D Metroid game, this is everything you would expect from another entry in the series. It's pretty darn fun to explore the different biomes and slowly upgrade Samus to a sci-fi swiss army knife capable of parrying attacks and blowing stuff up in new and exciting ways.Dread is a solid game held back by repetition, frustrating encounters and a hefty price tag. If you've ever played a 2D Metroid game, this is everything you would expect from another entry in the series. It's pretty darn fun to explore the different biomes and slowly upgrade Samus to a sci-fi swiss army knife capable of parrying attacks and blowing stuff up in new and exciting ways.

    What's not so fun is the trial and error nature of the EMMI encounters and some boss fights. I really like the idea of the EMMI bots and at first I was totally on board. They're kind of like Mr. X or Nemesis if you've ever played Resident Evil. Enter an area with an EMMI and, if they catch you, it's game over. Dread gives you two chances to escape when they grab you, but the timing isn't something that you can do on reaction (at least I can't and I'm a big fan of twitchy games with parry mechanics). It comes down to making a hard read as to when to press the button. Fail and it's game over. Enjoy your obligatory 10 second load screen and gameplay tips! This can make for some really tense moments that I enjoyed, but 5-6 deaths to the same EMMI kind of ruins the effect in my opinion.

    You can kill EMMIs with a certain one time use power up acquired from these odd, blue, metal brain fellas. This is very cool the first couple times you do it. By the 6th, I was rolling my eyes. It was fortunately rewarding to dispatch them because they all give Samus new tools to progress through the game.

    EMMIs and bosses would have been much more fun if the controls were snappier. Dread has one of the worst double jumps in any game I've ever played. I lost so many energy tanks because my jump just wouldn't come out. I died to many an EMMI because Samus would decide not to grab a ledge. These fights require some serious precision and Dread just doesn't deliver on that front. It's close, but not quite there.

    Thankfully, Dread does deliver on other fronts. I quite enjoyed the story as someone who has played almost all of the mainline Metroid games. It does a good job of making you want to keep pushing through and sheds more light on the Chozo. Conversations with the ADAM AI were always interesting and oddly soothing. The world and atmosphere are very diverse and authentically Metroid. The presentation is quite impressive for a switch game.

    This is not a $60 package though. Nintendo is really on one asking that kind of scratch for this game. My completion time according to the ending splash screen was 6 hours and 45 minutes. Considering how often the game repeats itself within such a short runtime, I'm thinking $25-30 would have made a lot more sense.    … Expand
  30. stibba
    Feb 5, 2022
    7
    This game is good, but not to the extent the hype has made it up to be. The world is really pretty but the emmi areas which make up a sizeable chunk of the map look really boring., The gameplay is fun enough. The biggest flaw is the movement, the analog stick just isnt good enough for the fiddly movement. This becomes a bigger problem the longer you play as more mechanics are added such asThis game is good, but not to the extent the hype has made it up to be. The world is really pretty but the emmi areas which make up a sizeable chunk of the map look really boring., The gameplay is fun enough. The biggest flaw is the movement, the analog stick just isnt good enough for the fiddly movement. This becomes a bigger problem the longer you play as more mechanics are added such as the shinesparking that the game relies way too much on in its shinesparking puzzles, they just arent fun as the solution is ususally obvious, just incredibly frustrating to do. Dreads controls need to be more tight for its difficulty to not feel cheap. Samus still moves with the same segmented crouch, then morph movement she had on snes and the stick sucks for it, the aiming is really good though so im glad they made that work well. The music is the worst from any metroid game, incredibly disappointing. EDIT: Now after reflecting for a while i think i was a bit hard on the game as i had decided to 100% before i started. The games controls become very frustrating first when you do several endgame shinesparking puzzles in a row. Im going to keep the score at a 7/10 because nintendo keeps the price at 60€ though… Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

9
#9 Best Switch Game of 2021
1
#1 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
88

Generally favorable reviews - based on 124 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 116 out of 124
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 124
  3. Negative: 0 out of 124
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 18, 2022
    100
    Quotation forthcoming.
  2. IGN Adria
    Jan 20, 2022
    90
    After almost 20 years we finally have a sequel to the 2D series of Metroid games! Considering that, Dread does a great job of combining the new modern combat with the old elements of research and advancement, and it doesn't hurt that we have some of the best boss fights in the series. A true gem and a must have for all Switch gamers.
    Read full review
  3. JeuxActu
    Dec 13, 2021
    85
    Taking up the torch of a series interrupted nineteen years ago is never an easy task, but the MercurySteam studio is doing it with honors! The developers have chosen the path of security while perfectly respecting the spirit of the previous episodes, to the detriment of true modernity.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »