Metroid, in contrast, is a precision machine whose parts must align exactly, else it doesn’t tick. These are games in which we focus on uncovering the corners of the map, and ornate rooms full of sword-fodder monsters marry with light RPG trappings to produce an occupying grind between set pieces and boss encounters. One reason it stands out is that many of the modern titles we call Metroidvania are really more Vania (or Wonder) than Metroid. Yet Dread manages to feel cutting edge in some ways precisely by returning to and intensifying the specific qualities of classic Metroid games. But since then, in the last decade or so, a thriving indie scene has taken the genre in all kinds of fascinating directions. There was Metroid, and there were ‘action adventure’ games such as Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap, where different character forms could access different sections of an interlocking map (in another universe perhaps there’s a genre called WonderMetroid).
Super Metroid, after all, was one of the progenitors of the Metroidvania sub-genre. Of course, 27 years on, Dread lands on a very different gaming landscape, and can’t have the same impact. As the first new 2D Metroid console release since 1994, it’s closer than anything to a direct descendant of the great Super Metroid itself. It helps that, after the remakes, spin-offs, handheld games, 3D Primeseries and whatever Other M was supposed to be, Dread actually is a little fresh. And even now, despite my familiarity with Metroids past, Dread retains a hint of freshness. I doubt I’ll tire of Metroidgames, in large part because of their endlessly flexible hero.
But with each new adventure she also further expands her repertoire as the situation demands, right up to Metroid Dread, which integrates new abilities like flash shift and phantom cloak into her tactical arsenal. Most famously, of course, by curling into a small ball with an efficiency that would embarrass a world-class contortionist. Samus Aran has always had an uncanny ability to adapt to the problem at hand.
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