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Nineteen years. NINETEEN. Since the last time that fans got a new 2D Metroid sequel. During E3 2021’s Nintendo E3 Direct, the company blew everyone away with the surprise announcement that a new 2D installment in the long-running Metroid series was on its way. Titled Metroid Dread, the game is set after the events of Metroid Fusion, making this game Metroid 5 in the franchise’s continuity. It once again follows the adventures of intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran as she engages the enigmatic aliens known as Metroids.
Speaking about the game’s development history, Metroid Dread’s producer Yoshio Sakamoto says this new game “will mark an end to that story arc,” and hopes that statement gets fans curious as to what that means for the series.
While longtime Metroid fans will enjoy putting themselves in Samus’ boots again to continue her story, Sakamoto promises that this game will also be highly accessible to people new to the series looking to enjoy a 2D action game.
Sakamato goes on to say that the concept for Metroid Dread is actually 15 years old, but Nintendo wasn’t able to produce the game as envisioned back then because technology was lacking. With recent advancements and the collaborative efforts of Mercury System Entertainment, Dread can finally see the light of day!
Following the reveal trailer, Nintendo showed off a generous deep dive amount of gameplay during a live Nintendo Treehouse event. You can watch the full event below!
The gameplay shows off a number of Samus’ abilities, smoother and more fluid movement than in previous games, and the new threat that Samus must face - the E.M.M.I. The E.M.M.I. is a relentless research robot that hunts down Samus, capable of committing an insta-kill if it catches her. It can’t be destroyed by Samus’s traditional arsenal. Players will have to utilize a variety of different tactics to survive E.M.M.I., including running and hiding, something we haven’t seen in a Metroid game before. The tense face-offs against E.M.M.I. are sure to fill players with… dread.
Metroid Dread is coming to the Nintendo Switch on October 8, 2021. Fans might have been expecting news on Metroid Prime 4, but we’re sure they’re happy and excited about Metroid Dread as well, which they’ll get to play in less than four months!
© 2021 Nintendo.
This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article written by Sean Cardeno.
