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Metroid Dread
- Thread starter cyborgboy95
- Start date
DJOGamer PT
Arcane
Played until the first boss for some impressions (not yet ready and willing to fully play this):
- there should at least be different control schemes for the player to choose
- the player should be able to skip cutscenes
- while it's not bad on the technical level, I think the lighting and color on the first area don't really help the atmosphere
- so far the one thing wrong with level design is the overabundance of save rooms
- I really liked the EMMI concept, this is just the kind of fresh thing this series needed, however I fucking hated the fact I was forced to kill the EMMI after the boss figth, I can already see this being the loop (you get to an area, avoid the EMMI, fight the boss, kill the EMMI), the Omega Canon should've only been an end-game item
- there should at least be different control schemes for the player to choose
- the player should be able to skip cutscenes
- while it's not bad on the technical level, I think the lighting and color on the first area don't really help the atmosphere
- so far the one thing wrong with level design is the overabundance of save rooms
- I really liked the EMMI concept, this is just the kind of fresh thing this series needed, however I fucking hated the fact I was forced to kill the EMMI after the boss figth, I can already see this being the loop (you get to an area, avoid the EMMI, fight the boss, kill the EMMI), the Omega Canon should've only been an end-game item
Ivan
Arcane
Sitting on this for a while, here are my thoughts on my first playthrough on Ryujinx
Metroid Dread is a mostly fantastic return to the 2D format. While I have played through the 2D entries in the series, I've always cared more for the values it established than the games themselves. There were always enough elements that held me back from loving them, from the pixel-hunty aspects of finding exits, to the poor and restrictive combat controls. That said, I was very happy to see that in this installment Samus' movement is buttery smooth, the free-aiming responsive and snappy, the animation work wonderful, and the combat fast and exciting, particularly toward the endgame. Aesthetically, the environments have a certain sterility to them which I found off-putting, but there's a good amount of variety all things considered. I did take issue with the amount of times you had to use the taxis to transition between the multiple biomes. It really hurt the pacing of the game for me and wish the game's progression didn't rely on them too much, but they became increasingly frequent as I kept playing. Speaking of combat mechanics, I found the counter to be overpowered, it kind of felt like a "win" button that you could execute if you manage to close the distance. I was blown away by the presentation values, particularly the cutscene animations and the boss fights. Wonderful work was done here, especially for the impressive final boss which felt like something out of a Platinum Games title. Generally speaking, I loved how formidable the bosses were. I felt like their HP pools were adequately large, and the amount of pain they inflicted to be JUST right. I loved the new movement abilities they give you, particularly the slide which made backtracking a more expeditious affair. Forgot to mention the EMMI: a neat idea, but that they're isolated to specific rooms makes them pretty forgettable. I do love the idea of being pursued, I just wish it wasn't so isolated/signposted. That said, the Omega Cannon cutscene NEVER got old.
TLDR: excellent combat toward endgame, bosses are tough/well designed, Samus controls wonderfully and is well animated, visuals a bit sterile but great animation and cinematics, level design too-reliant on hub transitions for my liking, definitely encouraged to re-play not for a faster time but at a higher difficulty as the prospect of dodging attacks is strong thanks to the slide and counter
Emulator: cutscenes were choppy, especially when featuring flashback stills. i was actually concerned when the final cutscene crashed, thankfully a restart allowed me to get through it and finish the game proper
Metroid Dread is a mostly fantastic return to the 2D format. While I have played through the 2D entries in the series, I've always cared more for the values it established than the games themselves. There were always enough elements that held me back from loving them, from the pixel-hunty aspects of finding exits, to the poor and restrictive combat controls. That said, I was very happy to see that in this installment Samus' movement is buttery smooth, the free-aiming responsive and snappy, the animation work wonderful, and the combat fast and exciting, particularly toward the endgame. Aesthetically, the environments have a certain sterility to them which I found off-putting, but there's a good amount of variety all things considered. I did take issue with the amount of times you had to use the taxis to transition between the multiple biomes. It really hurt the pacing of the game for me and wish the game's progression didn't rely on them too much, but they became increasingly frequent as I kept playing. Speaking of combat mechanics, I found the counter to be overpowered, it kind of felt like a "win" button that you could execute if you manage to close the distance. I was blown away by the presentation values, particularly the cutscene animations and the boss fights. Wonderful work was done here, especially for the impressive final boss which felt like something out of a Platinum Games title. Generally speaking, I loved how formidable the bosses were. I felt like their HP pools were adequately large, and the amount of pain they inflicted to be JUST right. I loved the new movement abilities they give you, particularly the slide which made backtracking a more expeditious affair. Forgot to mention the EMMI: a neat idea, but that they're isolated to specific rooms makes them pretty forgettable. I do love the idea of being pursued, I just wish it wasn't so isolated/signposted. That said, the Omega Cannon cutscene NEVER got old.
TLDR: excellent combat toward endgame, bosses are tough/well designed, Samus controls wonderfully and is well animated, visuals a bit sterile but great animation and cinematics, level design too-reliant on hub transitions for my liking, definitely encouraged to re-play not for a faster time but at a higher difficulty as the prospect of dodging attacks is strong thanks to the slide and counter
Emulator: cutscenes were choppy, especially when featuring flashback stills. i was actually concerned when the final cutscene crashed, thankfully a restart allowed me to get through it and finish the game proper
lightbane
Arcane
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2008
- Messages
- 10,203
Cutscenes are unfortunately choppy because they all jump to 30 FPS from the 60 FPs you play with normally.
That video above is very autistic, but it helps to show how impressive the attention to detail M. Strema put. Not bad, considering Metroid Returns was lame and clunky. It does show the devs took inspiration from Ori games for sure, as these also used a lot of "halway movement" animations to make things look very fluid (Ori 2 takes it further, with the ability of Ori to move like a natural acrobat and make stand one-handed just for fun). Possibly Rain World as well, as that one has special animations for creatures with long limbs.
There's also this video, which I'm not sure if it's true or not, but if it does, that would be a SECOND secret way to kill an early boss.
That video above is very autistic, but it helps to show how impressive the attention to detail M. Strema put. Not bad, considering Metroid Returns was lame and clunky. It does show the devs took inspiration from Ori games for sure, as these also used a lot of "halway movement" animations to make things look very fluid (Ori 2 takes it further, with the ability of Ori to move like a natural acrobat and make stand one-handed just for fun). Possibly Rain World as well, as that one has special animations for creatures with long limbs.
There's also this video, which I'm not sure if it's true or not, but if it does, that would be a SECOND secret way to kill an early boss.
dacencora
Guest
I thought they fit quite well with the world being a scientific experimental lab kind of place.
Ivan
Arcane
Rad
SumDrunkGuy
Guest
Played this a bit the other day. It looks really grainy, kind of like Limbo. Is that intentional or is my game broke?
I haven’t played Limbo so I’m not sure exactly what you mean. Dread is definitely a Switch title, so the graphical fidelity is not going to measure up to a high-end AAA title released for current-gen hardware, but I think it is actually one of the better looking Switch titles, especially in motion. I wouldn’t describe it as “grainy”. Are you playing it natively or emulating it somehow?
lightbane
Arcane
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2008
- Messages
- 10,203
IMO it takes inspiration from Ori and Hollow Knight, which in turn possibly had some inspiration from Limbo as well, so it fits.
I believe he's referring to the EMMI areas, where the screen turns grainy and there's a buzzing song constantly, so that low-attention span players are aware that they're in a dangerous area.
I believe he's referring to the EMMI areas, where the screen turns grainy and there's a buzzing song constantly, so that low-attention span players are aware that they're in a dangerous area.
Ivan
Arcane
I recently got around to completing Dread. Using Ryujinx, completed the game in about 10 hours.
Positives
- Samus feels good to control. Arguably the most important aspect of a Metroid game, controlling Samus is a pleasure in Dread. Not too floaty, not too tanky. The returning counter attack from Samus Returns is much improved as well, and flows much more smoothly compared to Returns.
- Boss battles are engaging.
Negatives (I really came down hard on this game, but its a triple AAA, 60 dollar title, not a 10 dollar indie game, so it will be judged accordingly).
- Music. Not a single good track in the entire game. Seriously not a single memorable melodic or ambient track in the whole game, which is a major disappointment considering the stellar tracks of both the 2D and Prime games.
- Level design. The world of Dread is a chore to explore. Its sort of a bizarre hybrid of the space station of Fusion, and Zebes in Super. Their are dozens of one - way paths the player must encounter throughout the game. Compared to Super (the gold standard of 2D Metroid, going on 30 years) and Prime, the world itself is just not fun to explore in my opinion. I haven't even gotten to the EMMI sections, which deserve their own write - up.
- The EMMI's. There are 5 or 6 of these machines Samus encounters throughout Dread's world. The source of Dread's namesake, the EMMI's constitute Dread's greatest missed opportunity. Not only are they a bland, unappealing design, they are segregated into their own sub-levels within the 6 areas of the game. The EMMI sub-levels are also the most sterile, bland, unappealing environments in any metroidvania game.
- Button mapping. Samus' controls are phenomenal. Unfortunately, this is the first 2D Metroid that doesn't afford the player any button mapping ability. This leads to some issues, as Dread uses every damn button a standard controller, the default scheme was a tad uncomfortable in my experience. Would've been a nice addition and not that difficult to implement.
- Story. Metroid games have gotten progressively worse in regards to story the more the dev team decides to focus on it. The root of the problem was the release of the Metroid Manga in the early 00's which elaborated on Samus' back story, essentially making an already small universe a studio apartment with regards to lore/world building. I've heard this shift of focus to narrative in the case of Fusion, and Other - M was done largely in an attempt to cater to the Japanese audience, which doesn't particularly care for Metroid or the MetroidVania genre. By the end of Dread, Samus is part White Woman, part bird, part X parasite, and part Metroid. Why the devs can't see the beauty in the simplicity of Fusion, or the optional, exploration driven visor scans of Prime being clearly superior is ludicrous.
Final verdict:
While making improvements over the incredibly mediocre Samus Returns, Dread brings up a slew of its own issues. Ultimately, the Metroid series, in its 2D incarnation has been firmly bested by other entries in the Metroid genre. We can only hope Nintendo takes this lesson to heart and puts more effort and focus on the Prime games, which while they declined in quality with each entry, Prime 1 still transitioned MetroidVania into the 3D space seemlessly, and made for a much more interested romp than any 2D Metroid post - Super.
Dread is decline.
Positives
- Samus feels good to control. Arguably the most important aspect of a Metroid game, controlling Samus is a pleasure in Dread. Not too floaty, not too tanky. The returning counter attack from Samus Returns is much improved as well, and flows much more smoothly compared to Returns.
- Boss battles are engaging.
Negatives (I really came down hard on this game, but its a triple AAA, 60 dollar title, not a 10 dollar indie game, so it will be judged accordingly).
- Music. Not a single good track in the entire game. Seriously not a single memorable melodic or ambient track in the whole game, which is a major disappointment considering the stellar tracks of both the 2D and Prime games.
- Level design. The world of Dread is a chore to explore. Its sort of a bizarre hybrid of the space station of Fusion, and Zebes in Super. Their are dozens of one - way paths the player must encounter throughout the game. Compared to Super (the gold standard of 2D Metroid, going on 30 years) and Prime, the world itself is just not fun to explore in my opinion. I haven't even gotten to the EMMI sections, which deserve their own write - up.
- The EMMI's. There are 5 or 6 of these machines Samus encounters throughout Dread's world. The source of Dread's namesake, the EMMI's constitute Dread's greatest missed opportunity. Not only are they a bland, unappealing design, they are segregated into their own sub-levels within the 6 areas of the game. The EMMI sub-levels are also the most sterile, bland, unappealing environments in any metroidvania game.
- Button mapping. Samus' controls are phenomenal. Unfortunately, this is the first 2D Metroid that doesn't afford the player any button mapping ability. This leads to some issues, as Dread uses every damn button a standard controller, the default scheme was a tad uncomfortable in my experience. Would've been a nice addition and not that difficult to implement.
- Story. Metroid games have gotten progressively worse in regards to story the more the dev team decides to focus on it. The root of the problem was the release of the Metroid Manga in the early 00's which elaborated on Samus' back story, essentially making an already small universe a studio apartment with regards to lore/world building. I've heard this shift of focus to narrative in the case of Fusion, and Other - M was done largely in an attempt to cater to the Japanese audience, which doesn't particularly care for Metroid or the MetroidVania genre. By the end of Dread, Samus is part White Woman, part bird, part X parasite, and part Metroid. Why the devs can't see the beauty in the simplicity of Fusion, or the optional, exploration driven visor scans of Prime being clearly superior is ludicrous.
Final verdict:
While making improvements over the incredibly mediocre Samus Returns, Dread brings up a slew of its own issues. Ultimately, the Metroid series, in its 2D incarnation has been firmly bested by other entries in the Metroid genre. We can only hope Nintendo takes this lesson to heart and puts more effort and focus on the Prime games, which while they declined in quality with each entry, Prime 1 still transitioned MetroidVania into the 3D space seemlessly, and made for a much more interested romp than any 2D Metroid post - Super.
Dread is decline.
Ivan
Arcane
toughasnails
Guest
The way I see it, together with his infamous refusal to admit Prime games as canon (dunno if that changed since), it was Sakamoto's attempt to to reassert himself as THE Metroid guy via another "big" console Metroid game under his name. Basically pushing the other kids, gaijin or otherwise, outta his sandbox or at least making sure that everyone knows it's "his' sandbox...
SumDrunkGuy
Guest
e-mailio estevez
Arcane
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2012
- Messages
- 1,643
Haven't played it but saw some of the ending slides you could earn- was disappointed in the lack of midriff Samus ending screens
SumDrunkGuy
Guest
I just don't know man. I really want to like this game. I love the way it feels and controls and I dig the way it looks. But these EMMI encounters are just killing it for me. It's the most mundane trial and error bullshit.
I'm actually enjoying the hell out of the game when not dealing with those buttfucking robots.
I'm actually enjoying the hell out of the game when not dealing with those buttfucking robots.
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Machocruz
Arcane
The things Sakamoto is good at. I've always said Fusion and Zero have spot-on control. Otherwise his vision for Metroid is Ninja Samus being chased in watered down labyrinths with a shitty plot, bird-brained lore, and bland art direction. The opposite of what was good about Metroid 1-Super
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SumDrunkGuy
Guest
The game also seems to be incredibly streamlined and only gives the illusion of exploration. I fought Kraid a couple times and he beat my ass. So I thought I'd be cheeky and scour all the areas for energy tanks to make the fight easier. Nah, doesn't work that way. At that point you can only have a maximum of 2 energy tanks. Gay. I found a fuckload of missle expansions but those are pointless because you get infinite missles during the fight anyway. *shrug*
SumDrunkGuy
Guest
My goal for tomorrow is to finish it. I'm outa booze so no otjbther choice. Tomorrow i finish metroid dead. Git 'er done as the cable man would say.
SumDrunkGuy
Guest
Best Metroid ever.
Ivan
Arcane
this is a wonderful, moody piece that I've picked up for my collection. it's a great track to soak in
DJOGamer PT
Arcane
Decided to actually play this game once and for all this sunday
Got to the third area already
The map seems really big, bigger than Super
But unlike the latter this game so far seems to "funnel" the player towards the right path far more (althought I am pleased with does this through "organic" means)
Atmophere is inferior Super imo due to the unremarkable ost so far and also the fact that Super enviroments were darker and I also think the limited view field helped as well
Still I find of the enviroments here to be more detailed (the advantage of 3D grapix) and in some areas quite impressive visually
Got to the third area already
The map seems really big, bigger than Super
But unlike the latter this game so far seems to "funnel" the player towards the right path far more (althought I am pleased with does this through "organic" means)
Atmophere is inferior Super imo due to the unremarkable ost so far and also the fact that Super enviroments were darker and I also think the limited view field helped as well
Still I find of the enviroments here to be more detailed (the advantage of 3D grapix) and in some areas quite impressive visually
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