Mercury Steam did a decent job with Samus Returns, but with Dread they’ve really come off the chain!
Samus Returns was a compelling reimagining of a Game Boy classic, but it was held back by two things: being a remake and thus limited with how much it could advance the story outside of embellishments, and by the technical scope of the 3DS with its low resolution and framerate. As with Mirror of Fate, the game was crying out for a more powerful system to show what MS could really do. And now with Dread, a full, proper sequel in the 2D lineage, they have!
Not that the Switch is particularly powerful, but it at least has more buttons by default and can run Dread at 60 FPS… most of the time. It looks gorgeous, it feels like every room has its own detailed, unique backdrop that helps to lay on the atmosphere that Metroid games are so known for. The action is smooth and fast-paced, the exploration delightfully intricate and satisfying. The new mechanics of MSR have been iterated on for the better, and the series has actually progressed the storyline for the first time in nearly 20 years.
Set a little after Fusion, Samus is investigating a possible loose end of extant X, the mutant parasitic shapeshifting blobs that she is uniquely able to deal with thanks to her Metroid DNA. Story hooks hidden in MSR rear their head with a villainous Chozo faction out to capture her, aided by reprogrammed Galactic Federation robots. And it goes from there, with a few big twists leading to a truly epic climax! It’s a very cool plot, and a good showing for Samus herself!
The Emmi robots are a well-publicised feature, including their own amiibo figure. They provide a tense, recurring stealth/chase mechanic reminiscent of a less scripted version of the SA-X encounters of Fusion: an overpowered enemy you can only hope to barely escape from at first. Although they can easily take you down, you gain techniques to evade them, and have a slim chance to escape their grasp with a—hrmm—quick time event (the implementation of the counter system is improved here but there are a couple of boss fights where a cutscene counter is mandatory). They are each cordoned off into specific map areas, which means large parts of each area are visually samey.
Apart from these intense encounters, the enemy roster is suitably monstrous and alien, and refreshingly is all new (outside of the returning Kraid, although his fight is pretty great). It’s nice not to have yet another Ridley gatecrash… oh wait, there’s also a recurring miniboss that’s a Mother Brain rehash but I’ll let that slide too. The new bosses are excellent fun, making good use of the new slide mechanic that serves to make Samus feel more agile than ever.
That’s a good summary of the game… it feels recognisably Metroid-ish, but amped up and smoother than it’s ever been. I cleared it in 9.5 hours (not counting restarts after death, etc) and got 100% items in 12.5, after some fiendish speed boost/shinespark puzzles. At this time, shortly after blasting through it, I’ll declare it my favourite Metroid game, and I’m confident it will hold that title for a good while to come. Thank you Mercury Steam!