One of last year’s most impressive releases would have to beMetroid Dread, the long-awaited sequel to 2002’sMetroid Fusion. Upon release, it received a lot of praise from fans and critics, as the entry brings the series back to its 2D side-scrolling roots. It has been a huge success for Nintendo and MercurySteam, withMetroid Dreadeven winning an award at The Game Awardsback in December. Many parts of the game stand-out for many fans, with one of the most discussed aspects ofDreadbeing its difficulty.
Metroid Dreadis considered by many fans to be one of the most difficult entries in the franchise due to a variety of factors in both its combat and exploration sections. This ranges from the ways one can get lost inMetroid Dreadto the robotic EMMIs. The EMMIs in particular are regarded as one of the biggest contributors to the game’s difficulty, as they can instantly kill Samus if she is caught by them.
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This harsh difficulty is commented upon by Metroid series producer Yoshio Sakamoto in an interview with Famitsu. He comments that, whilethe EMMIs are a punishing element ofMetroid Dread, they were designed in a mirrored fashion to Samus' progression as she gets more power-ups. When asked about the game’s faster pace, he explains the design philosophy behind it, stating that the action was developed to be easy to control, even at a faster pace. In his opinion, it is the best the series has to offer in terms of action and flow.
Sakamoto stated that balancing the game’s difficulty was also a tough act, as he not only had to understand how a veteran of the series would play, but also hownew players ofMetroid Dreadwould approach it. He said that both Nintendo and MercurySteam were determined to get the EMMI segments right, as they were something completely brand-new that needed to be balanced appropriately. He specifically states that if a player got a game over from an EMMI, the hope was that they would be able to understand what to do on their next attempt in order to get past them.
Lastly, with the EMMIs balanced in this fashion, Sakamoto says that the level of difficulty tied to the foes was a way toemphasizeMetroid Dread’s titular dread. He even lists an example, saying that if a player wasn’t getting caught by the EMMI or if they could escape them easily after being captured, it would diminish the threat that they’re supposed to exude. While the game is pretty hard, this is an intentional decision to help sell its atmosphere.
Metroid Dreadis available now for Nintendo Switch.
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