Metroid Dread - Nintendo Switch Game | Action-Adventure Sci-Fi Video Game for Switch | Perfect for Home Gaming & On-the-Go Play

Metroid is, in some ways, a strange franchise. On the one hand, it's so influential that it essentially co-created a popular genre of videogame (the so-called "Metroidvania," with the other contributor being the Castlevania series). Super Metroid for the SNES is three decades old this year, but it still plays incredibly well. People fondly remember the Prime games from Gamecube (and re-released on other systems). And YET... it strangely feels like this franchise doesn't have the punch that other flagship series do. There's just less cultural relevance for some reason, even though I think Metroid should stand toe to toe with Link, Mario, etc.Well, I honestly think if they kept releasing games like this, it would eventually achieve that. This is Nintendo's answer to Hollow Knight, another game I love. It reminds me of the way that Animal Crossing was influenced by the Sims, and then in turn future Sims games were influenced by Animal Crossing. Metroid Dread is the descendant of gaming royalty, a franchise that didn't just influence future games but is directly responsible for their genre, and now this game has circled back to incorporate certain modern conventions and aesthetics that we've come to expect from more recent entries in the genre (like Hollow Knight).Don't look up too much about this game... don't read the reviews... don't watch the videos. Go in fresh and blind, because with Metroidvanias, it's all about exploring and immersing yourself in that world. And this world, and the game's mechanics and art and everything about it, is worthy of that investment. 10/10, highly recommend.