Metroid dread reviews are coming in at 6 a.m. Pacific time, let us have a thread about the game.

[Casual Shinji]

If you play enough of these games you sort of develop a sense for suspicious dead ends and possible breakable walls, but it's not foolproof either, so I get where you're coming from. While it doesn't fully solve the problem, a general good tip is that when in doubt, use a bomb or rocket. It'll either break the blocks if there are any, or it'll at least reveal what ability you need to break them, including permanently marking it on your map.

That's pretty much what I've been doing once I realized this wasn't just tied to secret areas. The problem is that just forgetting it once can lead you on a wild goose chase as you try to search every damn area, maybe even in the wrong map.

I've played plenty of metroidvania's, but Dread is more aggravating to navigate through than Control.

 

[Godzillarich(aka tf2godz)]

That's pretty much what I've been doing once I realized this wasn't just tied to secret areas. The problem is that just forgetting it once can lead you on a wild goose chase as you try to search every damn area, maybe even in the wrong map.

I've played plenty of metroidvania's, but Dread is more aggravating to navigate through than Control.

I have played Super Metroid, there were many points where I got super lost and confused. Dread, by comparison, is actually really good at pointing you where to go, if you see a teleporter for the first time you should take it, if the path after getting an item leads you to the exit you should take that exit to the other area, the order you meet the killbots is the order you have to destroy them, etc. I found it really good at communicating wear to go without hand-holding.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

I freely admit that "plaster the walls with missiles" is only something I give a pass to with Metroid games and would probably be less forgiving about in another franchise, especially with regards to progression

The pulse radar should probably get picked up a bit sooner, as that's it's only function and is useless for vets

 

[Chimpzy]

Oh, oh, Kotaku did a ragebait again

Dear Metroid Dread: Samus Doesn’t Need To Be An Emotionless Robot To Be Badass

Samus Aran is an iconic Nintendo character, but better writing could make her so much more

kotaku.com

Jokes aside, and disregarding the sort of "woman should smile more" vibe the article has going, I can't say I agree. Samus has quite a few character moments in Dread, usually expressed entirely through body language.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

Yeah but those were subtle. Lotta people don't pick up on subtle. Captain Marvel situation

 

[Chimpzy]

Yeah but those were subtle. Lotta people don't pick up on subtle. Captain Marvel situation

 

[Casual Shinji]

Oh, oh, Kotaku did a ragebait again

Dear Metroid Dread: Samus Doesn’t Need To Be An Emotionless Robot To Be Badass

Samus Aran is an iconic Nintendo character, but better writing could make her so much more

kotaku.com

Jokes aside, and disregarding the sort of "woman should smile more" vibe the article has going, I can't say I agree. Samus has quite a few character moments in Dread, usually expressed entirely through body language.

Does... Metroid: Dread even require character moments or "emotion"? I mean, there's pretty much no characters besides Samus, and the emotional expression of her design is restricted to 'look how I shoot my arm gun' and 'look how I stand in this elevator', which is honestly all that is needed for this game.

Not that I read the article, though with a headline like that I don't think my migraine will allow it.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

Does... Metroid: Dread even require character moments or "emotion"? I mean, there's pretty much no characters besides Samus, and the emotional expression of her design is restricted to 'look how I shoot my arm gun' and 'look how I stand in this elevator', which is honestly all that is needed for this game.

Not that I read the article, though with a headline like that I don't think my migraine will allow it.

I mean, unlike most other Metroid games, there's actual living characters you interact with. Also deals with Samus's past quite a bit, including plot threads inflicted on her in earlier games.

"How much emotion does the game need" is a lot like asking "how much spice should I use in cooking" though. The answer varies from person to person.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I mean, unlike most other Metroid games, there's actual living characters you interact with. Also deals with Samus's past quite a bit, including plot threads inflicted on her in earlier games.

"How much emotion does the game need" is a lot like asking "how much spice should I use in cooking" though. The answer varies from person to person.

The thing is, the game is set up as you being a lone warrior in a cold, hostile, alien world. And considering this isn't Samus' first rodeo it makes sense that she would just be focused on what needs to be done. I never felt like Samus should emote more, or like I was missing out on little characteristics as I was playing. This is really my first Metroid game though, so I'm honestly just taking it at face value.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

The thing is, the game is set up as you being a lone warrior in a cold, hostile, alien world. And considering this isn't Samus' first rodeo it makes sense that she would just be focused on what needs to be done. I never felt like Samus should emote more, or like I was missing out on little characteristics as I was playing. This is really my first Metroid game though, so I'm honestly just taking it at face value.

We're just on three different levels of the Scoville Emotional Scale

Having read the article, I'd say that I disagree with the dude about how much Samus "should've" emoted, though I don't think it would've hurt (depending on execution), but I'd say that I think you're selling the game short of how much it *did* emote. I mean, the world's hostile and alien, but it's alien in a way tied directly into Samus's past, and it's very excited that you're there.

But it's subtle. Like, the Kraid fight early on: Samus drops into the room, wary, cannon raised, not knowing what to expect.

Then she sees it's just Kraid, and Kraid's restrained. She drops her guard immediately and gets very relaxed, because fuck that chump specifically

Mainly though, at the end of the day Kotaku had an opinion. That's gonna bring some weirdos out of the woodwork because Kotaku's not allowed those and they care about Kotaku for some unfathomable reason. EDIT: and just like that, the weird nerds are getting it trending. Can it even be called bait if gamers are just waiting in the wings for it to show up?

 

[BrawlMan]

Oh, oh, Kotaku did a ragebait again

Dear Metroid Dread: Samus Doesn’t Need To Be An Emotionless Robot To Be Badass

Samus Aran is an iconic Nintendo character, but better writing could make her so much more

kotaku.com

Jokes aside, and disregarding the sort of "woman should smile more" vibe the article has going, I can't say I agree. Samus has quite a few character moments in Dread, usually expressed entirely through body language.

Look at that, Kotaku being dumbasses again. Who knew?

Seriously guys and gals? You have Nintendo fans already raging you for the crime of bringing actual news and facts about emulators. That particular article you did nothing wrong. But don't add to the fire by doing dumb stuff like this constantly. I do find it funny that a website that claims to be feminist, basically makes a glorified sexist article like this. Clickbait or not.

 

[Piscian]

Shouldn’t you really have an avatar of this kind bird -
View attachment 4609

It’s stronger, more beautifuller, and probably smarter than pigeon.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Okay so, quick question; Can you trap yourself in this game without doing things in the specific order? Because I just beat the Boss right after you get the cutscene with the bird guy, and I am now virulently fucking stuck without a post-Boss savepoint. I've looked up a guide (again) and apparently I need to run into the fan until the speed boost kicks in and then use that to catapult myself up, but the damn speed boost ain't activating. Am I missing some item that I should have at this point to make this actually work, or is my game just fucking glitched? Because I can't get this shit to work eventhough I've seen dozens of other walkthrough make this work, so what the heck am I missing here?

edit. Ignore this post. It was made by a dumbass i.e. me.

 

[Specter Von Baren]

Okay so, quick question; Can you trap yourself in this game without doing things in the specific order? Because I just beat the Boss right after you get the cutscene with the bird guy, and I am now virulently fucking stuck without a post-Boss savepoint. I've looked up a guide (again) and apparently I need to run into the fan until the speed boost kicks in and then use that to catapult myself up, but the damn speed boost ain't activating. Am I missing some item that I should have at this point to make this actually work, or is my game just fucking glitched? Because I can't get this shit to work eventhough I've seen dozens of other walkthrough make this work, so what the heck am I missing here?

edit. Ignore this post. It was made by a dumbass i.e. me.

Nah you're fine. I'm a veteran metrovania player and at least twice I found myself worried that I had gotten myself trapped too.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Except there are a lot more similar level lay-outs with enemies on the otherside of walls or ceilings that you CAN'T shoot out. So how is this Jaffe being bad at videogames, since the videogame hasn't bothered to train the player's eye in any consistent way? The video shows some "obvious" difference at 0:57, but seriously what the hell am I supposed to spot (besides the hole and the white-dotted squire that only appears after you've shot the ceiling)?

It's completely random, invisible bullshit.

The most hilarious thing is that I have played nearly every Metroid game and love them dearly, and know a ton of the little tricks and intricacies, and even that exact same spot he got stuck at got me stuck at first as well. But when I look at the details at 0:57, I see what it is. When you look at the platform Samus is standing on, the side of the wall facing the camera is completely black, as if it were attached to a wall. However, the presumed ceiling above has full detail, indicating it's not attached to this foreground wall we don't see.

Is that extremely tiny and not something most people would notice? Sure, yeah. Though as Chimpzy says, you kinda get a sense for these things over time, and for me, it'd been a long time since I played a 2D Metroid game, so my sense for stuff like that wasn't really warmed up. Once I got past that little hurdle I had no problem seeking out paths to progress going forward. One thing that section taught me, however... is that when there's only 1 block's worth of space between two very clearly distinct rooms like that, that often means they're breakable. Not 100% of the time if I recall, but that moment taught me to check and be supicious of 1 block thick spaces, and it very often lead me to the path to progression or shortcuts

 

[Elvis Starburst]

The pulse radar should probably get picked up a bit sooner, as that's it's only function and is useless for vets

I honestly think it was placed just right this game. In Samus Returns it was your first Aeon ability if I recall. Since it mapped out areas around you on top of showing suspicious blocks, it kinda made secret hunting pathetically easy, especially considering you have it very early in the game. Its only other use was making a monster roar sound each time a Metroid was within your scan pulse range, which was good if you needed some direction. Otherwise, it kinda trivialized secret hunting.

In Dread, it's obtained closer to the end of the game, and by then, you've mapped out most of the areas by now. For a lot of folk, having all of the movement abilities and items that help break blocks (Screw Attack for example) means that now is the best time to go back through each location and seek out upgrades and expansions, since the only thing stopping you from getting them now... is you, not an item or ability you have yet to obtain. Having the Pulse Radar at that point in time makes it good for helping you find secrets and stuff you may have missed.

It's similar, but with a slightly different design philosophy. By giving it to you too early, if someone gets stuck for even a single second they can just go "Scan Pulse" and find the path forward, without having to think about it, cause you have a way out of thinking about how to problem solve handed to you first thing. In Dread, it's given to you after you've already learned the game, and is a tool for you if you need it to find more stuff. By that time, maybe it's the little boost you need to get 100% completion that perhaps you'd struggle with otherwise.

I dunno why I made such a long post about this but I ended up doing it anyways AAAAAAA-

 

[Casual Shinji]

Okay so, here I am complaining again, but after having gotten the speed boost and the grapple hook I really have to say that some of these controls are needlessly awkward. The grapple hook requires you to hold the ZR button and then Y to fire it (with the awkward addition of holding L for precision aim), but why didn't they just map it to squarely to ZR? Why isn't that just the instant grapple button, it's not used for anything else. This extends to your rockets aswell; Pressing R doesn't fire your rockets, you have to hold it so it switches fire mode so Y fires your rockets. But R does nothing outside of that, just have it fire rockets when you press it.

Then there's the speed boost which requires you to press L3, which is totally fine. But if you want to perform the charge jump you have to get a running start to activate the boost, then tilt the left analog stick down, then press B, and then tilt the left analog stick in the direction you want to boost to, and then press B again. Now am I crazy or is that the most pointless and frustrating way to implement a move like that?

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

Okay so, here I am complaining again, but after having gotten the speed boost and the grapple hook I really have to say that some of these controls are needlessly awkward. The grapple hook requires you to hold the ZR button and then Y to fire it (with the awkward addition of holding L for precision aim), but why didn't they just map it to squarely to ZR? Why isn't that just the instant grapple button, it's not used for anything else. This extends to your rockets aswell; Pressing R doesn't fire your rockets, you have to hold it so it switches fire mode so Y fires your rockets. But R does nothing outside of that, just have it fire rockets when you press it.

Then there's the speed boost which requires you to press L3, which is totally fine. But if you want to perform the charge jump you have to get a running start to activate the boost, then tilt the left analog stick down, then press B, and then tilt the left analog stick in the direction you want to boost to, and then press B again. Now am I crazy or is that the most pointless and frustrating way to implement a move like that?

I can say you haven't yet unlocked the full power of the ZR button, but you're definitely right that it can be awkward.

That said, the shinespark is on a timer after you press the B button the first time, the second press is unnecessary

 

[Specter Von Baren]

I can say you haven't yet unlocked the full power of the ZR button, but you're definitely right that it can be awkward.

That said, the shinespark is on a timer after you press the B button the first time, the second press is unnecessary

Adding on to that, the purpose of the "storing" of the shinespark is so when you can take it with you to a different position before using it. Once one presses B they can then aim the direction you're going to release the shinespark, up, down, left, right, or diaganally. If one launches the shinespark into a slope then they'll start running with it again. And one last thing, if one goes into morphball with a shinespark charge then they can do the same things as a normal shinespark aside from the reset on slopes.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

Adding on to that, the purpose of the "storing" of the shinespark is so when you can take it with you to a different position before using it. Once one presses B they can then aim the direction you're going to release the shinespark, up, down, left, right, or diaganally. If one launches the shinespark into a slope then they'll start running with it again. And one last thing, if one goes into morphball with a shinespark charge then they can do the same things as a normal shinespark aside from the reset on slopes.

Yeah, lot of undocumented movement tech in Metroid Dread. Ditto being able to slide and wall jump without losing your speed booster status. (I think. I kinda glaze over tutorials and it's been awhile.)