Metroid Dread

CastorTroy · 16-10-2021 4:47pm

And done. Enjoyed that. Was tougher than previous ones.

Went back and got more items but left the awkward shinespark ones. Could never figure those out in the other games either

pixelburp · 16-10-2021 8:37pm

Played a few hours and it's super slick. Not least in the controls: Samus is fast, and the detail on the animations really sells a great sense of control, no jankiness or rough edges. I'd literally just finished Axioms Edge so it's interesting going from such an open cribbing of Super(?) Metroid to something more refined and polished.

SuperBowserWorld · 16-10-2021 8:53pm

Yup. Lovely and smooth and feels great, makes Samus Returns look like Treasure Island Dizzy.

fitz · 17-10-2021 8:47pm

Have a total pain in the hoop with the second boss fight. I know what I should be doing, just keep running into those bloody bouncing balls.

skerry · 17-10-2021 10:48pm

Enjoying the game so far. I've got stuck twice and both times have been due to some blocks that look exactly the same as every other block but I'm supposed to shoot blindly around the place to find them so I can progress. Finding that tactic a bit tedious now.

chrislad · 18-10-2021 10:56am

I'm finding it very meh, truth be told. It's not bad, it just feels a bit outdated. As skerry said, blocks that have no indication that you shoot them is just bad design - I got it with the likes of a NES or GB where memory, screen size etc limited these, but not the case. I was stuck for ages until I shot randomly and clearly a spot that wasn't at all obvious. The EMMI are a bit annoying too. Yeah, they're a bit scary at the start, but it soon just gets annoying. The load times between going between environments is a bit tiresome too and it can take too long to get from A to D sometimes.

Truthfully, I doubt I'll even bother finish it. I think I'll just trade this in and get Skyward Sword, since I got Dread in a forced bundle to get the OLED. It's disappointing as I generally love the Metroidvania style of games that this ones ancestors co-spawned.

SuperBowserWorld · 18-10-2021 3:42pm

Hmmm, that's a pain. Is there a pulse thingy like in Samus Returns that makes the hidden blocks ... not hidden ... weird game design, but there you go.

I have given the game a spin. But I've other things to do and other stuff to complete before I get back to it.

Grassey · 18-10-2021 3:53pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118036951#Comment_118036951

Yes, located in Ghavoran, after the blue E.M.M.I is beaten there.

seraphimvc · 18-10-2021 4:07pm

absolutely love the game, amazing work from mercury steam studio, wow.

The passion is there and as a long time metroid fan - this is the definitive Metroid sequel that we have been waiting for, goddamn how many years this is. Much needed modernized game plays is here, and god it is a beautiful game (play on 52' inch tv so i can only imagine how pretty it would look on handheld mode), and yes, it wouldnt be a Metroid game without all the annoying puzzles ahaha - i thoroughly enjoy it and will go back to 100% soon for the missed items etc. Honestly it is so damn good and got all the best stuffs from the previous Metroids, like it seems obvious to have the detector pulse thingy as i dont have time to bomb through every rooms lolol (i know it is not new mechanism either, it is pretty much X-ray and i think it is officially added to the remake samus return iirc).

I think they should fix the slow-ish loading time when you are traveling to another area, and goddamn the bouncing off mechanism (like you try to get to a higher place but get 'bounced' by the slope surface) should not be intentional, it is just not fun. I am going to start watching some youtube videos/forums and see what others say.

One thing is amusing to me that i saw quite some Hallow Knight fans posting under Dread threads (well, honestly not sure they are trolling or not at this stage) - I'd say buy this Metroid and (shut up and) play. Is not bad at all since Argos somehow carried this at 47e, worth every pennies. Like I am 100% sure if one likes Hallow knight then this new Metroid would be a treat.

SuperBowserWorld · 18-10-2021 6:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118037010#Comment_118037010

Thanks !! Good to know !!

brady12 · 19-10-2021 7:43pm

metroid dread. so glad i tried it . my first metroid and iv only played maybe 30 or 60mins of a metroidvania before and even i don't find it too difficult . think difficulty over blown abit ? EMMI encounters tricky alright but i found the parkour / climbing hardest get used to and once i nailed that wasn't too bad .

chrislad · 20-10-2021 1:33pm

Finished it last night, and traded for Skyward Sword. It was average - some excellent parts, some less so, and it felt a bit rushed in places. As I said earlier, it doesn't seem to have evolved much, and Hollow Knight is a much better game, even ignoring the price differences (Dread is about 3x the price).

The story seemed a bit weird - with big events just tossed in there with no context etc. Anyway, onto the next thing! :)

CiDeRmAn · 20-10-2021 9:49pm

I must say, I am continuing to love this game, more so than most in recent years.

And it is at least just how damn atmospheric it is, the backgrounds and levels themselves merging, fooling you into believing you are playing through a much larger world.

I was playing Axiom Verge 2 before this and dropped it, just for a little while, to try Dread out... big mistake, the gulk between the two games is obvious, Metroid Dread is just wonderful.

McFly85 · 20-10-2021 10:24pm

Just finished, and it’s a total classic. Enjoyed every minute of it. Loved getting stuck and having to properly go back through the map for bits I could have missed (find more modern Metroidvanias are much more obvious), loved the general feeling of movement and the boss fights were a high point - challenging, memorable and fun!

One of my favourite games this year, definitely

Star Lord · 20-10-2021 10:45pm

Just finished it this evening too, at around 11:30 play time (which doesn't count time replaying areas after deaths, etc) and 66% collection rate.

Loved every moment of it. Had a couple of bits where I accidentally sequence broke when exploring and trying to collect items etc., so looking forward to getting to 100% collection and timing down the time!

The last boss was definitely the most challenging, to quite a few tries, trying to figure out their different attacks in the different phases, but very, very satisfying.

Mr.Fantastic · 20-10-2021 11:28pm

On the final boss , Jesus they are tough !

Mr.Fantastic · 21-10-2021 2:32pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118051285#Comment_118051285

Beat him, what a great game. Thoroughly enjoyed it

johnny_ultimate · 22-10-2021 11:04am

Finished it last night, had meant to go to bed early but kept inching forward and learning the final boss and at that point may as well just go all in! The second phase is a bit too much of a bullet sponge IMO :P

It's been a while since I've played a game with bosses quite like this. They're absolutely punishing and can decimate your life bar in seconds... and then you learn the patterns and can usually dash your way through multiple stages while barely taking a hit. There are a few bosses they didn't quite nail IMO - one of the later ones, for example, has this annoying left swipe, right swipe, middle swipe combo which is meant to be easily dodgable by jumping... but in the middle swipe the odds are you'll just hit the bosses flailing arms when you're trying to find a safety window. Those moments felt cheap, and generally the 'learn by repetition' approach won't be for everyone. But there is something satisfying about going from insurmountable odds to ninja dodging attacks in the space of a few tries.

The EMMI I was less fond of overall. The middle ones in particular felt a bit too dependent on luck - there'd be times where you'd walk through a door and be all but guaranteed to have to try again due to the robot's positioning. Like many other 'unbeatable' foes in video games (in this case unbeatable til you get the temporary power-up) the one shot kills don't always feel fair. But then there are other times when they work better - the last one you have to fight, for example, is quite satisfying as you're finally agile enough to be moving around the arena at serious speed.

And speed is the word I'd use to sum up Metroid Dread on the whole. There's fierce momentum behind it on the whole - an extremely generous avalanche of power-ups come your way, and the map design is clever enough to always keep funnelling you along the critical path while still having that sense of exploration so essential to the series. I played a fair chunk of the game in a lengthy afternoon-long session last weekend, and it was just totally compelling for quite a few hours in a row: there were always new challenges, new items, new enemies. Samus as her character is particularly determined on her goal this time around, and really it feels like the entire pace and design of the game has focused on achieving that sense of sheer determination and constant progression.

The game doesn't let up, and while it as a result may not offer quite the same sense of mystery and discovery as your Hollow Knights or whatever, it means Dread has its own identity in a very crowded genre.

xckjoo · 22-10-2021 11:51am

Finally finished Skyward Sword and kicked this off last night. Plenty of dying and being convinced I had reached a completely dead end. So just like the old games 😁

SuperBowserWorld · 22-10-2021 3:22pm

Liking the positive reviews on here. Just goes to show the potential there to revive a whole range of 2D video games. That Ghosts and Goblins entry recently showed how not to do it. But this game and e.g. DK Tropical Freeze show there is still a lot of scope in these games if done right.

22-10-2021 4:25pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118058346#Comment_118058346

would have said that all those 3 games are quite different types of games really.

Ghosts and Goblins Resurrection was designed to be hard like the original but with some new accessibility improvements.

It was well-reviewed.

Mr E · 22-10-2021 4:48pm

GNGR is on sale at the moment actually. About 33% off.

pixelburp · 22-10-2021 5:30pm

One thing I keep forgetting to do, which is kind of a staple with Metroids, is to shoot the walls to discover passages n all. Have got myself stuck a few times, gone back and forth thinking I missed a door when no, I should have spotted a few notches on the wall that were destructible

CiDeRmAn · 23-10-2021 12:37pm

I always liked the PS2 era Maximo titles, they revisited the series in 3D and were a lot of fun, plus they had some very cool cover art courtesy of Susumu Matsushita, who did the cover art for Famitsu magazine in Japan. They were rereleased on the PS3, and I think they would work well on the Switch.

I enjoyed the way they didn't try to be the same as the original 2D games, but were very successful in 3D and have aged very well, despite a lot of PS2 titles not looking as good.

Grassey · 26-10-2021 9:33am

Speed runs of this game done in <90 mins.

Pretty sure I hadn't even reached my first EMMI by then 🤣

blockfighter · 26-10-2021 11:50am

Finally got a bit of time to play this at the weekend. Just finished the first section, about an hour in. Loving it so far. I've no idea where I'm going a lot of the time is my only issue but generally I figure it out after a bit of wandering around. The EMMI chases are tense, love them. But I've no idea when I should be hitting the parry button to block their attacks. Seems random when it works for me. Mostly it doesn't. Other than that I'm very much enjoying it. Took me about 8 goes to beat the first main boss so I feel I'll struggle as the difficulty ramps up later on.

pixelburp · 26-10-2021 12:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118074090#Comment_118074090

There are two moments you can counter: when the EMMI's arm grabs you, and when its "face" opens up. There is both a visual flash and audio sting that happens, although the timing of these seems to depend from EMMI to EMMI.

blockfighter · 26-10-2021 12:25pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118074190#Comment_118074190

I think the fact that I've been mostly playing with Bluetooth headphones is why I've not been good at that then. The audio lag is probably putting me off slightly with timing. Haven't noticed any flash but will keep an eye out for it, thanks.

pixelburp · 26-10-2021 12:32pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118074266#Comment_118074266

No worries. TBH the timing is made intentionally narrow; the parry is much harder to pull off than the standard parry. I might have pulled it off a half-dozen times total, at best.

Mr E · 26-10-2021 12:33pm

I beat my 4th EMMI last night. I think the game is tough but fair (and one of my GOTY candidates, easily).

Struggling with speedbooster/shinespark but I think it will just take practice.

Metroid Dread

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