Metroid Dread is an exercise in patience

Metroid Dread was a strong return for Samus. As a fan of 2002’s Metroid Fusion, I loved this game. And it seems others do as well. But there is one thing a lot of reviews fail to mention, the difficulty. Reviews have been out for Metroid Dread as more and more people spend more time with it.

Metroid Dread is a pretty tough game. While previous Metroid games let you just kind of be stationary for several bigger fights and allowed you to just dump all your missiles onto a slowly moving boss, Dread comes at you with everything it’s got.

Don’t worry though, I’m not one of those weird gatekeepers that will rag on someone for having a hard time with it. Hell, my Messenger has become a support group where I talk my friends through some of the tougher parts like I was the Ghost of the Nintendo Hotline.

It can also be daunting because one of the first things this game lets you know is that you are squishy by having Samus get her ass handed to her off the jump. But once the game gets you good and vulnerable, it will then do things like drop you on a narrow platform where you share an intimate space with Metroid mainstay Kraid. (No, I don’t know know why Kraid was here either)

The first time I went up against Kraid I died so fast it was like I didn’t even have armor on. And I fought Kraid again…then again…then again. Eventually, I started to realize something, this felt like classic Nintendo. But not Metroid…this felt like Mega Man.

I know this is crazy but if you treat a lot of these bigger fights like a Mega Man game you’re going to have a way easier time.

Take the Chozo Warriors for example. If you haven’t encountered these yet, I’m sorry but you’re going to have to start thinking about them. When they first show up they’re an absolute nightmare. They chase you around with different melee attacks. They have the same arm cannon as you. If you force them to jump while they’re charging their cannon they’ll do the same spin attack you do. They suck. At first.

But once you realize the difference between a blue counterable melee attack and a red melee attack that you’re going to want to dash over these fights actually get simple. Slow. But simple. I died so many times on this particular Chozo at first until I noticed its rhythm and now my encounters are like this.

Every enemy, no matter how big or how fast has a simple pattern, normally of about four distinct moves, and if you can get it in your head, the fights become MUCH easier. Also, here’s a big one, you don’t have to counter. IF you’re good at countering these fights become a lot quicker but if you noticed in the above video, the Chozo telegraphed a counterable attack and I dodged it instead. I’m not good at dodging and I came to the realization that trying to have reflexes I don’t got was just going to get me killed so, slow and steady for me.

Another thing I’ve seen people talk about is escaping the E.M.M.I.s. The E.M.M.I.s are four-legged robotic nightmares like something out of the biggest Boston Dynamics wet dream. Up until you get the MacGuffin that allows you to take one out, they’re invincible, fast, and will almost guaranteed unalive you if they touch you unless you got reflexes like Daigo. But sometimes just moving fast and having dumb luck will allow you narrow escapes.

Like, I didn’t plan this one out and, if you notice, I only cloaked at the last second because, full disclosure, I forgot I could do that until my mind completely panicked and reminded me.

But whether it’s dumb luck or memorizing attack patterns, it all boils down to patience. Yeah, this game is definitely harder than some of the other Metroid games but it’s intentional, especially at the beginning. Rarely has a game made me feel a progression of strength like Metroid Dread has. Going back and thinking about fighting with a basic jump and no missiles versus now where I can jump as many times I like, fire homing missiles that freeze and have a bomb that would make Bomberman jealous, I feel like my character has grown. I feel like the Samus from the start of the game has worked towards something and but she and I have a different level of confidence than when we started out and it honestly feels good. I’m glad I put the work in.

But remember, there’s also absolutely nothing wrong with admitting a game is tough. There is nothing wrong with that. The only wrong choice you could make with Metroid Dread would be to pirate it, but you read my articles so I know you’re better than that.