By Luca Newton
A couple weeks back, I completed Metroid Dread, and after the official Game Awards nominees were revealed, I knew I had to talk about it..
The Game Awards hosted by Geoff Keighley are annual events, every December, made to celebrate the last year of gaming. 2021 as a year has been a bit odd. This year has had a lot of games.. yet not many striking as exactly "Game of the Year" material. So, naturally, when the nominations for this year's Game of the Year were formally announced, the choices really make it feel like it's truly anybody's game this year, as opposed to the very clear winner for 2020 being The Last of Us Part 2. This year there haven't really been any major bait games, which makes it interesting - however, I am pretty certain on what game SHOULD win the award; it's very clear:
Metroid Dread.
Mercury Steam worked with the director of Metroid in 2017 to make a remake of Metroid 2; Samus Returns. However, since then they had been working on an entirely original 2D Metroid, as the next instalment in the timeline for Metroid since Metroid Fusion 19 years ago. Of course, this excited long-time fans of the series. Being a huge reveal for their E3, I had no choice but to watch, and honestly it did look great. I was, however, apprehensive due to my previous struggles to get into Metroid-style games. Specifically, Hollow Knight, which I'd given a proper go at least three times and failed each time. Despite this, I was still very open to giving it a shot.
The really neat part of Metroid Dread is that it does not waste your time. As soon as it starts, it neatly recaps the events of Fusion, and with a previous look at the story so far on YouTube, I was all set. You land on Planet ZDR, but the mysterious Raven Beak attacks Samus and strips her all of her abilities, as she falls to the bottom of this planet. ADAM instructs you to find your way back to your ship, but it's found that machines sent by the Galactic Federation, EMMIs, have been turned against Samus - she needs to kill a certain amount of EMMIs in order to survive in the various harsh locations of ZDR to regain your many abilities, as well as uncover the secrets of the chozo, and who exactly Raven Beak is. I am not going to act like I know everything about the Metroid timeline, or even if this is a good continuation of the series, but given the overwhelmingly positive response to the game, I assume it is. Even to a newbie like myself, Dread had a compelling story that made it fun to trek through.
Additionally, the gameplay was certainly a draw. A gameplay formula which inspired and helped create an entire subgenre of gaming, so there are high standards. As I said, I couldn't get into Hollow Knight due to the gameplay loop. I understand it's intentional that you're supposed to get lost in this huge map, without a real way of knowing where you are, and it's supposed to be very difficult and punishing, but as someone who had no experience with games like that, it was overwhelming. In the case of Metroid Dread, I absolutely didn't have those same issues. What is so great about Dread is that it is difficult, but it makes everything just difficult enough for a challenge, and lets you get lost in the several locations, but never feels like it's punishing you. There are always save points everywhere, the locations are open but not as overwhelmingly open as later Metroidvanias, and you don't lose everything you gain from dying. I got lost several times, but after extensive searches, uses of my maps and more, I would figure out where to go and it would feel so rewarding and satisying. What also feels very satisfying about the gameplay is definitely the upgrades - which are given to you all the time. There are several points in the game where you can't get through specific points until you get specific upgrades, and so when you get these upgrades it makes you feel so powerful. They're all so unique and add new depth and excitement to the experience. Especially backtracking when you essentially have every upgrade, you feel like a GOD. It was incredibly satisfying.
Of course, a major factor of that gameplay was the action. You could describe it as simple - you mainly shoot, charge beam or missile enemies with a mix of jumping and sliding. There is also the melee counter which was, I believe, from Samus Returns and for me it worked perfectly. It seriously made a lot of the enemy defeats satisfying. With each enemy giving health and missiles, it was always so worth to take out enemies even if they posed no threat. Each of the major boss always felt fair, they always had a specific pattern which you're meant to figure out; once you figure them out, it may be hard, but it's very fun and satisfying as you always know what you are supposed to do, and the death is on you, and only you. The final boss was like this, took me so many attempts but ultimately when I knew what I was doing, it was extremely fun.
Additionally, the EMMIs, which were newly added to this game were incredible additions. They acted as bosses, but when they weren't bosses, their EMMI Zones were some of the scariest moments in the game, as they would get you and rarely you'd be able to counter them. I loved how you would have mini-bosses to get the power to even kill the EMMI, and when you did, you had to focus and actually try to find a window of opportunity to take them down, then you'd get some form of upgrade. It was incredibly done and a real highlight.
Among the things I loved about Dread is definitely the locations. I though each and every area was distinct and had an incredible aesthetic, as well as many nooks and crannies baked within them. Each area actually feels like part of this planet with an ecosystem, and history behind it. They're also all very appealing to look at. My favourite area was definitely Ghavoran - the overgrown aesthetic really spoke to me, and I enjoyed exploring it. The first area of Artaria has some gorgeous locals with a real sense of history, and the first boss is on this gorgeous red floor area with the blue "sky", making for great atmosphere. The EMMI Zones certainly are a big part of this game's designs, and the clean white look really makes the world feel historic just given that not much intelligent life is here, yet there are white and clean science labs which are ruled by stalker robots.
Samus herself impressed me. I don't know what I was expecting from her exactly, but she surpassed my expectations. For a character who rarely expresses, she had such a variety of emotions in this game, and not once taking off her helmet. In just the cinematics and her eyes we could truly tell what she was thinking and got a lot of emotion out of her. And her journey was fascinating given that she was the only person immune to the X-Parasite, and her DNA being fused with a Metroid. In this game, her suit is a definite upside. I absolutely love the blues and the whites on Samus, it makes her look really sleek and cool, and true to her original design. Her Varia suit takes the blue, but keeps the white and adds gold, which is a nice combination. The Gravity suit replaces the gold with purple, and I'm not a huge fan of that one, but it still looks pretty good.
As you can see, I really loved this game for several reasons, but..
Why Should It Win GOTY 2021?
Metroid Dread is a 2D game, which only takes 10 hours if you're good at it, and it doesn't have a deep message or much of a narrative, it's reliant on gameplay over that. So why should it win? Well I say because it is simply the best game of the year - and I know that's an opinion-based statement, but out of all the nominees for GOTY this year, Metroid Dread is definitely the most celebrated and acclaimed game on there... well, with the exception of Deathloop, which feels like the kind of game that will probably win. I'd argue, however, the impact of Dread was larger and lasted a lot longer. The buzz for it stuck for a while.
Looking at the nominations, you have: It Takes Two, Resident Evil: Village, Psychonauts 2, Deathloop, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and obviously Dread. It Takes Two is clearly the indie pick which is always included in the GOTY nominees, but never really has a chance to win. Psychonauts 2 is probably a great game, especially the kind of game I'd love, but while being a praised game, it doesn't have the same buzz or presence here, and I don't know if it exactly represents gaming this year, nor is it the best game this year probably. Same with Rift Apart. I absolutely adored it, and being a major Sony tentpole release, as well as a major show of the technology of the newly released PS5 and next gen in general. For those reasons, as well as the critical praise, I can see why people would root for it, and think it has a chance. It can definitely win, but I don't think it is the best game here. I've not played Resident Evil: Village, however I do know that it definitely has a shot at GOTY because of the franchise being very beloved and high quality - the only thing that works against it for me is that little oomph. I don't know it really strayed from what the franchise was used to, and so it's a game that people love, but do people see this one as the standout Resident Evil? Finally, Deathloop. Given it's surprisingly highly positive critical reception, and it's apparent refreshing of the genre. It seems like the type of game to win GOTY.
Metroid Dread with its high praise from fans and critics alike, how it modernises the Metroid series, and was the most celebrated game of the year by far, feels like the game that should win this year's Game of the Year. A new entry in a legendary franchise which influenced so many games after it, which came out with this level of quality to it absolutely deserves to take the win.
It ultimately comes down to the outlets. With the insanely high praise IGN, for example, gave Deathloop doesn't bode well for Dread, which is why I don't fully believe Dread WILL win, I just think it SHOULD win. What are your thoughts?
Thanks for reading.
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