METROID FUSION - The Corruption of a Masterpiece | GEEK CRITIQUE

[Music] eight years since Super Metroid and gaming had changed the evolution of 3d graphics the rise of new hardware manufacturers the fall of Sega the ubiquity of the internet and Metroid missed all of it aside from a few cameos Sam has made herself scarce eight years is a long time but on November 17th 2002 Metroid fans finally saw their franchise resurrected two new Metroid games would be released that day one was approached with caution and best and blind hatred at worst after all how could this unproven team at retro studios possibly capture what made Metroid Metroid especially with the first-person shooter of all things it is ironic then that the other game the 2d side-scroller the one that was developed by the same team who made the previous entry that game Metroid Fusion would be the one that truly shattered the Metroid formula but both of these titles are prime examples pun intended of my failure to engage with the series before I began this project in fusions case I tried to play it in O 7 after I fell in love with Super Metroid I tried again when it came up for 3d s ambassadors I picked it up started it and dropped it over and over and over again and I don't think I ever even made it out of the first second until a few months ago when I casually picked it up and just tore through it in a handful of settings remember this project began when I suddenly found myself invested in Metroid and the Gameboy Advance games were the catalyst in fusion we run the catalyst for the creation of this universe's greatest threat turns out the chozo race created the Metroid as the perfect predator of the X parasites transmutation of beans that threatened to overwhelm the ecosystem of sr388 the word Metroid in the chozo language even translates to Ultimate Warrior of course just like in this universe that little experiment backfired but now that Samus has caused the genocide of the Metroid species the X parasites have begun to propagate and once again following the destruction of zebus the Galactic Federation higher Samus to assist in an excavation of sr388 the story really stresses how much Samus hates this place and she's going to end up despising it even more because it's there that she's infected by the X parasite but it must not have seemed like a big deal because rather than taking any precautions Samus gets right back to work the ex invades her central nervous system and she loses consciousness at the most inopportune time her iconic gunship explodes in an asteroid field but a comatose samus is saved by the auto eject unfortunately the ex has burrowed its way even into her power suit the surgeons amputate parts of the infected suit dramatically altering her appearance but it's not enough Samus is on the verge of death until a surgeon proposes injecting her with cells I harvested from the last metroid instantly the infection is cleared and Samus wakes up I like this bit of characterization in the intro one life ended but I was reborn as something different pondering this fact I realize I owe the metroid hatchling my life twice over samus is not the kind of character to show overt sentimentality like the series itself she tends more towards subtlety just how much of a connection if any did she feel with the metroid hatchling this is as close as we come to an answer at least for now and I'd say it's all we need it was a bold move to so alter the appearance of the series protagonists you know people new to the series often think that this character is named Metroid well it's a little more appropriate now as not only does he more look the part her very biology has changed no sooner does Samus wake up than a distress signal is received from the nearby biologic labs research station because been running tests on the creatures of sr388 there was an explosion on board and despite her state there's only one bounty hunter the Federation trust to check it out Samus claims that the explosion awakes a nameless fear in her heart showing a vulnerability that she never has before because without that iconic armor beep is vulnerable no matter how much energy you get in this game Samus can never tank hits like she used to and thanks to her Metroid DNA she's now incredibly weak to the cold she looks sleeker and more alien and I don't like it but I don't think I'm supposed to there's something unsettling about seeing her in this state getting rid of her gunship is meant to invoke a similar effect the things you've taken for granted are changing nowadays it'd be a near certainty that after an eight-year hiatus a series would be rebooted or at least go back to basics it would have been sensible maybe even profitable to just boil Metroid down to its most famous components and make it accessible to that next generation instead fusion picks right up where Super Metroid left off knowledge is itself as metroid 4 and promptly corrupts the franchise's most iconic elements say what you will but it was a bold decision even the title screen is distorted it uses a similar arrangement to the original games but every time it's about to get to that more heroically introspective melody and instead hints at something more sinister the Federation provides Samus with a ship but due to her condition and the sensitive nature of their research she'll be following the orders of the onboard AI the situation reminds her of the only other time she took direct orders while serving under her former commanding officer adam malkovich she privately names the AI in his honor oh and just like super metroid there's no way to skip this intro but here's the difference everything super metroid needed to communicate after that was done through subtext infusion there is a buttload of on-screen dialogue and exposition throughout the entire game this is the most controversial thing about metroid fusion because more than just blowing up samus's ship or changing her look the most corrupted thing about it is the metroid formula itself the way it seeps down even into the gameplay not only is the story dictated to you through dialogue your progression through the game is as well it's not uncommon for doors to arbitrarily lock behind you when you're not supposed to go back the computer will always tell you exactly where to go and what you're looking for it's highlighted on your map and even reiterated when you load a save planet zebus was an interconnected world but the BSL station is man-made laid out in a far more logical and linear fashion the bulk of the game takes place in six simulated breeding environments each one begins the navigation room a save room and a recharge room you'll hit the navigation panel receive your orders head into the environment to carry them out then report back for more orders the breeding grounds are a way to give the game a sense of place distinct from the previous games in the series without compromising creativity and varied environments a game that released around the same time Super Mario Sunshine had a distinct theme but its levels ended up feeling way too similar fusion doesn't suffer from that this is theming done right the game never lets you forget that the environment is artificial the same way your progression is artificial your c/o is artificial put it this way Super Metroid has meridia the deep-sea fusions water section is a fish tank Samus feels as solid as ever maybe even more so she's a little slower likely a consequence of smaller screen size and her jump isn't as floaty as it used to be the Game Boy advances lack of buttons four-story map of her controls and you know activate missiles and power bombs by holding the R button while firing and aim diagonally with L the speed booster when you get it kicks in automatically by running for long enough and that's one cage I don't really like with no run button there's no way to tweak samus's jump trajectory it's no big deal especially with the blocky level design but you know I'll always prefer a more momentum based gameplay other than that though I actually prefer this control scheme to super metroids it's a lot more natural to hold r2 alt fire instead of matching select to cycle through a bunch of options Samus has lost all of those options thanks to the x-parasites but without that bulky Armour she's gained the ability to grab ledges and climb ladders her wall jump has been nerfed and now cast her much further away meaning she can't scale a single wall that ability was critical in sequence breaking the previous game in fact sequence breaks of any kind are almost entirely absent in Super Metroid with enough skill you could face the bosses in any order you wanted to Metroid Fusion barely has any of that you will go where the game tells you to go and that's that the reason for this decision comes down to two factors for one at its core Fusion is about the loss of samus's agency the linear nature allows you to weave a more complex story if the team wanted to make Super Metroid 2 they would have divorcing it from so much of what people loved about its predecessor was the direction they chose and they stuck to it more importantly though this mission based structure makes it much better suited for the short bursts of play demanded by a portable game restore the atmospheric stabilizers locate and disable the security doors find a computer room I mean within the first 10 minutes I played I ran into three save points that's no accident telling the player where to go might diminish the exploration but it ensures that even if you've only got a few minutes to kill you'll still be able to get something done but that's not to say that it's totally linear more often than not the map shows you where to go but not necessarily how to get there in fact the map now draws in different colors depending on whether a section is what the navigation room gives you or something you have to discover on your own most of these sectors are a lot larger than they initially seem so the path from A to B is never as obvious as it looks but progression still never feels as graceful as it did in Super Metroid much more often I just felt like I was firing in random directions to uncover the way around like here where I was trying to find a way past this thing I noticed the pipe below and figured maybe I could go around it I noticed this log gate and figured that's how I'd make my way back out but nope the solution is just to fall down behind but part of the difference might be that by the time Super Metroid started throwing out more complicated puzzles I had the x-ray scope fusion doesn't have anything like this so it's more trial and error than perception it's never very complicated or challenging but it's not conveyed well either I rarely got any of those aha moments progress isn't directly linked to power-ups like it used to be but coming through areas and using those power-ups and creative ways it's still rewarding and while they're not the norm there are still some really creative solutions you do still have to use your head to get through the game but it never lets you feel like you're outsmarting it or breaking it it seems like a decision that was made very early on to make fusion more linear then they worked within those restrictions and focused on the positive aspects of linear design a far more intricate storyline a much more comprehensive look at SAMHSA's character and oh yeah a steep steep skill curve the more open you make the world the more the player will be able to discover the game secrets and challenges at their own pace it suits an adventure game but Metroid has always been action-adventure and the reason Fusion is controversial is because it puts way more emphasis on action a linear design means that the progression through the game can be much more designed if the developer knows exactly what path the player will take the challenge is progression itself the obstacles that are in your way and the skills that you as a player have to sharpen this is what Fusion does best Samus cannot tank damage anymore enemies hit harder than they ever have scale their damages I get more health and never drop as much as they take away coming off of super I was constantly flummoxed over how low my energy was even after a few hits enemy drones can even respawn and group into more dangerous alterations that's the nature of the experts they infest every environment on the ship and copy the creatures that were living there but they're not just a mindless virus they can also absorb the knowledge and memories of their victims fortunately thanks to her Metroid DNA Samus is immune to their influence and in fact she can absorb them to restore her energy and weapons that's a cool in-universe explanation for a very gamey mechanic the ex have a very distinct effect that's really game boy advance esque the graphics in general are just fantastic one standout sequences when a reactor core is overheating navigating through all these twisted melting walkways its beautiful pixel-based bright work combined with unmistakable with flashy effects I think it just adds to the excess significance even when they are perfectly mimicking their counterparts there's just something not quite right about them the bosses in particular are horrifying amalgamations representative of samus's own lost abilities their unsettling nature is unique and more importantly in line with the theme because Metroid Fusion is at times a horror game the idiots of the Federation decided to send Samus it's amputated armor to the BSL station and well the ex learned to mimic her - this is the SA X and look it can even screw attack and use super missiles oh sure the one time Samus doesn't immediately uninstaller power-ups after a mission and of course this happens even more than the bosses the SI X represents Samus at the height of her power and that makes it so much more terrifying than a traditional impact and if you decide to make a mistake and show yourself it just obliterates particular praise has to go to the sound design as the SA X's heavy footsteps echo long after it goes off-screen serving as an indicator of when it might be safe to come out of hiding about 3/4 of the way in the mission based structure of go here fine this is starting to wear a bit thin the game even highlights this forcing you to stop and watch as it shows you where a place you've already been is located but the spotlight is intentional because Metroid Fusion is about to go off the rails the SA X disables the station's power and the whole tone shifts there's an extremely tense sequence where you hear the SA X beneath you monitoring the area and you know you're going to have to drop down and engage it despite how much Samus has recovered by this point she still can't lay even a scratch on her doppelganger I didn't notice the first time I played but the only reason samus is even able to escape is because the SA X can't hang from ledges as a player you were that character you earned those powers you know what it felt like and now it's trying to kill you it's a dark mirror of what Samus was put into rekt comparison with how powerless she is now on a more thematic level the SA X personify is fusions twisted corruption of the metroid formula it can sequence break with impunity it takes no orders it is what Samus has lost even once you restore power to the station things are never quite the same the computer keeps barking orders but circumstances continuously force sanest to go off-script reacquiring her most powerful abilities in the process but these breaches of protocol or without the Federation's authorization and Adam criticizes Samus for it this too is intentional Samus is taking back her agency throughout the game there have been very few instances where I've been allowed to get too far out of bounds but whenever I did happen to wander a bit there were times when I could see things I wasn't sure I was opposed to like the remains of Ridley and cryogenic storage later when the powers knocked out I saw the x-parasites harvest those remains and later still the Xu samus's greatest rival against her reborn stronger than ever the game has done a wonderful job throughout building - things like that foreshadowing future events I saw this shadow streak by so many times I started accepting it as part of the detail in this room only to finally encounter the nightmare boss hours later I dare say its approach to build up is even better than its predecessor eventually I broke into a restricted area and discovered a droids oh there are even incubation tanks housing their mutations for Metroid 2 the s ax has tracked Samus here but it's powerless against the Metroid's and Adam is forced to get us in the whole section bringing an end to the Federation's metroid breeding program quick Adam assures us was only being done for peaceful of course now that I've played the rest of the series I appreciate this twist so much more than when I first went through fusion there are tons of things I'm noticing that I never picked up on the first time after all the game foreshadowed this twist at the very beginning why exactly would the Federation need a replica of a Metroid's natural habitat and making my way back through it they're discarded shells now litter the ground I've seen this before it's really impressive how the Metroid series always manages to include elements like this without them coming across as pandering fanservice not that there's anything wrong with fanservice but these things only happen because the plot demands them it doesn't feel like anything as being forced or shoehorned in for the sake of nostalgia but one thing has been bothering me considering the expose such a threat once all life signs have been snuffed out on the station why wouldn't the Federation just get Samus out of there and blow it up well here's why the ex reproduce asexually meaning that the SA ex that got jettisoned was not acting alone by now there are at least 10 onboard the station and the Federation intends to confine samus until they can capture the SI x and weaponize them for their own militaristic game I love this twist it's very in line with the heute first ask questions later attitude that Samus that this series stands in opposition to a military would see an opportunity to harvest and duplicate the wasps technology of the galaxy's greatest warrior but Samus knows better the soldiers will be killed the ex will steal their knowledge steal their ships and wreak turmoil on the galaxy her plan then is to initiate the station to self-destruct one problem though she's still confined to this room Samus tries to reason with the AI finally calling it Adam in exasperation and it seems to recognize that name it suddenly takes on the characteristics and mannerisms of samus's deceased former CEO and in a great character beat criticizes her plan to sacrifice herself to kill the ex because da the ex would live on on the planet's surface instead Adam recommends they detonate the station only after crashing it into the planet destroying the Metroid homeworld and the ex all at once presumably overcoming his programming he lets Samus out of confinement I conflicted on this on the one hand it's a poignant moment that grows from character interaction but I think it would have been more thematically appropriate if samus's escape had been based more on her agency on her own restored self-confidence instead of just accidentally triggering the AI to come up with a better solution when Samus arrives at the control room of course the SA X is waiting and still the battle is one of attrition still I had to be careful and skillful because this mirror is still better than Samus in raw power as she puts it the SI X is me only heartless near the end facing its own demise the SI X mutates to an abomination somewhat similar to what they had done to Ridley but it must have already expended too much energy because it goes down fast and I'm ok with that the mere match has a much more interesting dynamic fight Samus initiates the plan leading to of course the countdown but when she gets to her ship she discovers an enormous metroid shell and then boom I know mega Metroid their most powerful form and again this was set up in advance as Adam told us that they had found a method to force a Metroid he was development in mere days it almost kills Samus in a single blow and then the SI X shows up its ice beam can hurt the Omega but it's way too weak from the earlier fight so perhaps in an act of self-defence it allows Samus to absorb it finally restoring her to full power even then this battle is no curb-stomp especially with the impact still looming in fact I ran out of time at the last possible moment [Applause] [Music] but when you get do defeated in time samus's ship comes rising up from the background pulling her out of the station just as it enters the atmosphere and destroys sr388 once and for all I like how samus's suit still isn't back to normal it really takes on more iconic colors she might be back to full power but this experience has a Revit oblique changed our protagonist the ending from here is honestly kinda hokey there's a bit about how Samus had no idea that the minds of deceased leaders were uploaded to the Federation systems and that's why the AI suddenly started acting like adam malkovich that's the kind of thing you can get away with better if you set it up in advance but here it just feels like a contrived explanation also how exactly did the omega metroid escape the restricted zone was it just done for the sake of a final boss fight what isn't hokey though are the motivations of the SA X I was ready to complain any sort of good nature and never once been into that it was always a heartless killing machine but at the point it protects samus this intelligence may recognize that it's only cancer any kind of survival is however reluctantly to give up its agency and merge with Samus at least that's how the subtext reads to me the final twist does work though samus's ship could only be activated manually but it was not done via the magical ethereal ghost of had a Milkovich know it was thanks to the creature Santa saved from zebus all the way back in Super Metroid whom she had once again let out of confinement midway through this adventure you uh you did save the animals back in 94 right that moment showcases the difference between this game and its predecessor if I had to describe fusion in one word it would be streamlined streamlined with all the benefits and consequences that go along with it it lacks so much of the polishing detail that his predecessor had there are no seemingly innocuous choices to make there's no way to turn off the upgrades once you get them the little accouterments the game super is so much charm are gone the adventure itself is linear to the point that it treats that design choice as a plot point but it also fixes a lot of the nitpicks I had with Super Metroid it allows a second playthrough on the same save file and on that second playthrough it shows how many upgrades you have left to find rooms transition faster and more than anything it ramps up the difficulty more than anything else in this series this way I never died a single time in Super Metroid despite the fact that I hadn't played through it in nine years but in fusion a game that I beat just two months ago I died more than 20 times but it never felt cheap I just wasn't good enough most importantly Metroid Fusion does not try to replicate the success the franchise had in the past this pre-release material shows that at one time the game was even more of a break from series traditions but what Fusion ultimately became is something much more tightly wound to its predecessor in its plot in its gameplay in the protagonist herself Metroid Fusion is distinct and it achieves that quality as a corruption of a masterpiece as a perversion of Super Metroid in conclusion this game sucks and you should hate it the end wait that's not what I wrote no your script was all wrong I fixed it ladies and gentlemen it's kovar he's the guy who proofread my scripts and I always appreciate it but this is the first time you've ever used your powers for personal gain does your opinion diverge that heavily for mine Metroid Fusion is an insult not just to the franchise's roots not just to the fans but to game design in general and to me personally the previous games put the mechanics first and built the lore around that the animals you save in Super Metroid for example then were there to teach you some moves fusion on the other hand takes a very story first approach and this reeks all sorts of havoc with the game's design this is really obvious when grinding X for health there's a perfectly good and story reason for using X parasite drops instead of the standard health and missile drops from before but this doesn't actually make the game more fun or more challenging just more tedious that would be annoying for a console game but for a handheld game it's downright inexcusable but not all gameplay is dictated by the story Nintendo went back and forth seemingly at random on this one somehow her ups are gained by defeating bosses and absorbing parasites but others are downloaded in data rooms it's inconsistent and it brings up a whole different set of questions if the data is stored off-site why does Samus have to go to specific rooms for specific upgrades is the Federation trying to keep Santa too weak to succeed did I seriously just download missiles oh and super missiles are an upgrade to regular missiles a digital upgrade that changes the physical properties of my ammunition yeah that makes sense si X is supposed to be a mimicry of Samus at her most powerful why can it do all sorts of things that Samus could never do before remember when she was able to completely decimate all of zebus with super missiles leaving a trail of debris and collapsed platforms everywhere and here I thought blowing up that pipe and meridia with the power bomb was a big deal there's something really backwards about how the world is laid out so-called secrets are stored away in the most obvious places energy tanks are just lying on the floor waiting to be collected but critical paths know those are hidden without any environmental clues at all to guide the player on to them yeah that's right secrets are easier to find than mandatory routes the constant Mirage not only of plot but of introspection from Samus isn't just a change for the franchise it's a major change for the character we don't just see her physically weakened we see a distinct lack of stoicism a sort of emotional weakness that fans hated eight years later but totally ignored in this entry after all her near-death experiences I think she'd be used to it by now speaking of plot I can't make heads or tails of what Adam even is a guy trapped in a computer NII based on him does it have Adam his memories his consciousness how did the Federation get any of that after he sacrificed himself I guess we're not supposed to think too hard about this this game has a serious identity crisis for every change Nintendo made to the structure they stuck firmly to choices that were made for the super metroid way of doing things choices that didn't work nearly as well with these changes if they were so dead set on stacking save rooms nav rooms and recharge rooms together why on earth didn't they just combine them into one room Castlevania style this convention worked with super metroids more open exploration based nature but not here I spent all my time with Metroid Fusion feeling condescended - as if the game was treating me like I'm stupid it pretends to be less linear than it is and hopes I won't notice the difference it marks out waypoints on paths that are so linear I would have on them anyway it uses law as an excuse for annoying mechanics but only when it's convenient assuming I'm not paying enough attention to call it out and that's ultimately my biggest problem with this game it's not just a flawed game it's a flawed game with the audacity to put band-aids over a few of its biggest cracks and say see there are no cracks it's a game that made me feel like my intelligence is being personally attacked like I said before Metroid Fusion is an insult not just to the franchise's roots and not just to the fans but to game design in general and to me personally kovar do you even have a youtube channel but okay I see where he's coming from my biggest problem with Fusion is how the story never stops interrupting the gameplay all the tough bosses an action focused design end up coming into direct conflict with how often the game forces the player to stop and read even on that vaunted second playthrough you still can't skip the cutscenes I mean I get the story was at least half the point of making it linear and that's fine once but when you know the player has seen it before don't make them set through it nidia stressed because I'm like a billion years old but I always preferred how the games of my youth get the backstory in the manual and elegantly told the rest through gameplay and subtext but that preference much like the aspects that kept me away from Metroid for all these years was set by my childhood experiences the choices that fusion makes are intentional and what it achieves by casting away those elements not only works as a different take on Metroid not only allows for a deeper story that reveals the character of Samus Aran it also allows the gameplay to fall way more in line with why I fell in love with video games in the first place but the team did have one more really good reason to make it linear open-world adventure games tend to thrive in a 3d environment and Metroid Fusion had to stand out because remember it wasn't the only game coming out on November 17th but next time this season will conclude with the final 2d Metroid gained zero mission you can watch it right now on patreon and it'll be on youtube in one week until then you keep geeking I'll keep critiquing thanks for watching you

Channel: The Geek Critique

Views: 978,876

Rating: 4.4029317 out of 5

Keywords: The Geek Critique, TGC, Geek Critique, Josh Wallen, metroid, metroid fusion, super metroid, samus, samus aran, fusion suit samus, fusion suit, review, critique, analysis, game analysis, game boy advance, gba, sa-x, sa x

Id: FsZ9Bb4IW5s

Length: 27min 25sec (1645 seconds)

Published: Sat Dec 17 2016

Reddit Comments

[u/walker6168]

I got to about 20 minutes before the whole summarizing the game plot got to me. I like the idea of discussing how game design contributes to theme, but organizing the discussion around linearly following the plot is pretty tedious. Better to organize the presentation around design and past games.

I liked Fusion. They had a lot of obstacles to deal with because it was a handheld and opted for small maps and objectives so players could put the game down for long periods and pick it back up quickly. Metroid 2 did the same thing except that was just kill X Metroids in this zone. The game legitimately has a lot of silent story-telling via world details, pacing, and missions going wonky. It just combines that with a lot of narration that was kinda grating.

Solid game. In particular, the bosses were awesome.

[u/Kered13]

I feel like Metroid Fusion is unfairly criticized for it's linearity. It is linear to be sure, but that doesn't make it a bad game or not a "true" Metroid game. It still has the oppressive environment and atmosphere, and it still has the illusion of non-linearity, particularly in the latter half of the game. Most Metroid games have a linear intended route, and most sequence breaks are unintended (Zero Mission is the notable exception). I feel like what really happened in Metroid Fusion is that the developers did a better job of keeping the player on the intended path.

What Metroid Fusion does better than the other 2D Metroid games is have a stronger story, much better controls, greater challenge, and better boss fights (I feel like a boss rush mode would have been perfect for Fusion), making it a really strong action game. It's never been my favorite Metroid game, but every time I've played it I've greatly enjoyed it.

My biggest complaint with the game personally is that it takes way too long to start. The cutscene and text walls at the beginning of the game are endless, and after that you to go through more text in a couple nav rooms before the game really begins. After that most nav room segments are fortunately pretty short, though it would be nice to be able to skip them.

I don't get most of Covarr's (the editor at the end's) complaints:

• Picking up X is more tedious than picking up normal drops? How? If anything the fact that every enemy is guaranteed to leave a drop makes it less tedious.
• "Is the Federation trying to keep Samus too weak to succeed?" Yes, that is clearly spelled out in the story.
• Downloading missiles? It's a game, did he ever complain about biological enemies dropping missiles when they died in the other games?
• Every Metroid game has had obvious expansion pickups. Fusion has plenty of well hidden items as well.
• Critical paths are usually obvious. In the example shown, you know you need to go down because you were previously in the room below, but couldn't get to the door. Now you're above that room but at a dead end. Bombing the floor is the obvious thing to do (this is also right after you get bombs, as I recall). There's only one part of the game where I frequently get stuck, and that's the underwater section after Nightmare.
• I don't see how Samus is emotionally weak in Fusion. She clearly chafes under Adam's restrictions and disregards them when she can.
• Adam: His questions are clearly answered in the game. Adam's mind was uploaded to a computer. It has all of his memories and consciousness.

[u/[deleted]]

I swear, this genre of videogame criticism takes as long as humanly possible to make any points. Endless talking and a paucity of insight.

UP NEXT- a 1 hour video dissecting the subversive gameplay genius of Bubsy.

[u/_GameSHARK]

Okay he's just rambling about Fusion's plot and stuff for the first five minutes. Can someone give me a breakdown about when he gets to the actual fucking point?

Is he saying Fusion is a good thing or a bad thing? I loved Metroid Fusion and wish Nintendo had made more sidescrollers instead of Other M and Federation Marines or whatever it's called.

[u/[deleted]]

As someone who really enjoys this game, I'm kind of surprised at how polarizing it is to the community.

[u/ViscousZeta]

What's with all the hate in this comment section? I've enjoyed the Geek Critique since the Sonic the Hedgehog retrospectives. I think these Metroid videos are some of the best yet.

[u/drupido]

u/GeekCritique I really liked this video, you brought good points to the table, such as the design choices in favor of the platform of release (the GBA, which was portable). I've got to say I love both Super Metroid and Fusion for different reasons, it also resonated with me at different ages.