After playing Dread I saw everyone online hyping up the Prime remaster so I had to try it. Completely different vibe from Dread but I get why people love this game so much now.
Going from 2D to first-person Metroid threw me off at first but it works so well. The dual-stick controls feel natural. You’re scanning stuff mid-fight and circle-strafing Space Pirates like any modern shooter. They included other control schemes but the new one just makes sense. Moving through these 3D spaces and backtracking doesn’t feel clunky at all.
The atmosphere in this game is something else. Rain hitting your visor. Steam fogging up the screen. Walking into Phendrana Drifts for the first time with that music kicking in and snow everywhere was incredible. Those Chozo ruins have this ancient mysterious feeling that Dread didn’t really have.
Boss fights are completely different from Dread’s pattern memorization. Thardus needs thermal visor strategy. The Metroid Prime fight at the end is genuinely terrifying. Each one feels unique instead of just learning dodge timings.
The way the game teaches you is perfect. No hand holding. You get a new ability and immediately start thinking about all those doors and platforms you passed earlier. When areas finally connect back together after hours of exploration that feeling hits just right.
The story is told through scanning everything. Logbook entries and artifacts piece together what happened to the Chozo. It’s all environmental storytelling that you can engage with as much or as little as you want. I ended up getting 100% scans because I wanted to know everything.
This remaster looks incredible on Switch. They updated all the textures and lighting but kept that soft painted look from what I’ve seen of the original. The music reinforces that isolated feeling when you’re deep in some cave system with no save point in sight.
Playing this after Dread showed me two completely different approaches to Metroid and both are great. The slower exploration and atmosphere here versus Dread’s speed and action. Both work perfectly for what they’re trying to do.
Now I’m really excited for Prime 4. If it captures even half of what makes this game special it’ll be worth the wait.