Metroid: Samus Returns

 3DS
Metroid: Samus Returns Image
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 83 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 634 Ratings

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  • Summary: A classic Metroid adventure returns, rebuilt from the ground up. Brave the hostile terrain of an alien planet teeming with vicious life forms as legendary bounty hunter Samus Aran. Her mission? Terminate the Metroid menace in this masterful reimagining of her 1991 Game Boy adventure. SamusA classic Metroid adventure returns, rebuilt from the ground up. Brave the hostile terrain of an alien planet teeming with vicious life forms as legendary bounty hunter Samus Aran. Her mission? Terminate the Metroid menace in this masterful reimagining of her 1991 Game Boy adventure. Samus Arans arsenal has been enhanced with new moves and abilities that are sure to help her face the deadly surprises that await. This intense, side-scrolling action platformer is a great entry point into the Metroid franchise and perfect for returning fans as well, and its available only on the Nintendo 3DS family of systems.

    Features:
    * This intense, side-scrolling action platformer has been completely remade with engaging and immersive 3D visuals and a rich, atmospheric color palette.
    * Classic Metroid II: Return of Samus gameplay is joined by a wealth of new content, including a set of brand new abilities that utilizes a mysterious energy resource called Aeion, a powerful melee counterattack, and 360-degree Free Aim Mode.
    * There are plenty of secrets to findand if you uncover enough of them, you may even start to unravel the mystery of Planet SR388s past.
    * Two new amiibo figures*Samus Aran and Metroidwill be released as a set alongside the game. This game is also compatible with the Zero Suit Samus and Samus amiibo from the Super Smash Bros. series. Functionality details will be revealed at a later date.
    * While supplies last, fans will be able to purchase a special edition of the game, which includes a physical copy of the game, a sound-selection CD featuring 25 tracks from across the Metroid franchise, and a reversible title-sheet insert for the game case.    … Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 77 out of 83
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 83
  3. Negative: 0 out of 83
  1. Gaming Age
    Oct 3, 2017
    100
    Metroid: Samus Returns is an easy recommendation and you can’t go wrong with this in your 3DS library. The team put a lot of work into polishing this remake and it shows. I can’t even tell who gets the better deal here between fans of the original or newcomers like me. All I can say is that this game makes me realize how much I miss a true Metroidvania game made by masters of the craft. If this is how Nintendo wants to pay homage to classic games, I say let’s go for more!
  2. Hobby Consolas
    Sep 12, 2017
    93
    Samus returns with an adventure that it's an example of how all remakes should be, respecting the original game, honoring the classics and adding a pinch from the latest games. Samus Returns is not only a great Metroid game: is also one of the best titles for the Nintendo 3DS.
  3. The Sydney Morning Herald
    Sep 14, 2017
    90
    Offering a fresh take on Super Metroid while updating the franchise for modern audiences and supplanting the sluggish (but narratively important) Metroid II, this return to form is everything a 2D Metroid game should be. Not every modernising addition to the classic formula is as well-polished as it could be, but this is still one of the best entries the series has to offer.
  4. SpazioGames
    Sep 12, 2017
    85
    A lot could have gone wrong with this remake of Metroid II, since Mercury Steam's last work didn't impress and the franchise was dormant for far too long. Luckily, Samus Returns is a very good metroidvania and an honorable episode of one of the dearest Nintendo franchises.
  5. Worth Playing
    Oct 3, 2017
    85
    Metroid: Samus Returns is a solid remake that doesn't reinvent the wheel or eclipse the high points of the franchise but represents an enjoyable and well-made return to what makes Metroid work. It's low on story and high on exploration, and that's all it needs to be. The frustrating moments are few and far between, and the 3DS iteration eclipses the Game Boy original in pretty much every way. It's a Metroid title that shows why the old 2D classics were popular, and it succeeds wonderfully. With a ton of hints dropped throughout the game about a new Metroid game after Samus Returns, it should be interesting to see what Mercury Steam can do with an original game.
  6. JeuxActu
    Sep 13, 2017
    80
    Metroid Samus Returns is a very good remaster of the original GameBoy game with a load of new features that make the game more user-friendly. We only wish the hard mode would have been included in the game, and not exclusive to amiibo owners.
  7. Edge Magazine
    Oct 12, 2017
    60
    Its ragged edges mean it feels more like a competent cover version that occasionally strays off key, rather than the genuine article. [Dec 2017, p.120]
    All this publication's reviews

See all 87 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 145 out of 175
  2. Mixed: 19 out of 175
  3. Negative: 11 out of 175
  1. BillyHerrington
    Sep 15, 2017
    10
    AM2R was good but this one is even better. Really. Game Design is top notch. It could be a bit more open for my taste. Getting the hang forAM2R was good but this one is even better. Really. Game Design is top notch. It could be a bit more open for my taste. Getting the hang for the controls takes a bit time.… Expand
  2. Sergiozky
    Sep 25, 2017
    10
    If you are looking for a good game for the 3DS this is the one, level design, difficulty, bosses, OST and easter eggs, this is how a remakeIf you are looking for a good game for the 3DS this is the one, level design, difficulty, bosses, OST and easter eggs, this is how a remake must be, MASTEPIECE 10/10… Expand
  4. PabloDesigns
    Sep 17, 2017
    10
    This game is just perfect. As a Metroid fan, i loved this game, Mercury Steam made this game just perfect, they made the game with actualThis game is just perfect. As a Metroid fan, i loved this game, Mercury Steam made this game just perfect, they made the game with actual graphics and gameplay, adding new fun mechanics and with the best 3D i've ever seen in Nintendo 3DS. 10/10… Expand
  5. skeith
    Apr 12, 2018
    9
    This is my first Metroid game and WOW! This leaves me wanting more, maybe I should start the entire series now. For people who enjoys a goodThis is my first Metroid game and WOW! This leaves me wanting more, maybe I should start the entire series now. For people who enjoys a good story this is not a game for you, this game is all about gameplay and actions. This game can get a little frustrating at times, but it is really manageable. Really hope they will remake the whole series.… Expand
  6. kozaihod
    Oct 1, 2018
    9
    The game has got many, many flaws, but as I was getting deeper and deeper into SR388's caves i found myself loving it more and more. The mostThe game has got many, many flaws, but as I was getting deeper and deeper into SR388's caves i found myself loving it more and more. The most glaring issue is the linearity, which is admittedly not as bad as it could be, since the players have the illusion of dealing with the metroids in whichever order within the area they currently are in. The game takes the player on a rollercoaster ride with faux set pieces which kinda detracts from the experience. Another thing that I didn't really like is the lack of memorable stuff. Don't get me wrong, the "real" bosses are great, but a lot of earlier encounters kinda blend together. There aren't also many memorable places on the map, like some rooms in Prime or Fusion that you would know by heart even after one playthrough (Phendrana Shorelines, Hall of the Elders). The music also sucks - I get the ambience is essential for the atmosphere, but again, Prime and Fusion tackled that much better. The few real tracks that are there - remixes of Lower Brinstar, Lower Norfair and the new Chozo Research Laboratory only accentuate this, as they seem really out of place. There is also a problem with the enemy variety - you get like half a dozen regular enemies and their recolours. It is also not a Metroid games for the first-timers to the series - you have to know a lot of series' tropes, like which coloured doors correspond to which weapons or bombing all suspicious terrain. The ending also kinda undermines Super Metroid, but literally gets your blood pumping.
    There are a lot more good parts, though - the exploration is better than ever, the progression is really cool with Samus in the endgame feeling like a badass, ripping and tearing through foes that gave you trouble a few hours earlier. The new abilities, maybe other than the gatling gun are really welcome, and the Scan Pulse arguably is the thing that the series needed for some time now. Later metroid encounters and the three real bosses are really great (Diggernaught being a Quadraxis-lite). The new mechanics, namely the 360 aiming and melee counters sound like they wouldn't work but they are really great and fit organically in the game. It's also unexpectedly hard.
    And it really gets better and better the more you play.    … Expand
  7. Orphenn
    Nov 13, 2021
    8
    Very good Game, especially the new ways of combat, love the story, a good work for a remake of a Great saga like Metroid.
  8. RetroBRW
    Dec 23, 2020
    0
    This is a horrible excuse for a Metroid game and I don't understand why people like it so much. It looks pretty, but it plays horribly. IThis is a horrible excuse for a Metroid game and I don't understand why people like it so much. It looks pretty, but it plays horribly. I absolutely hated it from about 10 minutes into it, till the time I took it out of my 3DS a few hours later. I only made it to the third area, and found the difficulty of the game to be purely masochistic. It doesn't feel like a proper 2D Metroid game. The game is actually WORSE than the original Game Boy game they tried to remake.

    Things I liked:
    -Graphics. The game does look pretty.
    -Sound. The game does sound pretty.

    Things I hated:
    -Melee Counter: does not belong in a Metroid game. Whoever greenlighted this idea needs fired.
    -Aeion abilites: These comes off as more annoying than useful to me. Especially when you get to the third area that many monsters require the use of the rapid fire one. Oh yeah, it drains the aeion gauge in seconds. Garbage.
    -Level design: I expect a decent amount of mazes in a metroid game, but when EVERYTHING is a maze, it's not fun. It's way more complicated than the original for no reason whatsoever.
    -Overaggresive enemies: Pretty self explanatory. Enemies are overly aggressive for no reason, other than to shoe-horn in the previously mentioned garbage melee counter system.
    -Difficulty level: I can enjoy a hard game, but this goes way past hard into pure masochistic territory on the NORMAL DIFFICULTY. I'm a fairly seasoned Metroid player. I've beaten Super Metroid, Fusion, and Zero Mission multiple times, and the game boy game this was based on. This game gets the balance way too screwed up. Normal monsters do 1/3rd an energy tank of damage per hit AFTER THE VARIA SUIT. Metroids can take a whole tank at once. It's not fun, it's unfair and makes this game frustrating.

    TL;DR: Metroid Samus Returns is a game that looks pretty on the surface, and people raved over it because they thought it was a "return to form", but when you actually play it, the game is frustrating and a massive disappointment. Both the original and the fan remake AM2R(A PROPERLY REMADE METROID GAME THAT PLAYS LIKE A METROID GAME!) are infinitely better games than this officially released turd.    … Expand

See all 175 User Reviews

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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best 3DS Game of 2017
2
#2 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2017
3
#3 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2017