Metroid Fusion Subverts All Expectations (Retrospective)
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- čas přidán 16. 09. 2021
- This series of videos were heavily inspired by The Geek Critique's 2D Metroid Critique series. Please check out his channel if you haven't already! / @geekcritique
The sequel to Super Metroid, 8 years in the making! It would have been easy for Nintendo to just redo what they already knew worked, but Metroid Fusion does a ton to set itself apart from the rest of the series. Let's see if those changes worked out in today's review of Metroid Fusion!
Twitter • / basedsamtv
#Metroid #Nintendo #GBA - Hry
To anyone who isn’t aware this is a bad translation and it’s a corrupt branch of the federation that is working on the Metroid breeding program. Not the federation as a whole but simply a corrupt branch. This is why in Dread (which happens after Fusion) Samus is still working for the Federation. It’s not a well known fact but yeah it’s supposed to be a corrupt branch
Oh my GOD, I never realized the SA-X treats you like a Metroid (now that it has the capability to kill one) until you pointed that out…that’s amazing
It freezes you and shoots you with a super missile, just like how you would kill a Metroid.
She really is Metroid Fusion
But what if Metroid was a girl?
It was just missing the X-Ray Visor
This just made the game even more deeper, also I have a theory that every SA-X we encounter, isn't even the same one, bc there's more than one.
I would've loved a level were you have to runaway from a SA-X with your speedbooster, that'd be cool.
I love how in Dread when you play it, if you look closely, you can still see the organic parts of her suit of Fusion, they said her suit is slowly regenerating the plating, which is interesting, but it also shows that the colors on the organic parts are those horrible yellow instead of orange, orange is the color of the plating she has.
I do think Dread's version of her armor is the best version of it, it looks very interesting.
Wasn't my first Metroid game, but I've always loved it. The overly linear progression is forgivable because of how effectively the game creates atmosphere and tension. It also has some of the best boss fights in the series in my opinion. It's probably my second favorite 2D entry, after Super Metroid.
Fusion is so good, you can talk about it for 14 minutes without even needing to mention the SA-X yet lol
this was one of the first games i ever played and i still love it to bits. also happens to be the only game i can sort of speedrun through, though not at anything near record pace
So much love for that one. Its creepy like super metroid, bosses fights are very good and finally a metroid that is different of the others but doesnt destroy the franchise. Its one of my best with SM and ZM
FYI, you can skip the opening cutscene in the future if you let it play out then press: L + R + START + SELECT which soft-reboots the Gameboy Advance and you'll now have a save file at the Main Deck ready to start with 00:00 on the clock, no time has passed. You can go back to the main menu and copy this save to another slot then you'll always be able to restart quickly for another run.
One thing I love about the Megaman Battle Network games is that pressing the select button will usually skip the entire cutscene and give you back control of Megaman. Super and Fusion would've benefited massively from this.
I really enjoyed Fusion. I was apprehensive going into it as so many swore up and down that it was too linear and that it sucked. Not only did I love the story but I happily got 100% in the game. I've heard people say that Fusion has the hardest Shinespark puzzles but I didn't find that too bad.
I can see the criticism of the computer turning out to be the real Adam and being the one to come up with the final plan but after playing Dread and seeing him return briefly I enjoy it.
shinespark puzzle , or sequence break? because fusion only has 1 of those and i did it , and it is indeed the hardest intended puzzle design i've played from all of the 2d metroids
I like how sa-x screw attack and spacejump look visually different than the one we get in the game to represent super metroid
This video just popped in my feed today and I really enjoyed watching it, I like the way you comment, there were no dull moments, keep doing videos like this!
Metroid Fusion could have also used checkpoints. I know there are plenty of save points in save rooms, but if you just play without saving, just to have fun, and if you mess up late in the game and died, you have to start the whole thing over again. It could at least respawned you at the begining of a sector instead of the begining, or at the last save point you visited
I agree! I actually got pretty careless in one of these playthroughs and died to the SA-X and lost about an hour of progress, which was kind of annoying. Checkpoints were a very welcome addition in Samus Returns.
“As was the style at the time.” - Grandpa Simpson
@@Podzhagitel "If you don't save, the game's not responsible."
-Graggle Simpson
Thats sounds more like a you-problem that an ingame issue.
Metroid never had checkpoints.
Metroid doesn't need checkpoints.
Just watched your zero mission and super videos! Great stuff! Fun fact: ZM's my favorite Metroid game too!
I always thought it was weird that fusion expects the player to distrust the Federation right off the bat. Super Metroid literally starts with Samus leaving the baby Metroid with them at a very similar space station. Somehow it's cool to leave a super dangerous Metroid with them for "research purposes" but now they want to do the exact same thing with the X parasite and suddenly it's not chill and they're treated as a bunch of corrupt war profiteers. I get that the danger of the X is on a whole other level than having a single Metroid in a glass tube, but it seems like a pretty abrupt heel turn.
My personal reaction to learning that they were cloning Metroids and accelerating their life cycle was "oh good, they were supposed to use the baby Metroid research for the good of mankind, and now they can keep going since Ridley isn't there to screw it up". Then when it was revealed that they wanted to do the same with the X I was like "okay, sure. Samus supported them using the Metroid for the benefit of mankind, so it makes perfect sense that they would do the same with the X. What's the problem?" Obviously it was a very misguided idea that was based on a lack of information on how dangerous the X are, but up to this point the games have led me to believe that the Federation is trustworthy. It was genuinely jarring to have the game act like the Federation is no different than the space pirates when I just played 3 other games that told me they were okay. Legit, the previous game in the timeline starts with the words "the last Metroid is in captivity, the galaxy is at peace." Who do you think was in charge of the captive Metroid? The Federation!
From my understanding (and I believe at least one other person commented about this already), the English translation for this game leaves out an important detail in the game's story, and that apparently it's only a smaller, corrupt faction of the Federation that want to weaponize the X, not the Federation as a whole.
@@basedsamtv I did actually know that trivia fact, however learning it well into my adult life after being ignorant the entire childhood I spent playing was still confusing. I like the angle of a splintered faction of federation officials pulling the strings and being shady. That being said, I live in America and wasn't given the information to know about the Metroid illuminati, so the reaction I described is understandable.
I don't wanna make it political, but I feel like it's worth noting that I accepted the bad guy government without question as a kid lmao perks of being American XD
Fusion was not my first Metroid game but it is absolutely one of my favorites. My first time beating it, I immediately started a new file and began a new play through. I love the story so much!
This was my first metroid game and I'm glad it helped me navigate on where to go
I love Metroid Fusion. Some of the best atmosphere/isolation/tension/dread in any 2D game, period. I think too often people forget that the incredible atmosphere this game has is made possible BECAUSE the game is linear in structure. People love to trash on the linearity and praise the atmosphere, not realizing that the atmosphere is what it is because of the games structure. How does can fusion be non Metroid like if it follows the footsteps of Metroid 2, a game that came before super.
Metroid Fusion was my first game of my childhood. After that, I was learning much about gaming IT and have very good experiences with it. Thanks to Nintendo, which he created the Metroid 5 (Metroid Dread).
Fantastic video, really surprised you have so few subs because this was great
FINALLY got around to fusion myself recently and besides getting my face kicked in by bosses till I found the trick each had I think the game was pretty rad. Though playing it before zero mission and super is going to make those feel even easier now heh.
You forgot to mention the X was infecting Samus HERSELF, not just her power suit.
Yes this would have been more accurate to say, especially since her suit is biologically part of her
Strange game entry in the series, but I started playing metroid in 2018 in my second year of uni; so this game felt like a cool idea. I assume if I was a longtime fan at that point I might have had a more negative reaction to how linear it was.
The SA-X was incredible, very anime feeling where the power scaling gets shown to you "this is you in the last game, look at how your lasers bounce off of your old armour". Also the "Alien" (xenomorph) inspiration is massive in this series.
The introduction of Adam leaves as sour taste in my mouth
Thx for your work :)
My first Metroid game was Metroid Prime, and I liked Fusion. I think the people saying a game in the Metroid series is 'not a Metroid game', what they really mean is that it doesn't feel like Castlevania.
Wrong.
The term "Metroidvania" comes from Metroid and Metroid alone.
The Castlevania games in question got all their inspiration from Metroid.
Are you saying Castlevania isn't a good Metroid game?@@sidnew2739
"People who think it's too linear, and people it was their first Metroid game"
While yes it was my first Metroid game, and yes I agree it's pretty linear, I still love it to death, especially with Dread being the next game in the chronology. The X Parasite were so interesting to me and learning that the Metroid creatures, these hated things I hear so many people complain about, is the bioengineer predator of these things? Cool as hell.
OK, so Fusion... Hooooooboy, Fusion... This is one of those ones that really just missed for me, personally. While I won't say that linearity makes it a non-Metroid game (never understood that argument, myself), I'm a damn fool for a nice sequence break. But what really hit me wrong was the audio. Not the musical composition or anything like that. The SFX and "instruments" in the music just hit my ears like nails on chalkboard. Compositionally speaking, the music's quite good. Not on the level of Super Metroid, but definitely not bad by any means.
I just accept the lore from this one and call it good, lmfao...
I really love Fusion, this was a great video about it! There are some things I wasn't crazy about though. I agree that there needed to be a way to skip dialogue. I was also confused as to why Ridley was even in BSL, it felt like it was just shoe horned in as a boss fight at the end for fan service. Also, why is the final boss of Fusion an omega metroid? That also felt kinda underwhelming. I also noticed since I've been replaying it on Switch, the game is quite difficult! I somehow didn't realize in my first play through, but Samus is really squishy lol
Well done
Wait? This game is HARD? How? Except for Neo Ridley, all of the bosses in Fusion have patterns that are fairly easy to memorize... Oh well.
Too bad you didn't enjoy Fusion as much as me and others, but I'm glad you pointed at its contribution to the series in terms of gameplay, graphics, story telling and ambiance.
It's hard because the enemies do a huge amount of damage, it's not just about pattern recognition
This is one of the easier metroid games I thought. It's still a great game.
2 days straight thanks to official nintendo players guide. Good game.
There were like 3 or 4 lines of this video where I thought… I know I heard that before! Then I remembered the Geek Critique. Good video to take inspiration from.
fusion is a good game and i enjoyed it , but i do also think it can somewhat debated if it's a proper metroid game , due to how it tries to blend more game generas into the mix with following an unskipable story from a narrator , hard locking the sequence breaks down to an measly inconsequential 1 , and the survival horror events
also maybe the reason the omega metroid had different weaknesses this time is due to it being genetically endangered and cultivated by the federation
fusion is my favorite of the 2d games! :D
I put my hat in for more reviews on other series.
Anyone notice that the jump mechanic is sometimes a bit unresponsive? Like sometimes you only jump halfway, even if you press the button normally? Could be a switch thing.
i never really minded adam i think hes cool
I've beaten all the 2d metroids besides 2 and its remake and I think fusion is the best. Dread is a close second though.
You should play 2
I remember this as one of the best games I played as a kid. But we only had the Japanese version. I never understood the story. Was this uncommon? 😂
I finished the whole game based solely on context clues 😆 If only I knew about walkthroughs back then...
Is it bad that my first time beating this game was on a phone emulator while out camping with my family
emulation is based
I actually hated using the R button for missiles. One thing I always felt was superior about Super Metroid was that you could toggle on missiles and LEAVE THEM ON, rather than always having to remember to press yet another button. It was just replacing the annoyance of the run button with another annoyance. It's been an ongoing frustration for me because I much preferred being able to use that button for diagonal aiming, and that it led to the modern free aim mode being the same way actually increased the frustration because then you have to hold one button to aim, a second to use missiles, and a third to shoot, where in the old way you would just need to aim diagonal with one button, and shoot freely with the other because missiles would remain activated.
Sam Hyde reference.
Subbed.
Thanks! Good review. I tried this recently and it was pretty decent, but eventually I got tired of the clinical linear setting, and being told what to do. Much preferred Super and Zero Mission.
Lmao in what way is Prime 2 the "hardest game in the entire series"?! Metroid Dread is WAAAAAY harder. In fact, I think almost every 2D game is harder than any of the Prime games, the kind of casual ease of the Prime games compared to the 2D games is one small part of why I enjoy them so much. Although, Dread is my favorite 2D game in the series, despite its absurd difficulty. "The atmosphere of Dark Aether hurting you and having limited ammo for your beams" is probably the most commonly cited reason I've heard for Prime 2 supposedly being hard but, umm, there are light beacons to heal you, just try not rushing through Dark Aether and the Beam ammo thing really isn't a problem if you know what you're doing. Just use the opposite Beam to get ammo, it's not that hard.
This was uploaded before Dread came out. The parts I mainly had trouble with in Prime 2 were the bosses, specifically on the GameCube version since you can't jump in morph ball for Spider Guardian and can't look up as easily for Quadraxis and Emperor Ing among others. I actually liked the ammo management aspect of the game lol.
I didn’t remember how good this game was until I replayed it after Dread. Fusion is a much better game.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels Fusion isn't a fun game to revisit. I really enjoy what Fusion did for Samus as a character and how it ties together her arc of suffering through the karma of committing genocide on the Metroids and suffering the consequences of her actions and accepting it through becoming a Metroid and eradicating the X-Parasites herself, and the tighter gameplay innovations Fusion introduced are also really good, but the linearity and unskippable text just make the game not fun to replay. Zero Mission has all of the benefits of Fusion's tighter more refined gameplay without the strict linearity and unskippable text, which is why I just prefer to replay that game instead for a much more fun time. I do really respect and appreciate what Fusion did for Samus's story though, and think it's a very unique game, even if I don't plan to ever replay it myself.
Seripusly of all the Metroids ive played, Fusion is the most boring of them all. Which says a lot when you consider the monocolor tedium of Metroid 2.
Zero mission was the best game ever. Fusion was 2nd best