10 I Lived
The announcement of Metroid Dread was certainly a surprise. Although fans had known about the game for some time following an official page in the Official Nintendo Power magazine in 2005, with rumors of an E3 2005 or 2006 announcement coming soon after, such rumors were quickly halted when the game failed to appear at either convention. Although there were whispers of Nintendo potentially being able to bring it back around 2010-2012, nothing had been confirmed.
It was easy to think that the game was dead for good, but Twitter user @AndiThyIs probably speaks for everyone with this meme. Talk about a comeback!
9 You’re Gonna Show Prime 4, Right?
It’s fair to say that fans going into Nintendo Direct were likely expecting to see news regarding Metroid Prime 4. The game was announced over four years ago and has had little to no information released since apart from the fact that they were still hiring developers. But even if fans’ expectations were not met, they came out of it with something even more excited to get hyped for, and this meme by @TomycaseM on Twitter perfectly captures fans’ reactions.
Not only is a whole new Metroid game coming out in addition to Prime 4, but said game is coming relatively soon in October and is still being actively advertised by Nintendo themselves, even taking over their official Twitter account for a while after the presentation. Patience is a virtue, it seems.
8 Move Over Morph Ball
Perhaps one of the most interesting things shown off in the Metroid Dread trailer was the new gameplay elements, especially during Nintendo Treehouse Live. The way Samus moves through the various levels is very dynamic and clean, and utilizes many classic Metroid features like exploration and using the environment to your advantage. But one other classic element of Samus’ arsenal is the Morph Ball, and although it was shown that she still has it in Dread, it seems it may not be needed for everything.
As @MetroidMemes shows, Samus finally can slide, which could remove some of the practicality of using the Morph Ball at all. It was still shown during Treehouse Live that the Morph Ball has its uses, but it may be time for the ability to slide over to make room for another.
7 It’s Still Beautiful
Metroid games have a history of being visually impressive. The 2D roots of the series have made for some rather pretty pixel eye candy over the years, and even with the transition to 3D, that beauty remained. Metroid Dread is no different, and even despite being displayed in a 2D look, the graphics and overall style have already left a good impression.
With the game months away, it is only a matter of time before fans can see just how the game will look when played. As @glaedrax states, that initial awe will likely not go away anytime soon. Talk about first impressions.
6 Let’s Get This Bread
There are a lot of things that rhyme with dread. Lead. Said. Bed. And of course, bread. Even though Metroid Dread is shaping up to have a rather dark tone and elements of horror, similar to its chronological predecessor Metroid Fusion, that has not stopped fans from poking some fun at it.
It didn’t take long for fan art of the new Metroid to make its way onto social media sites such as Twitter, one of the more prominent trends being a play on the game’s title. This art by @Wata_Ridley is just one of many that rose to popularity in an instant. While some may have been a little crumby, Metroid fans came prepared and didn’t loaf around when the opportunity presented itself.
5 Protect The Plant Samus!
One of the scariest things introduced in Metroid has to be the E.M.M.I. units. In a similar vein to Metroid Fusion, these machines mercilessly hunt Samus down as she traverses the corridors of ZDR, much like SA-X did. The entire atmosphere changes when one gets sight of her, and Samus will need to either escape or find a way to take it down quickly to avoid being eviscerated. They also happen to like plants.
@MetroidMemes points out that the E.M.M.I. quite closely resembles AUTO, an antagonist from the 2008 Disney-Pixar film WALL-E. While this is most likely pure coincidence, it is still rather humorous to see just how close the resemblance is. Now all Samus needs is an EVE suit.
4 Think Samus Think
All jokes aside, the E.M.M.I. units are terrifying. Samus has faced a variety of foes in her adventures, from Space Pirates to monstrous abominations lurking in the depths of an abandoned world and, of course, a deadly virus that used her suit against her. But while the E.M.M.I.s are similar to the SA-X, they seem to be unlike anything Samus has faced before, especially they can actually instakill her if they catch her.
Samus will have to think on her feet or find herself fallen, like this clever meme by @cryophase implies. Samus is almost always without her usual weaponry and upgrades at the start of any new game, so only time will tell just how invincible the E.M.M.I. proves to be.
3 It’s All About Family, Samus
It seems that Samus is all alone in the depths of planet ZDR. Armed with only her suit and initial weapons from the previous game, Samus will need all the help she can get. While it doesn’t appear that much support will come from anything on ZDR, there is one thing that Samus can rely on: family.
Or not, considering her family was murdered, but this fun meme by Reddit user u/LordingKing makes for a good laugh in the face of Samus’ circumstances. Now if only she had a family, the E.M.M.I.s would be in real trouble.
2 Dread Is Real
Metroid Dread is a long time coming. As an official sequel to Metroid Fusion, which came out 19 years ago, fans have been left in the dark about Samus’ adventures beyond the game’s events for quite some time. Although Fusion was far from the last Metroid game to be released, it’s technically been the last Metroid game chronologically since its release, following off the events of Super Metroid and Metroid: Other M. The patience of the community seems to have finally been rewarded, and this meme by @PopPunkAlto perfectly embodies what fans are likely feeling upon the reveal.
Series creator Yoshio Sakamoto has commented on the future of the 2D Metroid titles, and although it seems this particular story arc for Samus is over, her time in 2D is certainly not. Fans will simply have to wait and see once more.
1 Time for Bed
Nintendo may have slept on Metroid Dread for a long time, but it was worth the wait. Having recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, the series is one of Nintendo’s long-running classics, spanning not just several games but quite a few crossovers.
Twitter user @antdude92 poked fun at this history by further highlighting just how many things rhyme with dread with this meme, a reference to Samus’s appearance in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Considering how deadly the threats on ZDR are, Samus ought to find herself a bed after the latest adventure comes to an end…. at least until the next transmission.
