In-Game Time - 4 Hours 27 Minutes
Real Time - 9 Hours 50 Minutes
Completion Percentage - 48%
In my Metroid II review I opined that Metroid II -> Metroid Fusion felt like an under-discussed evolution in the same vein of Metroid -> Super Metroid, a parallel track of game design with a heavier focus on linearity, a somewhat more "horror" atmosphere and more of a theme of hunting a monstrous species (Metroids/X-Parasites) vs. stopping the Space Pirates like Metroid/Super Metroid. What surprised me when playing Metroid Fusion is just how much this feels like a direct follow-up to Metroid II despite following directly after Super Metroid on the timeline! In the same way that Super starts by showing the cold, silent remains of the end of Metroid 1 to build mood and indicate moving on, the first boss you fight in Metroid Fusion is a mutated form of a hidden boss in Metroid II, followed by a literal recreation of SR388 (the planet from Metroid II). And while Super Metroid showed the eeriness of entering an empty space Samus had ruined through, Fusion uses Metroid II to amp up the threat of the X-Parasites. Remember those creatures from the last handheld game? Where here they are but SWOLE and dealing tons of damage to show just how dangerous they are. And, of course, the X-Parasites are an explicit result of Samus' actions in Metroid II.
Beyond the opening, though, Metroid Fusion takes even more from Metroid II, such as a more linear approach compared to the very widely open-ended Super Metroid, the aforementioned theme of hunting, but even in smaller stuff. One I didn't think of before is how Metroid Fusion actually has the same "Kill the same boss you're hunting down the entire game" structure as Metroid II, but does it in a way that feels like a much better and more subtle way. Because you fight the Core-X after every boss! The only exception, the B.O.X. robot, gets a fight with the Core-X later. This keeps up the same theme of hunting down the same enemy, but makes each fight much more distinct since the "same" part is only at the end. Where Metroid II had a constant tracking counter that went down as you opened up each area, the X-Parasites are an unknown quantity that only infects the ship and propagates further as Samus opens up each area, even directly causing new issues. It's quite a fascinating evolution!
The series' evolution is neat and all, but how about the game's quality itself? Well I am happy to report I found it hiiiiighly impressive! The controls for Fusion feel incredibly tight, although Super's controls were already good enough I find it more of a twist rather than a flatout improvement. Where Super tended to be a bit more slow and methodical, Fusion uses what are mostly highly responsive controls to put together a much more fast paced affair that also allows more precision platforming. The only part that felt off was the wall/ceiling grip: I quite like what they add to the game but I found them at times a touch unreliable, although I did enjoy them for the most part. Being on the GBA also means we didn't have the truly ideal setup of shoulder buttons for aiming, but missiles/Power Bombs being on a dedicated toggle button is soooooooooooo much smoother and you get used enough to the up/down movement with aiming. The snappy ledge jump was a nice addition to the platforming.
Combat in general has been improved from Super Metroid, with bosses who have more complex patterns or interesting weaknesses. I can see the argument that something special is lost here at the same time, Fusion has quite a few more bosses than Super and so some don't stick out as hard + Super had some special attention to fights like Draygon with his special kill mechanic, but I'm not so sure I agree with that as there's good mechanical variety between all of them and most of them have good build up. The SA-X fight is obviously one of the highlights, but the Nightmare fight is built up especially well earlier in the game with this wonderful atmosphere in the background, the battle itself has this really spooky and memorable, horror-ish vibe to it and it mechanically is very fun, twisting how it works from the start to the end to keep the battle fresh the entire time. It's also difficult in a way few 2D Metroid bosses were and in a very fun way, I am pretty sure I died to it more than any boss in Dread. It's very memorable and competes with the much later Dread for my favorite 2D Metroid boss fight (I still need to finish more 3D Metroids, so don't want to state the entire series!). I'd overall say the bosses are much improved from Super Metroid, even if you'll get some mediocre ones like the B.O.X. Robot which was a bit annoyingly simple for me.
Much has been made of Fusion's linearity given the most popular of Metroid games, Super Metroid, is extremely non-linear. This is a real graw in some people's jaw, but I didn't have any problem with it for a few reasons. First, Metroid has not always been a strictly non-linear affair, and with how much this game feels like a direct sequel to Metroid II (which is also super linear) it feels appropriate for it to be more linear. Secondly, I dislike the idea that Metroid has to be held in a tiny box of Super Metroid-style non-linear gameplay, both in the sense of not allowing linear experiences and not allowing other non-linear forms. And thirdly, the game itself plays with the linearity in some fun ways to weave together story and gameplay!
The story of Fusion, while maybe having some nuance lost in translation, is pretty fun (especially for a GBA era platformer not in the Mega Man Zero series) and messes around with the player's expectations, while melding that with the story itself. Samus herself isn't really too pleased to have an overseer, for example, but the biggest way the game does so is how the game gets progressively less linear as Samus herself wrests control away from Adam and begins questioning the apparently straightforward mission. The only way to beat the game is to go on your own for a lengthy segment without any guidance as the guidance is lessened over the entire game, until you get to the big surprise climax, and the environments are constantly changing to keep the experience fresh nonetheless. There's also plenty of little secrets to find and the map system has been improved from the last game to let you know if you've gotten an item! So I don't have an issue with it and if anything I find it very nice how well the game's linearness is folded into an in-story reason, that kind of player-character connectivity people will go on about in various games.
This game also nails the extras of it like soundtrack and art style. I love the very colorful look to the game that not only makes it feel alien to Super or Return of Samus but also just stands out environmentally in the process. It feels like a saturated candy kinda color, intentionally garish in spots, and I just love that. The spritework is quite lovingly detailed for the GBA with a lot of wild creature designs that are pretty well defined along with solid animations (Nightmare in the background of the lab, the slime scientist combos all come to mind). And while the soundtrack might not hit GOAT Level Super Metroid status it has plenty of bangers: The Nightmare Boss Theme is obviously one of the highlights, I'd even say the main one, but stuff like the Serris Boss Theme, the SA-X theme when approaching WILL make you tremble and when you get caught it is adrenaline pumping. I'll take this time to note that the SA-X felt like an effective scare monster: The AI may be very primitive, but you will get ROASTED when you do get caught, and it is truly more the buildup that is frightening in this game. The first time you encounter the SA-X is brilliantly designed so that you will almost certainly get somewhere safe via bombing before it enters...and then get to see it from below, waiting to see if it will realize you're there and attack. Or at least that's how it was for me. The soundtrack has this 80s/90s sci fi undercurrent to the soundtrack, which makes perfect sense given the 2002 release date, and harkens back to Metroid's Alien-inspired roots wonderfully. Although this game is more a tribute to The Thing, but I digress.
I can think of a few criticisms for the game, probably the most prominent being the very few truly new power-ups you get in the game. If I recall this game has some of the least "new" power-ups in it and you can really feel that, especially because the Grapple Beam was removed as it definitely could have led to some fun platforming segments. Imagine an SA-X chase over a grapple beam area! As I mentioned, the down-diagonal style of angle can be awkward without the Super Metroid shoulder buttons. The fact the game locks you out from backtracking after a certain point, and not really with clear warning, is a serious kerfluffle for 100% completion (which I didn't do but is very common!) and feels unnecessary. Sure you can go post-game to collect stuff but it feels like there surely was some fix for it.
While I think it falls just under Super Metroid (and roughly equal to Metroid Dread) for me, Super feels more fresh and I find the way it balances the open nature with signposting along with the environmental storytelling more impressive, Metroid Fusion is nonetheless one of the top games I've played and a top end (action) platformer. Atmospherically horrifying, aesthetically pleasing, challenging yet fair bosses and a strong mixing together of gameplay and story, it stands near the apex of both its genre and the Game Boy Advance. Go try it out, trust me: It isn't a big time commitment despite the game having plenty of content, it is an interesting place of gaming history and it is just plain fun.
Real Time - 9 Hours 50 Minutes
Completion Percentage - 48%
In my Metroid II review I opined that Metroid II -> Metroid Fusion felt like an under-discussed evolution in the same vein of Metroid -> Super Metroid, a parallel track of game design with a heavier focus on linearity, a somewhat more "horror" atmosphere and more of a theme of hunting a monstrous species (Metroids/X-Parasites) vs. stopping the Space Pirates like Metroid/Super Metroid. What surprised me when playing Metroid Fusion is just how much this feels like a direct follow-up to Metroid II despite following directly after Super Metroid on the timeline! In the same way that Super starts by showing the cold, silent remains of the end of Metroid 1 to build mood and indicate moving on, the first boss you fight in Metroid Fusion is a mutated form of a hidden boss in Metroid II, followed by a literal recreation of SR388 (the planet from Metroid II). And while Super Metroid showed the eeriness of entering an empty space Samus had ruined through, Fusion uses Metroid II to amp up the threat of the X-Parasites. Remember those creatures from the last handheld game? Where here they are but SWOLE and dealing tons of damage to show just how dangerous they are. And, of course, the X-Parasites are an explicit result of Samus' actions in Metroid II.
Beyond the opening, though, Metroid Fusion takes even more from Metroid II, such as a more linear approach compared to the very widely open-ended Super Metroid, the aforementioned theme of hunting, but even in smaller stuff. One I didn't think of before is how Metroid Fusion actually has the same "Kill the same boss you're hunting down the entire game" structure as Metroid II, but does it in a way that feels like a much better and more subtle way. Because you fight the Core-X after every boss! The only exception, the B.O.X. robot, gets a fight with the Core-X later. This keeps up the same theme of hunting down the same enemy, but makes each fight much more distinct since the "same" part is only at the end. Where Metroid II had a constant tracking counter that went down as you opened up each area, the X-Parasites are an unknown quantity that only infects the ship and propagates further as Samus opens up each area, even directly causing new issues. It's quite a fascinating evolution!
The series' evolution is neat and all, but how about the game's quality itself? Well I am happy to report I found it hiiiiighly impressive! The controls for Fusion feel incredibly tight, although Super's controls were already good enough I find it more of a twist rather than a flatout improvement. Where Super tended to be a bit more slow and methodical, Fusion uses what are mostly highly responsive controls to put together a much more fast paced affair that also allows more precision platforming. The only part that felt off was the wall/ceiling grip: I quite like what they add to the game but I found them at times a touch unreliable, although I did enjoy them for the most part. Being on the GBA also means we didn't have the truly ideal setup of shoulder buttons for aiming, but missiles/Power Bombs being on a dedicated toggle button is soooooooooooo much smoother and you get used enough to the up/down movement with aiming. The snappy ledge jump was a nice addition to the platforming.
Combat in general has been improved from Super Metroid, with bosses who have more complex patterns or interesting weaknesses. I can see the argument that something special is lost here at the same time, Fusion has quite a few more bosses than Super and so some don't stick out as hard + Super had some special attention to fights like Draygon with his special kill mechanic, but I'm not so sure I agree with that as there's good mechanical variety between all of them and most of them have good build up. The SA-X fight is obviously one of the highlights, but the Nightmare fight is built up especially well earlier in the game with this wonderful atmosphere in the background, the battle itself has this really spooky and memorable, horror-ish vibe to it and it mechanically is very fun, twisting how it works from the start to the end to keep the battle fresh the entire time. It's also difficult in a way few 2D Metroid bosses were and in a very fun way, I am pretty sure I died to it more than any boss in Dread. It's very memorable and competes with the much later Dread for my favorite 2D Metroid boss fight (I still need to finish more 3D Metroids, so don't want to state the entire series!). I'd overall say the bosses are much improved from Super Metroid, even if you'll get some mediocre ones like the B.O.X. Robot which was a bit annoyingly simple for me.
Much has been made of Fusion's linearity given the most popular of Metroid games, Super Metroid, is extremely non-linear. This is a real graw in some people's jaw, but I didn't have any problem with it for a few reasons. First, Metroid has not always been a strictly non-linear affair, and with how much this game feels like a direct sequel to Metroid II (which is also super linear) it feels appropriate for it to be more linear. Secondly, I dislike the idea that Metroid has to be held in a tiny box of Super Metroid-style non-linear gameplay, both in the sense of not allowing linear experiences and not allowing other non-linear forms. And thirdly, the game itself plays with the linearity in some fun ways to weave together story and gameplay!
The story of Fusion, while maybe having some nuance lost in translation, is pretty fun (especially for a GBA era platformer not in the Mega Man Zero series) and messes around with the player's expectations, while melding that with the story itself. Samus herself isn't really too pleased to have an overseer, for example, but the biggest way the game does so is how the game gets progressively less linear as Samus herself wrests control away from Adam and begins questioning the apparently straightforward mission. The only way to beat the game is to go on your own for a lengthy segment without any guidance as the guidance is lessened over the entire game, until you get to the big surprise climax, and the environments are constantly changing to keep the experience fresh nonetheless. There's also plenty of little secrets to find and the map system has been improved from the last game to let you know if you've gotten an item! So I don't have an issue with it and if anything I find it very nice how well the game's linearness is folded into an in-story reason, that kind of player-character connectivity people will go on about in various games.
This game also nails the extras of it like soundtrack and art style. I love the very colorful look to the game that not only makes it feel alien to Super or Return of Samus but also just stands out environmentally in the process. It feels like a saturated candy kinda color, intentionally garish in spots, and I just love that. The spritework is quite lovingly detailed for the GBA with a lot of wild creature designs that are pretty well defined along with solid animations (Nightmare in the background of the lab, the slime scientist combos all come to mind). And while the soundtrack might not hit GOAT Level Super Metroid status it has plenty of bangers: The Nightmare Boss Theme is obviously one of the highlights, I'd even say the main one, but stuff like the Serris Boss Theme, the SA-X theme when approaching WILL make you tremble and when you get caught it is adrenaline pumping. I'll take this time to note that the SA-X felt like an effective scare monster: The AI may be very primitive, but you will get ROASTED when you do get caught, and it is truly more the buildup that is frightening in this game. The first time you encounter the SA-X is brilliantly designed so that you will almost certainly get somewhere safe via bombing before it enters...and then get to see it from below, waiting to see if it will realize you're there and attack. Or at least that's how it was for me. The soundtrack has this 80s/90s sci fi undercurrent to the soundtrack, which makes perfect sense given the 2002 release date, and harkens back to Metroid's Alien-inspired roots wonderfully. Although this game is more a tribute to The Thing, but I digress.
I can think of a few criticisms for the game, probably the most prominent being the very few truly new power-ups you get in the game. If I recall this game has some of the least "new" power-ups in it and you can really feel that, especially because the Grapple Beam was removed as it definitely could have led to some fun platforming segments. Imagine an SA-X chase over a grapple beam area! As I mentioned, the down-diagonal style of angle can be awkward without the Super Metroid shoulder buttons. The fact the game locks you out from backtracking after a certain point, and not really with clear warning, is a serious kerfluffle for 100% completion (which I didn't do but is very common!) and feels unnecessary. Sure you can go post-game to collect stuff but it feels like there surely was some fix for it.
While I think it falls just under Super Metroid (and roughly equal to Metroid Dread) for me, Super feels more fresh and I find the way it balances the open nature with signposting along with the environmental storytelling more impressive, Metroid Fusion is nonetheless one of the top games I've played and a top end (action) platformer. Atmospherically horrifying, aesthetically pleasing, challenging yet fair bosses and a strong mixing together of gameplay and story, it stands near the apex of both its genre and the Game Boy Advance. Go try it out, trust me: It isn't a big time commitment despite the game having plenty of content, it is an interesting place of gaming history and it is just plain fun.