good games don't age.
that's the statement I want gamers to understand because wow this is actually really fucking good! especially for such an early title in the NES' life span. it has everything you expect from a metroidvania, like the non-linear map structure, the power ups you pick up to boost yourself, the exploration, the sequence breaking, the speedrun potential, it's all here and it holds up surprisingly well for being 38 years old.
it is very fun to explore Zebes while looking at the 8 bit sprites and listening to the 30 seconds chiptune songs. sure it is very cryptic but that's not necessarily a bad thing; Metroid is a game that is meant to be replayed and where you're supposed to take notes and potentially make maps on your own, especially with the overall layout of Zebes being given away in the manual. god this is such a cool game with how rough everything is and yet how you're able to see the foundations for how the Metroid series and all those inspired by it use to this very day, both in terms of lore (the manual calls Samus a cyborg lol) and in terms of gameplay. it's simple but efficient. you really feel Samus growing more and more powerful as you acquire more items until you get the screw attack and varia suit and then you basically become invincible. controlling Samus is very intuitive and fun, even if she is a bit too slippery for my taste.
there are two "problems" that only exist because of technical limitations, which is the lack of backgrounds making every room feel extremely similar, and also I can practically hear the console crying whenever more than 5 things come on screen and how much lag it causes. there's also the lack of save station which s understandable cause many games on the NES didn't have
now with how impressive this game is, there are some choices that make it extremely hostile to play, and especially one egregious flaw: Metroid loves to waste your time. there are so many traps and dead ends that are made to waste your time and force you to do unnecessary backtracking. this isn't "aged game design", this is the level designers purposefully being annoying, and that's what keeps Metroid from being something I'll replay often. the lack of a map, very few landmarks and repetitive rooms doesn't help navigation either.
still, Metroid is a great game that I recommend everyone plays, at the very least for historical values. and who knows, maybe you'll enjoy it too.
that's the statement I want gamers to understand because wow this is actually really fucking good! especially for such an early title in the NES' life span. it has everything you expect from a metroidvania, like the non-linear map structure, the power ups you pick up to boost yourself, the exploration, the sequence breaking, the speedrun potential, it's all here and it holds up surprisingly well for being 38 years old.
it is very fun to explore Zebes while looking at the 8 bit sprites and listening to the 30 seconds chiptune songs. sure it is very cryptic but that's not necessarily a bad thing; Metroid is a game that is meant to be replayed and where you're supposed to take notes and potentially make maps on your own, especially with the overall layout of Zebes being given away in the manual. god this is such a cool game with how rough everything is and yet how you're able to see the foundations for how the Metroid series and all those inspired by it use to this very day, both in terms of lore (the manual calls Samus a cyborg lol) and in terms of gameplay. it's simple but efficient. you really feel Samus growing more and more powerful as you acquire more items until you get the screw attack and varia suit and then you basically become invincible. controlling Samus is very intuitive and fun, even if she is a bit too slippery for my taste.
there are two "problems" that only exist because of technical limitations, which is the lack of backgrounds making every room feel extremely similar, and also I can practically hear the console crying whenever more than 5 things come on screen and how much lag it causes. there's also the lack of save station which s understandable cause many games on the NES didn't have
now with how impressive this game is, there are some choices that make it extremely hostile to play, and especially one egregious flaw: Metroid loves to waste your time. there are so many traps and dead ends that are made to waste your time and force you to do unnecessary backtracking. this isn't "aged game design", this is the level designers purposefully being annoying, and that's what keeps Metroid from being something I'll replay often. the lack of a map, very few landmarks and repetitive rooms doesn't help navigation either.
still, Metroid is a great game that I recommend everyone plays, at the very least for historical values. and who knows, maybe you'll enjoy it too.