Was planning to write a review where I mostly complained about Microsoft shutting the studio down. But honestly I’m so ecstatic from the experience as a whole that I would rather not dwell on something so negative. It’s an absolute tragedy that Tango has shutdown, but it’s just a symptom of whatever the fuck Xbox is doing (it seems they’re putting all their chips on Gamepass as a model rather than the companies they own).

Anyway, I kinda sucked at this game, since I’ve never really played rhythm games before, but damn this was so much fun. And every pixel was oozing with creativity. One of the best and most distinct art styles I’ve seen in a long time, a treat to look at. Feels super satisfying to play and there’s plenty of help with getting the rhythm down if you need it. Nice balance between combat sections and platforming. Music is really great too, although I wish they included more licensed music, cause there’s like a 5 hour gap with none of it. I mean I absolutely lost my shit at how hype the choice was for the first boss fight.

Hi-Fi Rush is such a worthwhile game to check out. It’s just plain awesome.

Got this game on Wii U 3 years ago. Hardly played it then, but I’m still glad I got it before the virtual shop closed down. Since I recently beat the original Metroid, it was super interesting to see how this remake compared.

In some ways, it’s similar, in most ways unrecognisable. There are a couple of rooms that are pretty 1:1. The general shape of the map is the same, but there are new mechanics, entirely different rooms, more items, and a lot of the padding was cut. All bosses were heavily reworked and there are even new ones. Plus, an entirely additional final hour to the game. There are some good small tweaks like enemies not sniping you with their spawns or going through loading doors.

Most significantly I noticed how incredibly fluid movement and aiming is in this game. You can aim in so many more directions, and it no longer feels like your jumps are at the behest of moon gravity. Definitely one of my favourite ‘game-feels’ for a Metroidvania I’ve played. It makes the enemies actually fun to fight.

And thank god, they’ve added a map (and map rooms that fill out unexplored chunks). However, coupled with the objective markers, sometimes it felt less like exploring and more like going in the direction the game told me too. But there are plenty of (much better telegraphed) secret rooms you can find, and a slight amount of choosing your own route.

When you consider how much was changed or added, I find it kind of ridiculous that Tourian was made harder (even if you get a new save point). The Metroids and the platforming escape are made harder to deal with. And seriously, whose idea was it to make the fuckass Mother Brain bullet hell worse? Hands down the worst part of the game for me. Without suspension points I wouldn’t have the patience to beat it.

The added finale works pretty well, the stealth part almost feels scripted because of how well communicated the level design is. Although it did feel a bit dragged out and could benefit from being a bit shorter. Getting a powered up suit afterwards feels great though. And the actual final boss is pretty good.

Soundtrack is a nice recomposition, and the added story elements/cutscenes give interesting depth they couldn’t fit into the original.

Overall, it’s a good starter Metroid game because it’s a more linear stroll in the park with some pretty fun gameplay.