4/5 ★ – percival's review of Metroid Fusion.

My time spent trawling youtube as a child was rife with videos like “Top 10 Scariest Enemies in video games” and “Top 15 Hardest Bosses in Gaming”. And one franchise that came up time and time again throughout these late 2000s countdowns was Metroid. I’m a bit ashamed to say my experience with the franchise is extremely limited, with me having only really sunk time into Metroid Prime 3 and Super Metroid in my youth. As a man now in his 20s, I thought it was about time to properly invest myself into the Metroid Franchise, given how much fun I’ve had playing through Prime again on the switch. I chose to play through Metroid Fusion on the Nintendo Switch’s GBA emulator - admittedly, this immediately puts me at an unfair advantage due to the rewind feature, but we’ll get to that… You’re dropped right into a post-Super Metroid environment, with Samus effectively nerfed by the events of that game - which I highly recommend too! Stuck adrift on a virus-wracked space station, you’re tasked with a straight-to-the-point problem solving role, regaining your lost powers by defeating an array of aliens who do FAR too much damage per hit. Fusion’s difficulty is something of a breath of fresh air compared to modern platforming titles, but at times - specifically during some of the game’s boss battles - it was almost Dark Souls level. Being a 2002 GBA title, it is very much a “find your feet” experience, throwing you into the action without the comfort of any kind of tutorial that we now take for granted. The spritework, atmosphere and sound design of Metroid Fusion are all phenomenal, with the now two-decade old game holding up fantastically. Specifically the high-detail cutscene sprite art and some of the bosses really stood out to me. Claustrophobic areas matched with tense music make for fantastic atmospheric gameplay also. The level of immersion for a 2D Platformer is honestly stellar. A lightning-fast pace and refreshing level of difficulty make for a great gaming experience in 2023. My only bad points for the game (which I do give some slack given the age and size of a GBA cartridge!) would be the aforementioned lack of any tutorial, although this is minor as this is within that classic Metroid formula. Secondly, and this one is more glaring - some of the puzzles in this game. If you could even call them that.. Fusion loves to put major progression points behind invisible walls. Paying close attention to the map may help you progress, but I found that this constant pausing when stuck really made the game more frustrating than it needed to be. Overall, a strong 8/10 for this entry of the franchise - and a fantastic instalment in the GBA catalogue. I look forward to playing through its sequel, Metroid Dread, when I next have the time.