Nintendo is apparently hungry for more Metroid. The company has announced Metroid Ravenous, a new side-scrolling entry in the long-running franchise that appears to follow directly from Metroid Dread.
Even more exciting for fans of the series, Ravenous appears to once again come from MercurySteam. The talented Spanish development studio previously teamed up with Nintendo on Metroid Dread, delivering one of the strongest modern entries in the franchise.
MercurySteam Returns to Metroid
MercurySteam already has plenty of experience with the series. The studio developed Metroid Dread and previously worked with Nintendo on Metroid: Samus Returns, the Nintendo 3DS remake of the Game Boy classic Metroid II: Return of Samus.
That makes MercurySteam a natural fit for another side-scrolling adventure. Metroid Dread successfully brought the classic 2D formula into the modern era, combining exploration, intense platforming, and some genuinely terrifying encounters with the E.M.M.I. robots.
If Ravenous follows the same general approach, fans could be in for another tightly designed adventure starring Samus Aran.
Where Ravenous Fits in the Metroid Timeline
For anyone who has trouble keeping the increasingly complicated Metroid timeline straight, there is an important distinction here. The traditional side scrolling Metroid games and the first person Metroid Prime games exist as separate narrative branches within the larger franchise.
Metroid Dread and Metroid Ravenous sit at the end of the side scrolling series chronology. The games take place years after the events of last year’s Metroid Prime 4, meaning players should not expect Ravenous to directly continue the story established in the Prime subseries.
That separation should make Ravenous a little easier to approach for players who have not followed every chapter of the Prime storyline.
Samus Is Back
Details about Metroid Ravenous are still limited, but the basic concept should be enough to get longtime fans excited. A new side scrolling Metroid adventure from the studio behind Metroid Dread is a pretty appealing combination.
Metroid Dread proved that Nintendo could still make the classic formula feel fresh, while MercurySteam demonstrated that it understands exactly what makes Samus’s adventures work. Now the studio appears ready to take another crack at the formula with Ravenous.
After all, when it comes to Metroid, there is always room for one more trip into the unknown.
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