A chance to revisit a side-scrolling classic.
Now that Game Boy and GBA titles are part of the Nintendo Switch Online subscription, Nintendo is starting to roll out some classics: and next week that will include Metroid Fusion. It’ll be available to subscribers starting on March 8th.
The side-scrolling adventure originally hit the GBA back in 2002, and it represented an interesting evolution of Super Metroid’s 2D design. Here’s the basic set-up:
In Metroid Fusion, interstellar bounty hunter Samus Aran is attacked by an X parasite while exploring the mysterious planet SR388. This organism is not only deadly, but it can mimic the abilities of any creature it infects — including Samus herself! Saved from the brink thanks to an infusion of Metroid DNA, the X parasite’s only natural predator, she soon discovers that the parasite has spread to the research station orbiting SR388. Weakened and out of options, Samus must do whatever it takes to destroy the X threat before it’s too late.
The addition is also notable because it means 1) all of the 2D Metroid games are now available through Switch Online and 2) those who got into the series via Metroid Dread can finally play its predecessor on the same device.
It’s a surprisingly abundant time for Metroid fans: the GameCube classic Metroid Prime received a surprise remaster earlier this year.
