| Metroid | |
|---|---|
 Logo since 2017 | |
| Genres | |
| Developers |
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| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Creators | |
| Platforms | |
| First release | Metroid August 6, 1986 |
| Latest release | Metroid Prime Remastered February 9, 2023 |
Metroid[a] is anaction-adventure game franchise created byNintendo. The player controls the bounty hunterSamus Aran, who protects the galaxy fromSpace Pirates and their attempts to harness the power of the parasiticMetroid creatures.Metroid combines theplatforming ofSuper Mario Bros. and theexploration ofThe Legend of Zelda with ascience fiction setting and an emphasis onnonlinear gameplay. MostMetroid games areside-scrolling, while the 3D games use afirst-person perspective. Players battle hostile alien enemies and obtainpower-ups as they progress through the game world, with fewnon-player characters.
The firstMetroid was developed byNintendo R&D1 and released on theNintendo Entertainment System in 1986.Metroid II: Return of Samus was released for the handheldGame Boy in 1991.Super Metroid (1994), released for theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System, drastically expanded theMetroid formula, with numerous new power-ups and a richer story. After a hiatus, the first 3DMetroid game,Metroid Prime, developed byRetro Studios, was released for theGameCube in 2002 alongside theGame Boy Advance gameMetroid Fusion. They were followed byMetroid Prime 2: Echoes (2004) and theWii gameMetroid Prime 3: Corruption (2007).
Metroid: Other M (2010), developed byTeam Ninja for the Wii, received weaker reviews. After another hiatus,MercurySteam developed a remake ofMetroid II: Return of Samus,Metroid: Samus Returns (2017) for the handheldNintendo 3DS, followed byMetroid Dread (2021) for theNintendo Switch.Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is scheduled for 2025.
As of 2012, theMetroid series had sold more than over 17.44 million copies. It has been named among the best game franchises by several publications, and severalMetroid games are named among the greatest games. The series has been represented in other Nintendo media, including theSuper Smash Bros. series.Additional media includes soundtracks, comic books, and manga. Along with the 1997Konami gameCastlevania: Symphony of the Night, the earlyMetroid games defined theMetroidvania subgenre, inspiring other games with continuous explorable side-scrolling levels. Samus was one of the first prominent female video game characters.
TheMetroid series contains elements from shooter,platformer, adventure, survival and first-person games.[2] The series is notable for its non-linear progression and solitary exploration format where the player only controlsSamus Aran, with few or no other characters to interact with. The player gains items andpower-ups for Samus's cybernetic suit primarily through exploration, and occasionally by defeating alien creatures through real-time combat with the suit's arm cannon. Many such upgrades enable further avenues of exploration.[2][3] A recurring upgrade is the Morph Ball, which allows Samus to curl into a ball, roll into tight places and plant bombs.[2]
The classic series consists of2D side-scrollers, while theMetroid Prime series uses afirst-person perspective, andfirst-person shooter mechanics. The 2010 gameOther M uses thethird-person shooter format.[citation needed]
The originalMetroid was influenced by two other majorNintendo franchises:Mario, from which it borrowed extensive areas of platform jumping, andThe Legend of Zelda, from which it borrowed non-linear exploration.[2]Metroid differed in its atmosphere of solitude and foreboding.[2]Metroid was also one of the first video games to feature an exploration to the left as well as the right, and backtracking to already explored areas to search for secret items and paths.[4] Since the late 1990s, the term "Metroidvania" has been applied to this format.[5] According toEdge,Metroid is "the thinking man's shooter", in which weapons are "more a means of progression than weapon", with the environments posing larger obstacles than enemies.[6]
TheMetroid series has been noted and praised for its unique style ofvideo game music.[2][7][8]Hirokazu "Hip" Tanaka, composer of the originalMetroid, has said he wanted to make a score that made players feel like they were encountering a "living creature" and had no distinction between music and sound effects.[7][9] The only time the mainMetroid theme was heard was after Mother Brain is defeated; this is intended to give the player acatharsis.[9] The composer ofSuper Metroid,Kenji Yamamoto, came up with some themes by humming to himself while riding his motorcycle to work. He was asked to compose the music forMetroid Prime to reinforce the series continuity.[10]Metroid Prime'sDolby Pro Logic II surround sound was mixed by a member ofDolby.[11]
Developers fromRetro Studios noted how the 6MB memory budget for all sound effects of a level inMetroid Prime was crucial in producing a quality soundtrack, as each sound had to be of high quality to be included.[10] Yamamoto used heavy drums, piano, voiced chants, clangs of pipes, and electric guitar.[11]Metroid Prime 3: Corruption took advantage of the increasedRAM in theWii, allowing for higher-quality audio samples.[10] Kenji Yamamoto, who composed the music forSuper Metroid and thePrime trilogy, copied the musical design of the originalMetroid inMetroid Prime 3, by keeping the music and themes dark and scary until the very end, when uplifting music is played during the credits.[10]
TheMetroid franchise takes place in ascience fiction setting wherehumanity is shown to be a part of a spacefaring sovereignty known as the Galactic Federation. Other races are both a part of the Federation as well as close allies, the most prolific being the Chozo, anavian species possessing advanced technology and skills in bioengineering. The mutual nemesis of the Federation and the Chozo are the Space Pirates, a villainous interstellar cabal comprising multiple alien races of disreputable nature that all refuse to abide to the Galactic Federation's rule. They are led by thedragon-like warlordRidley, and plot to develop weapons of mass destruction from hazardous life forms and materials to destroy the Federation and secure galactic dominance.
The eponymousMetroids are a species of predatory,jellyfish-like organisms that feed on an undetectablelife energy found in all living creatures. The Chozo engineered the Metroids as a biological weapon to eradicate a parasitic,shapeshifting virus known as the "X" that threatened their civilization. While the Metroids succeeded in stopping the X, they became a danger to the Chozo themselves when they developed the ability to evolve into different and far deadlier forms. Most of the games center around the efforts of various organizations, including the Space Pirates, the Galactic Federation, and rogue members of the Chozo race, to weaponize the Metroids and the subsequent conflicts they cause.
| Metroid | |||
| Story chronology | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main series inbold, remakes in parentheses | |||
| [12][13] | |||
Metroid follows the adventures of the bounty hunterSamus Aran, who battles the Space Pirates and the Metroids.[14] Samus was raised by the Chozo after her parents were killed by a Space Pirate raid led by Ridley. She serves in the military of the Galactic Federation before departing and beginning work as a bounty hunter,[15] while facing the forces of Ridley andMother Brain.[16][17]
In the originalMetroid, Samus travels to the planet Zebes to stop the Space Pirates from using the Metroids to create biological weapons.[18] She defeats the cybernetic lifeform Mother Brain, as well as Ridley and his fellow Space Pirate leader, Kraid.[14]
TheMetroid Prime series is set betweenMetroid andMetroid II: Return of Samus, and chronicles Samus' conflicts with a malignant, radioactive substance named Phazon.[15] InMetroid Prime, Samus travels to Tallon IV to stop the Space Pirates from exploiting a Phazon-infused meteor that has poisoned the local ecosystem.[14] After battling a cybernetically enhanced Ridley and clearing out the Space Pirate presence on the planet, Samus purges the Phazon from Tallon IV by defeating the titular enemy, a Phazon-infected Metroid.Metroid Prime: Hunters, which is unconnected to the Phazon storyline, sees Samus respond to a distress call to the Alimbic Cluster. Other bounty hunters respond to the call, and after conflicting amongst themselves, they all ultimately band together to fight against a creature named Gorea.[15] InMetroid Prime 2: Echoes, Samus explores the planet Aether, which is suffering from a Phazon outbreak. The Phazon has split the world into "light" and "dark" dimensions, leading to the rise of the evil Ing race. While liberating Aether from the Ing, Samus encounters Dark Samus, a revitalized Metroid Prime that has partially copied her physical appearance. InMetroid Prime 3: Corruption, Samus and three other bounty hunters are recruited by the Federation to stop Dark Samus from infecting the galaxy with Phazon. While fighting to avoid being slowly corrupted by Phazon herself, Samus eradicates Phazon and her double.[14]Metroid Prime: Federation Force, the only game in which players do not control Samus, sees Samus mind-controlled by Space Pirates; the Federation Force, an elite squadron of marines equipped with powerful exosuits, battles to rescue her and destroy the Space Pirates.[15]
InMetroid II, the Galactic Federation calls for the extermination of the Metroid species and contracts Samus to travel to the species' homeworld, SR388, to carry out their extinction. She succeeds in wiping out the planet's Metroid population, but saves a single hatchling Metroid that bonds to her and delivers it to the Ceres research station for study.[14] InSuper Metroid, Ridley steals the hatchling and takes it to Zebes, where the Space Pirates are attempting to clone the Metroids. After killing Ridley, Samus herself is nearly killed by the revived Mother Brain, but is rescued by the now grown Metroid which sacrifices itself. Samus destroys Mother Brain in retaliation and escapes as Zebes explodes, beating her old enemies for good.[15]
InMetroid: Other M, set afterSuper Metroid, Samus investigates the Bottle Ship, a derelict scientific research station, with a Galactic Federation platoon led by her former commanding officer, Adam Malkovich.[14] They team up against many bioweapons created by a Federation science group, including clones of creatures Samus faced on Zebes like Ridley and the Metroids. A revived Mother Brain, now occupying a humanoid body supplied to her by the Federation, takes control of the Metroids and attempts to unleash them upon the Federation, but is stopped by Samus at the cost of Adam's life. Afterward, Samus encounters and kills the ethereal entity Phantoon and sets the Bottle Ship to self-destruct.[15] InMetroid Fusion, Samus accompanies a team of scientists to SR388, where she has her first encounter with the X parasites when the species reappears in the absence of the Metroids. The X overruns a scientific research station in the planet's orbit, assimilating and imitating many creatures being studied on board.[14] Samus is infected by one but is saved using a vaccine made from the baby Metroid's cells. She discovers that the Federation has been cloning Metroids in secret, and sets the space station on a collision with SR388 to destroy the X parasites.[15]Metroid Dread continues whereFusion left off, with the Federation dispatching a squadron of advanced automatons known as E.M.M.I. to investigate the planet ZDR, where X parasites have been sighted. Samus is sent to the planet herself after contact is lost, coming into conflict with the X and a Chozo war criminal named Raven Beak, stopping both from invading the rest of the galaxy.
| 1986 | Metroid |
|---|---|
| 1987 | |
| 1988 | |
| 1989 | |
| 1990 | |
| 1991 | Metroid II: Return of Samus |
| 1992 | |
| 1993 | |
| 1994 | Super Metroid |
| 1995 | |
| 1996 | |
| 1997 | |
| 1998 | |
| 1999 | |
| 2000 | |
| 2001 | |
| 2002 | Metroid Fusion |
| Metroid Prime | |
| 2003 | |
| 2004 | Metroid: Zero Mission |
| Metroid Prime 2: Echoes | |
| 2005 | Metroid Prime Pinball |
| 2006 | Metroid Prime Hunters |
| 2007 | Metroid Prime 3: Corruption |
| 2008 | |
| 2009 | Metroid Prime: Trilogy |
| 2010 | Metroid: Other M |
| 2011 | |
| 2012 | |
| 2013 | |
| 2014 | |
| 2015 | |
| 2016 | Metroid Prime: Federation Force |
| 2017 | Metroid: Samus Returns |
| 2018 | |
| 2019 | |
| 2020 | |
| 2021 | Metroid Dread |
| 2022 | |
| 2023 | Metroid Prime Remastered |
| 2024 | |
| 2025 | Metroid Prime 4: Beyond |
The central figures in the production and development of theMetroid series areSatoru Okada, who directedMetroid and created the series;Yoshio Sakamoto, who was a character designer for the first game and has directed or supervised most of the sequels;Gunpei Yokoi, who headed the R&D1 division and produced the first two games;Makoto Kano, who wrote the scenario forMetroid, co-designed the second game, and produced the third; andHiroji Kiyotake, who designed characters for the original.[2]
The originalMetroid, anaction game for theFamily Computer Disk System, was developed by Nintendo'sResearch & Development 1 (R&D1) and released in Japan on August 6, 1986.[4] It was published for theNintendo Entertainment System in August 1987 in North America and on January 15, 1988, in Europe.[19][20] It was directed bySatoru Okada.[2]
Metroid was designed to be a shooting game that combined the platform jumping ofSuper Mario Bros. with the non-linear exploration ofThe Legend of Zelda and a darker aesthetic. The name of the game is aportmanteau of the words "metro" (as inrapid transit) and android, and was meant to allude to the mainly underground setting of the first game as well as its robot-like protagonist.[21][unreliable source] Halfway through development of the originalMetroid, one of the staff said to his fellow developers "Hey, wouldn't that be kind of cool if it turned out that this person inside the suit was a woman?", and the idea was accepted.[2][22]Ridley Scott's 1979 science-fiction horror filmAlien was described by Sakamoto as a "huge influence" after the world of the firstMetroid had been created. In recognition of this, an antagonist was given the nameRidley, after the director. The development staff were also influenced by the work of the film's creature designerH. R. Giger, finding his style to be fitting for theMetroid universe.[23]
Metroid II: Return of Samus was released for theGame Boy in 1991 in North America and in 1992 in Japan and Europe. It further establishedSamus' visual design, with the bulky Varia Suit upgrade and different arm cannons.[4]
As R&D1 were committed to making another game, Nintendo brought inIntelligent Systems to developSuper Metroid for the 16-bitSuper Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES).[24] Development began in late 1991.[25][26] Released in 1994,Super Metroid drastically expanded theMetroid formula, with numerous new power-ups[27] and a richer story.[28] It received acclaim and is considered one of the best SNES games.[2] It was directed byYoshio Sakamoto, the character designer for the firstMetroid; Sakamoto has directed or produced most of the 2DMetroid games since.[2]
AfterSuper Metroid, no newMetroid games were released for eight years. Nintendo could not generate firm ideas for aMetroid for their new console, theNintendo 64.[29] Sakamoto said he could not imagine how theNintendo 64 controller could be used to move Samus.[30] An unidentified company declined an offer from Nintendo to develop aMetroid game for the Nintendo 64, as they were not confident they could create a successor toSuper Metroid.[30] TheVirtual Boy gameGalactic Pinball (1995) featured a segment in which the player controls Samus' gunship,[31] and Samus was a playable character in the Nintendo 64 fighting gameSuper Smash Bros. (1999).[32]
In 2000, the Nintendo producerShigeru Miyamoto visited the new Nintendo subsidiaryRetro Studios inAustin, Texas. He did not like any of the projects they had in development, but spent time playingAction Adventure, a third-person science-fiction action game with a female protagonist. Miyamoto tasked Retro with developing aMetroid game for the new Nintendo console, theGameCube. The team terminatedAction Adventure and moved toMetroid.[33][34]
Metroid Prime, the first 3DMetroid game, released in 2002, moved the nonlinear structure ofSuper Metroid to afirst-person perspective.[35] Nintendo stressed that it was not afirst-person shooter but a "first-person adventure".[2]Metroid Prime received acclaim.[36] It sold 2.84 million copies worldwide[30] and was the best-sellingMetroid game untilMetroid Dread (2021).[37]
In the same year, Nintendo releasedMetroid Fusion, a 2D game for theGame Boy Advance (GBA).[2] It was developed by R&D1 and written and directed by Sakamoto.[38] Its gameplay is similar toSuper Metroid,[39] but with a more mission-based structure that gives more guidance to the player.[40] The team's next GBA project wasZero Mission (2004), a remake of the originalMetroid.[2] Both GBA games received acclaim.[41][42] A Nintendo restructure merged R&D1 with R&D2 in 2003, shortly ahead of the release ofZero Mission.[43]
In 2004, Nintendo also releasedMetroid Prime 2: Echoes, which has Samus switching between parallel light and dark worlds and introduced greater difficulty.[35] In 2005, Nintendo releasedMetroid Prime Pinball, a pinball spin-off for the DS developed byFuse Games.[44]Metroid Prime Hunters, amultiplayer game developed byNintendo Software Technology, was released for the DS in 2006.[2]Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, released for theWii in 2007, addedmotion controls[2] and has Samus exploring separate planets.[35] By the late 2000s, Nintendo was focusing more on casual gamers; with its backtracking and complex gameplay,Metroid was incompatible with this strategy andMetroid Prime 3 received minimal marketing.[45][46]
ThePrime games were rereleased for the Wii in the compilationMetroid Prime: Trilogy.[47]Trilogy was only available in limited quantities as Nintendo ceased production of the discs in January 2010- only months after launch, and instead suggested users seek out second-hand copies.[48] In the late 2000s,Next Level Games built aMetroid prototype for the upcomingNintendo 3DS handheld as a pitch to Nintendo in the late 2000s, but it was not picked up. Instead, Next Level developedLuigi's Mansion: Dark Moon.[49][50]
With Nintendo focusing on a more casual audience during the Wii's lifespan, the nextMetroid moved away from the more complex gameplay of thePrime series.[46]Metroid: Other M was developed with the Japanese studioTeam Ninja and directed by Sakamoto. He pursued a simpler control scheme, hoping it to be as simple as a NES game.[51] It was released for Wii in 2010.[52] It featured a third-person perspective and placed a greater focus on story and action.Other M received weaker reviews, with criticism for its characterization of Samus as timid and emotional and its reduced emphasis on exploration.[53]
Polygon describedOther M as "such a massive misfire and a flop with fans that it practically killed the series".[35]Joystiq noted that even with the revised approach the game was "anathema" to the casual focus of Nintendo in that era, as Nintendo was simply no longer making games of that type.[46] There was no majorMetroid game for seven years.[54]
AMetroidminigame, "Metroid Blast", appeared in theWii U gameNintendo Land (2012), which had a mixed reception.[55] Using theWii U GamePad, the player controls Samus's gunship, while up to four players withWii Remotes and Nunchuks controlMii characters on foot, wearing Varia Suits. Miyamoto said this reflected his ideas for futureMetroid games.[56] In 2016, Nintendo releasedMetroid Prime: Federation Force, developed by Next Level. It received criticism for its multiplayer focus, soccer minigame and frivolous tone. After it was unveiled atE3 2015, an online fan petition to have it cancelled drew thousands of signatures.[57][58]Federation Force was absent from Nintendo's presence atE3 2016 months before launch.[59] It debuted at 15th place on the 3DS sales chart and was considered a commercial failure.[60][61]
In the mid 2010s, the Spanish studioMercurySteam proposed remakingFusion. Sakamoto was impressed by their work onCastlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate (2013) and instead asked them to remakeMetroid II.[62]Metroid: Samus Returns (2017) retains the sidescrolling gameplay of the original and adds 3D graphics and a melee counterattack, suggested by MercurySteam after their use of a similar mechanic inCastlevania.[63][64][65] The first majorMetroid game in seven years and the first sidescrollingMetroid game in 13 years, it received positive reviews.[54][66]
MercurySteam's next project wasMetroid Dread for theNintendo Switch (2021), a realization of a cancelledNintendo DS project.[67][68] It had sold more than 2.9 million copies worldwide by May 2022, making it the best-sellingMetroid game.[69] In February 2023, Nintendo releasedMetroid Prime Remastered, ahigh-definitionremaster ofMetroid Prime for the Switch.[70] It was developed by Retro Studios with assistance from developers includingIron Galaxy Studios.[71]
AtE3 2017, Nintendo announcedMetroid Prime 4 for the Switch.[72]Eurogamer reported that it was being developed byBandai Namco Studios.[73] Unsatisfied with the progress, Nintendo announced in January 2019 that it had restarted the development under Retro Studios, the developer of the previousMetroid Prime games.[74] In June 2024, Nintendo revealed a trailer and the titleMetroid Prime 4: Beyond, with a release year of 2025.[75]
| Game | Units sold | GameRankings | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metroid |
|
|
|
| Metroid II: Return of Samus |
|
| |
| Super Metroid | 1.42 million[76] | 96%[84] | — |
| Metroid Fusion | 1.39 million[76] | 91%[86] | 92[85] |
| Metroid Prime |
| ||
| Metroid Prime 2: Echoes | 1.10 million[76] | 92%[92] | 92[91] |
| Metroid Prime Pinball | < 1.00 million | 80%[94] | 79[93] |
| Metroid Prime Hunters | 1.08 million[76] | 84%[96] | 85[95] |
| Metroid Prime 3: Corruption | 1.41 million[76] | 90%[98] | 90[97] |
| Metroid Prime: Trilogy | < 1.00 million | 92%[100] | 91[99] |
| Metroid: Other M | < 1.00 million | 79%[102] | 79[101] |
| Metroid Prime: Federation Force | < 1.00 million | 65%[104] | 64[103] |
| Metroid Dread | 3.07 million[105] | — | 88[106] |
Metroid ranked the 70th top game (collectively) byNext Generation in 1996[107] and the 6th in 1999,[108] and as the eighth best game franchise byIGN in 2008.[109] In 2001,Electronic Gaming Monthly namedSuper Metroid the best game ever.[110] All theMetroid games released by 2005 were included in aNintendo Power top 200 Nintendo games list,[111]Prime in theIGN top 100,[112]Metroid,Super Metroid,Prime andEchoes in a list byGameFAQs users;[113]Metroid andSuper Metroid inGame Informer's list;[114] andPrime andSuper Metroid inEdge's list.[115] The series has influenced games includingCastlevania: Symphony of the Night.[3]
Samus Aran was recognized byGuinness World Records as "enduringly popular"[116] and as the "first playable human female character in a mainstream video game", although Toby Masuyo ("Kissy") fromNamco'sAlien Sector predates her by one year.[117][118] Ridley was the second-most requested Nintendo character byIGN and number one by the fans to be added as a playable character to theSuper Smash Bros. series[119] and Mother Brain is often named among the best video game bosses.[120]
The originalMetroid has been described as boosted by its "eerie" music, adding a "sense of mystery and exploration" to the game by making the game "moody and atmospheric".[2][7]IGN praised the well-timed music that helped add suspense.[8]GameSpot describedSuper Metroid as better than the original "in literally every conceivable way",[121]Metroid Fusion was noted for its "understated score" which fit the mood of the adventure and its excellent stereo sound effects, making it an uncommonly good Game Boy Advance sound experience.[122]Metroid Prime won multipleGame of the Year awards.[123][124][125]IGN called the aural experience withMetroid Prime 2: Echoes "mesmerizing".[126] Music fromMetroid has been frequently re-released as part of "best of" video game music releases.[127][128][129]Metroid Prime's soundtrack was called the best sound design on the GameCube. The sound effects were also noted for a high degree of accuracy and blending with the soundtrack.[11]
EachMetroid game, excluding spin-offs and remakes, has sold more than one million copies.[24][130][131] By September 2012, the series had sold over 17.44 million copies worldwide.[116]Metroid sales in Japan have typically been lower than in the United States.[132] In its debut week in Japan,Metroid Prime 3: Corruption sold 32,388 units, ranking it behindRyū ga Gotoku Kenzan!,Super Smash Bros. Brawl,Wii Fit, andGundam Musou Special.[133]Metroid: Other M was the third-bestselling video game in Japan during its week of release with 45,398 copies sold, ranking it behindWii Party andMonster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airu Village.[134] It sold an additional 11,239 copies the following week.[135]
Along with the 1997Konami gameCastlevania: Symphony of the Night, the earlyMetroid games defined a subgenre known asMetroidvania. Tom Happ, developer of the 2015 Metroidvania gameAxiom Verge, defined Metroidvania games as side-scrolling adventures with continuous maps, rather than discretelevels, that require the player to collect items and backtrack. Other notable Metroidvania games includeCave Story (2004),Shadow Complex (2009),Ori and the Blind Forest (2014),Hollow Knight (2017), andChasm (2018).[136]Metroid is therefore among a handful of game series to have genres named after them, along withDark Souls (Soulslike) andRogue (Roguelike).[137]
In 2016,AM2R, afan-made remake ofMetroid II was released. Nintendo issuedtakedown notices to halt its distribution, citing the potential damage to its intellectual property.[138]AM2R was nominated for theGame Awards 2016, but was removed as it had not been cleared by Nintendo for inclusion.[139]
Samus is a playable character in all fiveSuper Smash Bros. games.[140][141] Games fromSuper Smash Bros. Brawl onward also feature Zero Suit Samus, a version of the heroine using the blue form-fitting suit seen inZero Mission and thePrime series.[142][143] Ridley makes cameos inSuper Smash Bros., where he can be seen flying through the level Zebes, and inSuper Smash Bros. Melee both as an unlockable trophy and in the game's opening, where he is fighting Samus at Ceres Space Station.[144] InSuper Smash Bros. Brawl, Ridley appears as a boss character in both normal and Meta Ridley forms.[119] Ridley's clone fromMetroid: Other M appears as a boss on the Pyroshpere stage inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U, where he will join a fighter's side if they manage to knock him out.[145][146] Due to demand from fans, Ridley was made a playable fighter inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate. Kraid also appeared inSuper Smash Bros. Melee as a stage hazard in Brinstar Depths and unlockable trophy. Various other characters such as Metroids, Mother Brain and Dark Samus appear as either trophies or stickers in theSuper Smash Bros. series as well. Dark Samus would later debut as a fighter inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, sharing a moveset similar to Samus. A number of locations from theMetroid franchise have appeared inSuper Smash Bros. games as battle stages.[147]
Samus has appeared in other Nintendo games such asSuper Mario RPG, the NES version ofTetris,Tetris DS,Galactic Pinball,Kirby Super Star,Kirby's Dream Land 3 andWarioWare.[4][148][149]
A Metroid-lookalike enemy, called the Komayto, appears inKid Icarus for theNES; the characters allude to the similarities between the two inKid Icarus: Uprising.[4][150] InDead or Alive: Dimensions, afighting game developed by Team Ninja for the3DS, one stage is a replica of the arena in which Samus fights Ridley inMetroid: Other M and features both as non-playable characters.[151] When asked why Samus is not playable inDimensions,[152] Team Ninja's Yosuke Hayashi said in an interview that "it would be better to let her focus on her job rather than kicking everyone's butt in [Dead or Alive: Dimensions]".[153] TheWii U launch gameNintendo Land has a minigame based on the series called "Metroid Blast".[55] A Samusamiibo figure can be used to unlock a Mii costume based on her appearance inMario Kart 8 and a Samus costume inSuper Mario Maker.[154]
In 2020, Nintendo andEpic Games began negotiations to include Samus inFortnite as a skin. The plans came to light when internal Epic documents were released as part of theEpic Games v. Apple case in 2021. Other characters from the batch in the document such asKratos andMaster Chief were added to the game in late 2020, but Samus was not.[155] In 2024, former Epic creative directorDonald Mustard revealed that Nintendo had requestedNintendo Switch exclusivity for the Samus skin, which was against Epic's policy of maintaining feature parity forFortnite across all platforms, and so the character was never included.[156]
AMetroid animated series was considered for theSuper Mario Bros. Power Hour, a cancelled animation block that would have aired in the 1980s. Concept art was produced for the series, which notably featured a male incarnation of Samus.Power Hour never moved forward in the intended format, instead being replaced byThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! which aired in 1989.[157] Mother Brain was the primary villain in theCaptain N: The Game Master TV show.[158]
Various magazines have publishedcomics andmanga based onMetroid,[159]Super Metroid,[160]Metroid Prime,[161]Metroid Prime 2: Echoes,[162] andMetroid: Zero Mission[163] in both the United States and Japan. Samus Aran and otherMetroid characters also featured in theCaptain N: The Game Master comic books byValiant Comics.[164] In Japan, aMetroid manga series was published inKodansha'sMonthly Magazine Z beginning in November 2003, and ran for 16 chapters which were later collected into twoTankōbon volumes. The series chronicled Samus' life up through the events of the original game, and went on to influence the plots of subsequent games in the franchise.[4][165] Also in Japan,Comic Bom Bom published a three-volume manga starring Samus,Metroid: Samus and Joey.[b][166]
In 2003, two producers optioned the rights to create a live-action film based onMetroid, but the rights expired.[4] The directorJohn Woo acquired the rights a few years later,[167] and his studio Lion Rock Productions was to produce and release the film before 2006.[168] The writers includedDavid Greenwalt, who had worked onBuffy the Vampire Slayer,Angel, andGrimm.[168] Producer Brad Froxhoven stated that the film would have explored Samus'origin story, describing her as an "exceptionally talented", but a "flawed" character seeking redemption, and that the film would have been faithful to the original games.[169]
According to Foxhoven, Nintendo was protective due to the failure of the 1993Super Mario Bros. film.[169] Nintendo had no answers to the team's questions about Samus' personal life, relationships, and other personal characteristics, and was uncomfortable with the film team "being the ones to propose those answers".[169] Foxhoven said Nintendo left the discussions appreciating that they needed to develop the franchise further if it were to become a Hollywood film.[169] In 2013, Sakamoto said he could support a film directed by Ryuji Kitaura, the director of the CG scenes inOther M, if the concept and methodologies were good enough.[170] In 2025, the filmmakerChris Stuckmann said it was "his dream" to direct aMetroid film.[171]
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