Metroid Dread Overview Trailer Breakdown

Metroid Dread is a recent game developed by MercurySteam and Nintendo EPD for the Nintendo Switch.

Metroid Dread retains the side-scrolling gameplay of previous 2D Metroid games, and adds stealth elements.

Set after the events of Metroid Fusion (2002), players control bounty hunter Samus Aran as she explores the planet ZDR and faces a nefarious robotic enemy.

The main character, Samus Aran is an intergalactic bounty hunter and the protagonist of the Metroid series. Though originally it was thought that Samus was a man, turns out this character is a woman, and a tough one.

Another little fun fact is that the name Samus Aran originally comes from the real name of the famous player Pele: Edison Arantes do Nascimento. The creators of the game could not remember the full name of Pele, so they turned 'Something' Arantes to Samus Aran. Would have been a lot easier for them if they had a nickname generator back then.

Metroid Dread was launched on October 10, 2021 but Nintendo's hype marketing has yet to let up. The latest Overview Trailer gave us a massive glimpse at what we can expect from the hotly anticipated metroidvania title.

From the easy-to-spot features to the "blink and you will miss it" nuggets, we break down everything from Metroid Dread's overview trailer.

An Unprecedented Threat

Metroid Dread's story once again features legendary intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran.

This time, she's on a mission to the unexplored Planet ZDR. There, among the usual alien nasties of all alien shapes and sizes, she'll find unprecedented threats as well as the remnants of a long-lost civilization.

The trailer gives us a quick look at some of the dangerous biomes of the hostile planet, including dark caves, alien forests, lava chambers, and abandoned research facilities.

The main antagonists shown off in the trailer are the research robots known as EMMIs. In previous trailers, we've seen Samus mostly running away from them.

The Overview Trailer further reveals that the EMMIs are covered in near-indestructible armor, meaning that we'll be spending a lot of our time avoiding or running away from them.

We also got to see a few different types of these terrifying robots. Yellow EMMIs appear to have faster mobility with electricity emanating from their bodies. We also see a blue one that destroys what appears to be a tiny probe, which could be part of its ability set.

Beyond these types, the trailer gives us glimpses of a purple, a green, and, of course, the basic white EMMI. We fully expect that each of them will have their own abilities. What they all do have in common are the glowing neon effects and the fact that they can detect Samus from the sounds that she makes, meaning the game will feature some elements of stealth, which is quite exciting.

Finally, the Overview Trailer touches on the existence of a new mysterious Chozo character. The video clearly states that he could be either friend or foe, so he'll likely play some sort of crucial role in unraveling what happened to the previous denizens of Planet ZDR.

Lots of Cool Toys

The Metroid Dread Overview Trailer gave us a whole slew of new gameplay information, including the new abilities and weapons we'll be utilizing.
Like in previous Metroid titles, Samus will once again have her trusty Arm Cannon, which will have some upgrades.

We briefly see in several shots Samus firing a multi-shot that allows her to cover more of the screen with destructive plasma.
Besides her Missiles, Samus will also be able to use a lock-on ability called Storm Missile to strike more than one target. We'll also be able to turn the tables on foes by using Samus's new Melee Counter.

As can be expected, Metroid Dread also emphasizes traversal abilities. Samus will be able to Double Jump and go into Morph Ball mode like in past games. This time around, though, she's also been given a Slide that looks quite zippy. There's also a teleport ability called Flash Shift that looks like it will be incredibly handy even in combat.

Beyond all of these abilities, we catch quick glimpses of Samus rolling around like an electric Morph Ball, a plasma grappling hook that she can use for traversal and pulling objects, and a special cloaking ability that we will presumably use to evade the EMMIs.

Metroid Dread looks like the Metroid title fans have been waiting for, with new threats to deal with and a big labyrinthine map to explore.

There's only one thing left to do: PLAY!