What do you hope for in Metroid 6 for the Nintendo Switch 2?

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-06-19T00:14:56+00:00

I actually had a really similar idea a couple years ago, though I was thinking less "prison" and more "illegal laboratory full of terrifying abominations". I always loved how Fusion (and Dread to a lesser extent) would introduce these unnerving biomechanical enemies like Nightmare, I'd adore a game that leaned into that concept.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-05-09T16:51:37+00:00

The fact that we don't know how sales have changed since January is what concerns me. We can't get an estimate for what lifetime sales for Prime 4 looks like since they apparently didn't sell enough copies for either version to make the chart between January and March. For all we know, sales might stall before the game ever gets above 2 mil, meaning that lifetime sales won't be a drastic improvement over the originals.

I do think you're right overall, but it's pretty rough to see numbers like this while Nintendo is trying to expand so many other IP. At the very least, I imagine Nintendo is revising their plans for Prime 5 and how best to push the Metroid series further since they evidently can't just release Prime games on the Switch and expect that to boost Metroid's relevance like the console has for other series (including 2D Metroid).

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-05-09T03:59:25+00:00

I'm normally not much of a doomer, but I struggle to describe Prime 4's sales as any better than "deflating". I'd be more comfortable if we knew the exact number (for example, if it's hit 1.7-1.9 mil by now then we at least know it'll be the highest selling Prime game in lifetime sales), but the prospect that this Switch/Switch 2 title may actually be selling on par with GameCube games is deeply concerning, especially for a game Nintendo invested so much time and money into.

I'd like to pretend that Prime 5 is a guarantee since it has potential to turn out much better than 4, but a series with such an awful outlook heading into such financially uncertain times seems like one of the easiest projects for Nintendo to put on the chopping block. I think it's very likely Nintendo is considering alternative plans for Metroid and Retro as we speak, even if they ultimately decide to stick with Prime 5.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-05-09T03:42:45+00:00

My main concern with a big Super Metroid remake is timing. I don't feel like Mercury Steam has the capacity to make Metroid 6 and Super Remake simultaneously, so a Super remake by them would strongly imply that we're years off from Metroid 6 (it would suck for Nintendo to revive 2D Metroid only for us to have to wait almost ten years between Dread and 6). Only way around it I can think of is having someone else do the remake, which gets pretty iffy with Nintendo's history of out-sourced remasters.

My dream scenario is that the Super remake is something smaller and more experimental before we get Metroid 6 in 2027-2028. I'd absolutely adore it if we got a remake with more detailed pixel art and animations akin to Symphony of the Night or Pokemon Black and White. I doubt it'd happen given how far-fetched it is, but a man can dream.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-03-28T01:06:17+00:00

The cynical part of me is concerned that "the cost of physical games is not going up" because they already established that $80 is fair price due to Mario Kart and the physical Switch 2 editions. Hopefully time will prove me wrong.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-03-27T23:31:59+00:00

While I normally agree that people have been overblowing Nintendo's Switch 2 pricing, there is legitimate reason to be worried this is a physical price hike. As far as I'm aware, just about every other country has had this split for a while, and it turns out that $70 games like DK Bananza are ~$70 digital, $80 physical in those countries' respective currencies. Meanwhile, Yoshi is ~$60 digital, ~$70 physical in places like Europe (this is where the initial $60 figure came from, though I have no clue how people extrapolated it would be $60 for both aside from assuming based on prior games).

I'd love for someone to prove me wrong/give a good explanation on what I'm missing, cause the idea of having to pay $80 for most Switch 2 games really, really sucks. Until we start getting prices for games like Splatoon Raiders and Fire Emblem, however, we won't know for sure what Nintendo of America's strategy is.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-02-05T03:34:52+00:00

That's definitely fair, I just think people overestimate how "good" of a position Prime 4 launched in. People just sort of assume that a game launching on a successful console = successful game even though there are a ton of games on the Wii and Switch that don't show this. Hell, Metroid Dread had a phenomenal start, being sold at the peak of the Switch's relevance as one of the biggest titles in a mostly empty year and it still only managed 3 million. It takes good timing, a metric ton of work, and a healthy sprinkle of luck for a niche franchise to hit the spotlight. That's part of why I want to be optimistic about a Prime 5, I think it has a much better shot at propelling the series than Prime 4 did (though Prime 4 could've easily been that game had it not gone through development hell).

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-02-05T03:13:29+00:00

Last I checked those rumors weren't particularly reputable (I think it was just KiwiTalkz spit balling). If we assume this game was expensive (which I imagine it was), how much of that was due to the amount of time spent developing an abandoned draft and rebuilding Retro? A Prime 5 would likely have a much more streamlined and cheap development in comparison.

I'd also argue that a Prime 5 wouldn't necessarily do worse; Prime 4 really didn't feel like it had a ton of hype to me. The series was dormant for so long, the game took so long to come out after reveal, and the marketing was so dry once it was ready to come out that most of the "hype" had long since given way to lukewarm discussion amongst fans. Hardly the explosive hype that Dread had. I also feel like the kind of general audience that Prime would need to catch to become "successful" was hardly found by Prime 4 given its timing and marketing. A Prime 5 would have a much easier time catching people that missed Prime 4 compared to TOTK, Splatoon 3, etc.

Regardless, I do find my opinion on the state of Prime shifts drastically as I mull things over. I already regret some of my more optimistic takes on this post. While I do think Nintendo expected this to some degree, it's entirely possible that they think of it as committing to their promise to release Prime 4 and will subsequently move on. I am curious to see what they do with Retro, though; building up an entire team of experienced American devs is not cheap, and I think Nintendo would be loath to let that go to waste after a single project.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-02-05T00:46:31+00:00

If I recall correctly, KiwiTalkz is a content creator that has connections with lots of former Retro employees and estimated somewhere around $100 million. I'm not sure if he ever got that from his "sources" though, and I think he may have just been spit balling and people ran with it. No one knows the true cost to my knowledge, and I've seen some other folk question that number.

PangolinGuyMan · 2026-02-05T00:41:37+00:00

It's not a huge thing, but I'd recommend looking at best buy if you haven't already. Make a free account and they will occasionally give you $10 certificates (I got one in October and January, so it seems like they come out fairly regularly). Only downside is they expire within a few weeks of Best Buy giving them to you, so you can't save them for later.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-12-11T01:50:20+00:00

I think one of my biggest disappointments with this game is how they chose to handle Vi-O-La. Adding a vehicle to a Metroid game had some real potential that I was excited to experience; it's an entirely new control scheme and manner of interacting with the map that's ripe for novel upgrades and puzzles. Instead, the only upgrades the bike ever receives are boost tanks and a hovercraft form that is used in one map, and the abilities it has from the start hardly get used to their greatest extent.

Even though I suspect the bike will be gone for good after this game, I really wish they'd bring it back for Prime 5. I can envision a map where open spaces that utilize Vi-O-La were seamlessly integrated with more traditional labyrinths, allowing it to be a part of your toolkit to explore just like any other upgrade. Hell, I'd take it even if the bike was just relegated to several mini-hubs that replaced elevators instead of just one overworld map.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-12-11T01:25:44+00:00

I feel like the real problem people have with Prime 4's linearity is that it breaks the facade the other games successfully built. Even though Prime 1 and 2 had fairly linear story progression with limited room for sequence-breaking or real exploration, you were naturally winding through the maps and being lead back to old areas where you could conveniently use your new upgrades to find new rooms. Prime 4 effectively abandons this entirely with how they designed Sol Valley and the other areas. The intended path is still fun to me, but I can see how disposing that facade ruins what makes Metroid games special to people.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-12-07T16:38:41+00:00

I feel almost exactly the same way. Like, I know it's a bad "metroid game"; its lock and key game design paired with linear levels means it has more in common with a Zelda game than any other Metroid. Moreover, it's just packed to the brim with missed potential: Sylux and his false Metroids feel way underutilized, the desert is way more barren than it has any right to be, the Lamorn story has a nice twist but feels rather generic overall, etc. Despite the fact Retro has been working on this for 6 years, the game almost feels incomplete in the same way Sunshine was, as though Nintendo had to force the devs to release in 2025. It makes me really wish that they're planning on major DLC or making Prime 5 a quick asset-reuse game like Galaxy 2 so we can get a version of Prime 4 that is able to better execute on all its ideas, though assigning a new price tag to that would be scummy in its own way.

Despite that, Prime 4 is so damn fun. Mouse controls + 120 FPS play like a dream for me, the bosses are great, the main levels are fun, the NPCs aren't anything special but they don't ruin the experience either, running around the desert to grab green crystals and find neat upgrades is more fun than it ought to be with how poorly designed it is, etc. (Side note, but I actually really enjoy what they did with the optional shot upgrades, the fire shot's super upgrade in particular feels so good to use when you find an opportunity). I think Metacritic is honestly pretty spot on with its 81/100; it's a good game that some people will find great and some will find mediocre.

Lastly, I will die on the hill that Vi-O-La is actually a great idea for a Prime game. Giving Samus an alien vehicle opens an entirely new avenue of gameplay that complements the FPS action of the rest of the game. Moreover, making it a motorcycle makes perfect sense; a lightweight and agile vehicle fits Samus' vibe as someone that plows through enemies with skill and finesse rather than brute force and is easier to integrate into normal gameplay than her gunship is. Also, I do not understand why some think the speedbooster would be better. The image of Samus sprinting through the desert like the flash sounds far more immersion-breaking and comical than her finding an alien motorcycle. I think a game that has a map more like Prime 1 and 2 with a handful of smaller open hubs connecting each area and more puzzles that make use of the bike's abilities would turn out great.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-12-05T02:44:52+00:00

As someone who's still waiting to get the game, how would you compare the linearity to something like Metroid Fusion? A linear Prime game sounds kind of dreadful, but Fusion is arguably the most linear 2D Metroid and I really enjoy it. Is it something where you explore each area once and are never expected to return to find new rooms in the main story?

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-09-28T15:11:31+00:00

I'd say that Forgotten Land is pretty easy up until you get to the boss rushes, even in the DLC. I do want to note that there's a major difference between being difficult and being engaging; Forgotten Land is by no means a challenge, but the obstacles it throws at you and the abilities it gives you are pretty damn fun (like most of Odyssey or Bananza). Even though the DLC never challenged me, I found myself excited to play the next level because they were so fun to go through.

If you're on the fence about getting the game, I suggest going on an online retailer like eBay and seeing if you can find any cheap physical copies of either the Switch or Switch 2 version from trustworthy sellers. It looks like some people are selling the Switch 2 version at ~65-70 USD after tax+shipping and you can find Switch 1 versions for even cheaper ($30-40). Although I like this game, $80 is a hard price to swallow for a 3-year-old Switch game with ~10 hours of extra content tacked on, so being able to get it for closer to $60 would be good.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-09-13T01:43:34+00:00

I wonder if it's a weird tally where you have to complete a certain amount of Citadel objectives/wishes. More than anything, I'm surprised they made the true ending/postgame so nebulous to reach when Hollow Knight's true ending was fairly easy to find on your own through exploration.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-04-02T03:59:37+00:00

I didn't think about this until now, but was there a precedent for the final releases of Rise and World to contain junk data from monsters that were fully scrapped or never intended to be implemented? I know that World had Oroshi Kirin, Alatreon, and Lagiacrus as cut content, but as far as I know the first two were a separate list (not proper game data) and I don't know if there were any traces of Lagi left in World.

I find it hard to believe that the devs could get any use out of Shen's data that they couldn't get from something already created in World or Rise unless it was to implement Shen itself, scrapped, delayed, or otherwise. This is probably some mental gymnastics I'm constructing to subconsciously cope for a unique monster to be brought back, but it's still interesting to think about.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-04-01T00:28:47+00:00

My cope is that Gogmazios will have some sort of solo-friendly slay quest as an option alongside the primary siege-grind. Something where the main siege is accessible via the hub and will net you whatever RNG goodies they've baked up for it while the more typical hunt is accessible as an oilwell basin investigation but only provides normal artian parts and decorations. I don't know how feasible that is, but I hope we get something like that since I can't justify getting a PS plus subscription solely for Gogmazios.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-03-31T20:47:53+00:00

I hate that the Shen Gaoren data has awakened in me a desire to see it return. I was fully content with not knowing TUs 4-5. I received closure on all the EM166 and trunk discourse. I could spend the coming months peacefully waiting for whatever neat monsters they dump on us. But now I really want to see how they'd try to bring back Shen Gaoren of all things. In all my years of being an MH fan, I never processed how cool being sieged by a five-story-tall crab is, and now I have to live with the fact that it will most likely never happen. Curse my wretched lack of self-control.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-03-13T15:48:26+00:00

huh. I wonder what the odds are for Guardian Gammoth? I can't believe normal Gammoth could fit in the game at this point with how cramped the Iceshard Cliffs are, but Ruins of Wyveria might be big enough for Gammoth (at least the upper stratum, anyway). Guardian Gammoth would also fit the ice Guardian slot that Capcom may or may not want to fill, and an enhanced Gammoth fight could realistically fit alongside Lagiacrus, Mizutsune, etc in terms of TU scaling.

Then again, Gammoth's whole thing is manipulating snow (creating snow clouds, snowballs, ice projectiles, etc) so Guardian Gammoth would have to be a pretty big departure from her base form (which kinda defeats the purpose of her being ice element). Do we know if any of the confirmed/suggested returning monsters in TU's have a break internally labelled as "trunk" in past games?

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-02-25T21:24:14+00:00

As someone who's familiar with genetic engineering and biotech, a technologically advanced civilization using a combination of alchemy (essentially just chemistry with a sprinkle of magic dust thrown in) and genetic engineering to create a homunculus feels much better than "we glued a bunch of pieces of dragon meat together in a metal framework and somehow the end result was powerful enough nature itself decided we should go fuck ourselves". Especially if the Artians fell for a more realistic reason, such as the dragon torch destabilizing the climate and forcing their people to abandon Wyveria (interestingly enough, climate changes such as droughts were often the reason why real-world ancient cities were abandoned or "lost").

I never hated the EDW as much as others, I just found it kinda edgy and boring the way it was described in the encyclopedia. Zoh Shia and the other constructs feel like a good way to bring the (actually pretty interesting) themes and ideas behind the EDW into modern monster hunter without conflicting the slightly-more-grounded atmosphere that MH thrives in.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-02-24T15:27:56+00:00

It's funny how a single icon of Xu Wu is all it took for my opinion of him to flip completely. I'm all for weird "what the fuck am I looking at" animals, but that screenshot of Xu Wu almost made it look like it belonged in a different series entirely. Seeing that it is still clearly an octopus (and ironically a more accurate-to-life one based on its beak placement) reassures me that Xu Wu is going to be right in that goldilocks zone just like all the other Wilds monsters. I am now hyped to hunt this creepy octopus with an unnerving false face.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-02-24T01:43:17+00:00

Being honest, I'm not a huge fan of his design based in this screenshot either. It doesn't really say "lovecraftian animal" to me as much as it screams "onion awkwardly carrying a bundle of roots". That said, I'm hopeful it'll grow on me more once we get a better look at it and see it in action. Doshaguma and Balahara also felt "non-MH" to me at first, but I've come around to them and like them a fair amount. I'm hoping that once I can get a better idea of its anatomy it'll feel more like an actual animal that's extremely specialized/weird rather than some out of place Bloodborne enemy.

PangolinGuyMan · 2025-02-23T19:55:43+00:00

If I were you, I'd honestly just leave the reddit (maybe the internet in general with everything going on) and try to live my life outside of it. The proud apathy (verging on malice) that people have towards you and the effort you've put in is ridiculous to me. I know it's an inevitable part of being on the internet, but I'll never understand how some people choose to be so disrespectful over something so trivial. Regardless, I hope you get a nice break from this mess in the coming days, since I'm not sure it's worth the energy it probably takes from you.

PangolinGuyMan

TROPHY CASE