Metroid Musing: What Is the Future of 2D Metroid and Is it Led by Mercury Steam?

The release of Metroid Dread in 2021, developed by Mercury Steam, marked the first new entry in the 2D Metroid franchise since the release of Metroid Fusion in 2002. And before Dread, that same developer worked on the Metroid II remake, Metroid: Samus Returns, in 2017. So, with a pair of 2D Metroid titles under their belt, one could assume that Mercury Steam will be Nintendo’s go-to developers for the series moving forward. And if the series is back on a standard development cycle, with Mercury Steam at the helm, fans could potentially hear of the next new game as early as 2026.

However, it’s no guarantee that Mercury Steam will be the standard Metroid developer going forward. For one, it’s rare for Nintendo to hand over one of their big intellectual properties (IP) to a company that they hold no ownership over. Back in 2020, just one year before the release of Metroid Dread, Nordisk Games acquired a 40% stake in Mercury Steam. At that point, Dread was already near completion, so it didn’t affect the release of the game, but there’s no saying if Nordisk Games views the collaboration with Nintendo the same way Mercury Steam did before the acquisition. And just this year, Mercury Steam released Blades of Fire, which is an original game developed in-house, so they aren’t entirely dependent on other studios’ IP to make games.

If Mercury Steam is the mainline Metroid developer going forward, another question would be if a remake, rather than “Metroid 6,” could come first. After all, the original pitch to Nintendo by the company was a remake of Metroid Fusion. So, if a remake is on the table, the two obvious candidates would be Metroid Fusion and Super Metroid, the latter of which is something fans have theorized about for many years. What would a remake of one of the most beloved games ever look like with the gameplay style and visuals of Dread? Would Mercury Steam be the ones trusted to work on such a precious title, or would it be a more 1:1 style remake developed in-house at Nintendo?

If the series is really back on a standard development cycle, then these could be questions that are answered rather soon. The gap between Metroid: Samus Returns and Metroid Dread was four years, and October of this year marked four years since the release of Metroid Dread. Therefore, it’s possible that this time next year the details of what’s next for 2D Metroid could be revealed and any uncertainty surrounding what’s next for the franchise would be cleared away.

Would you rather have the next game in the series be Metroid 6 or a remake of an older game? If it’s a remake, which game would you prefer be remade? What would you like to see in Metroid 6? Let us know in the comments below or in our Discord server!

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Rez

Hello, my name is Ryan, or Rez on socials. I’m interested in pretty much all forms of fiction in media whether it’s games, movies, anime, TV, books, or manga. I love to talk or write about my interests whenever I can.