Metroid Dread Announced For Nintendo Switch, 2D Game Arrives October 8

The Metroid series finally arrives on Nintendo Switch. As revealed during its E3 2021 Nintendo Direct, Metroid 5, officially titled Metroid Dread, is coming to the console on October 8. You can preorder it now. It isn't Metroid Prime 4, but it should appeal to a different set of Metroid fans who have been similarly left waiting for new games in recent years.

Metroid Dread marks the first new 2D Metroid game in almost two decades. In keeping with the game's title, Nintendo says this Metroid adventure will have a more threatening feel, as Samus must deal with a variety of new robot threats known as the EMMI. Like the remake Samus Returns, it is made by MercurySteam, and the game's visual style looks very similar as a result.

The robot is actually a research robot for the Federation, and Samus' weapons won't work on the machine, so she has to look for other options. She can use a Phantom Cloak, however, to render herself invisible to the robot in sticky situations.

Like Metroid: Samus Returns for the 3DS, Metroid Dread also looks to be more action-oriented than older entries, featuring fast gameplay and the same counterattack as in Samus Returns. Free Aim and the counter have been improved, and the slide is now one of Samus' base abilities. It should be a smoother experience than previous games. Exploration will, of course, still play a big role, and there are brand-new abilities like the Spider Magnet for latching onto certain walls.

Nintendo says the game acts as the end of a story arc, and that it's still playable if you follow the prologue, should you not have experience with the previous games. "Dread" refers to the relentless enemy Samus faces, and it follows Metroid Fusion's story.

Metroid Dread is releasing alongside a brand-new set of Amiibo figures based on Samus and an EMMI foe. You can check out the new Amiibo above.