10 Awesome Recent Video Games That Didn’t Deserve To Bomb

5. Metroid: Samus Returns

Metroid samus returns
Nintendo

At E3 2017, Nintendo announced that Metroid was to return in a big way with both the (still) upcoming Metroid Prime 4 and the extra added surprise of Metroid II: Return of Samus getting a 3DS remake that September.

Rebranded as Metroid: Samus Returns, it took the most disappointing and dated game in the franchise and brought it to life using the 3DS’ wonderful visuals.

The game rides the line of faithfulness and freshness; the titular hero now equipped with a new counter attack which only adds to the game’s overall fluidity. Finally, the game once trapped on GameBoy was now flying free.

Despite all this, the sales for Samus Returns were not all that promising for a major Nintendo IP, especially one returning after such a long absence. Perhaps due to the waning interest in the 3DS, Samus Returns never topped any charts, landing #8 in the UK and #3 in Japan in its first week.

Thankfully, the announcement of Metroid Dread not only bumped those sales up, but the Nintendo Switch entry swooped in to more than make up for the loss in sales. Hopefully this secures Mercury Steams’ value in Nintendo’s eyes but, even with the success of Dread, we shouldn’t forget the beautiful simplicity of Metroid: Samus Returns.

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Coming from a content creation background that now spans over two decades, Psy cut her teeth on personal video production and community radio. Originally joining the team as a writer and presenter, she added video editing duties to her responsibilities over time and became the longest-standing editor of the irreverent gaming show Tues Your Own Adventure. Psy has worked on many previews and reviews, long-form editorials (either her own, or supporting as an editor), as a frequent quizmaster and more. Praised for the two-pronged attack of her hard work ethic and light-hearted editing style, Psy is otherwise known as a font of retro video game knowledge which has caused her to rack up many gaming quiz wins. Outside of WhatCulture, Psy runs First Aid Spray Podcast - a long-running channel that focuses on Resident Evil in all of it's forms. You can follow her on BlueSky at http://psywhite.bsky.social and Instagram at http://instagram.com/therealpsywhite