The Metroid series is truly one of the best to come from the NES era, and not only that, it managed to maintain its popularity through the decades and over multiple generations of video game consoles, which is not something easily achieved. Right from the start, Metroid was similar in gameplay to other platformers of the day such as Mario and Zelda, but it found a way to distinguish itself through a very dark and creepy atmosphere enhanced by awesome music and a feeling of complete loneliness. Your only comfort in this world was the knowledge that you were playing as a complete badass Samus Aran, intergalactic bounty hunter. Decked out in a full cybernetic suit with a hand cannon strapped to one of the arms, Samus explored cave after cave and defeated all the baddies until he got to the main villain, the Mother Brain. Once it was dead, the game was finished and you were left with a complete feeling of satisfaction. As a little bonus, the end credits see Samus take off that giant, cumbersome suit and thenWTF! Samus is a woman. Definitely a reveal that took everyone by surprise. It can also be considered to be a landmark in video game history. Up until that point, protagonists were typically males while women were relegated to playing the damsel in distress. Samus showed that you can be a woman and be a total badass at the same time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldiDYvGvHzo
Radu recently left a boring job and now writes stuff on the internet. When he's not here he's probably writing for GeeKiez. He's into wrestling, video games and a ton of TV shows, as well as all things weird or science-y. Feel free to talk to him about this stuff on Twitter.
