10 Video Game NPCs Who Were Totally Overpowered

Intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran has faced a wide array of fearsome foes. None have been quite so formidable, or underscored the frightening isolation in which Samus tends to find herself, quite like Metroid Dread's E.M.M.I. machines.

The series is at its best when it's sending Samus out into a mysterious, largely hostile environment. The subtle yet evocative music, the slow and steady sense of exploration via new upgrades, the drip-feeding of often nightmarish lore via documents … this formula has been central to some of the greatest entries ever, such as the revered Metroid Prime.

Dread followed the Metroidvania blueprint too, but threw in specific areas where the E.M.M.I. machines roamed.

A unique sense of fear permeated from the E.M.M.I. zones, and the player knew that backtracking past them through the depths of ZDR was always a neve-jangling prospect. The Extraplanetary Multiform Mobile Identifiers were not Samus’ friends, nor were they generally vulnerable to any of her weaponry.

Being spotted by one on patrol kicked off a Metal Gear Solid-esque chase sequence, in which only a perfectly-timed counter (to briefly stun the relentless pursuer) saved Samus from instant death if caught.

Eventually, she turns the tables and destroys them, but only after some outrageously tense sequences with each one. They all have their own unique powers (to brief stun Samus in return, for instance), and they've cemented their place as some of the most unstoppable and deadly foes in series history.