Nintendo’s success over the last few decades has been largely built on its suite of first-party franchises. Names likeSuper MarioandThe Legend of Zeldahave kept Nintendo at the top of industry, but not all franchises have gotten equal attention. Many of the company’s biggest names have fallen by the wayside in one way or another, and they rarely return to the same state they were before their dormancy. TheMetroidfranchise has long been a victim of this pattern, but that looks like it could very well change with the upcoming release ofMetroid Dread.
The fact thatMetroid Dreadexists at all is a miracle to many fans. The game had become an urban legend after multiple cancelations, and Nintendo’s lack of support for theMetroidfranchise compared to other properties made it seem like fans might never get another classic 2DMetroidexperience. Now thatDreadexists, however, it seems like Nintendo is giving one of its biggest names another chance to shine. It’s rare that Nintendo will give a mostly dormant franchise another chance like withMetroid, andDreadcould be an encouraging sign for fans that hope to see the return of other Nintendo franchises.
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Explaining Nintendo’s First-Party Graveyard
With all of the success the Nintendo Switch has experienced with titles likeBreath of the Wild, it’s difficult to think the company could put out a first-party title that didn’t dazzle fans. Nintendo is not infallible, though, and unfortunately some of its first-party titles have underperformed before.Star Foxis one of the best examples of this. The series is one of Nintendo’s most well-known thanks to the critical success of games likeStar Fox 64, but games likeStar Fox AdventuresandStar Fox Zeroreceived such mixed reception and disappointing sales that Nintendo hasn’t given any indication there will bea newStar Foxgameany time soon.
Another big part of the reason why Nintendo leaves so many franchises behind is because of how the company often tries to approach sequels. For example,F-Zerohasn’t received a new mainline entry since the GameCube era.The creator ofF-Zero’s Captain Falcondescribed the issue earlier this year, saying the lastF-Zeroalready perfected the franchise’s formula. They said that because there was nothing new to be done with the series, there was no reason to make a new game. Many fans have expressed differing opinions over this, but it demonstrates how Nintendo rarely makes a sequel for the sake of it.
Many gamers have recognized Nintendo’s pattern of dropping certain franchises over the years, and it’s resulted in a massive push forMetroid Dreadto succeed. If the game’s reception blows Nintendo away, not only could it motivate the company to supportMetroidinto the future, it could lead to other franchises getting a shot at redemption. Even if the company doesn’t think it could offer anything new for names likeStar FoxorF-Zero,the success ofMetroid Dreadcould compel Nintendo to think otherwise and try something bold like withBreath of the WildandSuper Mario Odyssey.
Nintendo seems to really be supportingMetroid Dread, which is encouraging for fans that have been waiting for a proper return to the series. While there are still many first-party properties that show no signs of making a similar comeback, the success ofMetroid Dreadcould change things. It may take some time for Nintendo to recognize that it can find success in simply providing an updated version of an older franchise, but the existence ofMetroid Dreadshows that just about anything is possible.
