Metroid is not exactly one of the franchises Nintendo promotes the most. In fact, it has almost reached cult status, as the Japanese company can go from giving the series plenty of attention to putting it on the back burner for years at a time.
A few days ago, 40 years had passed since the release of the first game in the series, and its most passionate fans were hoping Nintendo would do something special to celebrate. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
However, a group of fans went the extra mile. After spending 3 years working on the project, they decided to celebrate four decades of Samus Aran’s adventures with a demake ofMetroid Prime.
Fans celebrate 40 years of Metroid with a demake inspired by Metroid Prime
On August 6, Metroid celebrated its 40th anniversary. The Nintendo classic took players into the isolation of space, where they had to survive as Samus Aran, with the game drawing inspiration from the iconic sci-fi horror film Alien.
Four decades later, the franchise has experienced plenty of highs and lows, but it still has an incredibly passionate and loyal community. So much so that some fans decided to create a game of their own.
The project is called Metroid Prime Origins, a demake that took 3 years to develop. It was created by a fan team called Lv. 4 Games, which decided to take Retro Studios’ first-person Metroid adventure and combine it with the 8-bit visual style of the original 1986 title.
The result is impressive, especially considering that it was created entirely by fans. The project answers the question of what the Metroid Prime series might look like if it adopted the 2D style that has become one of the franchise’s defining characteristics.
It is also worth noting that the creators of the demake claim that no AI was involved in the game’s development. According to the team, the project was made with nothing but passion and talent.
How many main Metroid games are there?
Over the course of 40 years, Metroid has had 16 mainline releases. Many of them have received excellent reviews, and Super Metroid for the SNES was considered the greatest video game of all time for several years.
The IP has experienced its fair share of ups and downs over four decades, but it has remained active despite not being one of Nintendo’s biggest commercial successes.
As of today, the franchise’s main releases are:
- Metroid — 1986
- Metroid II: Return of Samus — 1991
- Super Metroid — 1994
- Metroid Fusion — 2002
- Metroid Prime — 2002
- Metroid: Zero Mission — 2004
- Metroid Prime 2: Echoes — 2004
- Metroid Prime Hunters — 2006
- Metroid Prime 3: Corruption — 2007
- Metroid Prime: Trilogy — 2009
- Metroid: Other M — 2010
- Metroid Prime: Federation Force — 2016
- Metroid: Samus Returns — 2017
- Metroid Dread — 2021
- Metroid Prime Remastered — 2023
- Metroid Prime 4: Beyond — 2025
After 40 years, Metroid remains one of Nintendo’s most beloved franchises among its dedicated fanbase. While the company itself didn’t appear to have a major celebration planned for the anniversary, projects such as Metroid Prime Origins show that Samus still has a community willing to keep her legacy alive.
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