#29: Metroid Dread
Metroid Dread has actually moved up in my list a good ten positions!
Last year, I was cautious with its placement because I thought it was affected by recency bias but over this year I've replayed it two more times just because this game is so damn fun to play! Everything Samus does in this game is so fluid, jumping off walls, aiming from a platform, sliding under small gaps, switching between regular beam, missiles, grapple beam. Mercury Steam nailed to gameplay to a degree I didn't think was possible. EMMI rooms transitioned from tense sections I careful threaded to avoid detection to fun playgrounds I navigate as fast as possible making use of every tool available to outrun an EMMI who can't keep up.
The story is also pretty interesting and allows us to learn more about the Chozo and Samus herself. It might not be as open ended a Super Metroid with sections where the game forces you through a defined path but it has some very neat sequence breaks and easter eggs attached to those.
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