I've played every single Metroid game besides federation force and something is lacking in Prime 4. Remember when we were young and first played Metroid? To me, it felt like a horror series. I think the next Metroid game series should lean fully into that. I don't mean survival horror, since Samus should still feel like a powerful force, but a horror-adventure with genuinely terrifying creatures.

We’ve grown up, and Metroid’s horror should grow with us. I still want exploration and discovery, but with less goofy characters. I want good sparse voice acting and a stronger, darker atmosphere.

As a young teen, the isolation, eerie sound design, and claustrophobic environments made those games terrifying in the best way.

That’s the energy I want behind a new metroid game. Samus moving through collapsing ruins overtaken by creatures. Metroids stalk the ceilings. Space Pirates are fused into the walls. An evil entity waits at the end of a dead, endless corridor.

I enjoyed Prime 4 for what it is, but Metroid Dread showed exactly where the series shines: more horror. Not survival horror just pure, oppressive cosmic dread.

A return to the feeling that you’re alone… and something is watching.

I've heard alot of people saying the new game feels lacking, and plays "not like a Metroid" game.
That is basically what your saying as well. Ei. the series doesn't "feel" like it used to.

The game is now sitting at a 79 on metacritic, and that's mostly just because alot of reviewers are scared to give nintendo games bad scores.
"Its a metroid game, I have to give it a 10...!"

It doesn't review score as well as past games, and players don't seem as fond of it either (online talk).

The game has an 8.3 for user-reviews. It's not an Other M situation where the game got a 79 from reviewers and a 6.6 from users. I think it is appropriately reviewed. 

77% of professional critics gave it a positive score versus 78% of users. 

On the thread topic. I am agnostic on whether Metroid games should be horrors or have horror elements. I think Prime 4 could've pulled it off by not showing 

But really I don't want it to be the focus. Have some horror elements here and there, but Metroid never was about that for me and I am fine with it not being that. 

It is a good game and I don't regret getting it but it's still the worse Prime game. 

I'd say a Metroid Prime game where you drive around on a motorcycle in a vast, empty desert for hours, farming magical green crystals is pretty dead-gum scary.

Yeah, needs scarier monsters, even if one of them is a literal Ridley clone. Ridley is one of the scariest villains in non-horror games, he's like a bony mashup of a dragon and a Xenomorph with the mindset of Freddy Krueger.

A 3D FPS remake of Fusion in the style of Alient: Isolation, let's go.

Ehhh, I don't think making it scarier would fix anything.

I'm about 10 hours into Prime 4 and collected four of the keys and the one GLARING problem I've encountered is riding the bike through the desert to farm those green energy crystals.

When you're actually exploring the main areas (Volt Forge, Ice Belt, Flare Pool, Fury Greens, etc.) and playing as just Samus in her power suit - It's a good time. The level design is a little too linear for my liking, certainly a step back from Prime 1 & 2, but it's still good overall and I enjoy it.

When you're riding through the desert in your bike arming those crystals. Ugggghhhh...
Sol Valley is FUCKING BOOOORRRIIING!!

There's next to nothing to do in that oversized pile of sand. Who the Hell thought putting that in the game was a good idea?! They should have just nixed that desert entirely and put the stuff you collect in it to the main areas and put more focus on developing those - Expanding and fleshing out the level design in those areas in the process. THEN we would have REALLY had something great cooking there.

I'd still like scarier monsters in Metroid, especially if Ridley really is dead for good (I don't know if he's in Prime 4).