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Metroid Fusion Vs Metroid Zero Mission. It's time to settle this.

Best GBA Metroid?

  • Fusion

    Votes: 320 47.5%

  • Zero Mission

    Votes: 354 52.5%
  • Total voters
    674
Eblo

Eblo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,643
I prefer Fusion because it took a different approach to Metroid, whereas Zero Mission was more of the same (perhaps naturally so as a remake). The horror aspect set Fusion apart as its own thing and gave a glimpse of how much Metroid could benefit by adopting horror as a sub-genre.
 
Untzillatx

Untzillatx

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
1,375
Basque Country
I like both a lot, and Zero Mission in my opinion perfects the Super Metroid formula, but Fusion has a much bigger and in my opinion more interesting variety of biomes, enemies and bosses, and also a more interesting plot.
 
fiendcode

fiendcode

Member
Oct 26, 2017
24,960
Zero Mission is probably the better overall game but I like Fusion more for doing it's own thing and doing it well. It's like the Majora's Mask of Metroids.
 
milkyway

milkyway

One Winged Slayer
Member
May 17, 2018
3,017
I mean Zero Mission is a pretty polished game, albeit a bit short - I don't have a lot of bad things to say about it. Fusion is just more interesting with its horror elements, slightly more involved narrative, setting, and boss battles. I have replayed the game a number of times and I do not get irritated by cut-scenes or what people are referring to as "hand-holding" - it's fairly linear but there are a lot of opportunities to explore as well, and not a necessarily easy Metroid game. It's my favorite Metroid easily, that's why it's in my avatar!
 
Narroo

Narroo

Banned
Feb 27, 2018
1,819
Zero-Mission!

Fusion has some good parts, such as the SA-X chases, but the level design felt a bit meh and sectioned off. Zero-Mission is short and sweet.
 
Poppy

Poppy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
18,289
richmond, va
honestly havent played zero mission yet because i already been to zebes so many other times im like eh i dont really feel like it. but i will have to play it sometime

fusion is admittedly railroaded and removes some stuff that makes you think of the metroid series in general, but i still thought it was a pretty rad game
 
moustascheman

moustascheman

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,670
Canada
Zero Mission speedruns are really awesome. It's great how the game really encourages sequence breaking and is designed with it in mind.

 
Concelhaut

Concelhaut

Banned
Jun 10, 2019
1,076
They're both top tier metroidvania but I gotta go with Fusion because it's unique. I love its Sci Fi atmosphere
 
elctrcblnket

elctrcblnket

Member
Jul 19, 2019
6
san antonio, tx
i like fusion more. i dont remember zero mission too well but i think it was too easy, and i felt like i was being led along by the automap. a lot of people say there was too much hand-holding in fusion but i see the dialogue as simply advancing/telling the story, while the automap in zm felt like being told where to look and explore which felt more restrictive i guess. saw some replies saying that sequence breaking was encourage by its design but.. i guess i never noticed haha. also the environments felt bland.

fusion had sa-x, cool bosses, the fusion suit, and samus' 3rd or 4th destruction of a planet! plus samus' uncovering of a metroid conspiracy by the federation and destruction of the bsl probably made her a wanted criminal. very exciting stuff imo, thank you uhh... *looks up metroid fusion director* mr. yoshio sakamoto
 
moustascheman

moustascheman

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,670
Canada
elctrcblnket said:
i like fusion more. i dont remember zero mission too well but i think it was too easy, and i felt like i was being led along by the automap. a lot of people say there was too much hand-holding in fusion but i see the dialogue as simply advancing/telling the story, while the automap in zm felt like being told where to look and explore which felt more restrictive i guess. saw some replies saying that sequence breaking was encourage by its design but.. i guess i never noticed haha. also the environments felt bland.
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I disagree about the automap in Zero Mission. You could ignore it completely in ZM since the only one you were required to take was the very first one unlike Fusion where you need to talk to adam between objectives or else the doors would stay locked. ZM is also a lot more open than fusion with so many ways to play it such as fighting Ridley before Kraid, getting upgrades like the screw attack early, skipping bosses, and even skipping upgrades such as the Varia Suit and Super Missiles.

I definitely agree with you on difficulty though, ZM is definitely lacking when it comes to challenge on its normal difficulty. The only times you'll really feel challenged is a low % run or, strangely enough, a 100% run, which is due to the fact that bosses scale based on your completion. Thankfully hard mode is a lot better when it comes to difficulty.
 
elctrcblnket

elctrcblnket

Member
Jul 19, 2019
6
san antonio, tx
moustascheman said:
I disagree about the automap in Zero Mission. You could ignore it completely in ZM since the only one you were required to take was the very first one unlike Fusion where you need to talk to adam between objectives or else the doors would stay locked. ZM is also a lot more open than fusion with so many ways to play it such as fighting Ridley before Kraid, getting upgrades like the screw attack early, skipping bosses, and even skipping upgrades such as the Varia Suit and Super Missiles.

I definitely agree with you on difficulty though, ZM is definitely lacking when it comes to challenge on its normal difficulty. The only times you'll really feel challenged is a low % run or, strangely enough, a 100% run, which is due to the fact that bosses scale based on your completion. Thankfully hard mode is a lot better when it comes to difficulty.
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hmm i'll have to give it a second try then, maybe ignoring the automap would improve the exploration aspect and spice the experience up a bit.
also regarding difficulty, zm sounds akin to pokemon in that the real challenges come from the self-imposed restrictions haha. that and the boss difficulty scaling are pretty interesting, i didnt know about that. really the only part of zm that was hard for me had to be the stealth segment at the end, but thats mostly because im terrible at stealth gameplay...
 
Jobbs

Jobbs

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
5,639
I don't like zero mission very much. It's just about the blandest and most uninspired metroidvania possible. I don't care much for the art style either and the structure of the game is kinda bad with the whole pointless and lame zero suit portion.

Fusion, on the other hand, is outstanding. Great concept, great art style, great encounter design, great pacing, great encounter design.. truly a classic game and the best Metroid after super.
 
{Marvelous}

{Marvelous}

Member
Jan 2, 2018
1,307
I'm probably partial to Fusion, I like that it's a lean slice of SciFi horror - I like how straight forward and crazy it is and I like the atmosphere, setting and style. Love it. Zero Mission is probably superior in regards to being a conventional Metroid game but I'm not sure Fusion's intentions were in line with that - maybe that was mandated by it being an earlier GBA entry idk - anyway I like both for different reasons... but Fusion is just an especially weird game to me.
 
Metroidvania

Metroidvania

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,869
Fusion's big issue is that it's way too linear, but despite that I'd take it over Zero Mission's last segment, IMO.

Not sure if that's because it was 'first' or not, but I admire Fusion's attempt at building a narrative, running the hell away from the SA-X, and the twists and turns over ZM's exploration.

If Fusion had...let's say 'half' as much locked navigation rooms and locking out old areas, it'd be right up there with SM.

As is, SM is still the best, though.
 
Jeeves

Jeeves

Member
Nov 21, 2017
411
VDenter said:
I did not expect the results to be this close.
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That's why the question endures. They're both great and beloved games.

I prefer Fusion by a pretty wide margin, personally. It's the only game in the series that fully commits to living up to its potential as a sci-fi horror experience.
 
Virtua King

Virtua King

Member
Dec 29, 2017
3,987
Very hard to say. I do remember preferring Zero Mission when it was new, but Fusion has that undeniable creepy factor which I appreciate even more now.
 
riq

riq

Member
Feb 21, 2019
1,690
ZM is one of the Nintendo games that most respects the player intuition and curiosity since... Super Metroid. The fact that they purposefuly included speedrunning tricks, secret paths and such is very exciting to me and makes me very sad that the Sakamoto games since (M:OM, Samus Returns) being much more safe in that regard. Heck, Samus Returns seemed so afraid of crafting shinespark puzzles that they outright gave a slowing time power up instead lol. I'm not saying they were actually afraid, it could be due to the 3DS fps tanking if Samus used a Speed Booster, but it feels that way.

Fusion is good but people overrate the horror elements too much. Yes the first time you're actually forced to face and run from SA-X feels a bit scary and the elevator stopping is genius, but those only work once. Which seems to me little worth of so much praise in a series like Metroid that depends so much on being replayable. Again, it's a good game.

My dream 2D Metroid would have the scope and world design of Super, the analog aim and lock of Samus Returns, and the controls and physics of ZM (them ballspark puzzles, dayum). And maybe Fusion bosses. Metroid bosses in general kinda suck imo.
 
zombiejames

zombiejames

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,015
I felt Fusion was a really bad, to be honest. I expected more from the proper sequel to Super Metroid. It just too linear and shallow. Zero Mission was far more enjoyable to me.
 
ClickyCal'

ClickyCal'

Member
Oct 25, 2017
59,962
riq said:
ZM is one of the Nintendo games that most respects the player intuition and curiosity since... Super Metroid. The fact that they purposefuly included speedrunning tricks, secret paths and such is very exciting to me and makes me very sad that the Sakamoto games since (M:OM, Samus Returns) being much more safe in that regard. Heck, Samus Returns seemed so afraid of crafting shinespark puzzles that they outright gave a slowing time power up instead lol. I'm not saying they were actually afraid, it could be due to the 3DS fps tanking if Samus used a Speed Booster, but it feels that way.

Fusion is good but people overrate the horror elements too much. Yes the first time you're actually forced to face and run from SA-X feels a bit scary and the elevator stopping is genius, but those only work once. Which seems to me little worth of so much praise in a series like Metroid that depends so much on being replayable. Again, it's a good game.

My dream 2D Metroid would have the scope and world design of Super, the analog aim and lock of Samus Returns, and the controls and physics of ZM (them ballspark puzzles, dayum). And maybe Fusion bosses. Metroid bosses in general kinda suck imo.
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Diggernaut is maybe the coolest 2d boss in the seriea, but get is hated.
 
MaverickHunterAsh

MaverickHunterAsh

Good Vibes Gaming
Verified
Oct 24, 2017
1,413
Los Angeles, CA.
It's Fusion for me, but I can't begrudge anyone who chooses Zero Mission. They're both wonderful games and it's a super close call, but I really just loved how Fusion changed up the regular pace of a 2D Metroid game with a surprisingly linear experience that really doubled down on the atmosphere and sci-fi horror elements of the series. It also told a genuinely engrossing story that offered rare glimpses into Samus' thoughts, humanizing her in a way the series never had before and moving the Metroid mythology forward in a way that felt meaningful. I loved the ending "twist," too, and how it's left completely open to player interpretation.

So yeah, Fusion. But not by much.
 
El Crono

El Crono

"This guy are sick"
Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,325
Mexico
Zero Mission definitely. The flow and pacing in Fusion are excruciating thanks to the storytelling and the main hub to travel between areas.
 
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