Fearless, intelligent, devoted, determined Samus Aran in Metroid Prime 4. Fearless, intelligent, devoted, determined Samus Aran in Metroid Prime 4. Being a woman who loves video games has often felt lonely, like being on a hostile planet - but Metroid's female space hunter has been with me all the way Anyway, this new game has you in its grip. You are a lone astronaut exploring a hostile alien planet full of ancient, mysterious structures. This astronaut looks human enough - but this distinctly alien place is full of objects that power up their spacesuit's capabilities. Each new ability allows you to explore a new area, and as you do, you realise that the entirety of the planetary base you're exploring is one, massive, interconnected maze. Hours later, you finally defeat Mother Brain and set off a timed self-destruct sequence. Upon your escape, you're treated to an endgame screen: the little astronaut faces you as text on screen implores you to "pray for peace in space".

The recipe for a Metroid game is clear and concise: there's a labyrinthine system of rooms and corridors, an oppressive science-fiction environment, an escalating series of power-ups. A limited map you unlock gradually and rewardingly. Metroid Dread is proficient at all of this: it feels good to play, for a while. But I found that it got tiresome. There is little to hold the player in the world beyond the feeling of a perfectly executed attack or dodge.