Samus has grown quite popular after her new Nintendo Switch debut. In Japan, Metroid Dread has sold just over 86,000 physical units since October 8, breaking series records in the country.
Japanese gaming site Famitsu reported on the sales data, noting Metroid Dread beat out other new releases like Far Cry 6. Metroid hasn’t sold well in decades, and data from Game Data Library suggest its four days of launch purchases places Dread above lifetime numbers of games like Fusion, Prime, and Other M.
Metroid’s success isn’t just limited to Japan, either. Around the world, folks are revisiting what it’s like to adventure as Samus in her classic, but modern, trials. Over in the UK, Dread also became the fastest-selling game in the series, and its popularity seems to extend to other consoles. Nintendo’s long-forgotten Wii U saw Metroid Fusion, Zero Mission, and the Prime Trilogy jump into the top ten on the eShop sales charts. Super Metroid made it up there, too, squeaking in at number nine.
Dread has kicked things off with plenty of fanfare. The speedrunning scene is already on top of how to speed through the game as Samus, and one record already clocks in at less than two hours. Smash is celebrating with limited-time Spirits of the space heroine, adding her in with different variations of her suit over the years. Samus also got her own new amiibo, and yes, you can still use the older ones Nintendo launched over the years in Metroid Dread.
All of those hopes and dreams you placed on Dread’s revival of the series seem to deserve the fanfare, too. TheGamer’s lead features editor, Cian Maher, reviewed Metroid Dread and called it “a remarkable achievement” even after a couple of hiccups. And in a year of tough competition, Maher also noted he found it to be one of 2021’s best.
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