Nintendo Reveals Surprise New Metroid Game for 2027
Metroid Ravenous is the next 2D entry in the series
Less than two years after the release of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Samus Aran is already getting a new adventure. During Wednesday's Nintendo Direct, Nintendo announced Metroid Ravenous. The game will be released exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2 on Jan. 28, 2027, and is the next 2D entry in the series.
An announcement trailer for the game is narrated by Samus, detailing a typical Metroid plot. She is attacked on a moon by a mysterious group of enemies that sends her into the depths below, from which she'll have to escape. We then see a montage of 2D action goodness, with Samus taking on a plethora of nasty enemies.
The bounty hunter also shows off some type of energy-draining ability that lets her feed on her enemies. "It's eat or be eaten," she says. Throughout the trailer, Samus' suit looks different, perhaps indicating that the suit will change based on what enemies she absorbs. This could grant her even more attacks, some of which we see in the trailer, such as a menacing green energy form.
Who is developing Metroid Ravenous?
As seems to be company policy of late, Nintendo has not revealed who is developing Metroid Ravenous, but we have a good guess. The last 2D entry in the series was 2021's Metroid Dread, which was developed by MercurySteam. The studio also previously developed Metroid: Samus Returns. Given how Ravenous looks incredibly similar to Dread's aesthetics and gameplay, it is safe to assume MercurySteam is the team behind the new title. That's good news for Metroid fans, as Dread is one of the best games in the series ever made. In our review, we said, "Dread reimagines the Metroid format with confidence and care, and it trusts the player to make leaps along the way. While following its interwoven path of epic boss fights, satisfying upgrades, and otherworldly environments, all I could think was that this is the Metroid game I’ve been waiting for."
Alongside the game, Nintendo will release a snazzy special edition that includes a SteelBook case and an amiibo showing Samus in one of her new forms. There will also be two additional amiibo figures — one of Samus and another of a Chozo statue. These will be released on Jan. 28, 2027 as well.