2021 Game of the Year Awards — Achievement Awards

Long-term hiatus is never a good thing, but sometimes it can be good for the series development-wise. Many game franchises skip generations or decades. Usually, these tend to be first-party titles that fans cry out for to return, but the publishers turn a deaf ear.

Metroid Dread

Metroid games have released every few years, but this is the first time a new original 2D Metroid game has released since 2002’s Metroid Fusion on GameBoy Advance. Nearly two decades! Fans also want a new Metroid Prime game, and while that’s been quietly being developed, we got a pinball game, a forgettable new FPS, and a couple of remakes in between. This was a huge event for Metroid fans and the game held up fairly well. While there are some gripes it’s worthy of being in the Metroid franchise.