Metroid: Dread has the perfect title to how it made me feel. Every time I walked into one of those EMMI rooms my heart rate spiked and I ran as fast as I could to try and escape. I was frequently terrified playing this game, and it was a lot of fun until it eventually became frustrating.
The biggest pro of this game is the smooth gameplay. Samus's movement has never felt so tight and responsive. You need to play this game docked with a pro controller to really get the most out of it, in my opinion. The graphics are wonderful, and each of the areas of the game has a unique style and types of enemies. The boss fights are epic, and I had a lot of fun trying to figure out how to beat each one.
The EMMIs are the new part of the game. They roam around certain areas, and you can't kill them until you beat a boss in the area and get your weapon upgraded. You have to move through their areas without being spotted, because if you are caught, you are almost certainly toast. Luckily, the game takes it easier on you than previous Metroid games, and lets you start again right outside the area (or boss fight) instead of making you backtrack, which I really appreciated, because I died A LOT. Once you get your weapon upgraded, killing the EMMI also takes practice and work, but once it's dead, it feels like a weight off your shoulders. It's a lot of fun.
The music is very disappointing, considering other Metroid games have some of the best soundtracks in history. I did not hear one track on this soundtrack that I found worth listening to outside of the game. I get that it needs to match the game, but I think they could have done a lot better with this soundtrack.
Eventually, the game became too difficult for me, even with the gentle checkpoints. I think I was pretty close to the end, but I'm old enough now to know that when I'm frustrated and not having fun anymore, it's time to just let it go. So while I had fun, eventually the game became just too much for me. It was fun while it lasted.
8/10