The paid subscription service Nintendo Switch Online has slowly but surely become a better deal for the consumer. After coming out with a controversial "Expansion Pack" tier that cost far more for just a few additions like N64 games, further inclusions such as new and old DLC expansions have helped close the gap. The February 2023 Nintendo Direct made this pot even sweeter by adding an Expansion Pack-exclusive Game Boy Advance (GBA) library alongside base Game Boy titles, with Metroid Fusion being its first title introduced post-launch
A number of GBA games are also confirmed to be hitting Nintendo Switch Online in the future, such as Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade, F-Zero: Maximum Velocity, and Golden Sun. However, this library's collection of Metroid games should not stop at Fusion. The series' original title also received a remake called Metroid: Zero Mission in 2004 that deserves the spotlight.
What Metroid: Zero Mission Would Bring to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack
Because Metroid: Zero Mission is a remake of the 1986 classic, which is already available to play via Nintendo Switch Online's NES library, one might wonder what the GBA title would bring to the more expensive Expansion Pack tier. There are a number of reasons why people might find the monetary investment worth having a chance to play Zero Mission, first and foremost being its graphical updates.
While Metroid on NES is still playable and worth checking out for historical value, Zero Mission undeniably makes its story and atmosphere more accessible to modern audiences. Taking on the same pixel art style as Metroid Fusion, which released two years prior, Zero Mission presents an image of Planet Zebes that's more comparable to the perennial SNES entry Super Metroid. Bosses like Kraid are brought in-line with their representation elsewhere in the series (being a screen-clearing monster rather than a dinky sprite), and there are short cutscenes in a comic pop art style that help sell its atmosphere.
More important is the bevy of additional content added for Zero Mission. There are a handful of new items like the Gravity Suit, as well as gameplay functionality from Fusion such as diagonal aiming. Entire boss fights are also exclusive to Zero Mission, such as a worm-like beast that acts as something of a tutorial for using Missiles before Samus can unlock the Charge Beam. Then, of course, it would be hard to discuss this remake without mentioning its post-game stealth segment in which Samus has to infiltrate the Space Pirate Mother Ship using only her Zero Suit and plasma pistol to unlock greater powers.
Getting Samus Aran's Entire Story on Switch
The Zero Suit segment added to the end of Metroid's original story not only presents players with a new gameplay style, it also delves into some of Samus' backstory by exploring the Zero Mission-exclusive ruins of Chozodia that she previously went to as a child (her drawings can still be found at the site of the Ruins Test). Between this narrative significance and a unique boss fight against a fully-mechanical Mecha Ridley, Zero Mission's endgame provides more than enough reason to play even if someone has already completed the NES original.
Some features of Zero Mission do become redundant if included with Nintendo Switch Online, such as the availability of Metroid (1986) as a bonus for those who finish the adventure. However, the Switch has already become a hub for Samus Aran's complete adventure. Metroid, Metroid 2: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, and Metroid Dread are all available in one place thanks to Switch Online, and Metroid Prime Remastered also recently hit the console. The backstory and gameplay elements exclusive to Metroid: Zero Mission would only make this package richer.
Metroid Fusion is available now via Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack.