In the wake of news that Metroid Prime 4 had entered development for Nintendo Switch, the secondary reveal that a remake of Metroid 2: Return of Samus was en route struck many as the cherry on top of Nintendo's E3 2017 presence. Rebranded as Metroid: Samus Returns, the game has gone on to attain a very positive reception from critics and fans alike, which many may have assumed meant that future remakes may be on the table – provided they're not already in development.

Speaking with Samus Returns producer and Metroid franchise co-creator Yoshio Sakamoto, it would appear that there are currently "no plans for another remake" as of this writing. Game Rant interviewed Sakamoto via a recent email exchange, where the famed Nintendo developer confirmed that he had no current plans for another remake. With that said, he claims that it ultimately comes down to the fans and whether there's a need to revisit existing iterations of the Metroid series.

"It really depends on the reasons you have for undertaking such a challenge, whether there’s a need for it, and your own motivation, but at the moment I have no plans for another remake. I think we need to spend time considering whether fans are only wanting remakes going forward, and what that might mean."

This quote originated from the same interview where Sakamoto explained why Nintendo opted to bring Samus Returns to 3DS rather than Switch, and it helps to further shed light on current plans for the series. It sounds as if the house of Mario may be testing the waters with a side-scrolling throwback before committing to further installments within the same genre, in which case starting off with a remake that tells one of the oft-forgotten portions of the narrative makes a lot of sense.

Stay tuned to Game Rant for more details on our interview with Metroid‘s Yoshio Sakamoto.

Metroid: Samus Returns is currently available exclusively on Nintendo 2DS and Nintendo 3DS handhelds.