Series guide
All Metroid games in order
Metroid is one of the few Nintendo series where the order genuinely matters: Samus Aran lives through one continuous story, and the games were not released in that order. So there are two lists below — the story first, then the release order — with the Nintendo versions marked, because those are the ones we stock and test.
The short answer
Story: Zero Mission → the Prime games → Samus Returns → Super Metroid → Other M → Fusion → Dread. Release: Metroid (1986) → II → Super → Fusion & Prime (2002) → Zero Mission & Echoes → Hunters → Corruption → Other M → Federation Force → Samus Returns → Dread (2021) → Prime Remastered → Prime 4 (2025).
Why the order matters here
With most Nintendo series you can jump in anywhere. Metroid is the exception: the story has been told piece by piece, with prequels and remakes filling in earlier chapters years after the fact. Follow the list below if you want it to unfold in the right sequence.
1. The story order
- Metroid (1986) — or its remake Metroid: Zero Mission (2004, GBA) — The same events, but the remake is far more playable and has a map.
- The Prime games — Prime, Prime 2: Echoes, Prime 3: Corruption, Prime 4: Beyond — Set between the first and the second game. First-person 3D, but still exploration and puzzles.
- Metroid II: Return of Samus (1991, Game Boy) — or Metroid: Samus Returns (2017, 3DS) — The remake is the version to play today.
- Super Metroid (1994, SNES) — Seen by many players as the high point of the series.
- Metroid: Other M (2010, Wii) — The story bridge to Fusion.
- Metroid Fusion (2002, GBA) — The end of the classic 2D line for nineteen years.
- Metroid Dread (2021, Switch) — The direct sequel to Fusion — and the current end of the story.
2. The Prime branch (3D)
Metroid Prime (2002) and Prime 2: Echoes (2004) arrived on the GameCube and moved the series into 3D — not shooters, but exploring and puzzling from Samus’ visor. Prime 3: Corruption came to the Wii in 2007, Prime Remastered rebuilt the first game for Switch in 2023, and Prime 4: Beyond closed the arc in 2025. Two side stories: Prime Hunters on DS (with its 2004 First Hunt demo) and Federation Force on 3DS.
3. The release order
Metroid has always been a Nintendo series, so everything is on Nintendo hardware: NES, Game Boy, SNES and GBA for the 2D line, GameCube and Wii for the Prime games, then 3DS and Switch for the modern entries.
- Metroid · 1986 · NES
- Metroid II: Return of Samus · 1991 · Game Boy
- Super Metroid · 1994 · SNES
- Metroid Fusion · 2002 · Game Boy Advance
- Metroid Prime · 2002 · GameCube
- Metroid: Zero Mission · 2004 · Game Boy Advance
- Metroid Prime 2: Echoes · 2004 · GameCube
- Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt (demo) · 2004 · Nintendo DS
- Metroid Prime Hunters · 2006 · Nintendo DS
- Metroid Prime 3: Corruption · 2007 · Wii
- Metroid: Other M · 2010 · Wii
- Metroid Prime: Federation Force · 2016 · Nintendo 3DS
- Metroid: Samus Returns · 2017 · Nintendo 3DS
- Metroid Dread · 2021 · Nintendo Switch
- Metroid Prime Remastered · 2023 · Nintendo Switch
- Metroid Prime 4: Beyond · 2025 · Nintendo Switch / Switch 2
Buying Metroid second-hand
Prime Remastered is the easy way into the 3D games
The first Prime rebuilt for Switch in 2023 — modern controls, no GameCube needed. If you want the original discs, boxed GameCube copies of Prime and Echoes are the collector target in this series.
The GBA pair is the best-value 2D Metroid
Zero Mission and Fusion are complete, compact and region-free, so a loose cartridge plays on any Game Boy Advance in the world. They are also the two games most people mean when they say "classic Metroid" — Super Metroid on SNES is the third, at a higher price.
Check which Hunters cartridge you are buying
First Hunt is the 2004 demo that shipped with some DS consoles; the full Metroid Prime Hunters is the 2006 game. The demo is collector material rather than a game to play — every listing of ours names which one it is.
Saves matter more here than in most series
Metroid is long and exploration-heavy, so a working save is not optional. Super Metroid runs on a save battery that can be thirty years old; the GBA and DS games do not. Every copy we sell is play-tested including the save.
Every copy tested before it is listed
Booting, saving, label, disc surface — checked on real hardware. We have been doing this since 2019, with 1400+ verified reviews at 5.0★, and we ship tracked to all 27 EU countries. Originals only; if something ever turns out not to be genuine, you get your money back.
Browse tested Metroid gamesQuestions we get asked
In what order should I play the Metroid games?
For the story: Zero Mission, then the Prime games, then Samus Returns, Super Metroid, Other M, Fusion and finally Dread. If you just want to start without worrying about the story, pick any entry — each game explains what you need to know.
What is the difference between Metroid and Metroid Prime?
The main series is 2D: you explore one large, connected world from the side. The Prime games are 3D and first-person, but they remain exploration and puzzle games rather than shooters — the same idea in a different perspective.
Do I need to play the original Metroid from 1986?
Not really. Metroid: Zero Mission on the Game Boy Advance is a remake of the same story with modern controls and a map, and for most players it is the better place to begin.
What is Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt?
A demo that came bundled with some Nintendo DS consoles in 2004, ahead of the full game in 2006. As a loose cartridge it is mostly a collector item today.
Which Metroid game should I start with?
Never played Metroid and want 3D: Metroid Prime Remastered on Switch. Want 2D: Metroid: Samus Returns on 3DS or Metroid Dread on Switch. Want the story from the beginning: Zero Mission on GBA. Know the series and want the classic: Super Metroid on SNES.
Do you ship outside the Netherlands?
We ship to all 27 EU countries with track & trace. Parcels leave from the Netherlands, there are no customs charges within the EU, and your country’s exact rate appears at checkout before you pay.
Years given are the first release; European dates were sometimes a few months later. Deze gids in het Nederlands.
