mccad's Hack Reviews - Metroid Construction

Hyper Metroid SUPER by RealRed [

Total Conversion], rated by mccad on Apr 22, 2025 (

)

No completion stats.

I'm a big fan of this total conversion of super metroid

Super Junkoid by P. Yoshi [

Exploration], rated by mccad on Aug 28, 2023 (

)

78% in 3:41

Mccad enjoys

V I T A L I T Y by Digital_Mantra [

Exploration], rated by mccad on Oct 17, 2020 (

)

67% in 6:04

This hack pushes the boundaries of what is possible to be done with vanilla tiles, and extensively utilizes background layer blending effects in a way I dont think anyone else has done before. The level of thought and detail put into every environment, and the game world as a whole, is completely unparalleled. You aren't just exploring some rooms that some jackass threw together in an afternoon, you're travelling through a genuinely immersive planet.
It's a relatively vanilla experience, and despite that I can say with wholehearted honesty that I think it's the best hack on this site.

Super Metroid: Ascent by Benox50 [

Exploration], rated by mccad on Jun 03, 2019 (

)

No completion stats.

I wrote a long detailed review but my internet killed it :(

Seriously though, easily the best hack I've ever played. Download it right now.

Super Metroid Arcade : Endless mode by Lioran, Tewtal [

Quick Play], rated by mccad on Nov 25, 2017 (

)

No completion stats.

Easily the top hack of 1969.
Seriously though, this hack is a load of fun, give it a try if you're up for the challenge!

Super Zero Mission by SBniconico [

Exploration], rated by mccad on Jan 03, 2018 (

)

48% in 7:49

This is a wonderfully ambitious hack, and there is lots of enjoyment to be had here, but much of it gets spoiled by the occasional poor design choice or glitch.

In particular, certain rooms break upon entry, some paths are very cryptic, and I even had to patch the rom to fix an extremely integral item which decided to not show up. Despite this, if you’re patient, and willing to deal with a few bugs, this is a remarkable hack.

Super Metroid: X-Fusion by Metaquarius [

Total Conversion], rated by mccad on Aug 02, 2025 (

)

71% in 5:24

Despite being a technical achievement, I can't recommend this hack to anybody. Not just to new players, but to veterans and speedrunners. It's not impossibly difficult, it's just not very fun. The difficulty that is there largely consists of trial and error. Several sequences are present that, regardless of player skill, WILL take 10+ (and in some cases, 30-50. I am not joking) attempts to complete.
Ultimately, I think the largest part of my distaste from this hack comes from disappointment. There are a lot of unique mechanics, custom bosses, and great ideas present in this hack, but the way most of it is executed in practice almost feels intentionally bad. It's almost as if someone took a good hack and made it suck on purpose just to spite the player.
I'm fairly confident that with (major) balance adjustments, this could be a good or even great hack, but as it stands now, on the 1.0 release build, it's borderline unplayable without savestates and just not very fun.
In spite of all of that, there's a glimmer of fun that can be had approximately 50-60% of the way through the game. Once you've collected most progression items and are free to roam the ship, enemies no longer deal heinous amounts of damage and it actually starts to feel like a normal, fun metroid game instead of an overtuned meme challenge hack. This unfortunately comes to a screeching hault at the endgame, which I won't spoil, but frankly was an absolute disaster.
At some point this hack will probably be good but I probably won't ever play that version, as I don't have any desire to replay this hack.

So Little Piracy by mccad/MetroidMst [

Exploration], rated by mccad on May 13, 2020 (

)

No completion stats.

What an absolute waste of time and energy into something so inherently and conceptually retarded. Don't bother

Super Metroid Nature by Jefe962 [

Exploration], rated by mccad on Dec 26, 2018 (

)

76% in 0:00

This hack does a pretty decent job at remaking and redesigning the original game, with improvements along the way stylistically, graphically, and in game design. Overall, it's just 'alright'.
There is a lot of room for improvement in Nature's level design, and lots of nitpicky little errors. My biggest gripe with the hack, overall, is the lack of loops in the level design. There are lots of areas with rooms that, on the map, seemingly loop back to previous rooms. However, in practice, they rarely do. This can cause a lot of annoying backtracking where it isn't really needed. It really bogs down the gameplay at times and overall i feel the hack is executed a lot worse than vanilla. Worth a play, but not that spectacular

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