Your comments about SM are spot on. I totally agree that if I was just learning the game today, that Draygon would be a real problem. Him and Phantoon are my least favorite bosses of the game. And I still have problems with the wall jump and special moves! With SM, sometimes it seems like you have complete mastery of the controls, and sometimes that game make you feel like a dolt. I guess that only adds to its classic charm. :)

Guacamelee is just… not as good. It’s certainly not a bad game imo, but the things that make Super Metroid special just aren’t there. There’s no atmosphere or tension, the powerups are more humdrum, the secrets less exploratory. Super Metroid isn’t a classic for the gameplay, per se, but rather for the feelings it invokes throughout and how those feelings feed into exploration.

I do think there are parts that would be a complete pain for the amount (lack) of patience I have now, though:
1: Learning to wall jump was a true test of patience even then (but also one of the most rewarding experiences in any game)
2: Draygon (the underwater shrimp boss) is a total stupid that you kind of have to plow through with lots of energy tanks, unless maybe you’re a total beast at Metroid?
3: The fact that there’s a point of no return towards the end of a *heavy exploration game* is one of the dumbest things ever.

Otherwise the game is mostly incredible, and I expect newcomers would feel the same way. At any rate, it’s certainly inspiring a whole new wave of games at the moment, and has an (almost?) equally incredible companion in Symphony of the Night. Here’s hoping some of these upcoming indies truly capture the feel and spirit of these two games. I’m playing Rogue Legacy right now — I’m really enjoying it, but the atmosphere and feel of the game are leagues behind these classics.

I’m stuck at the second to last boss in Guacamelee, and what you say is absolutely true. (I’ve already spoiled the end for myself by going online to look for advice so…) I’m not at the point where I’m ready to give up, but I came incredibly close last time I played to breaking my controller. I can’t bring myself to return to the game yet; knowing me and difficult bosses, it might be months still before I feel up to the task. I agree that throwing in curveballs like going from difficult to [expletive deleted] impossible don’t make for good replays. As beautiful and fun a game as Guacamelee is, once I beat it (and I will), I don’t see it as a must to replay. It contains too many potential rage-quit areas for my taste.

Not wanting to spoil anything for you, but if you think the main game is difficult then just wait till the final two bosses and see the games biggest failing: A huge difficulty spike right at the end.

It took me an entire sleepless night to beat the final boss on the Vita version and I haven’t wanted to touch the game since… funny how a single poorly executed game design decision (in this case a terrible uneven difficulty curve right at the end game) can cripple my enjoyment of a game.

Overall, Super Metroid is just better designed and paced and so I wouldn’t say it’s due to your reflexes, but the fact that Guacamelee adds the hardcore beat-em-up aspects from other series to the mix and makes it uneven. (I did love it though, I’m a sucker for dem combos!)

Recommendation for your Nu-Metroidvania fix:
Check out Steamworld Dig on Steam/Vita/PS4 https://steamworldgames.com/dig/.
It’s gentler than Guacamelee, but has that old Metroid flavour that you love so much…

For many of us, video games do more than just fill up free time. They provide outlets for pent-up emotions. They connect us with people across the world. And they serve has historical waypoints — like pins on a map that tell us where we’ve been. Those memories shape and inform our gaming experiences in the present. For example, the more I play (and become increasingly frustrated with) Guacamelee today, the more I wonder if I would enjoy its ancestor, Super Metroid (and my most favorite of all games) today. Super Metroid, in my mind, isn’t nearly as difficult as Guacamelee can be, but still, do my anxieties spring from the fact that my reflexes aren’t what the used to be, or something more? Find out in this post I recently wrote for United We Game.

P. S. He-Man the movie…man oh man. What were they thinking?!

The one set of games I can always go back to (and am now!) is the Metroid Prime series. Of the three, I love the first entry the most, which I eagerly pre-ordered back when I was 21. If one game has my enduring love, it is Metroid Prime =)