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It stars neither plumbers, apes, nor princesses, yet Metroid has proven to be one of Nintendo’s most beloved, enduring and influential franchises.

The very first Metroid, launched more than three decades ago for the Nintendo Entertainment System, helped popularize an entire genre of game now lovingly referred to as Metroidvania — a term that mashes up the game monikers Metroid and Castlevania. Metroidvania games see players work to earn abilities that unlock new parts of a large, interconnected map. It’s a formula that’s stood the test of time, proving satisfying and habit-forming for multiple generations of players.

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“It may sound a bit grandiose,” said Yoshio Sakamoto, one of the key team members on the original game and currently the executive officer with Nintendo’s Entertainment Planning and Development (EPD) group, in an exclusive interview with Post Arcade.

“But I think the essence of the game is like a microcosm of our daily lives. You have a goal you’re working towards, you make progress, you discover and experience a variety of new things, you overcome hardships along the way, and that’s really similar to the joys and emotional moments we all experience.”