Metroid Ravenous is Driving Record-Breaking Sales Ahead of Launch

If you've been paying attention to the Nintendo Switch eShop lately, you've probably noticed something strange: Metroid Dread is back at number one. That's not a typo, and it's not a coincidence either. The excitement building around Metroid Ravenous is directly boosting sales of a game that came out years ago.

Honestly, that's not something you'd expect to see happen in this franchise's history. According to an insider who's been tracking the charts, this is the first time in roughly four years that a Metroid title has climbed back to the top of the US eShop rankings.

If you know anything about how Metroid games typically perform, that's a big deal.

Most entries in this series see heavy sales in their first six months to a year, and then things drop off pretty hard after that. It doesn't matter how many people own the console either — whether the install base is twenty million or a hundred million, Metroid games usually land somewhere between one and three million units sold and then plateau.

Metroid Dread broke that pattern by pushing past three million copies, and now it's climbing again thanks to all the buzz around Metroid Ravenous. Part of this resurgence comes down to timing. Nintendo is currently running a customer appreciation sale, and Metroid Dread is sitting at 30% off, putting it around $40.

Combine that discount with the trailer for Metroid Ravenous dropping recently, and you've got the perfect storm for people to jump back in or try the game for the first time. If you're hoping to grab a physical copy instead, good luck finding one through official retail channels.

Nintendo never printed many cartridges for Dread in the first place, likely because digital sales carry a better profit margin, and they'd rather push players to buy it online. A physical EU import option is floating around through third-party import shops for about $37, plus roughly $9 shipping, but that's about as close as you'll get to a boxed copy right now.

You might wonder why Nintendo wouldn't bother reprinting physical copies or even releasing an upgraded Switch 2 version of Dread ahead of the sequel.

The answer is pretty simple: they don't need to. The Switch 1 version already runs well. It runs at 900p and holds a steady 60 frames per second with basically no dips, and thanks to Boost Mode on Switch 2, portable play looks noticeably sharper than it used to. Nintendo didn't have to lift a finger to capitalize on this moment, and that's exactly what makes it impressive.

They let the hype around Metroid Ravenous do the heavy lifting for an older game, and it worked. Speaking of hype, the numbers behind the reveal trailer are worth talking about too. Metroid Ravenous racked up more than 3.2 million views within its first four days online, which is a massive number for this franchise.

To put that in perspective, that's already tracking well above what the Dread reveal trailer pulled back when it first showed up, which sat closer to two million. Now, view-counting methods have changed recently, and raw view totals across platforms tend to be inflated compared to a few years ago, since views now register almost instantly rather than requiring someone to watch for a set amount of time.

Even accounting for that shift, a two-minute trailer pulling in this many engaged views points to genuine excitement rather than passive scrolling. People aren't just glancing at it and moving on; they're rewatching it, breaking down every frame, and talking about it.

That kind of reaction isn't limited to hardcore fans either.

Even more casual players who don't typically buy games on release day have said this is a day-one purchase for them, which says a lot about how far this reveal has traveled outside the usual bubble of dedicated series fans. Now, here's where things get interesting in terms of what comes next.

Metroid Ravenous has a real shot at delivering a next-generation presentation, and based on eShop listing details, it could support up to 120 frames per second. That would likely mean either a 4K, 60fps mode or a 1080p, 120fps mode, similar to the presentation choices offered in another major Nintendo IP's Switch 2 outing.

Since this is a 2D game, hitting those performance targets seems very achievable, and that alone could make it stand out even further. Critical reception will play a huge role in determining how big this launch ends up being. If Metroid Ravenous can land a 90-plus score across major review aggregators and earn "Must-Play" status, that's the point where it could realistically start closing the gap with Metroid Dread in lifetime sales.

It's easy to forget just how important the critical response to Dread was back in 2021. That game picked up a Best Action/Adventure Game win at The Game Awards and landed nominations across nearly every major outlet that year. That kind of recognition, paired with strong word of mouth and a hardware push behind the Nintendo Switch – OLED Model at the time, created ideal conditions for sales.

Right now, the setup for Metroid Ravenous looks even stronger heading into launch.

One factor that could genuinely shift the numbers this time around is piracy, or rather, the lack of it. Every prior Metroid release, including Dread and older handheld entries, along with even the Switch 1 version of another recent Metroid title, has dealt with early leaks and unauthorized copies circulating before or around launch.

That's historically cut into potential sales in ways that are hard to measure but impossible to ignore. This will likely be the first time in a long while that a new Metroid game reaches players without that problem hanging over it, since emulation on the newer hardware isn't nearly as accessible right now.

That alone could translate into a noticeable bump in legitimate sales. A broader audience shift is also happening because the hardware is more powerful. Plenty of players who weren't previously invested in some of Nintendo's franchises, or who used to play them without ever purchasing a copy, are now more likely to buy.

This is partly because the experience looks and feels like a true next-generation release. That alone could widen the audience beyond the one- to three-million-unit range that's typically been the ceiling for this series. Then there's the gameplay itself, which is arguably the biggest reason excitement has been this high.

The return of an absorption-style ability reminiscent of one of Samus's most beloved mechanics from an earlier entry gives this game a strong hook on its own. Add in melee counters, an upward strike move, and a mobility toolkit that builds on everything introduced in Dread, and you've got a combination that appeals to both longtime fans and newcomers alike.

At the end of the day, nothing is guaranteed until the game actually launches and reviews start rolling in.

Between the sales boost happening for Metroid Dread right now, the trailer's massive reach, the improved hardware capabilities, and the reduced piracy risk, Metroid Ravenous is positioned about as well as any entry in this franchise ever has been. If the final product lives up to what's been shown so far, this could be one of the biggest moments in the series' history, and it's shaping up that way before a single copy has even shipped.