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Metroid: Rogue Dawn

Base: Metroid · NES · 2016 · Total Conversion

Creator: Grimlock, Optomon, snarfblam

A full NES Metroid total conversion telling the prequel story of Samus's rival Rogue, featuring an entirely new map, new enemies, new music, and new mechanics built within the NES Metroid engine.

Rogue Dawn was a multi-year collaborative project that replaced every element of the original NES Metroid with new content: a different planet, a different protagonist — Rogue, a rogue Galactic Federation soldier operating before the events of Metroid — new room layouts, new enemy designs, a new soundtrack, and new powerup progression. The hack used the NES Metroid engine as infrastructure while adding custom assembly code for new mechanics. At release it was received as one of the most technically accomplished NES total conversions ever produced, with production values that compared favourably to licensed commercial NES releases of the 1980s.

Legacy: Rogue Dawn demonstrated that NES Metroid's engine could support a completely original and professionally produced game, setting a benchmark for what total conversion ROM hacking could achieve.
Key Facts:
  • Released in December 2016 after approximately two years of development
  • Features a completely original soundtrack composed by Optomon
  • Protagonist Rogue is a human Federation soldier, offering a deliberately different play feel from Samus
  • Uses custom ASM for mechanics not present in the original Metroid engine