2016 Geek-A-Long: Metroid

This week we are celebrating Spring, Metroid, AND a special guest poster!

Metroid was nominated to the leaderboards (though it didn’t make the top 10 this year) by Haleshmale, who said:

I wasted hours on this game, even though I wasn’t any good at it at all! Plus Samus is a total BAMF, so there’s that too!

This week we invited our good friend Dan Stefanidis, who not only designed our logo, but is also the author and artist of Manifest Destiny, to talk about Metroid since no one loves it like he does:

“The Metroid series! Has there ever been such a well crafted combination of action and adventure? Each game in the series, starting with Metroid on the NES 30 years ago this august, has been finely crafted with a map full of puzzling rooms and platforms. I personally had a hard time with Metroid on NES, and it’s follow-up on Game Boy, Metroid II: The Return of Samus. But everything clicked with Super Metroid on the SNES.

This was one of the first games I ever played that managed to make 2D platforming an atmospheric experience. When Samus Aran, bounty hunter and owner of the chozo designed Power Suit, drops alone into that first scene on the attacked base, and the music cues kick in to announce the fight against Ridley, I became hooked. The feeling only grew as I explored the rest of the game, solving puzzles and digging deep into the map for explosive Missiles, Beam, and Power Suit upgrades.

My copy of Super Metroid is so worn out I get scared just touching it these days. It’s easily the game I’ve played the most on the Super Nintendo, and I’m not the only one. With it’s time logging and percentage completion stats, Super Metroid was one of the earliest “speed run” games. Players all over the world have found new and exciting ways to get fast times at varying percentages, sometimes even for charity: https://gamesdonequick.com/

The 2D followup, Fusion, was also amazing, if a bit weird. But the 3D games from Retro were a cut above anything else on the gamecube and Wii. Let’s not discuss other M.

The square itself is the enigmatic “S” which has represented the franchise since Super Metroid on up. “What’s so enigmatic about it?” You ask? Well, no one knows for sure if it represents the Screw Attack power up or Samus, the heroine. Whichever the case, by completing this square, you’re getting closer to wrapping yourself up into a ball and rolling around on the floor in your blanket.” -Dan

You can get a daily dose of Dan by following him on Twitter @elbasunu

Whether you’re knitting, crocheting, or cross stitching this square, you can download the Metroid pattern here. Instructions for both knit and crochet are listed in the pattern. When you’re finished making it, don’t forget to tweet or instagram your squares at me @Doctor_Llama and Jac @jac_attacking or with the hashtag #geekalong!

If you’re having trouble with double-sided knitting, we have a how-to video here and a tutorial on crochet here. Want to hang out with other people making the blanket? You can find moral support in the Geek-A-Long group on Ravelry here.

~ Megan-Anne
Happy Easter, if that’s what you’re into. 

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If you enjoyed this post, please consider making a donation to Child’s Play Charity. Here is a direct link to our donation page benefiting the charity. Please help us raise $1,000 this year! No contribution is too small. Wanna make your donation go even further? Louet Yarn is donating 50 cents for every skein of Louet Gems Worsted purchased this year to make a Geek-A-Long blanket. You can get Gems at your Local Yarn Store or through Louet’s website. Just remember to mention the GAL at check out.