Metroid Dread Hard Mode Differences: What Changes on Hard Mode?

After completing Metroid Dread, you might be surprised to see a new Hard Mode pop up. The game is hard enough as it is, so you may be wondering what Hard Mode even does, or if it’s worth it. Fortunately, you’ll be glad to hear that Hard Mode is not a significant step up in challenge from Normal Mode, and it does feature new content.

Metroid Dread Hard Mode Differences

Hard Mode’s main addition to Dread is increasing enemy damage. While Metroid Dread does have a relatively complex damage system compared to previous entries in the series, experimentation seems to suggest that enemies in Hard Mode do twice as much damage as enemies in Normal Mode. No difference could be determined in enemy health, as enemies in both modes appeared to take the same amount of Power Beam shots before going down.

Essentially, Hard Mode just doubles the strength of your enemies

While this may sound like a lot, it isn’t in context. Normal Mode is already fairly punishing, to the point that beating its bosses already requires flawless pattern memorization. If you’re never getting hit, you’re never getting hit, damage is a non-factor. And on top of that, beating Dread on Hard Mode in less than 4 hours will unlock 3 new pieces of ending content for your gallery, just the same as on Normal Mode.

If you think this is worth it, get out there and get going. If you’d like a refresher on any areas of the game before starting your Hard Mode run, you can find other guides by clicking here. All of them are applicable, as the map stays the same between both modes.