When comparing Metroid vs Pong, the Slant community recommends Pong for most people. In the question“What are the best and the most revolutionary games of all time?” Pong is ranked 3rd while Metroid is ranked 14th. The most important reason people chose Pong is:
Pong may not have been the first video game ever, but it was definitely the first commercially successful and widely popular.
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Atmospheric sound and graphics
Metroid paved the way for using not only sound and graphics, but level design as an element of atmosphere in games. Its deep, dark, winding tunnels with cleverly hidden passages and non-linear gameplay, together with its foreboding soundtrack and sound effects create a desolate feeling of loneliness akin to the cinematography of the film "Alien".
Pro Created a new sub-genre (Metroidvania)
Because of their atmospheric design and non-linear gameplay, Metroid and Castlevania have forged their own sub-genre, original enough to bear their names - Metroidvania.
Pro Encouraged speed running
Metroid's innovation doesn't stop there - Metroid was one of the first games to not only cater to, but encourage speed running, a concept ultimately popularized by one of its sequels, Super Metroid.
Pro Challenged players' assumptions
Metroid uses this mechanic to go step further - upon being completed in under a certain amount of time, it breaks players assumptions and defies gender stereotypes in revealing that the hero they've been playing as is actually a heroine.
Pro First commercially successful and widely popular video game
Pong may not have been the first video game ever, but it was definitely the first commercially successful and widely popular.
Pro Established video games as commercially viable
Pong inspired a generation of video game enthusiasts and established video games as a popular and commercially viable industry.
Pro Modeled after real-life Ping-Pong with adjustments
The concept for Pong was modeled on real life Ping-Pong, with a few modifications to make the gameplay more exciting. For example, the player could change the ball's return angle based on what section of the paddle the ball hit.
This made the game both more fun and challenging to play. The speed of the game also increased over time to ensure that the gameplay remained challenging for people at higher skill levels.
Cons
Con You have to play in one sitting
No saves, passwords, or retries if you get a game over.