Metroid (species)

Metroids are the titular species of parasitic aliens from the Metroid series. They were created by the Chozo to combat the X Parasites, though they eventually grew out of hand, and are now supposedly extinct thanks to the efforts of Samus Aran.

Wario Land II
In Wario Land II, which was developed by the same team behind the original Metroid, a Metroid appears as the hidden treasure for the level Don't shock the owl!

WarioWare series
A Metroid appears in the Metroid-Samus microgame in WarioWare: Twisted! The Metroid advances toward Samus in a different pattern depending on the difficulty level, and the objective is to shoot it with her arm cannon before it can reach her.

Metroids also appear in WarioWare: Touched! in the international version-exclusive microgame Metroid, and in WarioWare: D.I.Y. in the Big Name Game also titled Metroid. In the former the objective is to drag Metroids off of Samus using the stylus, and in the latter the objective is to destroy two Metroids by tapping them.

Super Smash Bros. series
A Metroid appears as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate; they also appear as enemies in Smash Run in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS. When they appear, they float around the stage, latching on to players and inflicting damage for a time, similar to their series of origin.

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
In Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, a Metroid can be seen in background of the level Amiss Abyss as an Easter egg. If the player passes the first signpost and giant illuminating statue, reaches the end of the trench and heads back towards the statue through the anemone (the player must have more than one heart to do this), they will find it floating upward from the seabed in the background.