The Last Metroid Is In Captivity
The Galaxy Is At Peace…
Whilst it’s often considered to be one of Nintendo’s top three franchises (Mario & Zelda being the other two), the Metroid series has never been the biggest money maker around. I wouldn’t go so far as to label it a niche series but it certainly isn’t as well known as some of the bigger titles in gaming despite the Metroid name being well recognized amongst gamers.
I actually like the idea that Metroid sits somewhere between the two, it’s popular enough that each game is capable of breaking even but it’s also under the radar enough that the series isn’t always the center of attention. Nintendo can create a Metroid game and rest easy knowing that the loyal fanbase will always be there to support it.
Metroid fans don’t feel the need to flaunt our favourite series to other players, you either get it or you don’t. If you do understand Metroid then you’ll know that the games are some of the most well designed and thoughtful games around. If you don’t understand Metroid then that’s fine, you’re probably too impatient and stupid to appreciate it anyway.
Recently I had one of my friends make his way through Super Metroid for the first time thanks to the Wii U Virtual Console. It’s fair to say that he was blown away by what he had experienced and finds it hard to believe it launched in 1994. It made me happy to see someone else also share my love for the series so when I began wondering what game he should play next, I started looking through all the titles in the series and wondered myself what my favourites were.
The following list is my personal top ten Metroid games although if you were to ask me again in the future the list would probably be slightly different. Generally speaking however this more or less how I rank the series.
10) Metroid Prime Pinball
We start off the list with a game that sounded utterly stupid and technically had no business being any good, sure Samus can morph into a ball therefore “it makes sense” but in reality it just seemed like an excuse to milk the series. The game even came with a rubbish rumble pak to further show that this was nothing more than a gimmicky test on Nintendo’s part to see just how fans would react to such a spin-off… no pun intended.
It turns out that Metroid Prime Pinball is actually a pretty damn good pinball game, even someone like me who has limited experience in the pinball genre was able to pick up the game and have a good time with it. The secret to Metroid Prime Pinball’s success is simple when you think about it, don’t focus on making a pinball game and instead focus on making it as “Metroid like” as possible.
Metroid Prime Pinball is exactly what the name implies, it’s a pinball version of the original Metroid Prime complete with boss battles, yes even Ridley makes an appearance. All the different tables are based on various different areas from the game (although Chozo Ruins is strangely missing) and all feature the appropriate themes to accompany them. There’s a number of different power ups scattered around such as one that allow Samus to unmorph and shoot enemies for bonus points. They’ve even thrown in artifacts to collect and sections that allow Samus to engage in some wall jumps despite this being a pinball game.
The rumble pak may of been a laughable addition but the game itself is anything but, it’s a very well designed Pinball game that oddly enough makes for a good companion to have alongside the game it’s based on. If you’ve played Metroid Prime then be sure to give Metroid Prime Pinball a try, it will bring a smile to your face just seeing how much effort the developers have gone through to make sure this feels like a Metroid game.
9) Metroid Hunters
Let’s just get to the point with this one, Metroid Prime Pinball feels more like a Metroid game than Hunters ever did despite what a screenshot may imply. Developed the Nintendo Software Technology, Metroid Hunters is a strange game in that the single player portion of the game is half assed yet the game shines when it comes to multiplayer.
Metroid Hunters (and I refuse to call it Metroid PRIME Hunters) is all about Samus crossing paths with various other bounty hunters from across the galaxy. You’d think this would make for an interesting premise but instead Hunters disappoints all around with a single player that might as well be called training mode for the multiplayer. Level design is generic, repetitive, forgettable and even the boss battles all manage to suck pretty bad. Even worse, they also repeat a number of times with only the random encounters with the other hunters acting as the game’s saving grace.
Multiplayer is where Metroid Hunters gets things right, the best way to describe it would be to imagine an arena shooter along the lines of Quake III or Unreal Tournament with each bounty hunter having access to their own set of unique skills. It may not feel like Metroid but it sure was a lot of fun and Nintendo even managed to throw in an online mode featuring a very solid netcode. Even as of 2013 I still think Metroid Hunters and Mario Kart are the ONLY success stories Nintendo has had in the online space.
At the end of the day, Metroid Hunters is a terrible Metroid game but the arena based multiplayer was impressive, particularly considering this is the original DS we’re talking about. I wouldn’t be against the idea of Nintendo someday deciding to give the whole multiplayer concept another go, just don’t bother slipping in another lame single player.
8) Metroid
The original Metroid may not be the best in the series but it sure as hell is the most important, not only did it mark the birth of the Metroid series but it also paved the way for countless other games that clearly drew influence from it. If there’s one thing that stands out about the Metroid (besides Samus being a women) is that Metroid wasn’t a game that could be completed in one sitting, in fact it’s one of the first games to feature a password save system to my knowledge.
At the time when Metroid was released, games were all generally pretty simple in their nature. Arcade based games were very quick pick up and play experiences whilst 2D side scrollers never dared the player to move to the left side of the screen. Metroid on the other hand was a massive game that actually required the player to revisit past areas, even more impressive was that the game was made up of one huge game world and not broken up into various “levels”. It may not sound like much now but back in the late 80′s, this kind of stuff was a pretty big deal.
Backtracking was the name of the game in Metroid, it encouraged exploration and demanded the player use their heads rather than just rush to the right of the screen until the level ended. Progression in Metroid came down to the player themselves, you could easily spend an hour running around and make no advancements beyond collecting an extra energy tank if you weren’t focused on the task at hand. Some players even used to draw their own maps as the game didn’t feature one, on the other side of that paper were all the passcodes codes, that’s retro gaming right there.
In comparison to all the other games available at the time Metroid wasn’t a twitch based game in which quick reactions determined how good you were. On the contrary, a thoughtful player would stock up on missiles and energy tanks before taking on Ridley and not break a sweat. At the same time, the game also allowed players to play the game how they wanted to so if you like the idea of taking on Ridley with a barely powered up Samus then there’s nothing stopping you. It’s your personal journey and you decide how you want to tackle it.
7) Metroid II Return of Samus
The original Metroid was a hit but it still lived under the shadow of Zelda and Mario so when Nintendo decided to greenlight a sequel, it was relegated to being a GameBoy title. By relegated I mean the GameBoy featured a green and greener screen meaning it would be hard to create unique environments when everything just ended up looking the same regardless. This is actually why the varia suit upgrade had those big ball shoulders, it was to make sure the players could actually see the difference in comparison to the regular suit. Interesting enough this went on to become a staple of the series every since, it’s actually one of the first things you think of when the name Samus Aran is mentioned.
Metroid II feels like the dark horse of the series, your goal is to exterminate all the Metroids on planet SR388 and that’s pretty much it. You have a counter which keeps tracks of how many Metroids are left and it feels like a “Get in, get out” approach rather than the usual sense of wonder and mystery when compared to other Metroid titles It’s definitely not the typical Metroid formula at work here but as a handheld game it works well enough anyway.
For some Metroid II is underrated, for others it’s probably one of the worst Metroid games but I’m personally sat somewhere between the two. I’m not exactly a massive fan of the “wipe out all the Metroids” approach but being able to crouch shoot is a welcomed addition and the spider-ball power up is all sorts of awesome. You don’t get a sense of discovery you get from finding new areas but you do get a similar feel whenever you encounter a Metroid just because you know they’re a big deal in this game.
Looking back I think Metroid II is a good sequel to a great game although some of the additions it made to the series place it above the original Metroid game. It certainly doesn’t help that Metroid eventually got a remake on the GameBoy Advance which essentially rendered it useless beyond the nostalgic value leaving Metroid II to stand out more. It’s often difficult to describe Metroid II but I like to think of it as “different but still kind of awesome in it’s own way“.
6) Metroid Fusion
We’re now arguably reaching that point in the list where everything from here on out was and still is, superb. Coming in at the sixth spot is Metroid Fusion, otherwise known as Metroid 4 and the direct sequel to the legendary Super Metroid. Creating a follow up to Super Metroid was never going to be easy and Fusion never attempted to top it’s predecessor, instead much like Metroid II it went off in it’s own direction. Depending on who you ask, this is either a good or bad move.
More so than any other Metroid game before it, Fusion was a very story driven game to the point where even the gameplay was affected by it. Traditionally Metroid had always been a series about exploration and navigation but Fusion opted to have a computer (Adam) tell players where to go which pissed off some of the more die hard fans of the series. It still allowed players to branch off but there’s no denying that this element was downplayed heavily so the game could tell the story it wanted to tell.
So the game guides you where to go, big deal, it’s still a fantastic Metroid game and some of the most fun I’ve ever had on a handheld. There’s still a fair amount of exploration, memorable boss battles, interesting environments and a very atmospheric tone alongside the inclusion of SA-X. In case you were wondering, SA-X is basically a fully powered up clone of Samus that ends up being one of the most terrifying enemies in all of gaming. Metroid Fusion more than any other game in the series did the best job of making me feel extremely vulnerable, weak and fragile whenever I encountered SA-X.
When discussing what the very best games in the series are, Metroid Fusion isn’t likely to get mentioned and may in fact be the victim of some hate thanks to it’s linearity approach but don’t be fooled. Metroid Fusion is every bit as good as Samus’ other 2D offerings and SA-X is an absolute show stealer. Grab a pair of headphones and play this one late at night, you won’t be disappointed.
5) Metroid Prime 2 Echoes
If you think Metroid II and Metroid Fusion had fans divided then you’ve seen nothing yet. Meet Metroid Prime 2 Echoes, the game that separated the men from the boys. I’m not here to sound cool or anything but Metroid Prime 2 is without a doubt, the Metroid game that only the most hardcore Metroid fan could enjoy. It’s definitely a love it or hate it game and I’m a massive fan of the series so I personally loved it
Metroid Prime 2 takes everything you loved from the original Metroid Prime and expands upon it, the boss battles are some of the best the series has ever seen and the morph ball returns with even more inventive ways of using it this time round. The game features a light and dark world similar to that of A Link to the Past which allows for some creative puzzle opportunities. For many the dark world was uninteresting and hiding in bubbles of light to avoid taking damage simply wasn’t fun but rather frustrating but to me, it again reminded me of Metroid Fusion where we saw a very weak underpowered Samus.
The “problem” with Metroid Prime 2 is that many players tend to give up before the game has had a chance to start offering up the rewards for all your hard work. The best boss battles, power ups and areas are all found in the later portion of the game so it certainly gets better the more you stick with it. Did you even know that Samus eventually becomes more powerful in the dark world that she is in the light world?
Those of you who love Metroid Prime 2, I tip my hat off to you as clearly you’ve demonstrated determination and willingness to overcome everything the game has thrown at you. I’m sure there will be players who will never understand our love for Metroid Prime 2 but between us, we know that Metroid Prime 2 is perhaps the most rewarding Metroid game in the entire series by the time the credits roll.
Quadraxis = Nuff Said!
4) Metroid Zero Mission
After creating Metroid Fusion where do you go from there? Create a direct sequel or perhaps go back to the Super Metroid formula? Well for Nintendo they decided to take the super secret third option, remake the original Metroid and bring it up to the standards seen in the later games. Doesn’t sound very exciting but Zero Mission joins Resident Evil on GameCube as the best remakes of all time.
Metroid Zero Mission in many ways feels like Nintendo took all the linearity criticism from Metroid Fusion to heart and instead gave us a 2D Metroid SO WELL DESIGNED that even the biggest Super Metroid fanboy will take note. Metroid Zero Mission is so hell bent on being a pure Metroid game that the developers actually made sequence breaking a part of the game, no seriously they intentionally designed the game to be torn apart by players therefore making it a speed runner’s dream. Some of the game’s best endings can be attained by not only finishing the game as quickly as possible but also with the lowest item collection percentage possible.
Being a remake of the original Metroid means everything has clearly overgone a drastic overhaul not only visually but also in terms of gameplay. Zero Mission features the most responsive Samus ever with the clunky wall jumps and screw attacks of Super Metroid being a thing of the past. It’s also a much faster Metroid game than we’re used to seeing, all of Samus’ actions are extremely speedy making her feel less like a walking tank and more a nimble yet capable bounty hunter.
If there’s only thing about Metroid Zero Mission that always upsets me it’s the game length, it won’t take much more than four hours to blow through this one but it’s SUCH a perfectly designed piece of software. They’ve even gone all out and added a whole new extra section on top of where the original Metroid game ended with Mother Brain which I would prefer not to spoil. Oh and it’s also worth mentioning that Zero Mission is where Samus’ blue zero suit made it debut went on to become the standard Samus look for when she’s not in her varia suit.
This probably won’t make much sense to some people but I’ll still say it anyway. Metroid Zero Mission may not be the best Metroid game but it’s probably the most well made one.
3) Metroid Prime 3 Corruption
This one is perhaps a controversial addition here but I’m going to run with it anyway. I don’t think anyone would deny that Metroid Prime 3 Corruption isn’t great but maybe not third greatest amongst this legendary series. The game sometimes has a reputation as being too “actiony”, too linear and too similar to Halo if you can believe that stupid comparison. I’m not here to tell you you’re wrong, I’m just here to tell you Metroid Prime 3 Corruption is some of the most straight up fun I’ve had in a Metroid game.
Metroid Prime 3 is the way it is because of the number in the title, this is the third Metroid Prime game so of course it’s going to be different. Retro Studios already made “the perfect Metroid” game with Metroid Prime and already went down the “darker” route for the sequel so Metroid Prime 3 is all about combining the best of both games to form a nice hybrid of the two. It ultimately doesn’t excel at either but it does lead to a varied and interesting Metroid game that as I’ve already mentioned, ends up being perhaps the most pure fun title in the series.
Upon it’s arrival Metroid Prime 3 made superb use of the Wii remote, playing Metroid Prime 3 honestly makes you feel like the Wii remote was designed around this game rather than the other way around. Since the core shooting element of the game is so much fun with a Wii remote, the game opts to increase the amount of shooting in order to take advantage of the new opportunities presented to it. The hyper mode feature is further proof of this but don’t worry, this is still a Metroid game through and through.
It’s the end of a trilogy, we’re going out on a high so let’s just all sit back and have a good time. That’s basically how I see Metroid Prime 3 and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Oh and don’t get any silly thoughts in your head that Metroid Prime 3 is lacking in ideas, the game features some great boss battles (mid air fight with Ridley anyone) and Elysia (cloud city) just might be my favourite area in all of the Metroid titles. Don’t forget to check out the texture work in this game, those artists at Retro Studios are insanely talented.
2) Super Metroid
I’m sure most of you saw this one coming but this is Super Metroid we’re talking about so of course it was always going to rank highly. It’s ultimately somewhat hard to put into words just how incredible this game is because it’s not something that really jumps at you initially, it’s not a game that you can sell someone on via the first ten minutes even though the first ten minutes are awesome. It’s a slow burn and it’s genius is only made apparent the more you play, everything Super Metroid ever does is subtle yet elegant.
Super Metroid was released in 1994, it’s the third Metroid game in the series but the leap it took from the first two games is so damn ridiculous that those games feel irrelevant as a result. Super Metroid didn’t just take a giant leap over it’s predecessors, it took a massive leap over every 2D game ever released up until that point. Even 19 years later nothing even comes close, sure there’s been plenty of imitators over the years but Super Metroid is still remains the game to beat. Nice try Shadow Complex and I’m sorry Castlevania, that inverted castle wasn’t enough to get the job done.
What makes Super Metroid so amazing is that it’s never in your face, the game is awesome, it knows it’s awesome and yet never brags about it. You play as Samus Aran, no, YOU ARE Samus Aran as you BOTH explore the world of planet Zebes in an attempt to find the last Metroid that Ridley steals from you at the start. Super Metroid NEVER assumes the player is stupid or incapable, nothing in this game is handed to you and your eagerness to explore is ALWAYS rewarded. Super Metroid doesn’t want you to be trigger happy, Super Metroid just wants you to pay attention.
The reason I said “YOU ARE” Samus Aran is because in Super Metroid neither you or Samus are any more knowledgeable than each other. Samus knowns just as much as you the player does, everything you’re discovering along the way for the first time is exactly how Samus is experiencing it herself. It’s this sense of mystery that pushes the player to continue playing, you’re not playing because you want to find out what happens to that Metroid, you’re playing because you’re genuinely interested in the world and that’s something so many games are incapable of doing. Much like the Metroid themselves, once Super Metroid grabs you, it can be hard to break free.
1) Metroid Prime
The second you started reading this Metroid top ten feature you knew it was going to come down to either Super Metroid or Metroid Prime. Ultimately I decided to go with Metroid Prime because because the jump to 3D allows for more opportunities and the team at Retro Studios seized every single one of them. Ask me again next year and I might give you a different answer, it’s always so hard to call it between these two.
I’m sure you all know the story by now, Super Metroid is one of the greatest games ever so the series goes dark for eight years because that makes total sense. Eventually the series does make it’s return in the form of a new 2D game (Metroid Fusion) and an ambitious 3D game developed by some Texas based developer no one has heard of. They’ve had four of their five games cancelled and Nintendo originally bought the studio for a mere $1 million, yup sounds like the team I’d like to have work on a new Metroid game.
Somewhere along the development of Metroid Prime, Shigeru Miyamoto came in and utterly cleaned house. He was the one who outright cancelled the other four project and suggested Metroid Prime go down the first person route. The game soon started to take shape and the final result was a first person adventure game for the Nintendo GameCube that upon it’s arrival received stupidly high scores and positive feedback from fans. Metroid had finally (if only briefly) become a bigger deal than Mario or Zelda.
Metroid Prime was about as good a transition to 3D as one could’ve ever hoped for, the perfect combination of both new and old. The old consisting of many nostalgic references from past games to remind you that you’re playing a Metroid title and the new to show you that they’re not just retracing old steps but this time in 3D. The switch to first person was pure Miyamoto genius as it takes an already atmospheric game and further enhances it by letting you see the world exactly as Samus does herself. Not every game benefits from being viewed in first person but Metroid was definitely one of those games.
The two elements that always stood out to me from Metroid Prime were the morph ball sequences and boss battles. The morph ball was an area that the team at Retro Studios clearly had a lot of fun playing around with, who would’ve ever thought a half pipe in a Metroid game would be a good idea? Add to that the return of the spider-ball from Metroid II and the possibilities for the morph ball alone already become very exciting. The boss battles themselves are also a big step up from Super Metroid and you only need to compare the Ridley battles from both games to see why 3D is clearly the way to go. Let’s not forget about the Omega Pirate who schools most of these n00b Metroid players.
Due to the interest of time I can’t stay here and explain all of the wonderful things Metroid Prime gets right, by now I’d like to think you know them all anyway. I’ve mentioned how Zero Mission is the most well designed, how Metroid Prime 2 features the best boss battles and how Metroid Prime 3 is the most fun but the reason the original Metroid Prime “wins” out over the other titles is because it’s the most well rounded one of the lot. If you were to take all the good and bad points of each game then average them out, Metroid Prime would be the best one and that’s why I’ve placed it on top of my list.
In Conclusion…
That’s pretty much it for my Metroid top ten, I must admit going into this I was rather worried about doing such a list. I wasn’t really sure if I would be capable of doing a Metroid top ten justice, I’m a massive fan of the series and the last thing I’d want to do is pump out a half assed feature on the series. To me Metroid represents quality and the source material commands a certain level of respect so anything associated with it should also be up to standard. I’m not suggesting I’ve succeeded in such a thing, that’s for you the reader to decide but I’ve given it my best shot. At the very least it’s not just some jpegs and a line of text under it spread out over ten pages in order to artificially increase our site traffic.
Oh my I almost forgot, there’s one Metroid game that I’ve yet to mention. I know EXACTLY what you guys are thinking and here it is.
Ah yes the ever loveable Metroid Blast featured in the Wii U pack in title, Nintendoland. Just look at those adorable looking Mii characters doing battle across land and air. It’s another example of a perfectly named entry in the series, it’s a Metroid game and it’s a blast. Sure it takes a little while to get used to be controls but once you do, you’ll find what is without the most “meaty” of the mini games offered up in Nintendoland. Have you guys seen Kraid and Ridley in Metroid Blast? It’s super cool and makes my heart feel all fuzzy seeing them in a completely new cartoony rendition.
So that’s my top ten Metroid titles with a special shout out to my home boy Metroid Blast, you keep rocking that little gunship buddy. It’s been six years since the release of Metroid Prime 3 Corruption so it’s been a good while since we last got a Metroid game. Keep this up Nintendo and the eight year gap between Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion/Prime will be topped, that’s certainly nothing to be proud about.
I think the time is right to bring back Metroid, the games industry has really gone downhill in the past few years with games incapable of presenting me with a challenge. Sit down Dark Souls fans because I’m talking about a mental challenge in regards to navigation, exploration and puzzle solving and not a sheer difficulty challenge for the sake of it. It’s like all these newer wave of games all think I’m some kind of idiot who has special needs and I just want to scream “Guys I’m a Metroid fan, your linear corridors aren’t going to trouble me too much”.
It does feel like games have strayed away so far from what they used to be that we could actually use a series like Metroid to remind everyone of what gaming used to be all about. Whatever happened to spending hours away locked in your room trying to collect that power up in Metroid because you knew it would grant you access to a dozen new areas just begging to be explored? When did this idea of being “lost” in a videogame be considered a bad thing? What the hell happened to gaming?
I’m not sure what Nintendo is up to these days in regards to the Metroid series but E3 is little over a week away. I think I speak for a lot of gamers when I say I’d love to see Metroid make a return at E3 be it via a new 2.5D game for the 3DS or something along the lines of Metroid Prime for the Wii U. I remain doubtful either of those will happen, at least not for a while anyway but we live in hope. We’re all eagerly awaiting your return Samus Aran.
Hey Samus, it’s me Xav. Thanks for answering my distress beacon, we could really use your help. Gaming has gone down the toilet and we need you to head to Earth to find out what’s going on. You’ll need to watch out as the planet has been infected with DLC and season passes, they even have these little time savers unlockables which are even more annoying than those fission Metroids you fought on back on Tallon IV.
Remember your computer buddy Adam? Remember how everyone poked fun at fun you for generally going where Adam told you to go? Well those same guys are are now happily playing games where a floating waypoint indicator tells them exactly where to go. You need to be careful Samus, some of these “hints” can take many different forms much like the X parasites from your Fusion days, I’ve even seen some mask themselves as arrows on the floor.
One more thing Samus, I just want to let you know that your old rival Lara is back. She’s in this new game called Tomb Raider that’s supposed to be pretty cool, I think she’s trying to take away your crown as the lady of gaming. Yeah I know, the nerve of her. Sort her out and there will be an extra energy tank waiting for you when you get back.
Kind Regards
Xav Perez
