Zebes: Metroid General Thread

[A Distant Demon]

I am shocked and appalled there isn't a general thread for this series.

For those of you who don't know what Metroid is (*gasp*) it a series with platforming roots.

The original Metroid was a 2d platformer with a humongous amount of exploration released on the NES. Defeating enemies like Kraid and Ridley, collecting new abilities like the famous morph ball to destroy the titular characters, the Metroid.



After that Metroid would evolve as a 2D platformer with multiple games with more platforming, shooting, exploration, and backtracking, until the gamecube.


Then gaming bliss was released as Metroid Prime. A first person shooter in a 3D environment with just as much exploration and fun.

Spoiler: current* Metroid games

Metroid Games
NES

• Metroid

Game Boy

• Metroid II: Return of Samus

Super Nintendo

• Super Metroid

Nintendo Gamecube

• Metroid Prime
• Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

Game Boy Advance

• Metroid Fusion
• Metroid: Zero Mission
• Classic NES Series: Metroid

Nintendo DS

• Metroid Prime Pinball
• Metroid Prime: Hunters

Wii

• Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
• Metroid Prime Trilogy
• Metroid: Other M

*does not include the upcoming Metroid Prime Federation Force.

Also it has some sweet music.

Spoiler

So yeah. Let's discuss our bad ass bounty hunter!

 

[Depressed Gengar]

Why is Federation Force on the poll when the game hasn't even been released yet?

 

[Aetheri]

*smacks self for not thinking of making this thread*

Btw Metroid NX! Please Nintendo!!!!

Also thoughts on Federation Force?

 

[A Distant Demon]

So yeah just beat Zero Mission like I said in the social. I own every game in the series except pinball. I just need to beat some of them (Prime 3, hunters, Other M, Metroid 2. I haven't even started fusion)

Why is Federation Force on the poll when the game hasn't even been released yet?

I forgot you can edit polls now. I took an extra precaution.

But now it seems like I can't remove poll options.

Also thoughts on Federation Force?

I'm somewhat ok with it. I have no issues with spinoff games at all. The timing is pretty horrendous though.

I'm just mad I will have issues playing it because my 3DS can't connect online at college.

 

[Burruni]

I will always feel like an outsider in the Metroid community because I don't enjoy the Prime games.

However, I still wait for an actual game to come...

 

[Aetheri]

I will always feel like an outsider in the Metroid community because I don't enjoy the Prime games.

However, I still wait for an actual game to come...

What is it about the Primes you don't enjoy?....jus curious...

So yeah just beat Zero Mission like I said in the social. I own every game in the series except pinball. I just need to beat some of them (Prime 3, hunters, Other M, Metroid 2. I haven't even started fusion)

I forgot you can edit polls now. I took an extra precaution.

But now it seems like I can't remove poll options.
I'm somewhat ok with it. I have no issues with spinoff games at all. The timing is pretty horrendous though.

I'm just mad I will have issues playing it because my 3DS can't connect online at college.

Pretty much the same...was fairly disappointed upon its initial announcement, but I never bothered grabbing my torch and pitchfork...

One thing that worries me is the focus on multiplayer...which basically means 'More fun with friends!!'...one reason I enjoy metroid games was because of the single player experience, I don't have to worry about getting together with others to get the most out of the game...not to mention most of my irl friends don't really play video games that often (they prefer drinking and shooting the ****)...

 

[Burruni]

What is it about the Primes you don't enjoy?....jus curious...


Pretty much the same...was fairly disappointed upon its initial announcement, but I never bothered grabbing my torch and pitchfork...

One thing that worries me is the focus on multiplayer...which basically means 'More fun with friends!!'...one reason I enjoy metroid games was because of the single player experience, I don't have to worry about getting together with others to get the most out of the game...not to mention most of my irl friends don't really play video games that often (they prefer drinking and shooting the ****)...

I have almost never felt comfortable in the first-person perspective in games.
Taking a series I enjoy into a gameplay style I'm not fond of and in a means that really makes it feel floaty and slow in comparison to the speed you ASSOCIATE with the character it just didn't blend well for me when it did for a lot of people.

 

[Aetheri]

I have almost never felt comfortable in the first-person perspective in games.
Taking a series I enjoy into a gameplay style I'm not fond of and in a means that really makes it feel floaty and slow in comparison to the speed you ASSOCIATE with the character it just didn't blend well for me when it did for a lot of people.

I suppose that makes sense...transitioning from a 2D perspective to an actual 3D POV perspective can be a big leap...that's one reason why a lot of fans were against it initially...

I would say that's one thing about it being first person is the fact that 'your' the one viewing the world around you as opposed to controlling said character from an outside perspective, which to me at least makes it a more worth while experience because your the one exploring the planet...If that's something you don't enjoy then it can't really be helped...I do hope to see more 2D platforming in future Metroid titles, but I'd be sad if the FP perspective were taken out (though I wouldn't mind if they took it out of Other M since it was poorly implemented)...

 

[Burruni]

I suppose that makes sense...transitioning from a 2D perspective to an actual 3D POV perspective can be a big leap...that's one reason why a lot of fans were against it initially...

I would say that's one thing about it being first person is the fact that 'your' the one viewing the world around you as opposed to controlling said character from an outside perspective, which to me at least makes it a more worth while experience because your the one exploring the planet...If that's something you don't enjoy then it can't really be helped...I do hope to see more 2D platforming in future Metroid titles, but I'd be sad if the FP perspective were taken out (though I wouldn't mind if they took it out of Other M since it was poorly implemented)...

Don't get me wrong.
I respect the design choice around Prime and from an "objective" standpoint it was a very strong way to take it in order to keep the kind of narrative tone with it being such an isolationist adventure.
It just wasn't one I could personally enjoy.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

I was a huge metroid fan at one time, but I don't really like the prime series or really anything that has followed it

 

[Swamp Sensei]

Fusion is my favorite.

 

[finalark]

Give me some of that sweet, tasty Prime.

I was never really into the 2D games that much. Not that they're bad, they're actually pretty damn good. But I always found the Prime series more engaging and immersive. I'm really hoping we go back to something similar in whatever Metroid U/NX might be.

 

[Venus of the Desert Bloom]

Where's the Metroid Prime Trilogy option? That get's my votes.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

What kind of terrible ago do we live in where Metroid Prime gets more votes than Super Metroid

 

[IsmaR]

It's almost as if they're both good games

and people have preferences or something

 

[Swamp Sensei]

I'm curious.

Do you prefer the more subtle narrative like Metroid Prime and Super Metroid or a more blunt but expansive narrative like Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and Metroid Fusion?

 

[Aetheri]

When it comes to Metroid, less is more...the subtlety allowed for more freedom and story elements were discovered along the way while exploring...

A greater story can however allow for some more depth and character development, which Samus could use (in a non-Other M kind of way), but usually exploration and immersion was sacrificed due to the more linear elements...

 

[finalark]

I'm curious.

Do you prefer the more subtle narrative like Metroid Prime and Super Metroid or a more blunt but expansive narrative like Metroid Prime 3 Corruption and Metroid Fusion?

I feel like the Metroid series is one that shines when it lets you piece things together on your own instead of shoving it all down your throat.

Given the series' exploration focus, I like the idea of finding bits of pieces of the story as you go.

 

[Deleted member]

This All-Star congratulations screen makes me want a Metroid game by Platinum Games in the same style as Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance to happen.

 

[Venus of the Desert Bloom]

Personally, I have always wanted an open-world space exploration game within the Metroid world.

 

[MasterOfKnees]

I'm curious.

Do you prefer the more subtle narrative like Metroid Prime and Super Metroid or a more blunt but expansive narrative like Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and Metroid Fusion?

For me the subtle way of telling the narrative that's present in Super and Prime is one of Metroid's defining traits, I think it's incredibly important as instead of dragging you out of the experience it enhances it instead, and that's absolutely key in setting the unique mood that Metroid usually has. For me there's nothing unique about the way Fusion, Corruption and Other M went about with telling their stories and their stories aren't even anything special either, so it's not a compromise that's worth taking imo.

 

[A Distant Demon]

Really really late to this reply but there is something utterly wonderful about Super Metroid's and Prime's story telling. More so Super because of no scan feature but you get the gist.

One of my most vivid memories of Prime is when Ridley escapes Frigate Orpheon. There are a bunch of little things that tell you a lot. No voice acting was needed to let me know Samus os ****ing pissed RIdley is alive.


As for Super that game does enviorments so well it probably counts as storytelling. Let me put it this way. I didn't play Super Metroid until a year or two ago. I knew about the Baby Metroid's sacrifice YEARS in advance. Without a single uttered word it still made me sad and still made me want revenge for those pixels. THAT takes gusto. No comment on Fusion as I haven'y played it yet. Prime 3 is fine with dialogue from what i've played so far. I remember quite clearly Ghor's death. More beutiful silent storytelling (desperation at shooting a ghost. The clenched fist etc.)

TLDR if they can make storytelling as good as Super, go for it.

 

[Deleted member]

http://mynintendonews.com/2016/03/0...s-and-kensuke-tanabe-no-longer-on-good-terms/

And Yoshio Sakamoto would become the new producer of Retro.

 

[A Distant Demon]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=197587893&postcount=211


So it seems that rumor isn't fully reasonable

 

[Deleted member]

Super Metroid for the Super Famicom was released on this day in Japan, 22 years ago (1994) pic.twitter.com/EfiVEHKYQc

— OnThisDayInGaming (@OnThisDayGaming) March 19, 2016

Super < Zero Mission though.

 

[Fox who?]

I love the 2D metroids. I played the first three primes, and dropped the series after Corruption. However, I absolutely love Super, Zero Mission, and (which I will always defend) Fusion.

Zero Mission is probably my favorite, with it's unique take on the original, and that little bonus section at the end. THAT just made the game for me!

My second favorite is probably Fusion, for a variety of reasons, the main one probably being because nostalgia, since I played that one most as a kid.

However, I do believe that was a great game in the franchise. They were trying to give a different and unique feel for the series. Instead of the open world exploration, they were trying to change things up. I really loved the subtle, spooky feel. That feeling of that...thing following you as you play for the entire game, and one of franchise's few good linear stories make it extremely enjoyable, at least for me. I was just disappointed in the last boss, but definitely appreciated the Super cameo.

Seriously though, how is it not unnerving for this thing always trying to find you?

Spoiler

 

[LancerStaff]

I'm surprised there's so many people here who don't like Prime... I don't think very highly of it either.

My main problem is that you're either saddled with garbage controls or they've patched all the fun stuff out, or in Prime 3's case was completely linear to begin with. I mean, what's the fun in a Metroidvania you have to play the same way every time?

 

[Fox who?]

I'm surprised there's so many people here who don't like Prime... I don't think very highly of it either.

My main problem is that you're either saddled with garbage controls or they've patched all the fun stuff out, or in Prime 3's case was completely linear to begin with. I mean, what's the fun in a Metroidvania you have to play the same way every time?

I suppose I was a bit negative on the Primes. I really liked 1 & 2, but 3 burned me. I liked the non-linear feel of 1, and 2 just had sentimental value with me. I honestly don't mind linear Metroids, as long as they're executed well.

 

[SimonBarSinister]

My vote goes to the Prime series. It was one of the first games I've played on the GCN, which quickly became one of my favorite games of all time. When I compare Prime to Super, it's like Retro took everything that was good about Super, made it better, and tossed it into the 3D realm (with the FPS perspective to boot). Fantastic gameplay, a memorable world and a unique method of storytelling (the logbook was one of my favorite aspects), Prime was a product of Retro showing the world how to bring a 2D series into 3D, and they made it look easy.

Prime 2 was good too, but it had flaws, most notably the beam ammo system. And backtracking through the light and dark worlds at regular intervals was quite a chore at times. But to it's credit Prime 2 gave us Dark Samus, which, in my opinion, is the greatest boss in all of Metroid.

Despite Prime 3's linearity (and other gameplay changes I wasn't exactly thrilled with), I still found it enjoyable to play multiple times, especially on Hypermode difficulty.

It's a shame that Other M wasn't handled with such care. It was basically a really bad fanfiction. A bad fanfiction with utterly crappy controls and just plain bad game design ("Not authorized"? Seriously?).

 

[Swamp Sensei]

just plain bad game design ("Not authorized"? Seriously?).

That's not game design.

That's writing.

The idea of earning new powers as you play is good game design.

They just justified it with bad writing.

 

[Burruni]

That's not game design.

That's writing.

The idea of earning new powers as you play is good game design.

They just justified it with bad writing.

The worst thing is that...
It's a damn good concept to try to work around it without her literally losing all her powers in between games... or the entire suit.
It just can't justify anything outside of weaponry how they set it up.
And of course there's the one glaring bit about the Varia suit AFTER completing a lava run.

 

[SimonBarSinister]

The worst thing is that...
It's a damn good concept to try to work around it without her literally losing all her powers in between games... or the entire suit.
It just can't justify anything outside of weaponry how they set it up.
And of course there's the one glaring bit about the Varia suit AFTER completing a lava run.

Previously you HAD to avoid going into super-heated areas without the Varia Suit, which coaxed you to find alternate routes until you eventually came across the upgrade (usually needing to down a boss first). But when your only route is through such an area when you don't have the upgrade active until finding out you need it to beat the boss (instead of beating the boss first then claiming the reward)....it's just one of those things that left a bad impression.

 

[Burruni]

Previously you HAD to avoid going into super-heated areas without the Varia Suit, which coaxed you to find alternate routes until you eventually came across the upgrade (usually needing to down a boss first). But when your only route is through such an area when you don't have the upgrade active until finding out you need it to beat the boss (instead of beating the boss first then claiming the reward)....it's just one of those things that left a bad impression.

Also the matter of it solely being a quality of life item that does nothing but enhance Samus's survivability.
"Hey, we don't want you using powerbombs when there could be civilians still alive here."
Totally get that.
"You can't turn on Varia because no."
A shame that the team writing and developing the game were of entirely seperate companies and basically communicated in quick emails.

 

[LancerStaff]

OM did some things right, though mostly wrong. Not a god-awful game but definitely not enough Metroid in it.

The whole idea of a third person Metroid with a fixed camera has a ton of potential, and is arguably the best part of the game. Moving around, blasting weaklings, and the exploring and puzzle solving you had were all fun. The missile aiming and the recharging HP and ammo thing were okay but a bit experimental, but dodging was 100% broken. Just mash a direction and you were immune to most everything. There was no reason to try timing anything, and there wasn't any risk in attacking besides with missiles which absolutely wasn't worth it. Admittedly combat was never a strong part of Metroid but at least Fusion and the Prime games weren't completely broken.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

Other M was a decent game with a very bad plot.

 

[Aetheri]

Fundamentally and structurally, Other M is an ok game, at best...In hindsight, is it a game I would've wanted to play had it not been a Metroid game? No...That's what the biggest problem is...Outside of being a 'Metroid' game there's nothing about it that really interests me about it...

It has a poor plot, terrible control set-up, lackluster soundtrack, various aspects were just thrown in to pad the game unnecessarily, and added fan-service/nostalgia fuel implemented with no real purpose (ie, Zero suit segment, Phantoon)...and when it comes to it being a Metroid game; there was very little exploration involved, way too much plot-railroading and not enough freedom for the player, as well as major inconsistencies in the chronology, there were other features implemented from other game that were heavily watered down...Overall it left a lot to be desired and it tried to do too much with what it had...if that makes sense...

I do like how it 'tries' to implement more CQC into Metroid...but for the most part it's just added flashiness rather than another way to fight...Once again the control set-up was way too limited for what the game tried to accomplish here...
I do want to see more combat implemented in future games, doesn't need to be full on Smash Bros combat, but at the very least add a melee option to get enemies off of you if they get too close which is something that would be nice in some Metroid games...

 

[Deleted member]

There's a question which haunts my mind since a while : should the Metroid timeline get a reboot ?

 

[Swamp Sensei]

There's a question which haunts my mind since a while : should the Metroid timeline get a reboot ?

Why?

We only have one game with a bad plot and even then it's definitely salvageable.

 

[Deleted member]

Why?

We only have one game with a bad plot and even then it's definitely salvageable.

Because it looks like Sakamoto, or any other person at Nintendo involved with the franchise, has no idea on what to develop the events occured in the end of Fusion :

Spoiler

Samus being now part-human, part-Chozo and part-Metroid, the Metroid, X and Space Pirates being extinct (presumably), and a faction of the Federation revealed to be corrupted.

I mean, with all the main treats in the universe disappeared and Samus become literally the Ultimate Warrior, it looks Sakamoto put too much elements for an eventual Metroid 5 and that he doesn't know how to make its scenario not redundant.

 

[Aetheri]

Because it looks like Sakamoto, or any other person at Nintendo involved with the franchise, has no idea on what to develop the events occured in the end of Fusion :

Spoiler

Samus being now part-human, part-Chozo and part-Metroid, the Metroid, X and Space Pirates being extinct (presumably), and a faction of the Federation revealed to be corrupted.

I mean, with all the main treats in the universe disappeared and Samus become literally the Ultimate Warrior, it looks Sakamoto put too much elements for an eventual Metroid 5 and that he doesn't know how to make its scenario not redundant.

I don't really see a need for a total series reboot other than a remake or two akin to Zero Mission...if they were to add any other games that's not Metroid 5 or a new Prime I can see it fit along side the Primes between I and II seeing as it occurs before Samus wipes out the Space Pirates and Metroids....this seems to be the most pliable area within the timeline...

As for a follow-up to Fusion I'm sure it's possible for Nintendo to add in additional threats as was done with the X in Fusion...perhaps another hostile race similar to the Space Pirates emerges after Fusion, or Samus could be in search for what's left of the Chozo as they have colonizaed various planets other than the now destroyed Zebes and SR388...

If anything Metroid 5 has an opportunity to continue to expand upon the Metroid Universe outside of Space Pirates and Metroids even though they are the main threats in the timeline...The Primes introduced Phazon and hostile races like the Ing, so Metroid 5 could introduce another threat or plot device in a similar way...