Metroid Prime was released in November of 2002 on the Nintendo Gamecube (Also was released for the Nintendo Wii as part of the Metroid Prime Trilogy, but this is a review of the Gamecube version) and was developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo. It is the first 3D Metroid game and the fifth game in the Metroid series overall. Metroid Prime is the first Metroid game to have a first person perspective. With the release of Metroid Prime (along with Metroid Fusion), came the end of an eight year period since the release of the previous Metroid game, Super Metroid in 1994. Being the first Metroid game to be released in eight years and the first game to have new mechanics, Metroid Prime had many expectations. Although, Metroid Prime would meet all the expectations and set a new standard for Metroid games to come.
The story of Metroid Prime takes place some time after the events of original Metroid. Samus receives a distress signal from the Space Pirate Frigate Orpheon, Samus the lands on the frigate and begins to investigate. Its not to long before Samus figures out that the Space Pirate Crew aboard the frigate have killed or seriously injured by their experiments just before her arrival. She then faces the Parasite Queen, a larger version of the small creatures that Samus previously encountered in the frigate. After the Parasite Queen’s defeat, the ship starts to self-destruct due the Parasite Queen falling in the reactor core. After losing her Varia Suit and some other powers, Samus encounters Meta Ridley, who has been cybernetically enhanced. Meta Ridley then flees to a nearby planet called Tallon IV and Samus pursues him in her ship. However, Samus loses Meta Ridley and is forced to land and pursue on foot. Samus then explores the surrounding areas to search for Ridley and investigate Space Pirate activity on Tallon IV. The story then progresses throughout the game with small cut scenes, Chozo Lore and Pirate Logs. The Chozo Lore provides the back-story to what happened to Tallon IV and the Chozo civilization that lived there. The Pirate Logs provide the story surrounding the Space Pirate activity on Tallon IV and the new plans they have to defeat Samus and conquer the Galactic Federation. Both the Lore and the Logs are entertaining to read and a nice way to progress the story then the normal cut scenes. Overall, the story in Metroid Prime is very good and provides an interesting new story for the Metroid series.
The graphics for Metroid Prime are amazing for a game that was released early in the life of the Nintendo Gamecube. All of the areas that you visit in Metroid Prime looks amazing and each area has great detail to the design and the character designs in the game also look great. There is also a great variety in the areas you visit. The soundtrack in Metroid Prime is just as great and one of the better soundtracks in the series. Each music track used in this game sound amazing and fit the environment they are used in. Some of the music tracks are remixed tracks from previous Metroid games such as the music that you hear in Magmoor Caverns. A great soundtrack for a great game. Overall, Metroid Prime has amazing graphics with excellent detail and has a great soundtrack to go along with this great game.
The gameplay of Metroid Prime is where this game truly shines. Metroid Prime has the same gameplay elements from previous Metroid games such as the traditional exploration of different areas and the item hunting that goes along with it. There is the traditional platforming as well as puzzle solving and battling enemies as well. The controls for Metroid Prime are very basic and easy to get used to. You move around with the control stick, jump with the B button, fire your weapons with the A button, change into Morph ball mode with the X button, switch between the different beams and visors with the c-stick and the control pad, switch between beams and missiles with the Y button, use the map with the Z button, and use the L and R buttons to lock on to enemies and to aim. The main new feature that makes this Metroid game different from some of the past games in the series is the first person view. Metroid Prime is the first game in the Metroid series to feature a first person view and it acts as Samus’s helmet. The first person view has many displays such as the energy meter, the different types of beams and visors, the number of missiles, a radar, a map of the area, a danger level meter, and the cross-hair for your weapons. A great new feature that really fits the combat system and the style of game. There are other new features that come from this new type of gameplay such as the ability to scan. Scanning is a nice feature that can help you out in different ways, such as finding the weak points to different types of enemies or scanning different machines to activate them to progress further in a level. Although, I wish that they did not make scanning enemies and objects a priority towards completing the game 100 percent since you can easily miss different scans that you are only able to scan one time such as bosses. All in all, the new features and gameplay elements added to Metroid Prime are great and work really well and even though it shares similar characteristics with a first person shooter, Metroid Prime is classified as a first person adventure since the game focuses on the exploration of different areas over battling enemies. Overall, Metroid Prime has great gameplay that sticks with the basics of past Metroid games as well as add some new and innovative features as well.
Overall, Metroid Prime is an amazing game that has taken all of the gameplay elements from Metroid games before it and added some new innovative features to create a great game. Everything in this game was really well done and absolutely flawless. The story, graphics, and the soundtrack were also really well done. Metroid Prime is definitely one of the better Metroid games as well as one of the better Gamecube games. Metroid Prime is also one of the more innovative games and maybe one of the greatest games ever made and I would give Metroid Prime a 10 out of 10.
Media Gallery
