Possibly the best thing about
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is that it's inspiring Nintendo to
release Metroid and Super Metroid on the Virtual Console. The
Metroid series has pretty much been masterpiece after masterpiece (and also
Hunters). We probably won't be indulging in the VC releases, since we own the NES, GBA, and Gamecube releases of
Metroid and a well-loved SNES
Super Metroid cartridge, but any time one of the classic games is made available for a new generation of gamers, it's great news.
What's your favorite
Metroid game? We play through
Super Metroid at least once a year, but nothing beats the original for pure, immersive atmosphere. But maybe you prefer one of the first-person games?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-11-2007 @ 11:08AM
vidGuy said...
Having never played Metroid and only played about 20% of Super Metroid, I have to say my favorite is Metroid Prime. But the retrospective videos floating around have really sold me on buying the first two console games for the VC. I'll try to give them a fair judgment, especially since they seem to have the same elements of MP just like all Zelda games since LttP are /really/ the same.
Maybe by the end of the month, middle of September I'll have a better grasp on what I like best.
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8-11-2007 @ 11:21AM
ZagZagovich said...
My favorite is First Mission for GBA. It was great in so many ways. Easy to pick up, awesome graphics and polished gameplay and even bonus level as Samus in her zero suit! On the other hand I hate Hunters. It was boring and ugly, I never got a chance to play it multyplayer but this does not matter to me at all.
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8-11-2007 @ 11:26AM
hvnlysoldr said...
It's not First Mission it's Zero Mission. I haven't played Super Metroid since I had a Genesis. Zero Mission had huge gameplay improvements over Fusion and definitely over the original. I really enjoyed Prime when I bought it. So freaking sweet and the environments, peeking at her in the visor. Metroid is awesome.
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8-11-2007 @ 11:27AM
alnyden said...
Super Metroid is the best game of all time in my opinion. I don't think a more perfect game has ever been made. I tried the original, and found it very very difficult, and did not make it very far. Perhaps I should give it another go.
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8-11-2007 @ 11:48AM
Michael Baker said...
Super Metroid is my favorite platform shooter of all time. I own the cartridge but the battery is failing so it no longer reliably saves. I will definitely be downloading the VC version so that I can enjoy it in progressive scan and save my progress without worrying.
I have been playing the original metroid on GBA (Classic NES series) and it is indeed very difficult. Compared to Super Metroid the control is terrible as Samus can only aim up, left, or right, which is very frustrating as many common enemies are shorter than Samus and therefore require the use of bombs, which feels clumsy, or progression through the game to get the wave beam, which requires quite a time investment. Still, I like the classic look of the game and the music is wonderful. I'll probably buy it on VC and try to beat it for a first time. As a retro Nintendo junkie I feel that it is my duty to beat the original Metroid at least once. I just hope that it enables saving like the Classic NES series GBA cart and original Japanese Famicom version did as I hate writing down passwords.
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8-11-2007 @ 12:48PM
Anthony said...
Did anyone else see the Metroid preview on the shopping channel last night? It is a free item in the Wii Ware section.
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8-11-2007 @ 12:52PM
Shadow31 said...
@ #5: All Virtual Console games allow saving; press the home button and return the the menu, then next time you play, you'll be back at that point.
Unfortunately, I've never played Super Metroid, but I'm psyched to finally have a chance. I have the points ready and I'm just waiting to download it the 20th. I agree, the original is difficult (controls probably felt better back in the NES days). I find it hard to compare the 2-D ones with the Primes because they're so different. 2-D, my favorite is Zero Mission, Prime, it's the second. Still, the pinball one was the greatest pinball game I've ever played (though the rumble felt like crap), and Hunters had a great online mode, though the single player sucked.
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8-11-2007 @ 12:58PM
matt said...
Super Metroid is by far my favorite, I also try to play through it every year or two since it was first released. I can't wait to get it again for the VC, now I just need to convince myself to not get the original on VC since I have it with Prime.... but it's only five bucks! That might be worth the convenience...
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8-11-2007 @ 1:00PM
Jglaus said...
deff prime. but for 2-d i would have to say fusion since those two games brought me into the series.
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8-11-2007 @ 1:02PM
Blue_Falcon said...
"The Metroid series has pretty much been masterpiece after masterpiece (and also Hunters)."
Haha good call.
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8-11-2007 @ 1:14PM
lovelain said...
supermetroid has been my favorite game for a loooong time now. i was so excited when i checked the blue pulsing on my wii yesterday morning! supermetroid has been THE game i've been waiting for on vc and now it's almost here!
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8-11-2007 @ 1:16PM
Shogan said...
I love the standee. I have a different one though. It's a Super Metroid standee with a life size Samus, and her visor is green tinted plastic. I might pull it out to celebrate!
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8-11-2007 @ 1:19PM
JC Fletcher said...
Shogan: PICTURES PLEASE
And Shadow31: I know I say this kind of thing a lot, but if you like video game pinball, I highly recommend Devil's Crush. Watch some videos on YouTube if you're not sure, but I think you'll like it.
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8-11-2007 @ 1:24PM
Mr Khan said...
I would definitely have to put Metroid up as my favorite franchise, just ahead of Sonic (me being the only one who liked them all, excluding Shadow and Sonic PS360). Metroid just has the perfect combination of exploration, action, art direction, and story. Plus, Super Metroid will give me something to play now that i'm done with Strikers' single player (although still hooked online), but before Metroid Prime 3
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8-11-2007 @ 1:49PM
Kael said...
Hey Nintendo... where's Metroid 5?!
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8-11-2007 @ 2:17PM
Devine said...
I have such a tough time deciding which is my favorite Metroid game: it's either Prime (the first one) or Super Metroid.
I think the "better" game is probably Super Metroid, but I think I'll just call it a tie on which is my "favorite".
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8-11-2007 @ 3:07PM
SkyCroc said...
I guess I'm the only one who loved Fusion. I didn't mind the mission based gameplay, which allowed SOME freedom. And the evolving environments and SA-X chases were definitely awesome. It also had a good plot, with a few twists.
I liked Super Metroid, but it felt like Metroid I v2.0. Same environments, just prettier with more items and bosses. Guess that's just me :X
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8-11-2007 @ 3:32PM
Mr Khan said...
I enjoyed fusion, too. I like a little guidance, but its not like they revealed all the secrets. Hidden passages and extra treasures still abounded. Prime's hint system worked better, since it didn't show the whole map of the way to where you needed to go, just showed the room itself, and its vague location relative to where you were. Metroid II also worked well, no maps, but you at least knew WHAT you had to do to go forward: Kill Metroids
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8-11-2007 @ 4:10PM
Comstock said...
Hunters was much better than Fusion, which was really easy, linear, and dull. That game was, for me, the biggest disappointment in the series.
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8-11-2007 @ 4:38PM
Jab7 said...
I don't feel right declaring the best Metroid, as I haven't played them all yet, but I would have to have my choice be Super Metroid. When I was maybe 7 or 8 years old, my sister was friends with our neighbors across the street, and I learned they owned a copy of a game called Super Metroid. I went over and played it literaly everyday until they decided to move, despite that I really didn't understand the game at all. And to this day I am amazed that a 2D Metroid for the SNES could provide more fear, loneliness, and adrenaline than any other Metroid I've played to date.
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8-11-2007 @ 4:46PM
mian said...
I'm pretty fond of the first Prime. They didn't shy away from a potentially "corrupting" first person mechanism, and they still managed to keep the franchise special.
Get Corruption Free: http://www.videogamelagoon.com/?ref=65048
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8-11-2007 @ 4:55PM
Mr Khan said...
@ Jab7: I've felt that Metroid Fusion and Metroid II rendered the better feeling of loneliness, because, as opposed to Super Metroid or the Primes, you are the only sentient, thinking creature in the entire area, everything else (The X parasites and the metroids, respectively) is a mindless monster bent on destroying you
In Metroid, Super Metroid, and Primes 1,2, & 3, you are just invading territory either owned or occupied by the space pirates, and the feeling projected is more of pursuit and hostility than real desolation.
Prime Hunters simply renders the feeling of intense competition
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8-11-2007 @ 5:27PM
Rich said...
The only Metroid game I've completed is Fusion, which I thoroughly enjoyed. It was my introduction to the series and I think it was a great way to dip my feet into the series.
I own MP2:E, but have yet to open it. I've played plenty of Prime Hunters multiplayer and much of the single player game, but I got so lost on my second visits to the planets that I gave up completely.
I'm looking forward to MP3:C.
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8-11-2007 @ 8:39PM
PokemonFANboy said...
METROID PRIME 3: CORRUPTION SUCKS!! Actually, all Metroid sucks. It is the most boring game. I have never seen more horrible games than from the Metriod series. I'd rather play Red Steel. It is terrible. And the new one is gonna suck too. If you wanna play a good shooter play halo or gears of war instead of this crappy excuse for a video game. It doesn't even compare to those games. James Bond: Goldeneye is a better game than this. Thanks Nintendo for another terrible game! Maybe they should put minigames in this too. That would just be great. This game won't even have online play. how terrible can it be. If they had half a brain they would have a good online shooter. But no, they are coming out with this crap where you play as a woman fighting extremely stupid enemies in a suit that looks like it should be in a toilet.
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8-11-2007 @ 8:54PM
pancakeGenocide said...
shut the frak up pokemonfanboy, you're out of your element. the prime series isn't trying to be a shooter. if you weren't so ignorant, maybe you would realize that. halo is fun but totally overrated. and i believe if you wikipedia gears of war, the definition of overrated comes up.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:04PM
PokemonFANboy said...
Alright pancakeGenocide. Great username by the way. It's hilarious. Sure got me chuckling. then what is the prime series trying to be? Well it doesn't really matter because it sucks and its boring.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:06PM
JC Fletcher said...
Okay, guys. Halo and Gears aren't terrible just because this one kid said Metroid Prime was.
Also, I don't see the point in coming into a 'favorite Metroid' thread saying they 'all' suck. Especially since you've clearly never played a non-Prime one.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:13PM
linkedtothepastry said...
By responding to the troll, you give him reason to continue. Just ignore it.
Super Metroid in terms of the Metroid series is easily the best game. In terms of replayability, I'd say Zero Mission (it was so good I played it three times in a row; I've never done that for any other game). Metroid Prime was also awesome. I think I was one of like three poeple that enjoyed Metroid Prime 2.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:19PM
Quiggy said...
Sadly, I've never played Super Metroid, but it's above Metroid Prime 3 in terms of order in which I need to get games. Good thing it's coming out a week sooner :)
Metroid Prime, then, was fantastic, as was Metroid Fusion. The original Metroid is fun, but I don't like it as much as the others. And linkedtothepastry, I'm another one of the ones who like MP2:E, though it's not as good as the first one.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:19PM
pancakeGenocide said...
I just wanted to clear up that metroid prime is not an FPS, and as much as i hate to use the term, it really is a first person adventure. the focus on platforming makes it an FPA. but it's all the subtle attention to detail that makes prime so engaging. the way her eyes reflect in the visor. the static effects from certain enemies. the way they successfully managed to mask on screen indicators by making them part of your HUD make you feel like you are samus aran. get in touch with your feminine side and let the hype overpass you. this game is a gem, and i can easily rank it as my favorite, right beside super metroid.
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8-11-2007 @ 9:31PM
vidGuy said...
Metroid was a 2D adventure game with some enemies that you shoot. Making it first person doesn't make it a FPS. Is Metal Gear Solid a FPS because you shoot in the first person?
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8-12-2007 @ 12:24AM
Leonidas said...
Huge lolz at pokemonfanboy. Keep moving along everyone.
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8-12-2007 @ 12:37AM
Patius said...
Super Metroid. Without a doubt.
Zero Mission was OK, but it was way too easy.
The best part was the Beam crossover part. You could pick which beams you wanted to be on.
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8-12-2007 @ 1:46AM
joel.ms1 said...
I'm suprised no one has mentioned Metroid II. When I bought that game in the fifth grade I probably played through it 100 times. It's the only Metroid I was able to get 100% on without any type of hint.
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8-12-2007 @ 2:48AM
James said...
Brain exploding @ pokemon fan saying Metroid is "boring"...
OK, better now. Anyway, Super Metroid was my introduction to the series, and my favorite -- I owned an NES way back when, but somehow managed to miss out on the first game. I went back and played it later, but I guess SM spoiled me: no map? No saves? No thanks. I liked the GBA Metroid games (would love a "real" Metroid for DS!), but the current Primes are definitely runner-up in my book. I'm positively humming with anticipation for Prime 3. I might buy SM for VC when it comes out, but I've been through at least 5 times in various iterations, and I don't get a lot of game time these days...
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8-12-2007 @ 10:06AM
jmwood said...
Fusion and Zero Mission were both too simple. But they were great handhelds. And as handhelds they were designed with an eye to being played in shorter intervals than console games. This would explain the easy bosses and over-abundance of save rooms. The original Metroid is far more difficult by comparison.
Super Metroid is great, but I think Prime wins in the end out of sheer perfection. (In all honesty, though, I think Echoes is better than Prime, since Echoes has the depth that Prime could have had but which would have been off-putting as an opener to the series. Corruption is likely to blow both out of the water.)
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8-12-2007 @ 11:31AM
Ryan said...
Wow, everyone has yet to say Metroid Prime: Pinball was the worst, which it was. I only play that game every once in a while. First of all, Metroid: Zero Mission was the easiest of the entire series. A game taking less than 7 hrs to beat, unlike the original one, was kinda disappointing. Metroid Prime series were awesome. They are not a first person shooter, they are a first person adventure. A first in the gaming industry. Yes, Metroid Prime Hunters was ok, but it had THE BEST FPS multiplayer for the DS.
Ok, on to the Metroid 2, it was much easier than Metroid, of course, but at least it was more linear and more manueverable through the game. Metroid 4 (Metroid: Fusion) on the other hand, was kinda disappointing to me, due to the new ugly suit and the crappy storyline, but still better than Metroid 2.
Then there's Metroid 3 (Super Metroid), probably best in the series, the graphics were and pretty much still are top notch, and the gameplay was replayable. Also had the best tie-ins with the other two metroid games (Metroid 1 & 2) [RECAP: Re-exploring the new Zebes, and baby metroid saves you] Metroid 4 was just baby metroid gives you vaccine and more metroids; and another reason to make a metroid game with X, and the memorable moment with SA-X.
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8-12-2007 @ 2:50PM
Croove55 said...
Alright, having never played Super Metroid, I'm definitely grabbing that when it comes out on VC. The original Metroid was way too tough for me, and I don't have much interest in completing it, since I know the story and trying to beat that game will just frustrate me beyond belief. I remember playing Metroid 2 when I was younger than 10 years old, and the game made absolutely no sense to me, mostly because I didn't know where the hell I was going and finding those damn hidden passages was a real shot in the dark. I enjoyed Metroid Fusion, but the story was pretty lame, and it was a bit too easy, although the ending was pretty good. Zero Mission was amazing, and is the main reason I have no interest in going back to the original.
Onto the Prime series, the first was fun and had a pretty damn good story setup for the rest of the series, but the damn fire level, ice level design, while a nice throwback to the older metroid games, was a bit unrealistic( I do realize the irony of calling any element in a science fiction game "unrealistic", sorry). Once you got to the *minor spoiler* phazon mines, the game took off.
Prime 2 made the mistake of using a beam ammo system, and most of the time I just used the power beam and missles except against the most annoying enemies. The atmosphere beat the orange metallic PANTS off of the story to Prime 1, though. The dark world just seemed good to me, and Aether really did feel more like a planet than Tallon IV. Also, as a side note, the Dark Suit looks damn cool, even better than the light suit.
I actually sold my copy of Hunters, because, while online play had it's moments, that was a horrible single player experience. Nintendo, we love your games, but don't try to do Retro Studios' job. They seem to know what they're doing here. Thumbs up for Sylux though, good character design.
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8-12-2007 @ 6:24PM
Stephen Munn said...
I've never completed Metroid 1 or 3, but of the ones I've played through, Prime is my favorite. I would consider it my favorite game of all time.
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8-13-2007 @ 1:05AM
Katotetu said...
Well, when it comes to single-player, I must say I liked the original Prime the most (the other games are too short, and Prime 2 concentrates on the whole light-dark thing WAY too much in the puzzles... it pisses me off!) I also think it did an amazing job of translating our much-loved universe to 3D, as well as initiating new recruits (Much like Zelda: Ocarina of Time or Super Mario 64) If you actually take time to read everything you scan, you can have a heck of a time, too. However, I felt that Hunters' multiplayer was extremely engaging, at least for a time. If it had been paid attention to, and perhaps patched over (there was certainly an unfair advantage given to alt-forms and clever Weavel users), I feel it could have unleashed an online following similar to that of Unreal Tournament, if not Counter-Strike. The characters were very unique, and whenever you were tired of one, another was ready for you to play. I fancy myself as a Sylux user, with an emphasis on the shock coil and imperialist (brawling and sniping - what else do you need?). LET'S FIGHT!
2. If anyone is still reading this, wanna tell me how to use the "current user" thingy on these blogs? I never figured it out.
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8-13-2007 @ 1:09AM
JC Fletcher said...
There's a password in every confirmation email. If you put your email address and that password in the Current Users area, you won't have to do confirmations anymore.
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8-13-2007 @ 10:02AM
jmwood said...
I liked the puzzles in Echoes. I thought the interplay of light and dark worlds notched up the challenge in a way that was interesting rather than tedious. That's a hard balance to strike: a Metroid game whose progressive stages are neither straightforward nor overly obscure.
The original Metroid nears tedium at points, that is, unless you're willing to map everything out by hand and take copious notes on potentially hidden openings (which you were probably meant to do). Then again, tedium or not, there was something to this. This style of exploration has been missing in every game since the original. (I confess to having never played Metroid II.) But this is an aspect of Metroid that could not have sustained an entire series. To attract gamers to the franchise they had to replace it with maps and targeted rooms, which, fortunately, made possible an increased emphasis on story and depth as seen in Super Metroid and the Prime series. Fusion practically gave up exploration to concentrate solely on story-line, and with poor results. In contrast, exploration and story were excellently matched in Super Metroid.
Finally, I don't think Prime struck the right balance. The buzzing power-ups limited exploration too much and made finding power-ups a bit mind-numbing. It was just too easy. I think Echoes made up for the ease of collecting power-ups that Prime suffered from by placing puzzles in our way. It seems to me that, of the Metroid games, Echoes has everything that could be wished for: the best and most sophisticated combination of depth and difficulty.
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8-13-2007 @ 10:14AM
Gabriel Marcastlebach said...
I'm a metroid collecter/freak. I own every single Metroid game. I would have to say Super Metroid takes the cake. Next would be Metroid II (First one I owned). Fusion also has a very good storyline and very immersive gameplay.
I'm hoping Prime 3 will be the best yet.
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8-13-2007 @ 10:19AM
Gabriel Marcastlebach said...
And also, Hunters was not a bad game. Sure the bosses never changed, really... that was the only thing that made me mad though.
If you like Metroid at all, you would take time to appreciate Hunters.
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