See You Next Mission

EDITORIAL

Metroid Prime 3 Corruption is here and we’ve finally had some time to sink our teeth into it. It’s a truly great game, a tremendous and fitting end to a great trilogy. I have a lot of respect for what Retro Studios was able to do with a much beloved Nintendo franchise. Many thanks go to their team as I play through the incredible last installment of Metroid Prime. However, as I sit and play this magnum opus, I find myself wondering, where do we go from here? What’s next for our favorite bounty hunter Samus Aran and her Metroid-blasting exploits? Nobody but Nintendo knows for sure, but I have a few ideas for what I would like to see, and some suggestions for Nintendo to keep one of their flagship franchises relevant for years to come.

The Metroid series has a history of innovation in the gaming industry. The free-exploration offered by the first Metroid for the NES was an unprecedented leap in game design. Allowing the screen to scroll in four directions gave players a new challenge to explore a contiguous world, while the sheer size ensured a nice, long stay. The 2-D Metroid games may be just “run, jump, and shoot” type games at heart, but they have carved out their own niche, defining a genre of like games (“Metroid-vania” anyone?). The legendary Gunpei Yokoi set the bar very high with the Metroid series, continuously raising it with the subsequent games he was able to work on. Metroid II was the first must-have game for the original Game Boy, while Super Metroid for the SNES would become, and continue to be, the standard against which the entire genre is judged. The Metroid Prime series was also rather unique, choosing to integrate adventure and puzzle aspects into the typical first-person formula. Metroid must continue its tradition of innovation and quality as it moves forward into the future.

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is obviously the pinnacle of the Prime series. Retro Studios deserve all the accolades they receive for delivering a top-notch Wii game and greatly surpassing all expectations. They have expressed interest in taking a break from the Metroid series and, frankly, I think they’ve earned it. In fact, I think it would be best for the franchise to see what another group of talented developers can do with it. Let’s face it, another Prime game would be just that, unable to really break out of the mold that has worked so well for it. There is a diminishing marginal return for every trip to the well and it may be time for the Metroid Prime engine to be honorably retired. I’d like to see Retro move on to other projects, perhaps something original, so we can see what else they can do. I’d hate to see such a talented group of developers get typecast as “Those Metroid Guys.” Maybe we’ll see Raven Blade make a comeback?

The other entity most associated with Metroid is Intelligent Systems, and I think it’s about time their break was over. Intelligent Systems is largely comprised of people from the original team that started it all under Gunpei Yokoi. They created Metroid and have produced all of the 2D games in the series. If anyone knows what Metroid is all about, it’s these guys. Their GBA outings, Fusion and Zero Mission, were both stellar games, easily doing justice to the legacy of Super Metroid. It’s actually kind of a shame that both of those games were overshadowed by the Prime series on Gamecube. Console games are typically looked at as being the bigger, better product. It’s a natural inclination (though handhelds are starting to compete more and more with their less portable brethren). Intelligent Systems deserves to be the premier developer for the series they created and I would like to see them bring forth the next Metroid game for Wii. It’s a spot they have earned and a great way to ensure that the legacy of Mr. Yokoi is never forgotten.

With Wii and DS, Nintendo has quite a powerful market presence in both the console and handheld arenas. This gives them the ability to take a two-pronged approach to a game series like Metroid. In fact, they’ve done it before, with Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion, and I thought it worked rather well. I was excited to buy both games around the same time and play through them together even though their storylines were pretty much unrelated. Tying games together through unlockable bonus features is something I really enjoy though it has the potential to turn off some consumers who don’t have both games or both systems. The important thing is that the games each offer a unique and high quality experience. Many companies who attempt this approach basically make a handheld game that is a watered-down version of the console title. Certainly Nintendo could avoid this with Metroid by using different development houses to create two unique visions of the same universe.

We’ve had 2D and 3D Metroid games, and both series have followed a set formula. I think it’s time for something new in the Metroid series. I already have said that I would like to see Intelligent Systems take the flagship role as the console developer for the franchise. Certainly they are a group who like to think outside the box, and have delivered many unique titles over the years. Utilizing a new engine and the Wii’s unique controls, a new genre could again be created by the Metroid series. I envision a kind of third-person shooter/adventure, but with a side view instead of the typical over-the-shoulder POV. You would still maintain some 3-D motion, but with a fixed view like a side-scroller, kind of like the next level of “2.5D.” I’m no game designer, but I think that something like that could work really well, especially on Wii. For those that still haven’t had their fill of Prime, perhaps that series could continue on DS with more Hunters-like games, though with a more in depth single-player experience. How unprecedented would it be for the 3D games to go portable, while the console holds a 2D counterpart?

A new kind of game would also necessitate some fancy new weapons and power-ups added to the mix. When the jump to 3D was made, a lot of the traditional power-ups had to evolve to work better with the game mechanic. Giving Samus some new movement systems that are specialized for a 2.5D environment would be a must, as interacting with backgrounds would be essential. I’d like to see a mix of classic and new weapons, possibly with an advanced stacking system that lets the user combine weapons for radically different effects. Seeking out suit upgrades is a staple of the Metroid franchise, and that shouldn’t change. I prefer the idea of just sort of randomly finding them as opposed to fighting a guardian for them as it was done in the Prime series and Metroid Fusion. I think it promotes the idea of exploration, and with the sheer number of power-ups Metroid games typically offer, a player could be searching them out for quite a while.

Early Metroid games weren’t really heavy on story, which fits with Nintendo’s style. More recently, though, the developers have been fleshing out the Metroid universe, providing more story elements in games like Metroid Prime and Fusion. While the Prime Trilogy has been compelling and story driven, the plot takes place after the original game and before Metroid II: The Return of Samus. I would like to see what happens next for Samus, a true “Metroid 5” so to speak (Fusion is referred to as “Metroid 4” in the opening animation). Samus had gained a new suit, new abilities, and potentially a new status as an outlaw after the events of Fusion, and it’s time to follow the heroine’s adventures into the future. There’s nothing wrong with prequels and interstitial stories, but there’s only so much room to develop plots in those kinds of games. Metroid actually has one of the tightest timelines of any Nintendo franchise (compare it to the confusion that is Zelda for example) and they should keep that intact while developing future stories.

The one thing that connects every game in the series is the Metroid creature itself. The gelatinous, fang-bearing, and overly creepy little critters really fit in well with the atmosphere of the universe in which the games take place. In every Metroid game there is “the moment,” the part of the game when the Metroids first reveal themselves. In the original game when you finally get into the Tourian, hearing the churning, biological music, you descend into the depth only to see a throbbing, monstrous blob swoop in from below. They are much bigger and scarier looking than they were in the instruction booklet. It holds beneath your platform, swaying back and forth waiting for you to make your move so it can suck your life force dry. The blood-curdling cry the vile creatures make in the Prime series always sends chills through a player and gets your heart moving that much faster. The point is that the Metroid creature is the most important aspect of the franchise, moreso than even Samus herself. It may seem like they are running out of plots using the creatures, but there’s really no other option. There is a reason the series isn’t called “Bounty Hunter Samus Aran.” It may seem a little hackneyed after seven games, but it is necessary to maintain the true Metroid experience.

There can be no doubt that Samus and the Metroids have a lot of quality adventures ahead of them. If the sales figures are to be believed, then certainly this is not the last Metroid title we’ll see for the Wii. Perhaps we will see the “Dread Project” as alluded to in Corruption, or perhaps it will be something entirely different. Based on the track record of the franchise, and this latest entry especially, I’ll be anticipating it greatly. I’ll see Samus and all of you on the next mission.


About the author:
Brian Langlois is an editorial columnist for AMN, as well as a lifelong Nintendo fan and collector. Power Force features articles written from the fan’s perspective that pertain to all things Nintendo. From games of the past to the future of the industry, Mr. Langlois focuses on the fun and fundamentals of being a gamer.