Metroid Prime

The Good
HELL, i love EVERYTHING about this game. I'll start.

Graphics: This game is nearly perfect. Graphically (Considering the graphic limitations of the GCN, and knowing the XBOX is far more powerful) this game is the "creme de la creme" in graphics. Excellently compressed textures, high polygon usage for Samus and characters (Except for when Samus morphs/unmorphs, it's plain to see it's not as detailed as the model they use for the cinematics) nice mist effects, the lava looks quite real, the snow and ice looks like it is really there, the walls are not simple textures of rocks, they also add flora, sometimes fauna to give it a realistic look. It's one of the closest-to-reality games i have ever seen, if not the best. The distortion added when Samus shoots her charged Power Beam, Samus' face when she shoots too close to her, the "TV-without-signal" effect when there's interference, the X-ray/thermal visor's effects, the way the Ice freezes enemies and make them look like a big chunk of ice. The way enemies burn when shot with Plasma... all of that give an incredible potential to this game. Myself, I'm not a pursuer of "hot graphics" in games, yet I have to admit most of this game's merits are due to its incredible, top-notch graphics.

Sound: MIDI. MODI and MORE MIDI - It's hard to believe all of this game's soundtrack is made with MIDI. The thing is, it's so well composed, so well put together, it DOES NOT NEED recorded audio to actually sound good. My props to Kenji Yamamoto. This game's audio has NOTHING to do against other game's "recorded audio". The sound effects also add a lot of reality to this game. Specially when played with Dolby. How Samus' arm cannon clanks, her footsteps thru grass, sand, metal, water.... Wonderful...

Gameplay: I don't see why people complain About this game's gameplay. they say it is too lacky for a FPS. Well, that's probably because METROID PRIME IS NOT A FIRST PERSON SHOOTER. It is a FIRST PERSON ADVENTURE. It means that in order to use the morph ball, it changes into 3rd person (Because playing FP inside of the morph ball wouldn't make much sense). As a player of FPS's I can say it's quite different from that genre. FPS's are about completing missions and finding the way out. Metroid Prime is a METROID GAME turned into 3D, and trying to make you feel as if you were Samus. That's all about it. It does take a LOT OF GUTS to compare this game to an usual FPS. It also takes a lack of analytical skills. Briefing, I can say this game has an adequate control system for a similar-to-a-FPS CONSOLE GAME. It responses good,accurately, and like any good HARD game, it takes time to get used to. That is not a bad aspect AT ALL. That's actually a sign that the game is long, and that you have to dedicate some time to get used to it. The entire gameplay is rewarding.

Let me say it one more time - This is NOT a mouse-played computer game. This is NOT a FPS. THIS IS A METROID GAME.

The Bad
There's nothing I didn't like about this game - It's nearly flawless. Perhaps the load times between the worlds (when going thru a door). But it's not the big deal. I love this game ta death.

The Bottom Line
Putting aside "sequence breaking" (Proving that you don't have something better to do with your life), this is perfection made game.

The Good
When a successful franchise is irrevocably altered to a new genre, it will be met with resistance, or at the very least, skepticism. Metroid Prime, the first American incarnation of a Japanese title by Retro Studios, achieves a highly polished game with some surprises, and tragedies. Many were alarmed when Metroid fans heard the infamous news... First Person Shooter. The transition from side scrolling action to 3D exploration is no small jump, and Retro Studios answers the call with slick graphics and the morphing ball... a narrow glimpse into what Retro really wanted. The visual appeal of the game is incredible. There are many places in the game where a player can just stand in absolute awe of what the artists have achieved with this game and GameCube's power. Effects are top notch, nearly second to none. Backgrounds in places are genuinely creepy. Mood, lighting all of these elements make for an extremely satisfying visual experience. The morphing ball experience speaks untold volumes about what this game could have been... This was undoubtedly the most exciting and liberating aspect of Metroid Prime. Allow me to step in here in person and say that, I think this was the game Retro was shooting for. The sense of movement and response was so compelling! I get the feeling they were going for 3rd person but they could never get the combat / lock on system to work well enough, so Miyamoto opted for the solution he knew Retro could do well... a FPS.

The Bad
Controls, the universal key to any game, in Metroid Prime is shot. It is Chaotic and non-intuitive and in terms of First Person Shooters it fails. Putting a camera lock and strafe mapped to a shoulder button is a mystifying concept. Why, when it is such an integral part of the game? Having you fingers fly all over the controller for scanning, aiming, locking, switching visors, switching weapons, strafing, jumping during combat is just ridiculous. It frustrates the player to such an extent of never playing again. Controls in Prime make no attempt to be logical or versatile. If a characters abilities increase during the course of the game, "progression" becomes a relevant term. When the player gains new abilities Samus is enabled to do more, and it means just that. You have to do more, not less. In the standard rule of gaming, powerups are for the purpose of making your life easier, not difficult. Case in point, the visors. Switching visual spectrums is to view the world to find more is an incredible idea. Switching visors to fight a boss is tedious action and pulls the player right out of the gaming experience. In Super Metroid the X-Ray scope was only used for finding items or finding your way through the world... Why? because it stopped the game, literally. The same rule applies in Prime as well, it interrupts the flow of the game and is thoroughly annoying. Compare progression in a game such as Legend of Zelda, everything you gain makes your life easier and less tedious as you journey towards the end of the game. There are no powerups in Metroid Prime that enable you to do your job faster or with less tedious action. In fact, you could say the game becomes more tedious the longer you play. The challenge the game presents is not by what you are trying to defeat, but trying to overcome the controls! This is not logical game design. The worlds are vast and visually diverse, but not gameplay diverse. The Magmoor caverns readily displays the fact it's hot and hazardous to be in there. In contrast Phendrana Drifts only visually show snow and ice... Well what are the characteristics of ice? Cold for one, slippery and brittle. All of those listed were potential gameplay aspects. Little or none of these aspects were incorporated into the design of the level to differentiate it from any other world.

The Bottom Line
Metroid Prime is pretty to look at. Had design been at the same level of the artists, I believe Prime would have been a truly extraordinary game. Metroid Prime frustrates the player on complexity of control, lack of progression and gameplay that is uninteresting by forcing the player to jump through gameplay hoops that don't work.

The Good
How lucky I was that I got a chance to play Metroid Prime. Metroid Prime is Retro's atttempt to take the 2D Metroid series through the 3 dimensional gateway. It was very, very succesful.

Where else to start but the graphics? Metroid Prime looks amazing. Polygon and texture count is amazingly high, and everything looks so real. The enemies, levels, objects and so on have been so finely designed that they reflect on how much work was stuffed into this game. I can very well say this is one of the best looking GameCube released.

Sound quality was also remarkable. While I'm not one who really cares about sound in video games, Metroid Prime drew me to it. The effects are very well created, and sound very real. As with the backround music, which has the right atmospheric condition to draw you into the game. Sound is a very good aspect of this game.

What's a game without good gameplay? Definitely not Metroid Prime. The game plays very smoothly, no jags, long loads, slow downs, or any of that other stuff. The levels are so well designed that you could just run around in one for hours and not get tired. While the game is in the first person view, it is not a FPS(first person shooter). Sure, you have a weapon that you shoot stuff with, but MP distinguishes itself so obviously. The game focuses on exploration instead of non-stop shooting action. Levels need comprehending to complete, not just blazing guns. And oh yes, the ball transforming is back, and better than ever.

The Bad
Every game has a downside. Every game except Metroid Prime, that is.

The Bottom Line
As a loyal XBOX fan, I find myself wanting a GameCube just so I can have this game. Metroid Prime is one of the Golden games that have been released, and will definitely be known as one of the greatest. I give Metroid Prime a well-earned, solid, enthusiastic 5 out of 5.