Super Metroid

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Description

After having defeated Mother Brain, the leader of the Space Pirates who wanted to use alien creatures known as Metroids to dominate the world, the bounty hunter Samus Aran took the fight to the Metroids' homeland and eradicated them. Only a single Metroid larva remained. Samus took it to a galactic research station, and scientists assured her that the powers of the larva can be harnessed to help people. However, everything goes wrong when a dragon kills the scientists, takes away the larva, and destroys the research facility. Samus follows the dragon to the planet of Zebes, where she fought Mother Brain before. She must explore the dangerous planet, stay alive, and figure out a way to retrieve the larva.

Super Metroid is a platform game and a follow-up to Metroid II. Like the previous games in the series, it is not divided into separate levels; the planet Zebes is an open world which Samus traverses back and forth. This world is divided into rooms separated with doors which must be shot to be opened. Shooting is also used to open up secret passages, some of which contain nifty bonuses, but finding most of them is required to proceed in the game.

There are many items to find on the way, and each new item usually makes heretofore inaccessible areas available to Samus. The items include both weaponry (such as missiles, super missiles, or upgrades to Samus's standard laser gun), energy tanks that increase Samus' max health, and other gadgets (like a grappling hook that allows Samus to stick to the ceiling).

There are various enemies - alien fauna - lurking around planet Zebes. The enemies all respawn after re-entering a room, though Samus' increasing capabilities mean that they become easier to defeat as the player makes progress. After killing them, the enemies typically leave behind some health or ammo.

Screenshots

Promo Images

Trailer

Alternate Titles

• "Metroid 3" -- Game introduction title
• "スーパーメトロイド" -- Japanese spelling

Part of the Following Groups

• Gameplay feature: Auto-mapping
• Gameplay feature: Multiple endings
• Genre: Explorable platformer / Metroidvania
• Metroid series
• Protagonist: Female

User Reviews

On a planet with this much intoxicating atmosphere, you're gonna need that space suit!	SNES	J. P. Gray (120)
Gameplay greatness and pixel poetry	SNES	Vecster (24)
A strong classic, if maybe SLIGHTLY overrated	SNES	*Legion* (144)
I have no idea what I'm doing here.	SNES	Asinine (1006)
The last Metroid is in captivity. The galaxy, is at peace...	SNES	Perfil Falso (3314)
Bring back my baby!!!!	SNES	Daniel Maze (3)
Great SNES version of Metroid but finicky controls when emulated	SNES	Plasma Snake (10)
A super sci-fi adventure!	SNES	Phobos-Romulus (43)

Critic Reviews

PGNx Media	SNES	May 12, 2002	9.75 out of 10	98
Mygamer.com	SNES	Oct 31, 2004	9.6 out of 10	96
Total!! UK Magazine	SNES	1994	94 out of 100	94
Nintendo Land	SNES	Sep 13, 2003	92 out of 100	92
Play Time	SNES	Jun 08, 1994	91 out of 100	91
All Game Guide	SNES	1998		90
Megablast	SNES	Jun, 1994	89 out of 100	89
GameSpot	Wii	Aug 27, 2007	8.5 out of 10	85
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)	SNES	Sep, 1994	10 out of 12	83
GameCola.net	SNES	Sep, 2003	6.8 out of 10	68

Forums

Topic	# Posts	Last Post
The art direction	2	J. P. Gray (120) Apr 24, 2008

Trivia

1001 Video Games

The SNES version of Super Metroid appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Intro Voice-over

The voice during the game's introduction, the one that says "The last Metroid... ...is in captivity. The galaxy... ...is at peace.", is none other than Dan Owsen. He is known for doing much of Nintendo's localization efforts in the 1990s. His work included translating manuals and in-game text. He is also known for his "Ask Dan" column on Nintendo's web site, and can be seen in some of Nintendo's promotional VHS tapes.

Soundtrack

Because the original Metroid used the Famicom Disk System (and its wavetable sound chip) in Japan, and the releases outside of Japan were on cartridges and thus only used the default NES sound system, the original soundtrack had to be slightly reprogrammed. In Super Metroid, the changes made by the FDS-to-Cartridge conversion back in the original game are made more apparent when the older - albeit remixed - themes are used.

The music in Super Metroid, considered to be some of the finest compositions for the SNES, was composed by Hirokazu Tanaka, Kenji Yamamoto, and Minako Hamano. Information about the CD soundtrack can be found here.

Speedruns

Super Metroid is, due to its level design and planning, one of the most popular games for speedruns and is still being perfected to this day.

Awards

• Electronic Gaming Monthly
  • June 1994 (Issue #59) - Game of the Month
  • February 2006 (Issue #200) - #23 out of 200 of the "Greatest Games of Their Time"
• FLUX
  • Issue #4 - #62 in the "Top 100 Video Games of All-Time" list
• GameFan
  • 1994 (Vol.3, Iss.1) - Overall Best Action/Adventure Game of the Year
  • 1994 (Vol.3, Iss.1) - Best SNES Action/Adventure Game of the Year
• Game Players
  • January 1995 - Best SNES Adventure Game of 1994
  • August 2001 (Issue #100) - #29 in the "Top 100 Games of All Time" poll
• GameSpy
  • 2001 – #46 Top Game of All Time
• Retro Gamer
  • September 2004 (Issue #8) – #89 Best Game Of All Time (Readers' Vote)

Information also contributed by Calpis, Julian Turner, PCGamer77, Scott G and uclafalcon.

Related Web Sites

• Metroid Speed Runs (Fans complete Super Metroid in the fastest times)
• Metroid Wiki (A Wiki site for the Metroid series)
• OC ReMix Game Profile (Fan remixes of music from Super Metroid, including the albums "Reserve Tank: VARIAtions" and "Relics of the Chozo")
• OC ReMix Game Profile (Fan ReMixes of music from Super Metroid, including the album "Relics of the Chozo")
• Super Metroid: Save or Kill the Animals? (Alex Legard describes 5 reasons to both save and kill the animals in Super Metroid)
• Top 10 Super Metroid Moments (Alex Legard's list of most memorable moments in Super Metroid)