Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

[Cecilff2]

I haven't gotten a beam upgrade yet. Does the PED gun use the beams, or is it completely separate?

They're seperate I believe.

Also regarding that hunter thing a page back

Spoilers

I think Rundas was probably corrupted pretty quick. He's arrogant and thinks he can handle anything. Probably stayed in hyper mode for too long aka "corrupt hyper mode" and became corrupted himself(This can happen to you as well remember?)

As for Ghor, he might have been the easiest. Phazon seems to love machinery and circuitry(Feeds off of the power?). Plus Ghor becomes quite a bit different when bonded with his giant armor suit(Also noted in the log entry).

Gandrayda, however, may have taken a while longer than the other two. Although she was competitive with Samus, she didn't take the bounty hunting as seriously as the others. She thought of it as a game and probably wouldn't have used hyper mode as haphazardly. I haven't reached her yet, so I'm not sure as to the nature of her corruption yet.

Their deaths are also there to show Samus what the phazon is doing. There comes a point where the corruption is irreversable. Where Phazon was so much a part of them that if you removed it you'd kill them(It seems to bond with organic matter, as well as mutate it). They further illustrated this point after the fight against ghor(Samus tries to save ghor and kill the corrupted dark samus thing[what the heck is that anyways? Reminds me of Mothman Prophecies]). Keep in mind that the hunters were also out there for two weeks before Samus, and had been outfitted with PEDs. The phazon had more time to corrupt them.

Also, hyper ball was completely unexpected.

[Eten]

Metroid Prime 3 is good.

The best of all Metroid 3D titles.

I'd put it second to Super Metroid, right above Fusion and Zero Mission.

Graphics are gorgeous. I saw the frame rate drop once when I had just went through a door from a large room to a large room, while getting shot through the door, I fired off a shot and the screen was abundant with particle effects as I lassoed a zip line. The stutter was for a second. Frame rate was perfect at all other times.

Artwork is amazing. If this was a rating, this would likely be the games strongest, exceeding the maximum rating. 15/10. Every room has abundant detail. Nothing ever looks repetitive. Lighting, atmosphere, the patterns on the floors and walls in the different environments are incredible. Many "artwork" objects can be scanned, allowing yourself to be more immersed in the world. The enemies are equally detailed.

Controls. I would put my bet on this games FPS controls over mouse and keyboard. It is fun, natural, and fast to use the Wiimote to aim. Locking on to grapple targets is easy and smooth. I actually was eager for the next lever or control which required use of the wiimote to operate- it felt very real, rather than gimmicky. Morph ball is easier to control and transition is smoother than in the two previous Metroid Prime games.

Gameplay. Due to the controls, Metroid Prime 3 is hardly the same gameplay as the previous Prime games. Things are smoother and faster. Color coded enemies and doors are gone- it is now about being fast enough to blast your enemies rather than cycling beams to hit them with the right color. Metroid-esque exploration is back, thanks to fantastically improved level design. Elevator shafts, which were the previous major methods of transporting between zones, have been exchanged with multiple landing sites for your spaceship for the better. There is no more key-fetching tasks, to the benefit of the game. In this game, Samus retains a number of basic abilities, like the double jump, morphball, morphball jump, charge beam and bombs from the start of the game. This makes Samus more flexible(and fun) in general from the start, without limiting the new paths and item based exploration later.

A few item combinations turn out to be really unique and fantastic for gameplay. Such as the ability to

Zoom in on hidden weak points on targets with the X-ray visor when locked on and blast these weakpoints through targetting with the Wiimote and the Nova beam- which can bypass the outer shells of some enemies, in the middle of action.. These sort of setups allow Samus to counter enemies quickly, as long as she has the right tools.

Story. While it isn't something to get very excited about, the story does drive the game, and is executed very well. It was only as if by some curse was there one bad line of Voice acting, halfway through the ending credits you'll get a corny line. The rest is all done very well. It is a fitting story for the final Metroid Prime game, and adheres well to the Metroid universe.

Lastly- what I call the Metroid factor. As a game that is part of a series, there are certain things in which a player will come to expect. Things like flavor and theme. And indeed, this game is almost off the charts in the Metroid factor. The environments and enemies are drenched in it. It is easy to imagine that the minds of the developers from Metroid and Super Metroid were extracted, and that their ideas and creations that were limited to 2D at the time were projected into the 3D world of of Metroid Prime.

[dsx100]

I have always thought of the Metroid series as having a lot of back story but little real story. This doesn't bother me because I usually like back story a lot. Metroid Prime 3 has good amount of both in my opinion. As for what happens to the hunters, Spoiler: I coul care less because Samus is a lone Bounty Hunter. She doesn't need to develop a relationship with them in my opinion. Besides, it helps develop Dark Samus's character by showing how sinister she is. :End Spoiler.

So far, I like the back story a lot in Corruption, especially the Bryyo logs.

[JackKieser]

Ok, all good points about the lack of story in Metroid games... but we are forgetting a few things here. First of all, when dealing with immersiveness, which by the way is what Metroid has ALWAYS been good at, a number of factors have to be considered. Yes, gameplay is one of the largest, hence the great care taken for motion controls, especially in things like opening hatches and activating switches; but there are others that must be balanced.

You know why, I'm sure, most people are still rating Super Metroid over MP3? I'm willing to bet most people still think that game was more fun, but I think it has to do with experience. The experience in Super Metroid was the most cohesive of any of the Metroid games to date, with maybe Prime coming a close second (notice, still over Prmie 3, though), and it was due to a LACK of story.

In Super Metroid, no one CARED what the story was; they were playing blind, as far as story went, and that was fine. The game had a purposeful lack of story. That helped with the immersiveness because there were no "Oh, yeah right. Fuckin' bullshit." moments and no, "Well, I totally saw THAT coming." moments to take you out of the game. Prime 3, however, had both of these types of moments.

Either you have no story at all, or you have a well thought out story with deep and evolving characters and situations that can't be predicted or disputed. If a game has a crap story, or at least one that is riddled with holes and missed potential, the player will pick up on it, and it will break the 4th wall, thus utterly destroying immersiveness.

When I saw Rundas on Bryyo for the first time, I knew something was up; I just didn't know what. He came to my aid during the fight in Bryyo Fire and I thought, for a moment, that I had owed him again; then, he tried to kill me. I didn't see it coming, really; I was blindsided by his defection a little more than I should have been. But, from that point on, I knew what would happen to the other hunters. And, I was right. Immersiveness compromised.

When I saw Ghor's ship / suit in SkyTown, I figured he would defect; it was proof of my earlier assumption on Bryyo, as far as I was concerned. He has his free will, I would learn, but that was little consolation.

Then, when Gandrayda snuck up on me on the Pirate Homeworld, I was taken off guard again; I REALLY thought that guy was a marine. But, either way, what I knew would happen all along did. She defects, I kill her, and the story effectivly dies with her. No more characters, no more development, no more story (yes, we still had Samus, but I don't think it could be argued that she has ever had any character development in any game not called Fusion, and the Admiral, the only other main character... ha.).

I guess what I'm trying to say is that everyone says that the story doesn't really matter, that it isn't what you like about the game, whatever. But, just like a good story can make a game better than it is, a bad or flimsy story can make a game worse than it is. Super Metroid had NO story, so it COULDN'T interfere with the game's immersiveness. If Retro wanted that kind of success with this game, they should have just taken the story out a la SM and Prime 1 and left a good game alone, but they took the conservative path of game design and threw in a cohesive but still fractured story, which I feel hurt the game as a whole.

If you need any more proof, look at Echoes, arguable the least favorite in the series for most people. Also had the least cohesive and least dynamic story in the series, probably put there just to justify the Light/Dark dynamic and to make for some objective-based gameplay.

Story should work together with gameplay to make a better game; one isn't more important than the other.

(I would also like to thank everyone on this thread, because I think I found my research topic for this semester; Immersiveness and Story: A Study of the Metroid Saga.)

--Jack Kieser

[Effef]

Phazon Hoppers are far too resilient for their own good

[Eten]

Super Metroid. I'm not sure... exactly what you mean.

You start off, it's a solid story intro. First moments on Zebes, then a surprise Space Pirate intro. Zebes was revealed to be a Space Pirate home of operations once again. Later, You see evidence of what they were trying to do with the baby Metroid. Mochtroids, the empty Metroid Capsule, sand creatures in Maridia, etc. Then the final encounter is basically entirely a scripted story event.

I really wouldn't say that Super Metroid had no story, and the things that were there added a ton to its immersiveness.

How is Metroid Prime 3 any different? A "well thought out story with deep and evolving characters and situations that can't be predicted or disputed" is subjective. And sounds very much like "Aeris shouldn't have died" arguments.

EDIT: I had to make an edit because I was suddenly compelled to say that Fusion had a fantastic story. I think I've said that before.

[The Damned]

Must not buy this game until after I take exam and get pay raise... Must not buy this game until after I take exam and get pay raise... Must not buy this game until after I take exam and get pay raise... Must not buy this game until after I take exam and get pay raise...

[JackKieser]

Super Metroid. I'm not sure... exactly what you mean.

You start off, it's a solid story intro. First moments on Zebes, then a surprise Space Pirate intro. Zebes was revealed to be a Space Pirate home of operations once again. Later, You see evidence of what they were trying to do with the baby Metroid. Mochtroids, the empty Metroid Capsule, sand creatures in Maridia, etc. Then the final encounter is basically entirely a scripted story event.

I really wouldn't say that Super Metroid had no story, and the things that were there added a ton to its immersiveness.

How is Metroid Prime 3 any different? A "well thought out story with deep and evolving characters and situations that can't be predicted or disputed" is subjective. And sounds very much like "Aeris shouldn't have died" arguments.

EDIT: I had to make an edit because I was suddenly compelled to say that Fusion had a fantastic story. I think I've said that before.

Pretty much all spoilers here, so have fun with that.

(I'll give you that SM had storyline elements to it, but I don't think many people would say that it was a story-driven game. Most Metroid games aren't story-driven games, insofar as the story is not the most projected piece of the project. MP3, however, is entirely story-driven. Therein lies the subtle, but evident, difference.

And I'm sorry if this seems pretentious, but for the most part, a "well thought out story with deep and evolving characters and situations that can't be predicted or disputed" is not subjective; whether that story is good or not, however, is. That is not what I'm arguing here; I liked the story to Prime 3. It was a good story, and the tale they wanted to tell I liked. But, I didn't like the execution of that story. There were facets of the story that were weak. You can't possibly tell me that there was any serious about of character development in that story.

Sure, things HAPPENED to the characters. But did they evolve as people throughout the course of the game? Did we come to understand their emotions, their drives, their personalities, that is, past the minute amount we got in 3 or 4 log scans? More importantly, did we witness any of these changes, past the point of "Oh, noes! Teh Phazonz makes uz crazies!!" I argue that this was not the case; we did not get a chance to know the other characters; hell, we didn't even get the chance to know the character we were PLAYING as!

I watched every cutscene and got every log scan in the game, and I STILL can't tell if Samus felt even a shred of remorse for killing those other hunters. I don't know how it affected her, and she's the most important character in the story! We didn't get any information about her throughout the course of the game, other than being able to see the corruption spreading every time we used the scan visor (which, btw, was a good touch, and very creepy).

As for the whole "Aeris" thing... sure, did I want the hunters to die? No, I didn't. But, if their deaths were handled in different ways, it would have been ok. For instance, I think the scans indicate that Gandrayda might have been the last to turn; if that was the case, what if we got to play through a section of the Pirate Homeworld with her, seeing the corruption at work, but powerless to stop it? Eventually, she gets to the point when she knows there isn't much time left, tells Samus to kill her and that she is sorry for being such an Uberbitch, and then goes crazy. Samus kills her, sheds a tear, and somberly walks away after the boss fight. In that scenario, not only do we have another gameplay element (the fighting alongside another hunter), but we also witness an outside effect of the corruption first hand (besides the transparent corruption in Samus) AND we get insight into both of the characters.

There are ways that the story could have been a little beefier and could have been a little more cohesive and a little less predictable, which would have made for a better overall game. I don't expect everyone to agree with me (after all, whether it was a good story or not, as I said, IS subjective), but we should, I think, start holding designers accountable if they want to be storytellers, which I think it is evident that Retro was trying to tell a story. Yes, they did a very good job, for what is is worth... but just because MP3 was such a high profile game doesn't mean there isn't definite room for improvement.)

[SilverStar]

One thing that people seem to be missing about the story...

With the first Hunter battle, Samus wasn't entirely sure what was going on until it was too late. She was ignorant of the situation. Seeing the phazon ghost of Dark Samus rise from the corpse literally scared the shit out of her.

With the second hunter battle, she was prepared to fight, trying to launch her missiles at the ghost, to no effect. The battle didn't catch her off guard at all.

But, the most telling battle, would be the one with Gandrayda. Samus shows emotion when you defeat her, showing Gandrayda as she shifts between the other two hunters, reminding Samus how she had to destroy 3 of the most talented bounty hunters, 3 of her friends, because of the darkness caused by Phazon. But, when Gandrayda comes crawling toward Samus at the end, as her own doppleganger, that's when it hits her that she too is corrupted. It's subtle, but visible, because of how she clenches her fist at her side, steeling herself against the horrors of seeing what could well turn out to be her own future, at the hand of her own darkness.

When the phazon ghost of Dark Samus rises from the corpse of Gandrayda, Samus just looks on in defiance, watching without making a move, as if she was almost hoping to endure the battle then and there.

I just wish they worked the corruption factor into the game more. The previews indicated that the corruption might be based on how often you use it. The more you turn to the phazon, the more corrupt you become, the more it takes hold and the more you have to worry about losing the game early. So far, the only time anything bad has happened to me from the phazon, was when I was hit with a pair of phazon grenades, leading to a phazon overload and killing me through critical corruption.

[Imagist]

oh my god I love this game

[Eten]

One thing that people seem to be missing about the story...

[big block o' spoilers]

That's why I think most people's attitudes towards the story are from the

"Aeris shouldn't have died" line of thinking. When the icicle takes out Rundas, you are surprised, just as is Samus. It's a shock, and not what you wanted to see. You share Samus's frustration as she makes her shots after Ghor. It worked well, it just wasn't what people wanted to see. No warm fuzzies.

Also: "not only do we have another gameplay element". More elements are not always better. That just as easily could have disrupted the flow of the game or changed the feel too much for it to feel like Metroid.

Samus... was orphaned, lost her parents, raised by Chozo. The Chozo have disappeared. Adam and even the Baby Metroid were lost. To me, at the end as she sits outside her ship with her helmet off at Skytown and the flashbacks of the other Hunters that story element of their death seemed very fitting.

[Critical Hit]

I'm going to have to read through this whole entire thread a second time after I finish the game just to see what everyone's actually been talking about, what with all the spoiler posts.

[JackKieser]

I totally agree about the corruption thing. The instant I saw the biohazard scan in your ship, I figured that your Phazon level would be decided based on plot devices instead of your Hypermode uses. Then again, there are people who would use Hypermode so much that there would literally be no possible way they could survive to the end of the game... such as myself.

I tell you, the first time my Hypermode failed on me... I freaked out. I was all like, "Oh, shit. Time for me to go, huh?" And I died quick.

--Jack Kieser

[Zup]

As someone who's only recently devoted himself completely to the Metroid series, I'm playing through both Metroid Prime and Super Metroid at the same time. I've beaten Zero Mission and Fusion...I figure it's time to try the originals. BTW, the original metroid = too hard for me. As in, I'm a freaking wuss.

However, as I'm not averse to spoilers, I've been watching this debate unfold, and I have one thing to say (that has possibly been already said; meh, that's something that happens often anyway): Metroid's story is often best when left to the imagination of the player. I love Prime, and my English-major senses are quite enjoying the scanning; however, the lack of an overt story in Super Metroid is awesome in the way it allows the player to fill in the blanks, such as: Why is Kraid revived? What is Ridley doing, completely organic again? What is this Crocomire thing and why can't I kill it the normal way? What the FREAKING HECK is Phantoon?

The story is there, behind the gameplay, and Metroid is awesome because it DOESN'T overload the player. The fact that there's no other sentient life forms on Tallon IV (that, you know, don't attack you) increases the feeling that you're a part of the story. The immersiveness.

Knowing the story (I had the player's guide when I got Prime, and never played it; but I did read the whole guide and have followed the series through Wikipedia; Again, I'm a freaking wuss), I'm still immersed completely into Prime. And I'm sure that when I skip Prime 2 to buy 3, I'm still going to be immersed, even knowing the plot beforehand.

Because the story told through the player's mind is awesome enough, without overt storytelling.

With all that in mind, Fusion was my first (and favorite) Metroid of the series. Again, I'm a freaking wuss.

[Eten]

original metroid = too hard

Haha... truth.

It's like "omg noo! I jumped and landed on the wrong pixel in the 17th identical room in Brinstar in a labyrinth that seems to go on forever and the likely path is some obscure block in the bottom of a fake pile of acid and now I get knocked back through the door and get owned on the other side for 3 energy tanks worth of damage!!"

Fusion's story is very good. It had a real challenge to continue the story after Super Metroid(which is likely to always be the number 1 Metroid title...) and it managed to do that perfectly.

[I-n-j-i-n]

Nobody really plays Metroid games for their story, but I thought Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion were the best in that aspect since they had the most things actually developing unlike in most other Metroid games. Too bad Fusion was too short because it was the one game where we listen in on Samus's actual thoughts in a Metroid game.

[JoeFu]

Super Metroid had a pretty good story, just not really presented that well. The ending of Super Metroid is still one of the best endings ever. When the baby metroid comes out to save Samus, omfg, I still get the chills every time that happens.

[Linkjing Donuts]

Nobody really plays Metroid games for their story, but I thought Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion were the best in that aspect since they had the most things actually developing unlike in most other Metroid games. Too bad Fusion was too short because it was the one game where we listen in on Samus's actual thoughts in a Metroid game.

no kidding. samus actually talks

[Imagist]

no kidding. samus actually talks

that alone ruined fusion for me

sa-x was awesome though

also everyone else needs to stop playing prime 3 now until I catch up, srsly guys

[I-n-j-i-n]

Samus saying a few sentences doesn't mean much though. I was horrified at the cute animals when I first met them. Just running across the screen. I thought it was something worse than SA-X.

[friendlyHunter]

All this story discussion, here's what I think:

The thing I really like about several Metroid games' stories is the fact that it doesn't tell you anything. Again, the whole "What the FREAKING HECK is Phantoon?" deal. When it does explicitly tell you things, it does it in a very immersing fashion. Other games that do this extremely well come to mind (System Shock 2!!), and the results can be amazing. Reading the Pirate logs as you invade their strongholds in Metroid Prime 1 is an good example of this. The pieces of the puzzle slowly come into place, but like Zup said, there are plenty of holes left for the player's imagination to fill.

One thing that the Metroid series does that (to my knowledge) is unique in a videogame series, is including various elements that link the games together, yet offer little or no explanation about it whatsoever.

My absolute favourite story element from the Prime series has to be a particular one of the Pirate logs.... [Minor Prime 1 and Super Metroid Spoilers]

"Metroid Morphology

Log 11.420.7

Metroid dissection continues to provide more questions than answers. Our

research teams have isolated the energy conduits that run from the invasive

twin mandibles to the energy core in the creature's quadripartite nucleus, but

the manner in which a Metroid actually extracts the life force from its prey

remains an utter mystery. The victim does not loose blood or any other vital

fluids, and yet the Metroid extracts energy: identifying this energy is our

central problem. It takes no physical form, and yet without it, the victim

dies. We will continue to research this matter, as the isolation of this

life-giving essence could be the key to our ascendance."

Do metroids literally suck the "life" out of you? Are they stealing your "soul"?? (seems Metroid games have SOME kind of "spirits"... ghosts in the Wrecked ship, Phantoon, Chozo Ghosts in Prime... and what on earth is with Dark Samus???) Does it have anything to do with those energy balls that come out of enemies when you kill them? In Super Metroid, there are rooms containing the dead bodies of a metroid's victims, and when you touch them, they turn to dust. Did it steal the creatures' cells' kinetic energy, or what? Among the creatures is a Torizo statue thing... so what, those things are living organisms now... that shoot missiles out of their stomachs? Is it an actual living Chozo covered in stone......? A Chozo corrupted and grown to enormous size by, it couldn't be... Phazon???? Some horrible Pirate experiment? Horrible CHOZO experiment?? All these things "continue to provide more questions than answers" - it's just plain brilliant.[/end spoilers]

Another prime example (pun not intended) of an interesting link between the games is the Wrecked Ship in Super Metroid. How did it get there, and who were its inhabitants? Was it "ancient astronauts", like the Super Metroid manual says (if I recall correctly)? In Zero Mission, Ridley's ship contains the same worker robots and floating glowy ball things as the wrecked ship... but no further explanation is given, nor needed.

Now, this just leads to further questions. Why does the Wrecked Ship contain a Chozo statue, one that seems to "know" what it's doing in its environment? Why do those "Torizo" statues come alive? Who put the coloured doors all over Zebes? What's with those creepy statues at the entrance to Tourian in Super Metroid? These questions can't be answered, but with each game released, there may be subtle clues (both intentional and otherwise). Will we ever know the true origin of metroids, or of phazon? (Clearly I haven't beaten the game yet =p) What about Samus' past... the clues we get are few and far between, which makes their discovery so much more significant.

I really need to learn to say more in fewer words =p

Samus saying a few sentences doesn't mean much though. I was horrified at the cute animals when I first met them. Just running across the screen. I thought it was something worse than SA-X.

Had it not been for the vague and self-propelled story, you'd never have even considered that I'm sure. The pure "lack of story" opens up so many possibilities - anything you see... or even don't see (in the case of Samus' corruption, I suppose) could be a grave threat. Will those cute animals suddenly transform into "something worse than SA-X"? [Minor Fusion Spoiler] HOLY #&%$ they're in Samus' ship at the end, what if they attack Samus in her sleep??!?! [/end spoiler]

What secrets will Metroid Dread hold? Hell, we don't even no if that's a real game or not.... just as the vague plots don't lead us to any "I saw that coming a mile away" story elements, we honestly can't say we know what to expect next in the Metroid series.

[JackKieser]

That's why I think most people's attitudes towards the story are from the

"Aeris shouldn't have died" line of thinking. When the icicle takes out Rundas, you are surprised, just as is Samus. It's a shock, and not what you wanted to see. You share Samus's frustration as she makes her shots after Ghor. It worked well, it just wasn't what people wanted to see. No warm fuzzies.

Also: "not only do we have another gameplay element". More elements are not always better. That just as easily could have disrupted the flow of the game or changed the feel too much for it to feel like Metroid.

Samus... was orphaned, lost her parents, raised by Chozo. The Chozo have disappeared. Adam and even the Baby Metroid were lost. To me, at the end as she sits outside her ship with her helmet off at Skytown and the flashbacks of the other Hunters that story element of their death seemed very fitting.

See, I know it doesn't seem like that, but that's not how I feel.

(I know the hunters needed to die; I just think the WAY in which they died and how Retro handled both the characters and Samus' relation to them was... off. Could have been better. Personally, I think Rundas' death was the best handled out of all of them.

Rundas was corrupted long before Samus had any clue what had happened to him, so it was fitting that it was such a surprise ending for him. Personally, I had that thread of hope that even though I was shooting the hell out of him, I could smoehow un-corrupt him; after all, I figured it would HAVE to happen eventually to Samus, so why not him.

And then the ice spikes.

The problems start with Ghor, in my opinion. Ghor still had SOME semblance of sanity. He was coherent and he was calculating. He was also a mechanoid, which while we know is still susceptible to Phazon, he still had the best chance of regaining his mind. His death could have been utilized thematically. Instead, he just went crazy as shit. Totally predictable, no twists, nothing to keep the player thinking, on his/her feet.

And then Gandrayda. As I've already said, Gandrayda could have easily been the most emotional of the hunter deaths (although, technically it was... but you know what I mean.). She was the one who was most connected to Aran: she was her direct rival. What better way to pull the ol' heart strings than with a tale of sacrifice, the rival giving her life to ensure... who knows what. Unfortunately, we'll never know, because she went out like a punk bitch just like the other two.

I guess what irks me is that we, as players, were NEVER worried about Samus. We knew what would happen. She'd kick DS's ass, get the hell out of there, and somehow be not corrupted at the same time. We never had a semblance of worry for Samus' fate. Retro had to have known this. So, all the hunters died in ways that were also indisputable. We knew what would happen to them, too. At least, they could have made it a tragic story of inevitability or something. A story of angst, where we try to stave off the inevitable, only to fail at every turn until we, broken and defeated, succumb to its will, only to be tragically saved in the end, unlike our comrades.

But nothing like that. Just a shallow, or at very, very least, predictable, story that manages to make the game cohesive enough, without doing anything extra. There might as well have been no story at all, and it would have been just the same. And that, I suppose, bothers me. From a design standpoint, it's sloppy work. Retro could have done better.

Even though they did a good job, for what it's worth.

(P.S.: About the added gameplay element: A ) as far as I'm concerned, the Prime series stopped feeling like Metroid, or at least felt less like Metroid than before, when Retro tried to inject an unnecessary overarching story to the mix in Echoes, and B ) as I said, it could have been done tastefully, bringing in story and character development to balance it out. Where there is a will, there is a way.) )

--Jack Kieser

And an edit for the above post: see, though, Retro brought this upon themselves. They chose to try to tell a story to us explicitly, instead of the implicit story in past Metroid games and in Prime 1. If you start something, you should finish it. Granted, they shouldn't have to give us everything, but there are important facets that leave the player with a sense of imbalance if not accounted for; its why cliffhangers piss people off so much. (Case in point, the DS's that come out of the hunters when they die. What did Retro do to explain that? Nothing. I thought that DS was absorbing their bodies. But nothing during the final battle explained that. If DS didn't absorb them, then why was she there? These are important questions that can never be answered, as this is the end of the Prime trilogy (or at least, the Prime story).

Backstory can be left to the imagination, but in-game story should be cohesive and explanatory. Or at very least, should support itself.)

[Aninymouse]

All this story discussion, here's what I think:

*snip*

I really liked your post, but honestly, though... I think you'd be naive to assume that most of the little details in Super Metroid were supposed to make sense or even be meaningful in relation to a continuing story. Look how long it took Nintendo to desire to pick Metroid back up, after all. Also to consider is the prevalence of retcon with core Nintendo fanchises - Zelda, for instance. The original NES Zelda games were created as if there might never be another. As more Zelda games came out, more story was gradually added. By Ocarina, a mythos had been established, etc. Metroid, being that it has a vague storyline by nature and having fewer games than Zelda, can only claim as much.

My point, in case it was lost, is simply this: aside from the in-game events in each Metroid game, most of the back story they provide concerns Samus alone, i.e. she was raised by Chozo after Ridley killed her parents. Everything else is so vague and disjointed it hardly even seems important.

Good games don't need good stories to be good, and there are even good games with cliche stories, like Riddick for X-Box. Metroid games have next to no story at all. Even Samus' history was retconned, I'd wager. "Main character did some things and this happened" is all there usually is, and that doesn't seem to me like a very skilled narrative. Prime 2 & 3 were the first Metroid games that tried to introduce some semblance of a concrete connonical storyline, in my opinion, and I like it.

Do I need a reason for Samus to be killing lots of things to have a good time? She IS a bounty hunter, after all. I'd wager no, but I certainly don't feel like Prime 3 is any LESS of a game because it seeks to de-mystify Samus' world! Gameplay-wise and graphically, this is the strongest title on Wii and the best Metroid game so far. Story was never even important outside of the baby metroid and mother brain, so why should that be a judging factor? Prime 3 actually has one.

[Imagist]

p.s. metroids were created by the chozo to eradicate the X parasites

also on some levels that first meta ridley fight was really awesome and on some levels it kind of disappointed me but I had fun anyway

edit what the crap why is the default text color not black

[JackKieser]

Aninymouse... thank you. I'd actually never heard the term 'retcon' before I'd read your post, so thanks for introducing me, in a way, to it. And you're totally right.

Retro or any other studio that handles the Metroid franchise (or any franchise like it) has the right to flesh out the canon for that particular story, as long as it doesn't completely rewrite the history of the franchise into something totally different (i.e., Samus is actually a guy and never was a bounty hunter. In fact, she isn't even human!) or isn't so unintelligible that it makes a lack of story seem like a better option (btw, in case anyone got confused... I'm not saying that happened here. Just saying that it shouldn't.)

Retro, I must say, should be commended. For such a lack of story in the Metroid universe, the Prime games did a lot of good in adding canonical info and beefing up the story, regardless of a few flaws in execution. The log scans in all three games were amazing. ESPECIALLY in Prime 3. Good god, some of the Pirate scans... were beautifully written. It's stuff like that which gives me hope that gaming won't implode or self-detonate from creative stagnation (or whatever buzzword the ESA is using these days).

--Jack Kieser