Metroid

Metroid Prime Trilogy Collector's Edition
$49.99
I discovered the Metroid series about 2 years ago, when I got a Gamecube (I prefer not to shell out the cash for big consoles). The two titles I got were Animal Crossing, and Metroid Prime II: Echoes. I stopped playing Animal Crossing about after a month, and was hesitant to play Echoes. I spent about 30 hours of play on my first run-through. When I had nearly completed the third and final area, I felt I needed to know the preceding story. So I went on Amazon, bought a copy of Metroid Prime and Super Smash Brothers Melee. Knowing the basic structure of the game, I played through it in about 12 hours, first time. I defeated the final boss, and then immediately picked up Echoes where I had left off, defeated the third area guardian (Quadraxis, who is a BEAST, by the way), and defeated the final two bosses. Having completed the first two games and thirsting for more, I played through both of them several times more, becoming a fairly decent player. I then looked into the other Metroid games easily available to me at the time: Metroid Fusion, and Metroid: Zero Mission. It took a bit to get used to the 2D gameplay, but it was addicting. The games are almost like an RPG the way you get new weapons and expand your ability to do damage and to explore. I eventually somewhat cooled on the series, until I got a Wii for Christmas. I realized I had an obligation as a Metroid fan to get Super Metroid and Metroid Prime III: Corruption. I bought Super Metroid on the Wii shop channel, played it through to lower Norfair, and, not knowing what to do next, I found a cheap copy of Corruption at a local game store, played through it in 5 hours, and instantly thought, "Wow, I need that kind of gameplay for the first two". So I did some research, and found out that the New Play Control! series planned to release the first two in Japan, and, knowing that the series was much more popular Stateside, I knew it was a matter of time. I figured it would be announced at E3 2009, as it would be the ideal time to announce it, but It was announced a week before E3, and it was more than I had ever hoped for: A complete collection of all three games on one disc, incased in a Steelbook DVD case, with a protective sleeve, new gameplay features, unlockables, and a kickass art booklet. Then, at E3, They announced Metroid: Other M, which I practically pooped my pants over. I preordered the MPT about 3 days after the announcement, and waited until August. Leading up, I played though the entirety of the Prime series, stopping for all the Lore (which really adds to the story), and finally beat Super Metroid. August 28th came around, and it showed up in the mail, with a little something extra: A poster, showing aspects of all three games, Samus in the iconic suits of the three games: The Varia, From Metroid Prime, The Light Suit, From Metroid Prime II: Echoes, and the PED suit, from Metroid Prime III: Corruption. Now, on to my review of the game!:

Metroid Prime:
An Incredible adventure of epic proportion. You play as Samus Aran, a bounty hunter who comes across a distress signal from an unknown vessel in orbit around the planet Tallon IV. After investigating the wreckage of the dilapidated Frigate Orpheon, your adventure begins on the planet below. You learn of a mysterious mutagen known as Phazon which has affected the environment of the planet to the point of threatening the existence of normal life. You must find a way to rid the planet of this deadly phage.

Pros:
+EPIC. You start off with nothing, and by the time you reach the end of the game, you have more weapons and abilities than you can shake a stick at.
+Deep. You can choose to follow the story, or not, as Lore scans are completely optional.
+Intuitive. The Wii was MADE for FPS and First Person Adventure. The Wii version really is more of a shooter than the original, although you can turn on lock-on, which is the main form of aiming in the original game.
+Addicting. You won't want to stop gathering power ups and expansions until you beat Metroid Prime.
+Control. The controls are flawless. I say again, the Wii was practically MADE for FPS. The only shadow of a problem I have had is that I occasionally press the wrong button to switch beams or visors.

Cons: *Note: The cons in this list are only related to the missing features missing from the Trilogy which was in the original game. The original game has no cons, aside from control scheme.

-Miscellaneous nuances. The Arm cannon is no longer affected from the use of the various beam weapons. The Lore scans have been imported from the PAL version of the original game, and many aspects of the story of the NTSC version of the original game don't make it into the port.
-Difficulty level. The new difficulty levels follow the same formula that Zero Mission did with the original Metroid. The original "Normal" level has been renamed "Veteran", and the original "Hard" has been renamed "Hypermode", while a previously unexisting difficulty level that would have been named "Easy" is the new "Normal". The Practical upshot of this is that the difficulty has been dumbed down for the sake of bringing in more players.


Metroid Prime II: Echoes
I know a lot of people who say that the games lessen in quality as the series goes on, but I disagree. Echoes has been and continues to be one of my absolute favorite games of all time (Except for Borderlands). While the story is essentially the same as Metroid Prime, this game expands in some areas and contracts in others, all in the right direction, in my opinion. The game introduces an ammunition aspect, making this particular game the most FPS-like of the three. The beam weapons are beefed up versions of the ones presented in the first one, and they are SWEET. The game presents a new missile system not seen in the first one, and all of the suit upgrades from the first one return, with the exception of the suits themselves, as the game progresses, you gain two never-before-seen-within-the-franchise suits, both of them totally badass. The game also has the "dual reality" aspect seen in some games, making for a very dynamic puzzle-solving experience.

Pros:
+Enhances Graphics seen in the first game.
+Ammo system. I personally consider this a good addition to the game. It makes more sense than having unlimited ammo, and it allows for more powerful weapons. Some may not enjoy it as much, but I enjoy it.
+Less Backtracking. This game is much more episodic than the first installment, having only 2 or 3 points of the game which require you to venture into lands previously visited, although the game has a penultimate objective to collect 9 objects spread out across the entire game map. some players consider this portion of the game a burden, but I like it as it gives you a chance to try out the light suit, which you gain directly before setting out on this quest.
+EPIC EPIC EPIC
+Boss Battles. Almost every upgrade is guarded by a creature who uses it against you, similar to Metroid Fusion, and the Area Bosses are sheer brilliance. I doubt I will ever encounter a game with better bosses than the Amorbis, the Chyyka, the Quadraxis unit, or the Emperor Ing.

Cons:
-Ammo system. A lot of people really don't like the beam ammo system, which, I don't blame them, as no other Metroid title has a beam ammo system, and it's reasonable to dislike it. You have been warned.
-Less Backtracking. Like this entry in the Pros list, and the Ammo system, some players dislike this aspect, but I can see where they would be upset with an open-ended world in which you only spend a portion of the game within each sector.
-Dark World aspects. I think the Dark World is where most players criticize this game. The concept is similar to that presented in Ledgend of Zelda: a Link to the Past, and the dungeons in Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, before you get the Hourglass. The world is poisonous, and will sap your energy, save for a few "Safe Zones" which slowly restore health slowly, but eventually you gain abilities that slow the rate of energy drain, or stop it all together.

Metroid Prime III: Corruption
There was a lot of mixed press from this game, especially from the devout Metroid fans. As always, you play as Samus, on a mission to put an end to Phazon once and for all. The only really big addition to this game is Hypermode, which is not to be confused with the difficulty level. It basically makes you invincible, with outrageous weapons. What's weird about it is that it is fueled by Phazon, the very thing that you are trying to get rid of. It makes sense in the story, though.

Pros:
+Incredible graphics. The original release date of the originaly game was pushed back several months so they could fine tune the texture mapping and increase the overall realism of the game. The result is sheer bliss.
+Introduced Motion control to the series.
+Hypermode. Lotsa fun to shoot stuff with pure phazon energy, electrocute your enemies with the morph ball, and blow stuff up with some serious power.
+Grapple system. I thinkNintendo intended this to be the replacement for the interchangeable beams seen in the previous titles. You get 3 basic grapple systems, one for swinging, one for pulling stuff towards you, and one that can drain energy from certain enemies and increase your energy reserves. You get one upgrade of the energy draining grapple.
+Lots of Lore. You visit several planets throughout the game, and every planet has a full set of lore.

Cons:
-Questionable Difficulty. This game is incredibly easy. This game was introduced after Nintendo decided to go for casual gamers. It does have a "Veteran" mode, but even it is relatively easy, especially in comparison to the preceding game.
-Too much talking. There was virtually no speech in the first two games. In this one, they kind of go overboard.
-NO INTERCHANGEABLE BEAM WEAPONS. The button used to switch beams in the first two games has been used to turn on and off Hypermode. The beams in this game stack, like they do in the 2D games.

Overall: This Collection is an ABSOUTE must-have for any self-respecting Metroid fan. Get it. GET IT NOW.

...Now, if they'll only release a collection of the 2D games for DS.

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
$19.99
I bought this for my son who has a Wii. After 2 years, he's still playing it (he's 16), so I guess it is challenging and fun enough to hold interest. Personally, I can't figure it out, but that's probably because I'm over 35 ;-)

Metroid Prime Hunters
$34.99
I got the game in like two dayes in time for my stylises to come so I could play it right as it got to my house

it is by far the best delivery I have EVER GOTTEN!!!!

Metroid: Zero Mission
$29.99
Metroid: Zero Mission is a remake of the original Metroid game that game out decades ago on the NES. Using upgraded graphics and some gameplay enhancements from the later sequel Super Metroid, the game provides an excellent rendition of Samus Aran's first mission. As became a pattern throughout the series, you take on the role of this mysterious bounty hunter as she fights her way through space pirates, alien monsters, and the titular creatures known as Metroids.

If you're only familiar with the Metroid series through the Metroid Prime games, get ready for a surprise. This port goes back to Metroid's roots, presenting a side-scrolling adventure where you'll jump, shoot, and roll around in a morph ball through mazes and puzzles. The style of game is nostalgic for older players and fun for newer ones. Zero Mission is a good side-scroller in an era where those kind of games are hard to find.

Being a port of an old NES game, Zero Mission is a little dated. The difficulty isn't terribly high, and most of the major bosses have a pattern to them that, once discovered, makes bypassing them easily. The game is also on the short side in terms of game play, although to its credit it does include a bonus mission that forces you to sneak through a space pirate lair as Samus without her power suit. These minor flaws get easily erased as necessary consequences of porting such an old game. With excellent graphics, fun game play, and more than a little bit of nostalgia involved, Metroid: Zero Mission is an excellent addition to your GBA library.