There is simply not enough 2D Metroid games.
That is the conclusion I came up with after playing two of Samus' adventures in the GBA, and reading about how much Other M flopped following the Prime Trilogy's success. While I have played Prime Hunters in the DS, and it's actually good, FPS games just don't appeal to me. Moreover, Nintendo announced on E3 last year that they are indeed making a new Metroid game but it's in the same vein as the 3D games. Even more bad news is that Samus Aran isn't even featured in the game. No friggin' thank you.
Seriously, Samus and Metroid go together. Take one away and what's left is either just the baby or the mother.
Anyway the latest game that I finished in my casual video game marathon this year is Metroid Fusion. It is the last Metroid game in chronology, following the terrible execution (pun intended) of Adam and Samus' relationship, and their parting in Other M. Metroid Fusion, surprisingly, is also the first 2D Metroid game for the GBA. It's just a piece of information I overlooked when I played Zero Mission first because, well, Metroid Fusion looks and plays a lot better than Zero Mission. Granted Zero Mission is a remake of the first Metroid game, you'd think they'd have more to add than just the stealth mission and a few alterations to power-ups and bosses. Even the box art of Fusion looks much better than Zero Mission.
Fusion's box art looks like Ultimate Spider-Man, while Zero Mission's box art looks like The Amazing Spider-Man.
Unlike Zero Mission's minimalist approach in storytelling, Fusion features heavy dialogue particularly from Samus and her new A.I. Commanding Officer whom she calls Adam (plot point right there). However, because of the more pronounced story, the game is more linear and objective based, leaving exploration limited to a specific area at a time. This works for the story, though, as it creates a tense atmosphere all throughout making the game look creepier than it should be.
The boss battles in this game are less pattern-based and more bullet hell It's one of those games where you have to die a couple of times against some bosses to figure out where they should be targeted and when's the right time to do so. This is especially true against Nightmare, SA-X, and the B.O.X. Ridley is pretty much the same here, though I can't say if it's really the deranged space pirate from other games or just another copy created by the X parasite.
Samus' line at the start of the game when she was cured using the Metroid DNA "As for me, one life ended...yet I survived, reborn as something different." speaks not only for her condition then, but also for the game itself. Fusion sees Samus still affected by Adam's death from Other M. By the end of the game, however, Samus finds a new resolve in form of her AI Commanding Officer. She may no longer be a bounty hunter favored by the Galactic Federation thanks to what she did with the X parasites, the BSL station and SR388, but she has a reason to fight. To prove that she did the right thing.
I haven't played a lot of Metroid but I feel like this ending has the most impact to Samus' character development. It also draws some parallels in Other M, particularly Adam's sacrifice. Adam sacrificed himself to destroy Sector Zero killing the Metroids in Other M. Samus was about to make the sacrifice this time to destroy BSL and erase the X parasites from existence. It was then hinted that Samus' AI CO is Adam, by siding with her in defiance against the Galactic Fderation.
He advised Samus to change the BSL station's orbit to hit SR388 effectively destroying the X parasites and giving Samus a way to escape unharmed.
Fusion's ending actually sets up an interesting path for Samus' next adventure.
Because of her defiance towards the Galactic Federation's orders, she's most likely labelled an outlaw and is at the top of their most wanted list as Fusion ended. A possible plot for the sequel would be the Galactic Federation trying to capture Samus so that they could experiment on her unique body to make up for the loss of the X parasites.
Think about it, Samus is 1/4 Human, 1/4 Chozo, 1/4 Metroid, and 1/4 X at the end of Fusion, and even when Samus was just half Human-half Chozo, she's regarded as the galaxy's best bounty hunter. The Galactic Federation can reason that cloning Samus to create an army of soldiers with the same skill set and without free will will provide incredible security for the galactic civilization. Plus we know now that the Galactic Federation would do anything to harness power wherever and whatever the source, as displayed by their being so adamant about the survival of the X, so they can be as antagonistic as Nintendo R&D wants them to be.
Only AI Adam knows that Samus did the right thing by annihilating the Xs. So a possible sequel could either be Samus and Adam proving that Samus did the right thing, or the two fighting the Galactic Federation head on. To add in the drama they could also delete Adam as Samus AI Commanding Officer somewhere late-game to justify Samus going berserk.
But really, I think a lot of fans would agree that Metroid should go back to its 2D roots and give Samus another strong outing.
Anyway, I think I said more than I planned.
Next on my run is:
I'm still just learning more of Samus' origin story especially how she became half-human, half-Chozo. Luckily, I found the Metroid Database. They have the two volume manga uploaded to their site. Check it out. You'll love Samus more. I know I have.
That is the conclusion I came up with after playing two of Samus' adventures in the GBA, and reading about how much Other M flopped following the Prime Trilogy's success. While I have played Prime Hunters in the DS, and it's actually good, FPS games just don't appeal to me. Moreover, Nintendo announced on E3 last year that they are indeed making a new Metroid game but it's in the same vein as the 3D games. Even more bad news is that Samus Aran isn't even featured in the game. No friggin' thank you.
Seriously, Samus and Metroid go together. Take one away and what's left is either just the baby or the mother.
Fusion's box art looks like Ultimate Spider-Man, while Zero Mission's box art looks like The Amazing Spider-Man.
The boss battles in this game are less pattern-based and more bullet hell It's one of those games where you have to die a couple of times against some bosses to figure out where they should be targeted and when's the right time to do so. This is especially true against Nightmare, SA-X, and the B.O.X. Ridley is pretty much the same here, though I can't say if it's really the deranged space pirate from other games or just another copy created by the X parasite.
Samus' line at the start of the game when she was cured using the Metroid DNA "As for me, one life ended...yet I survived, reborn as something different." speaks not only for her condition then, but also for the game itself. Fusion sees Samus still affected by Adam's death from Other M. By the end of the game, however, Samus finds a new resolve in form of her AI Commanding Officer. She may no longer be a bounty hunter favored by the Galactic Federation thanks to what she did with the X parasites, the BSL station and SR388, but she has a reason to fight. To prove that she did the right thing.
I haven't played a lot of Metroid but I feel like this ending has the most impact to Samus' character development. It also draws some parallels in Other M, particularly Adam's sacrifice. Adam sacrificed himself to destroy Sector Zero killing the Metroids in Other M. Samus was about to make the sacrifice this time to destroy BSL and erase the X parasites from existence. It was then hinted that Samus' AI CO is Adam, by siding with her in defiance against the Galactic Fderation.
Fusion's ending actually sets up an interesting path for Samus' next adventure.
Because of her defiance towards the Galactic Federation's orders, she's most likely labelled an outlaw and is at the top of their most wanted list as Fusion ended. A possible plot for the sequel would be the Galactic Federation trying to capture Samus so that they could experiment on her unique body to make up for the loss of the X parasites.
Think about it, Samus is 1/4 Human, 1/4 Chozo, 1/4 Metroid, and 1/4 X at the end of Fusion, and even when Samus was just half Human-half Chozo, she's regarded as the galaxy's best bounty hunter. The Galactic Federation can reason that cloning Samus to create an army of soldiers with the same skill set and without free will will provide incredible security for the galactic civilization. Plus we know now that the Galactic Federation would do anything to harness power wherever and whatever the source, as displayed by their being so adamant about the survival of the X, so they can be as antagonistic as Nintendo R&D wants them to be.
Only AI Adam knows that Samus did the right thing by annihilating the Xs. So a possible sequel could either be Samus and Adam proving that Samus did the right thing, or the two fighting the Galactic Federation head on. To add in the drama they could also delete Adam as Samus AI Commanding Officer somewhere late-game to justify Samus going berserk.
But really, I think a lot of fans would agree that Metroid should go back to its 2D roots and give Samus another strong outing.
 |
| Now I can tell part of her story whenever people ask my why she's my main in Smash |
Next on my run is:
I'm still just learning more of Samus' origin story especially how she became half-human, half-Chozo. Luckily, I found the Metroid Database. They have the two volume manga uploaded to their site. Check it out. You'll love Samus more. I know I have.
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