Alright /v/, it's finals week.
Is the Metroid Prime series good at its core? Why or why not? What gameplay and story elements brought you to this conclusion? How does it hold up to FPS's that preceded it? Nintendo games that preceded it? Its previous side-scrolling iteration? Be sure to use complete sentences and correct punctuation.
If you run out of room, you may write on the back of this sheet.
>>336404046
I never beat a Metroid game and never played the Prime games.
Have a great summer, Prof!
>>336404284
That was required gaming.
F.
>>336404046
>Is the Metroid Prime series good at its core?
Yes, but its worth noting that the series got weaker with each installment.
>What gameplay and story elements brought you to this conclusion?
The stupid Dark Ether shit and the return of the sky keys, lack of atmosphere variety and lack of weapons in 2, the linearity and trigger happy ADD vibe of 3. Cutscenes and lack of character development in 3 were dumb as well.
>How does it hold up to FPS's that preceded it?
Prime 1 is one of the best ones of all time. The other 2, not so much.
>Nintendo games that preceded it?
Prime is the Gamecubes best game, and theyve made almost no games that can even compare to it, except for several.
>Its previous side-scrolling iteration?
I prefer 2D Metroid to the Prime series personally but Prime did for the Metroid series what SM64 and OOT did for their respective series. Most people who deny this are oldfag hipsters who haven't played the game.
It would be good if it was both
>as nonlinear as Ocarina of Time.
>had as much content as Ocarina of Time.
Metroid Prime is a divisive series, not because it subverts the entire first-person genre by flipping it on its head and making it about strategy and evasion rather than shooting.
It's divisive because
A. Metroid fans want more content than Metroid Prime games have.
B. Any FPS fans that try to get into the game will be put off by the fact it also lacks the content to make a lasting impression beyond "Wow, this is really different" the first time you play it.
In conclusion the fundamental issue here is that the games are not budgeted enough to include the amount of content they should have.
Signed, Anon.
At it's core, yes, I'd say that it's a pillar of Nintendo's 6th generation games, and a must-own for anyone with a Gamecube. The first one, at least. I personally prefer the second one to the first, but recognize that I'm not of the majority opinion. I think what 2 lacks in weapons, it makes up for in boss fights, giving you interesting ways to defeat the bosses with your somewhat limited arsenal. While the first definitely had a better atmosphere than the rest, the second one seemed more challenging and engaging. I think it was a nice twist on the FPS genre up to that point, but really only lent itself to the Gamecube controls. In theory, the Wiimote should have enhanced the gameplay, which it did, but the horribleness of the third game compared to the first two games in terms of story and actual gameplay rather than mechanics overshadowed anything positive about the new control scheme.
The Metroid Prime series is almost universally praised for it's gameplay and setting, as well as telling the story in an unobtrusive yet meaningful way. 1 was excellent, 2 was even better, and 3 suffered a bit from the focus on action, although it did deliver a wider narrative in the Metroid universe with a larger cast of characters where Other M utterly failed. First person perspective was absolutely the right choice, and the way the beams worked as well as the different super missile combos were great ways to chance up the established Metroid formula. Comparing it to other FPS games is really hard to do since Metroid Prime sets out to be really more about exploration and puzzles than pure combat, and the pace and perspective reflect this. Frankly comparing it to Super is also difficult because they are such different games, you trade speed for greater variable controls. Space Pirates were more fleshed out with interesting lore, the locations were all brilliant with some less than others (Phazon Mines I'm looking at you). Overall the series was a complete critical and commercial success the Metroid series had not seen before or since and many people await it's return, hopefully on the NX.
>>336404853
>It's divisive because Metroid fans want more content than Metroid Prime games have.
The hell are you talking about? It's about 12 hours for the main game and roughly 20 hours for full completion, and it's really unlikely you'll get every item and scan your first time through. There's also three different endings and a hard mode, and its sequels have more content than the first.
It had a good amount of content, especially for a game released in 2002. I've literally never seen anyone complain about the games being too brief or empty until your post just now.
The major complaint about the Prime series from old school Metroid fans is its removal of the speedrunning focus and Samus' mobility. She moves like a tank, you attack via lock-on in the original game and the sequence breaking was reduced in each installment. For fans who got into Metroid for its speedrunning culture and fluid controls its a huge disappointment, while for people looking for a good atmospheric exploration game it's one of the best out there
I never liked it.
>>336404046
As a series, Metroid Prime earned the title as a necessity title for the 6th gen and 7th gen systems with the Trilogy version. In order to accurately review the game, we need to judge the game from the perspective in the year it came out in 2002. As GameCube released a year prior, there has already been several titles worth owning for the system such as Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Smash Bros Melee. While both titles are for all audiences, the system needed something a bit more grounded and more mature. Metroid Prime releases as a tour de force in visual and gameplay for the GameCube. Individually loaded rooms to save VRAM/RAM brought out more detailed environments, which was a must in pulling for the best visuals in the newly released consoles such as PS2 and XBOX.
The story is told through lore entries by scanning various objects in the game, and while players can proceed at their own pace (1/2)
>>336407141
Cont.
However there are pros and cons to this story technique as a major plus is world building, filling in hundreds of tid bits of story lore to engross the player, however it's cumbersome to a player who wants more action and less reading, as at times it breaks the rhythm of combat.
Many FPSes in modern times don't really match up with Metroid Prime's first person adventure. Where you land in this world and off to explore. It's fairly linear until the last 90% of the game, but you have access to basically the entire map depending on how many upgrades you have. Modern FPSes walk you through a linear level in order to progress the story, and nothing really unfolds in that world for you the more you progress, you just learn the motive of the bad guy and shoot him.
Prime 2 that releases 2 years later improves on many aspects. But, 2D and 3D Metroid games translate differently in their medium, the overall idea is the same, but the presentation is different.
>>336406279
>2 was even better
And you were doing so well
>>336404046
Yes. Prepare for a lot of backtracking, especially in 2. Echoes gives a cool moment of working with the G-Feds in a joint operation against a pirate base.
>>336407742
>He couldn't deal with dark aether
I couldn't either when I was 11.
I'll concede though, 1 is better than 2.
We can all agree that both soundtracks were fucking GOAT though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfGsArRQjKE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbbUv1hz6mE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZmFAzHCSJY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuPJm2XQT0A
