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[Shin Johnpv]

There's far too much hyperbole in this thread to comment seriously in it.

 

[Zuhzuhzombie!!]

Nintendo lacks the ability to make another great Metroid game.

 

[apana]

I still believe that the main reason why Other M flopped so bad was the Wii userbase. Look at how much less SMG2 sold compared to the original. And that is a franchise that appeals to the casuals...

I'm sure that at least another Prime-style game from Retro would sell very nicely early on in Wii2's lifespan. I'm sure Nintendo is smart enough to see that. However, we won't see another one with the high production values of Other M any time soon.

This makes zero sense, Galaxy 2 has sold close to 6 million already and could keep going. It will be hard to get to 8 million but not impossible. Other M flopped because even Metroid fans didn't like it, please don't make excuses.

 

[RedSwirl]

Best case scenario: At E3 Nintendo reveals a new 2D Metroid for WiiWare or 3DS, and explains that they handed Other M to Team Ninja so the main team could focus on this.

 

[apana]

Best case scenario: At E3 Nintendo reveals a new 2D Metroid for WiiWare or 3DS, and explains that they handed Other M to Team Ninja so the main team could focus on this.

Metroid 3DS with Sakamoto reigning in his worst instincts is the best news possible.

 

[Neon_Icarus]

This makes zero sense, Galaxy 2 has sold close to 6 million already and could keep going. It will be hard to get to 8 million but not impossible. Other M flopped because even Metroid fans didn't like it, please don't make excuses.

Metroid fans aren't a unified group. There are plenty of people who didn't like Other M (with some people who REALLY hate it, apparently), but there are also people who did like it quite a bit, myself included. I was merely pointing out that games in popular Nintendo series tend to sell better early on in a system's lifespan.

 

[apana]

Metroid fans aren't a unified group. There are plenty of people who didn't like Other M (with some people who REALLY hate it, apparently), but there are also people who did like it quite a bit, myself included. I was merely pointing out that games in popular Nintendo series tend to sell better early on in a system's lifespan.

Yeah but Metroid has even underpeformed by those standards.

 

[steveovig]

Best case scenario: At E3 Nintendo reveals a new 2D Metroid for WiiWare or 3DS, and explains that they handed Other M to Team Ninja so the main team could focus on this.

Why does it need to be WiiWare or 3DS? Why not the Wii?

 

[Chinner]

Metroid fans aren't a unified group. There are plenty of people who didn't like Other M (with some people who REALLY hate it, apparently), but there are also people who did like it quite a bit, myself included. I was merely pointing out that games in popular Nintendo series tend to sell better early on in a system's lifespan.

so did you like it for the gameplay, story or both?

 

[Neon_Icarus]

so did you like it for the gameplay, story or both?

I liked it for the gameplay. The writing was awful, but still, a part of me was happy that they at least tried to do something with the story. And the FMVs were gorgeous, Samus has never looked better than in the opening cinematic.

 

[robor]

I can only see Sakamoto succeeding in a remake. He's not qualified to embark on anything "new" in the franchise. I couldn't see it back in the official Other M thread but I truly believe the man has lost his touch. If you think about some of the comments he made on Super Metroid one and a half years ago, you'd see that he's abandoned almost all of what Metroid created as it's identity originally. Can Samus suffer the same fate once more? Probably.

The future is quite bleak for Samus. Now all we need is that guy who made Nintendo: A Sad Story to make a Metroid version with Sakamoto and Hayashi in place of Miyamoto and Fils-Aime.

Metroid: A Sad Story.

 

[evilromero]

I can only see Sakamoto succeeding in a remake. He's not qualified to embark on anything "new" in the franchise. I couldn't see it back in the official Other M thread but I truly believe the man has lost his touch. If you think about some of the comments he made on Super Metroid one and a half years ago, you'd see that he's abandoned almost all of what Metroid created as it's identity originally. Can Samus suffer the same fate once more? Probably.

The future is quite bleak for Samus. Now all we need is that guy who made Nintendo: A Sad Story to make a Metroid version with Sakamoto and Hayashi in place of Miyamoto and Fils-Aime.

Metroid: A Sad Story.

The video would be pretty straight forward. I think the entire thing would center around Other M, the only pitfall in an otherwise perfect series (unless you feel Pinball or Hunters really stretched the series too far).

 

[robor]

Well I could only see two keepers out of the entire series but yea, the steep decline would begin at Other M in that story.

 

[Mael]

Future of Metroid?
Well it's safe to say that they don't seem to confident in doing a sequel to Fusion at this point (I mean that actually should have been that other thing but yeah a prequel that explains fuck all was deemed a good idea, awesome!)
Now considering the work done on nsmb/w and dkcr it's safe to say that a 2.5D game would NOT be a bad idea at all, especially if they manage to polish it up like dkcr ended up being.
Now the next project will probably depends on what they want to do, it's safe to say that the Prime era is FINISHED.
I loved it and all but it's clear that's not what will please the bean counters or the fanbase (and a spinoff based on that era would probably do worse as it is, see how people react to something as innocuous as hunters, which began as an awesome tech demo for the DS).

It's also quite clear that whoever made the 'thing' I've sold to get Ghost Tricks had no idea whatsoever of what made Metroid good for the player.
Instead we got the most selfserving BS I've had the displeasure to experience since the last Mary Sue fanfic done by someone in the darkest corner of the Sonic fanbase.

At this point considering that Nintendo patented the whole Super Guide thingy (they apparently only use for 2D game), a good idea would be to bring difficulty back into Metroid.
I mean make the game scary and scarring again.
Heck the whole reason the Metroid progression system even work is BECAUSE you don't know where to go and there's a danger in exploring an hostile environment.
I mean if they manage to make it easy as Fusion, they might as well ditch the whole battle system altogether and make it as vapid as the last train wreck.

But seeing the reaction from NoA, they seem to be....surprised that their latest foray didn't end up as loved as any other product they usually handle.
At this point they might pull a Zelda on the series :
- ditch whatever their preconception of what Metroid is, and do something safe to sate the Western market like they did for Zelda TP.
or pull a Metroid on it :
- forget about it until they get someone to make another reboot successfully
or pull a Starfox :
- it NEVER happened
or pull a Sonic :
- keep doing whatever the hell they want, to hell with having a relevant franchise.

And you know what the worst part of Sakamoto's involvement in that other thing is?
The guy actually know what makes for a good or successful design (as seen in Rythm Heaven), but for Metroid? He just doesn't give a shit.

 

[[Nintex]]

I think we won't see a new Metroid from Japan in a while. I could see Hunters 2 or some spin-off/port shit for 3DS from NST or Retro but that's it. Sakamoto was able to pick/form his own team, bring in a second team of his choice to help out and hire CG artists and all sorts of other fancy stuff. The game was in development for about 3 years I believe and it obviously wasn't cheap to make. The team ignored all the feedback that the press had given them. They released a 'good' game to be sure but it had issues. Those problems made the game sell less than a million worldwide(?). It's one of the few Nintendo games that bombed and Nintendo has been quick to sweep it under the rug. After the advertising blitz we got one quote from Reggie who said that Nintendo was investigating why it bombed. Metroid didn't perform as well as other big Nintendo franchises for a while and now the games don't keep up in quality. I honestly don't think Metroid has much of a future. Prime is a different story, I could see them revisit/relaunch the series on more powerful hardware.

 

[badcrumble]

Drohne mentioned handing the series over to Platinum; I love the idea of seeing Mikami or Kamiya take a crack at it. (yes I know Mikami isn't attached to Platinum even though he directed Vanquish)

 

[Mael]

I think we won't see a new Metroid from Japan in a while. I could see Hunters 2 or some spin-off/port shit for 3DS from NST or Retro but that's it. Sakamoto was able to pick/form his own team, bring in a second team of his choice to help out and hire CG artists and all sorts of other fancy stuff. The game was in development for about 3 years I believe and it obviously wasn't cheap to make. The team ignored all the feedback that the press had given them. They released a 'good' game to be sure but it had issues. Those problems made the game sell less than a million worldwide(?). It's one of the few Nintendo games that bombed and Nintendo has been quick to sweep it under the rug. After the advertising blitz we got one quote from Reggie who said that Nintendo was investigating why it bombed. Metroid didn't perform as well as other big Nintendo franchises for a while and now the games don't keep up in quality. I honestly don't think Metroid has much of a future. Prime is a different story, I could see them revisit/relaunch the series on more powerful hardware.

Seriously I doubt it, NST has probably something more important to do than provide a product that could make that franchise on life support.
And either I'm totally sheltered in the way I choose my games or that other game was specifically NOT good, especially by Nintendo's standards.
I mean here it's not even a problem of a stale formula or having the impression that you've played the game before like in other so called not perfect game they usually make.
It has real issues you would be laughed out of town if you said the game had such before the game was out.
I mean a Nintendo game with problematic and unintuitive controls? on Wii to boot?
I mean there's expecting the best game ever and expecting something functional.
We got neither as it is.

 

[Lone_Prodigy]

Either

a) 2D Metroid on the 3DS, or
b) Other M 2, fixing the flaws of the first game

 

[apana]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

 

[gdt]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

I like Bungie, but no thanks.

 

[Mama Robotnik]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

No no no no no.

No.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

A joke, I know, but there's already too much Halo (and western FPS in general) in Metroid at this point. It's bad enough that Echoes and Corruption had character designs that verged on that universe, but the gameplay style has slowly drifted in that direction too, even if it's never quite "arrived" yet. The series needs to take a step back from humanoid enemies with guns. Hell, in Corruption even the little crawly critters all shot at you like security turrets. The rhythm of platforming has been traded in for strafing and button mashing. Don't even get me started on Hunters, because that's not even a Metroid game, in spite of the moniker.

There's far too much hyperbole in this thread to comment seriously in it.

Well, not everyone can make the sort of amazing contribution to the discussion that you just did.

 

[Mudkips]

Metroid 2 is the worst Metroid except for Hunters.

Metroid
Super Metroid
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Fusion
Metroid II: Return of Samus
Metroid: Other M
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Prime: Hunters
Metroid Prime: Pinball

Prime series is total shit and I hate it.

Give me a disgustingly hard, no-map, non-linear, Metroid.
I want the Demons Souls of Metroid.

 

[Red]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

Ahahahahahahahahahaha


For me:
Super Metroid
Prime
Echoes
Zero Mission
Fusion
Metroid 2
Other M
Metroid
Metroid Prime Pinball
Hunters
Corruption

Needs a new meaty 2D entry, something in the actual chronology.

 

[Mama Robotnik]

List

If we're doing this, ordered from best to worst:

God Tier

Metroid Prime
Super Metroid

Great games

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Fusion

Showing their age but still playable

Metroid
Metroid 2

Should not have been made

Metroid Other M
Metroid Prime Pinball
Metroid Prime Hunters.

Prime series is total shit and I hate it.

Amazing. Metroid Prime is one of the greatest, most perfectly designed videogame masterpieces and never failed to surprise me with its continuous brilliance.

We must be very different people!

 

[Red]

I'm with Mama Robotnik here, might boost Echoes and Zero Mission to somewhere between god tier and great. Besides that, I'm in agreeance.

Corruption is something people consistently disagree with me on, so I sort of ignore it. It's allowed on the list, I'll just have to try and forget it.

 

[Gravijah]

Metroid Prime Pinball

I've heard Pinball is actually fun, though.

 

[gdt]

I'd bump up MP2 to God Tier, but that's about it.

 

[mantidor]

I've only heard good things about Metroid Pinball, as a pinball game is pretty great.

 

[GlamFM]

2.5 D metroid for 3DS made by Chair.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

Awesome

It's like we're made for each other.

 

[sonicmj1]

Most of my favorite games, I can imagine legitimate reasons for one to dislike them. But I really don't know how someone could hate Metroid Prime. It doesn't make sense to me.

I'm surprised Nintendo hasn't tried another 2D Metroid at all this generation. It seems like the easiest thing with a possibility of success out there for the franchise.

 

[Mama Robotnik]

I've heard Pinball is actually fun, though.

I didn't like it as a Pinball game or as a Metroid game. I put a few hours into it but it certainly didn't click with me.

I'd have rather have seen its development resources, time and manpower go into Dread all in all.

 

[Duane Cunningham]

Fusion and Zero Mission were "New! Super Metroid". I'd love another one. On 3DS.

And for a big one, on a console? Something by a western studio, that gets some inspiration from Dead Space (just a little), and I do like the idea of it taking a bit of visual cue from the mvc3/no more heroes look. But more detailed, and epic music. And the storyline is post Metroid 4, where Samus is a wanted fugitive.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

Fusion and Zero Mission were "New! Super Metroid". I'd love another one.

One gutted the underlying progression and the other tacked on a half-assed end game though. Also, MZM's map doesn't actually make physical sense unless the elevators are running diagonally. Still, I think both have some progressive elements that I'd love to see elaborated upon in future entries, like the shine spark puzzles or boss battles that span multiple encounters.

 

[Struct09]

I didn't think Other M was that bad (gameplay wise), but I'm hoping we see a side-scrolling Metroid for the 3DS. It's a crime that we didn't get one for the regular DS

 

[pvpness]

The worst thing about Other M is the sales. It really under performed. The result is that Metroid is no longer a franchise on the level of Mario and Zelda for Nintendo. I think Donkey Kong has easily taken that spot. A future without 3D metroid games is depressing.

What were the sales? I missed them I guess...

Samus has always been defined by violent speed and precision for me. Just a bad bitch moving through alien worlds at mach speed wreckin kids. I thought Other M captured this feeling really well. Prime couldn't have been further from my ideal version of Samus. Slow as shit Samus. What's the point?

I wish they'd just fucking remake Super Metroid in HD with dual analogs to temporarily muffle the haters.

 

[∀ Narayan]

If we're doing this, ordered from best to worst:

God Tier

Metroid Prime
Super Metroid

Great games

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Fusion

Showing their age but still playable

Metroid
Metroid 2

Should not have been made

Metroid Other M
Metroid Prime Pinball
Metroid Prime Hunters.



Amazing. Metroid Prime is one of the greatest, most perfectly designed videogame masterpieces and never failed to surprise me with its continuous brilliance.

We must be very different people!

Put Echoes in the God Tier. That game is outstanding. Has the best suit designs, too.

 

[apana]

What were the sales? I missed them I guess...

Samus has always been defined by violent speed and precision for me. Just a bad bitch moving through alien worlds at mach speed wreckin kids. I thought Other M captured this feeling really well. Prime couldn't have been further from my ideal version of Samus. Slow as shit Samus. What's the point?

I wish they'd just fucking remake Super Metroid in HD with dual analogs to temporarily muffle the haters.

I think it was like 300,000 total. SMH at the earlier comparison of Galaxy 2 slightly underperforming Galaxy 1 being the same as Other M: Prime 3 ratio.

 

[pvpness]

I think it was like 300,000 total. SMH at the earlier comparison of Galaxy 2 slightly underperforming Galaxy 1 being the same as Other M: Prime 3 ratio.

That seems about right for N. America. Is there a source though? A release from Nintendo I missed?

 

[Goldmund]

Secret Option 4: Hand the Metroid series over to Bungie.

I like your idea. A dash of Miyamoto-san upending the writers' tables and we have a good game.

Please keep video games story-free, Nintendo. From a silent point A to a mute point B. Let the children imagine what connected the two and they'll forever be trapped in nostalgia and your future customers.

 

[Giolon]

If we're doing this, ordered from best to worst:

God Tier

Metroid Prime
Super Metroid

Great games

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Fusion

Showing their age but still playable

Metroid
Metroid 2

Should not have been made

Metroid Other M
Metroid Prime Pinball
Metroid Prime Hunters.

I wouldn't place Other M in the "Shouldn't have been made" category. I found the core gameplay to be quite enjoyable and true to the Fusion/Zero Mission-style of heavily guided gameplay. The cutscenes were your typical anime-dreck that I completely expected from the first trailer. I would give it a separate "good games" category, though I would probably place Metroid Prime 3 in the same section.

The only thing stopping MP2 from being God Tier, IMO, is the poor and extremely game-y overworld design. Nothing screams artificial like the hub-spoke design.

 

[brandonh83]

Put Echoes in the God Tier. That game is outstanding. Has the best suit designs, too.

Yeah Echoes was definitely God Tier, IMO. I felt that it had its own unique atmosphere that still felt like Metroid, but it wasn't just a rehash either. Gameplay and visuals were phenomenal, crazy bosses, awesome and creepy as hell dark world... amazing shit.

 

[tiff]

God Tier

Metroid Prime
Super Metroid

Great games

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Fusion

Showing their age but still playable

Metroid
Metroid 2

Switch Fusion and Corruption and it's perfect.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

Yeah Echoes was definitely God Tier, IMO. I felt that it had its own unique atmosphere that still felt like Metroid, but it wasn't just a rehash either. Gameplay and visuals were phenomenal, crazy bosses, awesome and creepy as hell dark world... amazing shit.

Echoes followed the more-betterer philosophy of game design. It had (mostly) great art direction, cool morph ball segments, and some good bosses, but it was also bogged down by superfluous pace killing elements. They shot for "complex" but landed short of the mark at "convoluted" instead. The entire experience feels muddled imo.

 

[Red]

Echoes followed the more-betterer philosophy of game design. It had (mostly) great art direction and some good bosses, but it was also bogged down by superfluous pace killing elements. They shot for "complex" but landed short of the mark at "convoluted" instead. The entire experience feels muddled imo.

I agree with this for the first three hours or so. Once you get the first power thingy it really opens up.

 

[apana]

The main problem with Echoes is the flow of the game. Also a lot of moments of brilliance followed by a lot of quirky design choices. Its bordering on classic to me. Retro will never be the old Retro again. A lot of those designers left to go to EA, a few went to Sony Santa Monica, and the three main leads started Armature that still has yet to produce a game.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

I agree with this for the first three hours or so. Once you get the first power thingy it really opens up.

I thought the cul-de-sac nature of the level design (particularly the dark world), energy temples, holo decoders, and key fetching across multiple dimensions plagued the entire game start to end. You also get the light and dark beams fairly early in the game, and most of the upgrades between them and the light suit (near the very end) feel incremental and annoyingly context specific. The sense of progression is really weak as a result imo.

The main problem with Echoes is the flow of the game. Also a lot of moments of brilliance followed by a lot of quirky design choices. Its bordering on classic to me. Retro will never be the old Retro again. A lot of those designers left to go to EA, a few went to Sony Santa Monica, and the three main leads started Armature that still has yet to produce a game.

I prefer DKCR to Echoes and Corruption, so I'm not too torn up about it.

 

[Osuwari]

i guess this became a list war now.

here's my list

favorites

Metroid Prime 2 (best representation of Metroid in 3D. it isn't perfect though. it is the hardest of the primes)
Metroid Fusion (my first Metroid game. the atmosphere is cool and had tight controls)

good games

Super Metroid (atmosphere, level design and music are cool but controls are clunky)
Metroid Zero Mission (feels way too short, despite being about as long as SM. i guess it is the faster pace)
Metroid Prime (good first attempt and laid the groundwork for mp2)

average

Metroid Prime 3 (became too much like a FPS and lost the charm of the first 2)
Metroid Other M (too much focus on story and questionable control decisions)

bad

Metroid Prime Hunters (random FPS dressed as a Metroid game)
NES Metroid (unplayable in this day and age. it is one of those games that you had to be there to get)

never played

Metroid 2 (i hope this gets remade)

shouldn't be counted as a metroid game

Metroid Prime Pinball (it is as fun as the Pokemon Pinball games but has less replay value since it lacks the collecting aspect of PP)

 

[Osuwari]

btw, mp2 becomes way more enjoyable with sequence breaks. it really feels like you can go anywhere in typical metroid fashion when you start breaking it apart with some glitches like this one.