Magicpaint
Member
Given how Prime Hunters sold, it's not surprising we got Federation Force, unfortunately the timing of that game couldn't have been worse.
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Why didn't Metroid: Zero Mission sell well (or at least sell over a million units)?
- Thread starter TheDinoman
- Start date
This is fundamentally untrue. Batman Arkham Asylum and Tomb Raider 2013 are both Metroid style AAA games that were hugely successful. Arkham Asylum sold over 2 million copies in 3 weeks and Tomb Raider 2013 had sold around 4 million copies during its first 6 months after release.
This was despite both games having darker tones then a typical Metroid game that would limit their audience.
It's not a series that needs lots of entries. One game every 5-6 years is plenty.
TheDinoman
Member
The funny thing about Federation Force is that it probably wouldn't of been completely shitted on if it had met the following three criteria:
- It didn't have a stupid artstyle
- It wasn't released on 3DS
- It came out during a time when real Metroid games were being made
Federation Force had the potential to sort of be like Metroid's answer to Star Wars: Republic Commando, a action focused shooter game where you play as common troopers instead of the main characters. If FF had met all three criteria above, then it probably would of just been seen as a fun harmless spinoff.
Yeah, maybe metroid should be a 2 games per generation deal, kind of like Zelda.
Tarextherex
Banned
Nah, Fusion > Zero Mission. ZM felt like a poor man's Super Metroid, main new thing it added was a freaking stealth section before the game ends abruptly
Plus it was right before the DS launch. Really the game was just another Metroid game
Plus it was right before the DS launch. Really the game was just another Metroid game
Dark Ninja
Member
Make this in a few months when Samus returns underperforms. Then make it again for Metroid Prime 4. Metroid will be dead again soon enjoy what we get in the meantime.
zenspider
Member
Fusion came out the same day as Prime. Zero Mission came out a few months after Prime 2.
Astral Dog
Member
Metroid is a niche franchise
Ōkami;241038646 said:
Super Metroid was just as long and that didn't hurt it like this.
for some reason some remakes seem to draw negative interest and get buried fast. it's a shame since ZM is one of the best remakes to come from Nintendo in all their videogame history. it's a game that 100% justifies being a remake (not like the remasters we get nowadays in other series that are just touched up ports of the originals)
ZM came out a lot earlier than Prime 2.
ZM released in february 2004 and Prime 2 was end of 2004.
this also negates the excuse that the DS launch killed it. the game had almost a full year to sell before the original DS was out and the DS didn't take off on that time since it became big in late 2005.
Metroid fans themselves are at fault for letting the 2D games die at that time.
Seems like the series sells like a million regulary enough just like Kirby.
So why not keep it around just like Kirby
5 year breaks like mainline Zelda for the Prime/Mainline games seems enough imo.
Anyway Zero Mission was awesome i love the fast paced gameplay. So i am glad to see Samus Return use that. And it had Zero Suit Samus.
So why not keep it around just like Kirby
5 year breaks like mainline Zelda for the Prime/Mainline games seems enough imo.
Anyway Zero Mission was awesome i love the fast paced gameplay. So i am glad to see Samus Return use that. And it had Zero Suit Samus.
TheDinoman
Member
Seems like the series sells like a million regulary enough just like Kirby.
So why not keep it around just like Kirby
Kirby has an entire company backing him up.
Ever since Iwata shuffled Nintendo's internal development teams back in 2005, Metroid hasn't really had a consistent team to keep making games for it. There was Retro, but they moved on to Donkey Kong Country. It's somewhat telling that Sakamoto seems to keep having to bring in outside studios like Team Ninja or MercurySteam to assist developing his new Metroid games.
Who knows whats going on with MP4's developer. I'd assume it's just a new internal team they brought together to make it, but a lot of people like Shikamaru Ninja seem to think it's Next Level Games...
Northeastmonk
Gold Member
I feel like there's a large majority of people that play one entry and that's it. They don't want to buy a sequel, a prequel, or a whole new entry years after they had their time with a series.
I can imagine certain people owning Halo 1 or even Halo 2 and that was it for them. You can also include late adapters. They bought it used at some pawn shop or got it somewhere online.
I had Super Metroid around launch and I got Prime 1 on launch. I got the GBA game used when I worked at GameStop. I also got Prime 2 and 3 used as well as the trilogy on the Wii and VC.
I own the GBA games on Wii U VC even though I owned them used at some point in time.
My guess is that gamers were gearing up for next gen and the handheld market was a used market. If you wanted GBA games back in 2005 even they were all used in some glass case.
I feel like Metroid 4 will do well, but who knows if all these Switch owners ever played the series or bought a brand new copy.
I can imagine certain people owning Halo 1 or even Halo 2 and that was it for them. You can also include late adapters. They bought it used at some pawn shop or got it somewhere online.
I had Super Metroid around launch and I got Prime 1 on launch. I got the GBA game used when I worked at GameStop. I also got Prime 2 and 3 used as well as the trilogy on the Wii and VC.
I own the GBA games on Wii U VC even though I owned them used at some point in time.
My guess is that gamers were gearing up for next gen and the handheld market was a used market. If you wanted GBA games back in 2005 even they were all used in some glass case.
I feel like Metroid 4 will do well, but who knows if all these Switch owners ever played the series or bought a brand new copy.
I bought it... last year for the Wii U VC. It was a solid game, but I didn't like the Zero Suit gameplay.
Prime and Fusion were good games, but maybe people got their fill. To follow up with worse versions of both two years later isn't enticing. I prefer the 2D Metroid games but... they're short. I think I beat ZM in seven hours, and that's slow compared to many. That's a hard sell for a $30 game, and it will be harder for Samus Returns. I hope that game blows away expectations, but I can see it bombing. Prime 4 could probably cross a million due to hype alone, but who knows if that will be enough. Prime 4 really needs to bring a lot of fresh ideas to the table, it can't coast on offering the same experience.
Prime and Fusion were good games, but maybe people got their fill. To follow up with worse versions of both two years later isn't enticing. I prefer the 2D Metroid games but... they're short. I think I beat ZM in seven hours, and that's slow compared to many. That's a hard sell for a $30 game, and it will be harder for Samus Returns. I hope that game blows away expectations, but I can see it bombing. Prime 4 could probably cross a million due to hype alone, but who knows if that will be enough. Prime 4 really needs to bring a lot of fresh ideas to the table, it can't coast on offering the same experience.
Kirby has an entire company backing him up.
Ever since Iwata shuffled Nintendo's internal development teams back in 2005, Metroid hasn't really had a consistent team to keep making games for it. There was Retro, but they moved on to Donkey Kong Country. It's somewhat telling that Sakamoto seems to keep having to bring in outside studios like Team Ninja or MercurySteam to assist developing his new Metroid games.
Who knows whats going on with MP4's developer. I'd assume it's just a new internal team they brought together to make it, but a lot of people like Shikamaru Ninja seem to think it's Next Level Games...
Ah that explains alot, thanks. I kinda hope it's a internal team that would be great imo. But next level games did make luigi's mansion dark moon tho and that game was pretty good.
Earthbound64
Banned
Me neither. No idea why, I liked Fusion. Still have not played it to this day too.
Alex_Mexico
Member
I'm sorry but there's is no chance in hell that a remake of a 27 year old Game Boy game released in 2017 for a dying handheld can achieve what you want it to. I'm sure it'll perform well within expectations and turn a profit but this game will not be the FE Awakening of the franchise
However I do think that the FE:A of the franchise could be Metroid Prime 4 as long as they don't keep the #4 in the title. Name it Metroid Prime Something, drop the number that could throw casuals and the uninitiated off, make a great game and watch how it works for its franchise as BotW did for Zelda.
SolVanderlyn
Thanos acquires the fully powered Infinity Gauntlet in The Avengers: Infinity War, but loses when all the superheroes team up together to stop him.
I think it came out fairly late in the GBA's life (although not at the end).
It should have sold more though. Many of the best games seem to struggle with sales. Makes me feel like a hipster for hating the mainstream taste when I hear this kind of news.
It should have sold more though. Many of the best games seem to struggle with sales. Makes me feel like a hipster for hating the mainstream taste when I hear this kind of news.
Darkspineslayer
Member
Hell, just if they had done that Prime 4 teaser when they announced Fed Farce, I don't think the fanbase would have spewed nearly as much bile. I would have been more ok with it in that imaginary situation myself.
No its not.
Darkspineslayer
Member
Both Batman and Tomb Raider have hooks that go behind being Metroid-like. Batman had his combat system being hailed as innovative and being a critically well received Batman game not long after the Dark Knight was released. Notably Batman completely dropped its Metroid like level design after the first game and went completely open world from then on, and was just as commercially successful if not more so. I haven't played Tomb Raider but my impression from marketing was that it was invoking a very Uncharted type experience which was very popular at the time.
CaviarMeths
Member
I'm actually more surprised that Other M didn't crack a million.
Zero Mission was a late gen remake that was like the 4th Metroid game in as many years. It's quite easy to see why it didn't sell as well as Metroid 1-4.
But Other M looked good pre-release. It had a fantastic reveal trailer, looked pretty fun in gameplay videos, and came with the "from the developers of Ninja Gaiden" cred attached to it. I would have thought it would have been able to quickly push out a million units before the bad word of mouth set in and all the unsold copies were moved to bomba bins.
Zero Mission was a late gen remake that was like the 4th Metroid game in as many years. It's quite easy to see why it didn't sell as well as Metroid 1-4.
But Other M looked good pre-release. It had a fantastic reveal trailer, looked pretty fun in gameplay videos, and came with the "from the developers of Ninja Gaiden" cred attached to it. I would have thought it would have been able to quickly push out a million units before the bad word of mouth set in and all the unsold copies were moved to bomba bins.
SecondVariety
Member
At the time, there was the version included with prime, which has been mentioned. Even owning the link cable and an extension that was a pain. Then there is the hand-holding in fusion which came out not long before.
I fell in love with Metroid II on the Game Boy, but the mantra back then was Super Metroid or better for 2D Metroid. It's a shame cause Zero Mission was a good purchase, and we are still waiting for a new 2D Metroid.
I'm looking forward to Samus Returns and at some point Prime 4. Hopefully Metroid won't be skipping any future Nintendo hardware.
I fell in love with Metroid II on the Game Boy, but the mantra back then was Super Metroid or better for 2D Metroid. It's a shame cause Zero Mission was a good purchase, and we are still waiting for a new 2D Metroid.
I'm looking forward to Samus Returns and at some point Prime 4. Hopefully Metroid won't be skipping any future Nintendo hardware.
By the time Other M came out any real audience for "mature" software had long abandoned the Wii. The game's insultingly low quality just sealed it's fate. By late 2010 the Wii could only sell family friendly software.
There was definitely Metroid fatigue around that time. Prime, Fusion, Prime 2, ZM, Hunters was a known quantity on DS. I think they released Metroid NES Classic on the GBA around that time as well.
Here's what killed Other M: The fans. They got out in front of it and said 'You will not buy this game. You will not buy it for $50, $20 or $10. You will not buy it new. You will not buy it used.' Were they justified? Yup. It offered Metroid fans nothing while offering its' creator a lesson that he's out of his mind.
CaviarMeths
Member
This is a little revisionist. Several core titles released later and sold better than Other M.
Well like I said, the game's terrible quality was a factor as well. But a hard scifi game was never going to move big numbers at the end of the Wii's life, certainly not a bad one.
DKC Returns and Skyward Sword came after Other M and sold well, but those were of much higher quality and were much more suitable for children.
enixbelmont
Member
I loved the game and bought it day 1, physical copy, HOWEVER
I distinctly remember a pirated copy leaked a few weeks early and I played that. GBA Flash carts were on the market at their prime, emulators were out. I think it's very possible that mixed with getting close to the end of the GBA's lifespan hurt it.
I distinctly remember a pirated copy leaked a few weeks early and I played that. GBA Flash carts were on the market at their prime, emulators were out. I think it's very possible that mixed with getting close to the end of the GBA's lifespan hurt it.
It should be noted that with many Metroid games they got very little marketing or terrible marketing. That probably also contributed to the decline in sales as the first Metroid Prime carried a lot of hype just because of the radical shift and it being an early console game for the gamecube. Something Metroid Prime 2 didn't have.
For Prime 3 I saw it had it's own app to market the game with little videos and such. But beyond that I'm not sure they did a good job with marketing it.
I'm not familiar with how it went down with Zero mission, but probably a similar fate.
For Prime 3 I saw it had it's own app to market the game with little videos and such. But beyond that I'm not sure they did a good job with marketing it.
I'm not familiar with how it went down with Zero mission, but probably a similar fate.
Probably this.
It could be at the time many people didn't care for the Metroid IP, despite Zero Mission being a solid game. Or maybe because it was a portable, and not a home console experience did people at the time think it would be an inferior experience than what they're use to. Sometimes people can only appreciate something long after its time. I'm so glad I got the the Virtual Console version on WiiU, no regrets.
DieNgamers
Member
Maybe people had their fill with Prime and Fusion at the time.
I still think Fusion is a better, more focused and more ambitious game than Zero Mission.
ZM is Metroid comfort food. I can't imagine why it wouldn't have sold well, though. It's a stellar game nonetheless.
I still think Fusion is a better, more focused and more ambitious game than Zero Mission.
ZM is Metroid comfort food. I can't imagine why it wouldn't have sold well, though. It's a stellar game nonetheless.
SporeCrawler
Member
prime 2 is less accessible. it is wayyyy harder
poodaddy
Member
How do you know if it was awful if you skipped it?
Mysteries, questions, secrets.....shit posts.
Your assesments are pretty accurate. Tomb Raider also dropped its Metroidvania style gameplay in its sequel and it is worse for it. In both cases there are fans of both series who greatly prefer the first entries in the series over the sequel.
Me personally. I like Arkham City and its Zelda like design over Arkham Asylum, but greatly prefer Tomb Raiders Metroid style approach over both its sequel and all 4 Uncharted games.
Its also worth noting that Metroid also has a hook behind its world design systems. Its a FPS with the soul of a platformer. Thats basically the Halo/Destiny formula and its been hugely successful for companies other then Bumgie. FPS' are incredibly popular and T rated FPS' are virtually non existent. The ones that are (Destiny and Overwatch) have done very well this generation.
This