Reviews// Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Posted 12 Sep 2007 14:19 by
When it was first announced that Retro studios, a Texas based developer, was going to be handling Nintendo’s much loved Metroid series’ first 3D outing many people, myself included, did not believe it would work. On the game’s release, however, it quickly became apparent that Nintendo, in its seemingly “almost” infinite wisdom (i.e. Virtual boy) had made the right move.

The team managed to recreate the Metroid experience almost perfectly. It didn’t just make a good game, it completely blew most people’s expectations away with unrivaled graphics and presentation. Five years later the third and final chapter in the Prime trilogy, the first for the “hardcore game deprived”-Wii has finally been released, just under a year late and, like the original, it does not disappoint, though for very different reasons.

The original Primes proved that 2D originals could not only survive in 3D but excel – therefore showcasing the GameCube as a powerful console, capable of breathtaking graphics. Prime 3, however, shows that Metroid can be Metroid without following the exact same semi-tired formula and that the Wii’s controls can truly make a game when utilised correctly.

While you can still explore strange alien worlds and accumulate special powers that are used to solve puzzles, you no longer have to wander the exact same stretch 20 times; nor will you spend the bulk of your 20-plus hour adventure suffering from claustrophobia.

Our story begins with Samus waking from cryogenic sleep as her ship comes up to a cluster of Federation starships orbiting a bluish green planet. She has been called here, along with four other hunters, to help fend off an attack on the planet below. Without giving away too much, things take a surprising turn for the worse. You are given the general layout for the remainder of the game and provided with a few key power-ups that will enable you to really get things under way.

One of the standouts about this edition is that, unlike previous outings, Samus is not forced to start things from Square One. Right out of the gate you have the morphball and bombs and you receive rockets very early on to help you in your journey. All of your basic powers will be upgraded and expanded via power-ups throughout, but the bothersome ‘Get up to speed’ section has thankfully been left out almost entirely.

Another notable addition, this time around, is the voice acting that has been applied to every character in the game barring, of course, our heroine. Nintendo has been very hesitant in the past to allow voices in its games (due to fear of displeased gamers who can’t agree on what an Italian plumber should sound like?). So, it is no surprise that when it does use voices, they turn out to be some of the best implemented around. While some of the lines may feel a bit silly this is just inherent to the universe rather than a fault of the actors or the writing. It’s basically impossible to talk about “space pirates” and not sound a bit silly.
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Comments

Anonymous 12 Sep 2007 14:43
1/10
None of those images in the review are from Prime 3, they are all from Prime 2.
LUPOS 12 Sep 2007 19:56
2/10
Anonymous wrote:
None of those images in the review are from Prime 3, they are all from Prime 2.


We have replaced them with shiny new images... most in wiiiide screen format.

We apologise for the fault in the images. Those responsible have been sacked.
more comments below our sponsor's message
TimSpong 13 Sep 2007 08:28
3/10
LUPOS wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
None of those images in the review are from Prime 3, they are all from Prime 2.


We have replaced them with shiny new images... most in wiiiide screen format.

We apologise for the fault in the images. Those responsible have been sacked.


Actually they have been promoted for having fixed the problem when it came to the fore. They are now an Admiral of SPOnG.

However, apologies are in order for that brief technical misfunction. Yes, I said, 'misfunction', what of it?

Tim
LUPOS 13 Sep 2007 14:55
4/10
I was really hopping somebody would follow up with a wonder lama reference... oh well :/
____
billson 13 Sep 2007 19:05
5/10
I sincerely hope this does not happen again or i will see to it you all lose your jobs, have your houses burned down and your pets killed.
billson 13 Sep 2007 19:06
6/10
or maybe ill just take it with gentle good humour
RiseFromYourGrave 14 Sep 2007 19:11
7/10
cant blummin wait for this. nailing super paper mario as we speak, the winter avalanche has truly started.
LUPOS 14 Sep 2007 19:52
8/10
RiseFromYourGrave wrote:
cant blummin wait for this. nailing super paper mario as we speak, the winter avalanche has truly started.


It's well worth it :)

It occurs to me I didn't real touch on the boss fights. It's metroid, they are awesome... though some scenes are really really really f**king hard.

Protip... 3 levers + charge shot = FTW. You'll see...

Now where are my Halos damn it!
_______
moosa 29 Sep 2007 23:02
9/10
Good review. The writing seems to lack some focus, but I pretty much agree with your points.

I'd just like to mention here that the graphical presentation is (interestingly) somewhat uneven throughout the game. The visuals at the game's beginning are good, not amazing, but from there effectiveness of the visuals very steadily evolves as you progress through the game, alongside Samus' own appearance. It seems unlikely that the correlation is intentional, but I can't help but wonder at the coincidence. I must say, however, that the locales visited towards the end of the game (which I won't say anything about so as not to spoil anything, and which for that very reason don't show up online as screenshots or anything) really are stunning, even despite the Wii's supposed lack of graphical power compared to other consoles. At that point, it truly demonstrates (for the first time) what the Wii is truly capable of, and perhaps it may just leave you wondering if the graphical difference between the hardware of the Wii and the competition is really that big of a deal at all...
I mean, I've never really been one to be so concerned with the graphics of the Wii as they compare to PS3 & 360, but I'm really serious... the high points in the visual presentation of Prime 3 rival much of what you can find on the other consoles!

But really, that's not what the game is all about, and it's certainly not the reason why you should buy and play this game. :)
RiseFromYourGrave 30 Oct 2007 23:58
10/10
well I finished it this afternoon on normal, 16 hours playtime and 91% complete. it was
[F**KING
amazing. the graphics were great, the geometry and level design, the sheer concepts behind the art were even better. i mean mind blowingly good! i felt like i was playing the leading part in a brilliant sci fi epic film, enemy mine, dune, starship troopers (:P) etc all rolled into one and pumped full of phazon. it literally blew my cock off. the gameplay was top bollock, the wiimote working really well and redefining console controls <-- redefined sounds cliched but ill have to bite my lip if i have to play any thumbstick fps's again, thats the sign of a new control benchmark. i like the new story and speech, it was very functional and sparse but thats all it needed to be, and i love the whole phazon premise, a seemingly sentient intergalactic mutagen corrupting the galaxy, and its really fleshed out in this one. theres even a bit of emotion -

SPOILER

having to kill rundas had a profound effect on me (and ghor too to an extent, but gandrayda was an annoying purple bitch who needed to die.. who am i kidding i begrudgingly disintergrated her too), considering the light dialogue and story. thats good stuff

/SPOILER

The sound is awesome too, all the correct sci fi noises in the right places, and the music is excellent, haunting ambient ethereal awesomeness. but the soundtrack is also capable of striding, emotional grandeur too, not just the brilliantly done atonal bleeps and bloops that make up the atmosphere of most planets. The fetch quest everyone moans about? when i got to doing that i had one item left to get and i knew where it was but was just still figuring out how to get it. in the course of the game up to that point, i had found most of them just playing the game as it should, with a very explorative method. ive said this elsewhere, isnt metroid one massive fetch quest anyway?? but a totally awesome one, with guns and aliens and mutagens and fantastical planets!!! MINT AS EGGS!!!!

im going to start it again in veteran now
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