Metroid Prime was released way back in 2002 on the Nintendo Gamecube and cemented itself in gaming history as a truly iconic first-person shooter action-adventure platformer. It was the first Metroid title to make the transition to a first-person view and use cutting-edge first-person graphics at the time.
It got a re-release on the Nintendo Wii in the Metroid Prime Trilogy compilation in 2009 and now, more than a decade later, itβs finally made its way to the Nintendo Switch.
Prime Candidate for Remastering
Metroid Prime Remastered is what I personally would call an almost perfect remaster. The game makes this quite clear to you from the get-go with the visuals being crisp and visually stunning while still retaining the overall feel of the old game.
Metroid Prime kicks off with Samus Aran arriving at a space pirate derelict station. Upon investigation, Samus discovers that the space pirates were conducting biological experiments involving Phazon. After a tiny bit of exploring, youβll fight a parasite queen and trigger a reactor explosion. On the way out of the space station, youβll encounter Meta Ridley, who then flees toward planet Tallon IV.
Samus, unfortunately, suffers some damage on the way out of the station and has most of her abilities stripped away. In hot pursuit of Meta Ridley, youβll land on Tallon IV and this is where your adventure truly begins.
Action Adventure Platforming
On Tallon IV, Samus will have to explore and find out just what the heck is going on at a Chozo colony while fighting off various forms of alien life. This is however easier said than done since without her full Varia Suit powers, things are a bit difficult at first.
Where Metroid Prime succeeds is that the game transfers the classic 2D side-scroller Metroid formula of exploration, obtaining power-ups and gradually becoming more powerful into a 3D platforming action adventure.
Players will have access to a scanner and will have to scan almost everything in the game. This means that there are a lot of bite-sized tidbits to consume which drive both the plot and the gameplay forward. It works ridiculously well since it provides guidance to you while also exploring a lot of the gameβs lore and story. Players will have to swap between scanning mode and their normal combat mode on the fly and it works so well in action.
On Nintendo Switch, this has been replicated flawlessly and Metroid Prime Remastered is quite literally perfect for playing in smaller bursts of gameplay. Players can get through a section, and simply just put the console to sleep and resume whenever they want to. This alleviates much of the stress involved with running back to a Save room and having to worry about progressing further if youβre pressed for time.
Amazingly, Nintendo has included 4 different control schemes in the remaster and if you want to play the game as it was originally intended with GameCube controls, you can. The newer more modernised control scheme works well but purists might scoff at using this.
The puzzle platforming in Metroid Prime Remastered is just the right difficulty and even more, casual players wonβt really struggle thanks to the ample amount of guidance the game gives you via the scannable objects and enemies. If you do struggle with the gameplay, you can also try out the βCasualβ difficulty setting which makes things a lot more forgiving than the standard difficulty setting.
Remastered Visuals
Circling back to the remastered visuals, Nintendo has truly outdone itself here. Almost every single detail of the original GameCube version of Metroid Prime has been given a once over and touched up to look a lot better. Weapon effects are flashy and visually appealing and Samus herself looks great with the Varia Suit sporting its iconic look from that particular era of Metroid.
Unfortunately, though there is no Metroid Fusion suit option in the game at the time of writing I suspect this may be added in a future DLC. The rest of the game including the environments and the enemies is great and the remaster even includes a bonus gallery where you can view concept art.
Be sure to scan everything though because youβll unlock more character logs and other additional information by scanning enemies and the environment throughout the game. The gameβs distinct art style and visuals have also stood the test of time and with the fresh coat of paint applied by the new high-definition textures, it looks amazing in both docked and handheld mode on Nintendo Switch.
To top things off, thereβs also the soundtrack which can be accessed via a menu and since Metroid Prime had some great tracks, itβs highly worth listening to this once youβve unlocked the music in-game.
Final Verdict
Metroid Prime Remastered is a great blast from the past and while some video game mechanics can be considered dated by modern standards, the quality of life upgrade of purely having better visuals as well as being able to suspend the game and continue whenever you want is fantastic. The Nintendo Switch’s handheld capabilities really shine through here since it works perfectly with the type of game Metroid Prime is. If youβre a fan of Metroid or even if youβve never played a Metroid title before, Metroid Prime Remastered is a great action adventure platformer shooter and one that comes very highly recommended.
Grab your copy here https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-Switch-games/Metroid-Prime-Remastered-2341668.html
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