Monday 29 Oct 2007

It feels like we have been waiting for ages for this game to launch but it has eventually hit our shores. Was the wait worth it? Hell yeah!

Once again Samus is called in to take on the alien enemy but this time she has been corrupted (hence Metroid Prime 3: Corruption), but, it actually helps you throughout the game. Those that had the chance and time to play Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2, on the GameCube, would be wondering how well the Wii Remote controls have been implemented, holding thumbs that their beloved franchise would not become Red Steel with a storyline set in the future.

Great controls

I’ll get straight to it, it’s FANTASTIC! This is by far the best I have seen for the Wii Remote control and Nunchuck in a First Person environment and leaves you with wanting more. There are three settings for you to play with which basically sets the sensitivity of the aiming for the Wiimote. If you set it on “novice,” the motion from left to right (when looking around), it is slow but it makes it easier for those that have never played a game like this before to aim within the constricted confinement of the squared-off area available to you on your television set. What I would recommend though is for a player with even the slightest bit of experience to set it up straight to “advanced” as it just feels so much more responsive (something which Scarface pulled off well on the Wii as well)

So, you use the Wiimote to aim where you’re going/shooting and the analog in the Nunchuck to move/strafe. The “B” button shoots Missiles and the “A” button is used for shooting (with the “Z” button used for locking on to your enemies) and for other functions in the game like removing a battery cell. Retro Studios Inc. did a great job with the functionality of the Wii’s controls. When removing a battery cell (for example), you press the “A” button to activate and the twist your hand and pull back to pull the battery out. As for the “Grapple Hook,” if you see something that can grapple just through your left arm forward, as if you are throwing out a rope, with the Nunchuck and “WHAM!” it hooks and you’re swinging all over the place to such an extent that Spiderman wants to dig his own grave.

Furthermore you have the – and + buttons. The - button is used to bring up a quick menu for you to select combat mode or scanning mode (and another two modes which if mentioned would spoil the game for you) which works simple enough. The + button, if held for about two seconds, transforms you into the corrupt Samus and this provides you with a chance to become super strong and nail enemies with one or two shots, but it comes with it’s own weakness. If you do not continue firing and your corrupt energy bar, which continues growing when not shooting, reaches its maximum you will die. The “1” buttons brings up the inventory screen and from here you can view the 3D map, scans, suit condition and extras.
Fortunately the controls have not hindered the game play and it is the classic gameplay we have come to expect over the years. You can still roll into a little ball and progress through the game by cruising via tight tunnels that lead to secret areas.

The enemies are just as clever as they were on the GameCube versions and provide you with the same level of intelligence as before. The boss battle and puzzles, I find, were a tad bit easy even though I played it on a difficulty of normal, so I would advise that you possibly set it up one notch if you are a Metroid Prime veteran.

Astounding graphics

Graphically this game cannot be faulted. The details on the enemies and bosses are great but the environment and background details are astounding, to such an extent that at times I thought it was a CG movie. It is definitely a better “looker” than the GameCube versions but it still maintains that elusive art style that so many games before it lose over time when reaching the 2nd sequel.

The only bit of complaining that is gonna come from me is that there is absolutely no multiplayer in the game. Seeing that Metroid Prime 2 did have multiplayer on the GameCube it is a bit of a let down. What they did bring to the table is achievement points… yup, you read that right. Nintendo (or Retro Studios Inc.) realised that this phenomenon of achievement points on the Xbox 360 is something that they should incorporate into this game and it works. Why? It feels great seeing “1000 Kills” and in this case you can actually use the points to buy art, movies, sound clips and fun stuff like a “Mii Bobble Head” (that sits in Samus’s ships, which you can place with by pointing at it!) and a “snapshot” feature that allows you to snap a shot of the game (in-game) and send it off to any of your Wii friends. Some of these achievement “tickets” that you acquire (which are colour coded and green in this case) needs to be sent to your friends and visa versa for you to activate them so you can buy extra goodies. Guess there is some kind of multiplayer interaction!

Other than that there is nothing to complain about in this game. Any Wii owner that has been waiting for a decent First Person Shooter/Adventure game should go out to the shop right now and spend your well earned money on one of the best games currently available on the Nintendo Wii… don’t let other games corrupt your mind!

Pros: The classic game play is not lost; the controls work like a dream; graphically one of the better Wii titles.
Cons: No multiplayer; made us play other crappy First Person games while waiting for it to arrive.

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Contributor:	Dawid

Purchase: