ESRB RATING: T
DEVELOPER: Retro Studios
PUBLISHER: Nintendo
REVIEWER: A.D. Olson
DATE: 2007-09-11
GAMEPLAY REVIEW
Ah, Samus, so you return to complete the epic trifecta of perfection, Metroid Prime. And this time, the name of the game is Corruption.
I won't spoil the entire plot here, because it's very evident early on in the game how exactly it will play out. You might have a hunch, and you're probably going to be right. It seems too obvious, and you are really hoping for a huge twist at the end, but nope, it's not there, it's exactly what you had expected. But that's a fitting way to end the series, because it's very enjoyable, and the first true ground-up Wii title with controls better than anything on any other platform to date.
It is a joy to have played through this game, and to review it without completing would be an injustice resulting in a skewed score. It's a short game anyhow - it's going to run you around 20 hours, more if you're a slow gamer or new to the franchise. I was kinda sad when it was all over, especially with news that Retro isn't working on a new Metroid for now. I hope Nintendo gives them another franchise to resurrect, as they have essentially mastered the Metroid formula. I'd love to see them work on an epic new Icarus game, but I digress.
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption starts you out with people around you - something that hardcore Metroid fans will balk at, at first. It does feel like a different game, but this is a welcome change to me. It's not long before you're out on your own, although you do have communication from time-to-time to keep you in line and on track.
Samus doesn't lose every one of her abilities at the beginning of the game, which at first seems strange, being a Metroid staple, but there are plenty of suit upgrades to be found. The different beam weapons stack this time around, which is great, because now you don't have to switch from one to the other just to open a door, and then switch again in the next room because the enemies here have an opposite vulnerability to the door.
Scanning plays a big part in the game, as it not only tells a large part of the story from a different point of view, but it also gives you strategies to defeat enemies and rewards you with tokens which can be redeemed for unlockable extras, such as the screenshot tool and a Mii bobblehead that sits in your ship cockpit.
If you run through every room, shooting enemies, you're going to find that they take a dozen or two shots, easily, in many cases. This might be a complaint if this were a different game, but Metroid has always been about strategy, and in Corruption, you might find that some flying enemies are all but immune to your beam weapons, however, if you use your grapple beam to pull them out of the sky, then they are gone in a couple of seconds. It's all about strategy, and there is plenty of it. Another example would be the Metroids which you encounter later on in the game. Shoot straight at them and you're going to end up with a sore trigger finger, but use some weapon combination strategy, and they're no longer a problem. Scanning enemies not only reveals weaknesses, but also rewards you with red tokens, so you should get into the habit of doing it.
The Morph Ball and Spider Ball upgrades are used a lot in the game too, and it is much more fun than in previous Prime games. Not once did I get frustrated due to falling off of a twisty pathway while a camera auto-rotates me into oblivion. Everything works well this time around, and I suspect that it's partly to do with making this game slightly more accessible for new gamers. The overall AI and difficulty of the Normal mode is quite weak, and you can make it through the game without seeing the dreaded Game Over screen if you're good enough. Myself, I saw it about three or four times in total, and only one of the early bosses posed any problem for me. Luckily, there is a Veteran mode, as well as an unlockable Hyper mode, for those who aren't into cakewalks.
Some people seem to have an issue with how Retro chose to hide load times by slight delays during door opening. Well, I don't find it to be an issue at all, and in fact, I'd much rather have that than 30-second load screens like many other games. A few seconds here, a few seconds there is not really a big deal compared to the alternatives.
There is still backtracking to be done in Metroid Prime 3, just like every other Metroid game. But this time, you're not going to hate it as much, because you get to fly your ship around from planet to planet, and you can actually bookmark locations on your map to return to later. The world is very carefully constructed, especially SkyTown on Elysia, which is reminiscent of Riven or Myst, due to it's design and atmosphere.
Gameplay-wise, I'd say that Retro has nailed it on the head, and it's definitely the best title on the Wii so far.
Crave Factor: 10
GRAPHICS & ANIMATION
Metroid Prime was an amazingly pretty game on the GameCube, five years ago. The leap from then to Metroid Prime 3: Corruption isn't that big a jump at first glance, but the further you play in the game, the better it looks and the more details pop out at you. There is some great bloom lighting used throughout the entire game, and textures look fantastic, even up close for the most part. I was impressed, and really happy with what Retro has done. It's not a revolutionary difference, but it does look great and makes me wonder when other developers are going to step up and put some effort into the graphics department.
One thing that might sound silly, but mattered a lot to me, was how the game loading and options menus looked. Metroid Prime had some of the coolest backgrounds ever, and Metroid Prime 3 looks just as good. It seems like some games have menus with no real thought put into them, but looking at these is pleasing in itself, nevermind the rest of the game.
You can often see Samus' reflection in her visor, especially when using the scan visor, but also other times during combat. Her eyes follow where you are aiming the cursor, which is a nice touch. Her visor also reflects what is going on, just like in past Prime games. For example, it gets staticy when electric enemies are nearby and interfering, and you can see drops of water falling on it when you're in an outdoor environment during rain. Stand too close to a vent of steam, and you'll see dew form. Overall, it adds a layer of immersion not seen in many other games, if any.
The character animation is sufficient, other than the human hands - those are terrible, and look like Gumby for some reason. It seems that enemy movements are smoother, and real-time cutscenes longer, than in previous games. That said, I still know that the Wii can do more than what we've seen here - but you won't be disappointed as a Wii owner. It looks great, and hopefully it's just the start of more to come.
Crave Factor: 9
MUSIC & SOUND
The music in all Metroid games has been nothing short of extraordinary, and Corruption is no exception. From the opening track to the credit roll, it's a work of art for the ears. You can spend your tokens on unlocking various selections of the soundtrack, so when you don't want to play the game you can still boot it up to hear the beautiful score. It might not be fully-orchestrated, but it still sounds great.
Sound effects are very effective. They don't quite top what I've heard from Resident Evil 4, but that's a totally different style of game, where realism is easier to relate to. There are sounds for everything, and some are re-used such as Samus' yells and grunts. But a new addition to the Prime series, and really any Nintendo game, is full voice-acting. Samus doesn't talk at all, which is fine by me, but it's sure nice to not have to read everything in a Nintendo game. This is the year 2007, so it is about time, too. The voice actors that they hired did a great job. It could have turned out like Baten Kaitos, so I won't complain at all. And, if you don't like the voices, music, or sound, you have the option to set individual volume levels for each of them.
Crave Factor: 9
CONTROLS
When I first saw videos of the Wii being played, I thought of the possibilities. Videos of people playing Metroid Prime 3 were shown early on, and it was enough for me to make my choice - draw my line in the sand, if you will - for this generation. I was in line for 16 hours waiting for my Wii on launch day, and it finally would pay off when this delayed launch title finally hit store shelves.
Retro nailed it. Everything that I had hoped for, control-wise, is here. Aiming is flawless and accurate. Pulling and pushing and rotating levels and switches, punching in codes, everything works perfectly, as you would have expected from a Wii title before playing some of the garbage that may have tainted your experience. This title delivers, and I hope that soon, we'll be seeing more controls use effectively like what we have in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
Before you begin playing, you should set your controls to Advanced mode, as it feels the best, and if you're like me, you're going to want to swap your fire and jump buttons, so that you jump with the A button and shoot with the trigger, like you would expect. Turning is slightly sluggish, but really, it's a non-issue in a game like this, which focuses more on exploration and adventure than fast-paced combat.
The controls are all detailed to you in the game, so I won't go over them all, but I'll mention a few. Locking-on works such that you can strafe around an enemy, but sometimes they will move quickly and break your lock. You can fire missiles while locked on by simply pressing the down direction on the D-pad. To switch visors, press the minus button and point at your required visor. It's quick and easy, and you'll get the hang of it in no time. Using your grapple beam feels very good too, as you do a cast motion while locked onto a target to attach it, and then rip it back to yourself to pull. It works, and it works very well.
Morph Ball jumping is the only sticky point, because sometimes, it doesn't jump when you expect it would. It's not a big deal, because you're never in a jump-critical spot in Morph Ball form, but it'd have been nice if they had tweaked it. All the rest of the controls work perfectly, and this is THE game to buy if you want to know how a Wii game should be done.
Crave Factor: 10
EXTRA VALUE-ADDED FEATURES
There is no multiplayer this time around, and it's for the better. Echoes had horrible split-screen multiplayer action, and I'm glad that it was left out of the finale. Some people refuse to buy Corruption just because there is no online multiplayer, which is a shame, because Metroid has always been about isolation and the feeling of loneliness (it's a little different in this one, but it's still mostly there after the first half hour or so).
That said, there is online connectivity, in the form of token trading. You get friend vouchers for certain achievements in the game, such as every 100 kills up to 1000, and finding secrets. These vouchers are no good to you, so you must send them to your friends. They receive them in the form of green tokens. Hopefully they return the favor, as you need them in combination with other colored tokens to unlock things in the Extras menu.
You get to unlock a screenshot tool, which is useful to a certain degree. You press up on the D-pad and a snapshot is placed on your Wii Message Board. You can then forward it to your friends, but not to external email addresses, which is definitely a shame and limits the handiness a lot. That said, it's cool to send your friends some wicked shots of the game, to get them interested in it - probably the main purpose.
The Mii bobblehead would be a much more rewarding unlockable if I were able to choose any Mii on my system. I don't want to see my ugly mug on my dashboard. It's pretty neat when you poke it, though it's useless, really. Just like the ship bumper stickers. This extra feature places random pictures of Nintendo games you own onto your ship. Nothing says "bounty hunter" like the Wii Play logo on the side of your sweet ride!
As I mentioned, you can unlock a lot of the soundtrack of the game, which is probably the most worthwhile bonus content available, next to the screenshot tool. There are also several dioramas, which are 3D statues of scenes from the game. You can rotate them and zoom in, but nothing special. On top of those, there is a concept art gallery, where you can get a few packages of images of worlds, creatures, and Samus.
The game tracks if you completed it, and which difficulty levels you completed it in. After you beat it once, you unlock a Hyper mode difficulty level. Your Mii is attached to your saved data, which is a smart alternative to typing in your name for your save slots.
Crave Factor: 8
CONCLUSION
If you are a Metroid fan, or if you are just looking for a truly great demonstration of what the Wii's strengths are, this is a no-brainer purchase.
This is the first Wii game that is really worth buying the console for. I bought my Wii specifically for this game, and the wait was worth it. I'm sad that it's all over now, but if nothing else, I've got hope for the future. Nintendo is starting to deliver decent games now, and I think third-parties are about to follow suit. They sure should, because playing through Metroid Prime 3 will definitely force you to reevaluate how you spend your gaming budget in the future, and it really highlights how little effort has been put into almost every other Wii offering to date.
I normally don't give half-point ratings to games, however, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is not quite perfect, but also better than a 9 out of 10. So, it gets my first half-point rating, and it is well deserved.
Overall Crave Factor: 9.5 out of 10
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