(Technically played on Wii U but whatever, it's basically the same thing)
Metroid Prime was the series' rough transition to 3D. Metroid Prime 2 was somewhat an improvement but was not enough in the grand scheme of things. But Metroid Prime 3? Metroid Prime 3 fixed nearly every single one of my complaints from the previous two games. Corruption is the peak of Prime.
From the moment i started, i knew this game would be different. Yes, part of it had to do with the fact that that, being a Wii game in 2007 absolutely meant "we must use motion controls" but considering how good the motion controls were in the Wii versions of Prime 1 and 2, this wasn't really an issue at all. Instead, this game featured a few more things you could do with the motion controls but it was never really intrusive. No, the real reason this game is immediately different from any other Metroid game at the time was the narrative. Metroid stories are usually told visually. There'd be a little exposition dump at the start but that'd be it. Fusion was the first Metroid game to have a more active narrative and if Metroid Prime was just Super Metroid but in 3D, then Metroid Prime 3 is just Metroid Fusion but in 3D and given steroids. Having a full narrative in a Metroid game might sound weird but i really enjoyed it and the main reason was because it was the first Metroid game to truly start fleshing out the Metroid universe. By design, this franchise's universe is pretty barren which is why what Prime 3 adds to that becomes much more special. This is the first time in the series where we actually get to see how the Federation functions instead of them just being killed off at the start. This is the first Metroid game where we actually get to learn that Samus actually has a few friends here and there. There isn't really much to see of the Hunters before they get corrupted but what we do get to see is nice. And most importantly, we get to see more of the Metroid universe in general. This game honestly has my favorite areas in any Metroid game that i've played because of distinct they are.
Norion is you standard Federation based and it serves as a decent prologue. Bryyo immediately makes an impact the moment you land there, both in the music department and visually. The Pirate Homeworld was really nice as Samus finally takes the fight to their own front door. But by far my favorite location in not just the entire game but the entire series is Skytown, Elysia. It's very obviously based on Bespin from Star Wars but instead of one big floating city, it's several floating cities all spread out, making for a more visually pleasing sight. The cherry on top here is the music. I love the Skytown theme and it's a song you could put in a Xenoblade game and it would not feel out of place because that's the vibes i got from it. In fact, the music in general is very good in this game. Definitely tied with Zero Mission for best OST in the series.
But what about the actual gameplay? Well like i said earlier, the game does away with nearly every complaint i've had with the previous two Prime games. This game has a strong emphasis on combat and it happens early on. For the first time in the series, the Grapple Beam is weaponized, allowing for use both in and out of combat. Oh an enemy has a shield? Just rip that thing right off. And this isn't counting the additional grapple upgrades you get in the game, allowing for even more utility. Beams finally stack again and while i never had a problem with how beams worked in the previous two Prime games, i definitely prefer stacking over individual beams. Hypermode (not the difficulty of the same name) is fun to play around with, even if it's too broken. But most importantly, the thing that Retro Studios finally got right here, is the boss fights. Most of them are actually really fun. There are a few shitters (one of which is probably the worst boss in the entire series) but i didn't mind in the grand scheme of things because i was finally having fun with these fights.
As far as navigation goes, this essentially being Fusion in 3D on steroids meant that there wasn't really any lack of direction for the most part. There was occasional moments where i got stumped but nothing was quite at the level where it gets bad. And because Skytown is super based, the observatory room there allows you to download the location of nearly every upgrade location in the game, with the exception of those found in the Valhalla. And speaking of the Valhalla, this game has it's own endgame mcguffin fetch quest except it's not dogshit like the last two times. You actually come across them naturally, the game tells you which ones you have and which ones you don't and you don't need all of them unless you're going for 100% (although it is possible you'll end up needing them all anyway if you don't explore the main path in the Valhalla).
Despite how much i've praised this game, there are a few issues and missed opportunities here. For starters, the load times are kinda weird in this game. They are actually worse if you're playing it on the Wii from what i hear but on Wii U, it's not too bad. But still, there were plenty of times where i'd shoot to open a door....only to have to wait a bit. Being able to upgrade your ship is neat conceptually but the amount of Ship Missile Expansions you can get is baffling when you're never gonna use them. Outside of scripted events, at what point are you ever gonna use your ship to bomb enemies (you can do this apparently) when Hypermode exists? And speaking of the ship, there's all these buttons that you can press while inside and it made it seem like there'd be a shoot 'em up section or something but no, it's just there for decoration. The boss fights are a massive improvement yes, but some of the ones towards the end just kinda start dragging a bit too much. Some enemies in general are just too spongy. Hypermode makes short work of them but i think there could've been other ways to incentivize Hypermode. And of course, it wouldn't be a Metroid Prime game if the endgame wasn't ass. It's true, the mcguffin hunt isn't bad in this game but in exchange, the final area is. You're basically placed on a time-limit as you have to stave off Phazon corruption. If the yellow meter at the top fills up, it's game over and the final boss lasts a bit too long, so combined with that, it does cause some unnecessary stress. I can only imagine the pain in Hypermode difficulty.Oh and also the Samus entrance fanfare doesn't play when you start a play session so the game is dogshit actually. Jokes aside, hearing it every single time you step off your ship got annoying pretty quickly. I love the tune but the tune works so well because it signals the start of a new play session and not because you just moved to a new location.
The Prime trilogy, as a whole, is rough. Metroid Prime 1 and 2 aren't bad games but they leave a lot to be desired. Metroid Prime 3 is a genuine, drastic improvement that actually comes the closest to being as good as the 2D Metroid games. I myself will still prefer the 2D games but at least with Metroid Prime 3, i can understand where the debate of 2D vs 3D comes from.
See you next mission.
Metroid Prime was the series' rough transition to 3D. Metroid Prime 2 was somewhat an improvement but was not enough in the grand scheme of things. But Metroid Prime 3? Metroid Prime 3 fixed nearly every single one of my complaints from the previous two games. Corruption is the peak of Prime.
From the moment i started, i knew this game would be different. Yes, part of it had to do with the fact that that, being a Wii game in 2007 absolutely meant "we must use motion controls" but considering how good the motion controls were in the Wii versions of Prime 1 and 2, this wasn't really an issue at all. Instead, this game featured a few more things you could do with the motion controls but it was never really intrusive. No, the real reason this game is immediately different from any other Metroid game at the time was the narrative. Metroid stories are usually told visually. There'd be a little exposition dump at the start but that'd be it. Fusion was the first Metroid game to have a more active narrative and if Metroid Prime was just Super Metroid but in 3D, then Metroid Prime 3 is just Metroid Fusion but in 3D and given steroids. Having a full narrative in a Metroid game might sound weird but i really enjoyed it and the main reason was because it was the first Metroid game to truly start fleshing out the Metroid universe. By design, this franchise's universe is pretty barren which is why what Prime 3 adds to that becomes much more special. This is the first time in the series where we actually get to see how the Federation functions instead of them just being killed off at the start. This is the first Metroid game where we actually get to learn that Samus actually has a few friends here and there. There isn't really much to see of the Hunters before they get corrupted but what we do get to see is nice. And most importantly, we get to see more of the Metroid universe in general. This game honestly has my favorite areas in any Metroid game that i've played because of distinct they are.
Norion is you standard Federation based and it serves as a decent prologue. Bryyo immediately makes an impact the moment you land there, both in the music department and visually. The Pirate Homeworld was really nice as Samus finally takes the fight to their own front door. But by far my favorite location in not just the entire game but the entire series is Skytown, Elysia. It's very obviously based on Bespin from Star Wars but instead of one big floating city, it's several floating cities all spread out, making for a more visually pleasing sight. The cherry on top here is the music. I love the Skytown theme and it's a song you could put in a Xenoblade game and it would not feel out of place because that's the vibes i got from it. In fact, the music in general is very good in this game. Definitely tied with Zero Mission for best OST in the series.
But what about the actual gameplay? Well like i said earlier, the game does away with nearly every complaint i've had with the previous two Prime games. This game has a strong emphasis on combat and it happens early on. For the first time in the series, the Grapple Beam is weaponized, allowing for use both in and out of combat. Oh an enemy has a shield? Just rip that thing right off. And this isn't counting the additional grapple upgrades you get in the game, allowing for even more utility. Beams finally stack again and while i never had a problem with how beams worked in the previous two Prime games, i definitely prefer stacking over individual beams. Hypermode (not the difficulty of the same name) is fun to play around with, even if it's too broken. But most importantly, the thing that Retro Studios finally got right here, is the boss fights. Most of them are actually really fun. There are a few shitters (one of which is probably the worst boss in the entire series) but i didn't mind in the grand scheme of things because i was finally having fun with these fights.
As far as navigation goes, this essentially being Fusion in 3D on steroids meant that there wasn't really any lack of direction for the most part. There was occasional moments where i got stumped but nothing was quite at the level where it gets bad. And because Skytown is super based, the observatory room there allows you to download the location of nearly every upgrade location in the game, with the exception of those found in the Valhalla. And speaking of the Valhalla, this game has it's own endgame mcguffin fetch quest except it's not dogshit like the last two times. You actually come across them naturally, the game tells you which ones you have and which ones you don't and you don't need all of them unless you're going for 100% (although it is possible you'll end up needing them all anyway if you don't explore the main path in the Valhalla).
Despite how much i've praised this game, there are a few issues and missed opportunities here. For starters, the load times are kinda weird in this game. They are actually worse if you're playing it on the Wii from what i hear but on Wii U, it's not too bad. But still, there were plenty of times where i'd shoot to open a door....only to have to wait a bit. Being able to upgrade your ship is neat conceptually but the amount of Ship Missile Expansions you can get is baffling when you're never gonna use them. Outside of scripted events, at what point are you ever gonna use your ship to bomb enemies (you can do this apparently) when Hypermode exists? And speaking of the ship, there's all these buttons that you can press while inside and it made it seem like there'd be a shoot 'em up section or something but no, it's just there for decoration. The boss fights are a massive improvement yes, but some of the ones towards the end just kinda start dragging a bit too much. Some enemies in general are just too spongy. Hypermode makes short work of them but i think there could've been other ways to incentivize Hypermode. And of course, it wouldn't be a Metroid Prime game if the endgame wasn't ass. It's true, the mcguffin hunt isn't bad in this game but in exchange, the final area is. You're basically placed on a time-limit as you have to stave off Phazon corruption. If the yellow meter at the top fills up, it's game over and the final boss lasts a bit too long, so combined with that, it does cause some unnecessary stress. I can only imagine the pain in Hypermode difficulty.
The Prime trilogy, as a whole, is rough. Metroid Prime 1 and 2 aren't bad games but they leave a lot to be desired. Metroid Prime 3 is a genuine, drastic improvement that actually comes the closest to being as good as the 2D Metroid games. I myself will still prefer the 2D games but at least with Metroid Prime 3, i can understand where the debate of 2D vs 3D comes from.
See you next mission.