i know i am far too late to having anything truly interesting to say about Super Metroid, and any real insight i can provide would be in comparisons to games that aren't actually named Super Metroid. instead, here's 4 thoughts that i might turn into a larger essay one day
1. we talk about making characters fun to move and super metroid is THE case study on making a character feel good to move within the context of their own game. every power up, new area and enemy type enhance controlling samus in a unique fashion. think one of my favourite examples is how much easier walljumping feels once you get space jump! it means we can discuss how good it feels to control Samus in Super Metroid and the context surrounding it, something i think games look over. it's deluxe feeling control is amplified by how samus interacts with the world of super metroid, not how her environment interacts with her
2. super metroid is like a pill for guys like me who haven't played metroidvania's to get why there are so many metroidvania's. i fully understand why people ONLY play metroidvanias now. it's exploration rewarding model of non-linear game design is enough to fill a bucket's worth of video games to play. i definitely want to check more out and find what differentiates a good metroidvania from the rest now
3. think something that sat quietly in the back of my mind is the believability of super metroid's planet zebes. definitely helped by building on a previously visited location and saying "what would happen if samus returned here?", and also helped by the fact i've watched a friend speedrun metroid zero mission for a few months, but it's true trick is that it works WITHOUT that prior knowledge. the placement of the six major areas in the game (brinstar, crateria, wrecked ship, norfair, tourian and miridia) all makes sense, and you can tell the developers tried to make sense of what the planet SHOULD look like layout wise early on in development. when travelling to and from each location (i hope everyone who thinks backtracking in games is lame at least thinks about whether it's lame in a world that feels realistically connected, if not we can't be friends) the magic trick works perfectly. of course norfair is where it is, and of course crateria is where it is. it's wonderful.
4. super metroid is slow and methodical. it's own genius is evident when samus has to crouch to shoot a block, or use her x-ray scope to find a hidden block, or use the triggers to aim diagonally. these movements don't just happen, there's no auto aim. it makes enemies more threatening (especially the super fast metroids late in the game!) and it's more powerful because of it. a fast paced super metroid just wouldn't work, exploration wouldn't make sense and the world would feel smaller.
again i'd like to explore these ideas more one day in a bigger essay but here's my basic thoughts. game rocks.
1. we talk about making characters fun to move and super metroid is THE case study on making a character feel good to move within the context of their own game. every power up, new area and enemy type enhance controlling samus in a unique fashion. think one of my favourite examples is how much easier walljumping feels once you get space jump! it means we can discuss how good it feels to control Samus in Super Metroid and the context surrounding it, something i think games look over. it's deluxe feeling control is amplified by how samus interacts with the world of super metroid, not how her environment interacts with her
2. super metroid is like a pill for guys like me who haven't played metroidvania's to get why there are so many metroidvania's. i fully understand why people ONLY play metroidvanias now. it's exploration rewarding model of non-linear game design is enough to fill a bucket's worth of video games to play. i definitely want to check more out and find what differentiates a good metroidvania from the rest now
3. think something that sat quietly in the back of my mind is the believability of super metroid's planet zebes. definitely helped by building on a previously visited location and saying "what would happen if samus returned here?", and also helped by the fact i've watched a friend speedrun metroid zero mission for a few months, but it's true trick is that it works WITHOUT that prior knowledge. the placement of the six major areas in the game (brinstar, crateria, wrecked ship, norfair, tourian and miridia) all makes sense, and you can tell the developers tried to make sense of what the planet SHOULD look like layout wise early on in development. when travelling to and from each location (i hope everyone who thinks backtracking in games is lame at least thinks about whether it's lame in a world that feels realistically connected, if not we can't be friends) the magic trick works perfectly. of course norfair is where it is, and of course crateria is where it is. it's wonderful.
4. super metroid is slow and methodical. it's own genius is evident when samus has to crouch to shoot a block, or use her x-ray scope to find a hidden block, or use the triggers to aim diagonally. these movements don't just happen, there's no auto aim. it makes enemies more threatening (especially the super fast metroids late in the game!) and it's more powerful because of it. a fast paced super metroid just wouldn't work, exploration wouldn't make sense and the world would feel smaller.
again i'd like to explore these ideas more one day in a bigger essay but here's my basic thoughts. game rocks.