supergalaxytater
1 review liked by supergalaxytater
This remaster is what finally made me click with Prime. The dual stick, less mashy controls made it immensely more comfortable to play and I couldn't stop until I finished it. Now it's maybe the most immersive thing I've ever played. The HUD is used so creatively to simulate a real high tech space suit and there's countless realistic visual touches. The planet feels truly alive and its atmosphere can be peaceful, tense, downright sinister. This is the best Metroid OST I've come across since Super - I would put them on the same tier with how perfectly they create the mood (and how much they bang). With the redone graphics I felt like I'd been fully absorbed into its world. The usual progression system and platforming in 3D space is incredibly satisfying, the majority of areas are well crafted and the morph ball in particular is completely transformed as a mechanic. It's insane they got it this right on the first try. When it comes to exploration, puzzles and environmental storytelling this is as good as it gets.
Sadly I can't say the same about the gunplay, which I found to be mediocre at best and an absolute mess at worst. There are a few standout boss fights but 1 on 1 gunfights are just not good at all. As it was originally designed for the GC controller and combat isn't the main focus, I could ignore this for the first half. But in the later areas it's like they really wanted you to notice how weak it is. Phazon Mines forces you to fight an entire gauntlet of strong enemies with no save stations for a long period of time, and you basically just exploit the poor AI to get through or tank a lot of damage. Ghost enemies appear all over the world map at the end to bring more annoyance.
Prime was yet another victim of Nintendo's GameCube era crunching. Exactly like Wind Waker you have to do a big collectathon to get to the final boss (and pad out the play time with backtracking) and there's a tiny area that seems like it was cut down due to time constraints (Impact Crater). Thankfully these downsides weren't enough to ruin my experience but it could be very frustrating at times, and the perfect gameplay flow was spoiled. I so wish they had taken this opportunity to make some changes but I guess it is JUST a "remaster" at the end of the day...
In short don't think of this as some FPS classic - if you're here purely for shooting you won't be satisfied. It's adventure / Metroidvania first and foremost and it's one of the best in those genres.
Sadly I can't say the same about the gunplay, which I found to be mediocre at best and an absolute mess at worst. There are a few standout boss fights but 1 on 1 gunfights are just not good at all. As it was originally designed for the GC controller and combat isn't the main focus, I could ignore this for the first half. But in the later areas it's like they really wanted you to notice how weak it is. Phazon Mines forces you to fight an entire gauntlet of strong enemies with no save stations for a long period of time, and you basically just exploit the poor AI to get through or tank a lot of damage. Ghost enemies appear all over the world map at the end to bring more annoyance.
Prime was yet another victim of Nintendo's GameCube era crunching. Exactly like Wind Waker you have to do a big collectathon to get to the final boss (and pad out the play time with backtracking) and there's a tiny area that seems like it was cut down due to time constraints (Impact Crater). Thankfully these downsides weren't enough to ruin my experience but it could be very frustrating at times, and the perfect gameplay flow was spoiled. I so wish they had taken this opportunity to make some changes but I guess it is JUST a "remaster" at the end of the day...
In short don't think of this as some FPS classic - if you're here purely for shooting you won't be satisfied. It's adventure / Metroidvania first and foremost and it's one of the best in those genres.