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Jericho · **on:** May 22, 2009, 09:48:55 PM

Quote from: Kotaku

Surprise! The rumors that all three Metroid Prime games would receive a compilation release in the US with the "Wii-applied" control scheme were true.

This might come as a blow to Metroid fans who were really looking forward to a fourth game; however, Nintendo of America makes the point that not everybody who owns a Wii owned the GameCube. They consider this a chance for everybody to get on the same Metroid page at the cost of only one game as opposed to having to shell out for Corruption and the Wii-released Prime and Echoes. And before you start flinging cans of soda and empty chip bags at your computer screen, the control scheme is actually pretty fun.

Oh, and there's multiplayer, too.

What Is It?
Metroid Prime was released for the Wii in Japan this March, while Metroid Prime 2 will be out later this year, both with new Wii controls replacing the original GameCube ones. Rather than simply porting those titles, however, Nintendo has decided to do American audiences one better by combining the Wii-released games with Metroid Prime: Corruption for a compilation release.

What We Saw
I visited Nintendo's offices to play through the very beginning of Echoes just to see how the Wii controls stacked up and then dove into four-person deathmatch multiplayer.

How Far Along Is It?
Metroid Trilogy is due out August 24, so I'd say fairly final.

What Should Change?
Nothing New, Really: Don't get me wrong – the control scheme certainly makes Prime and Echoes feel different. But there isn't any new content added to any of the games, which could be a real bummer to people who already shelled out and played through all three games.

Not A Seamless Experience: When you load up Metroid Trilogy, you can access all three games from a hub individually. You don't have to beat Prime to unlock Echoes or finish Echoes to play Corruption and what you do in one game doesn't have an impact in what you do in other games. You could even play like 20% of Echoes and then double back to Prime whenever you got bored. It's convenient, I suppose, but I think it makes the plot feel disjointed. Or, you know, unimportant since they're not trying to preserve continuity.

What Should Say The Same?
The Wii Controls: They feel good, they play well and they cut back on some of the menu selection and scan point operation tedium. For example, to select the scanner, all you have to do is hold down the minus button to pull up a heads-up display. From there, you just point at the item you want to select it and then point that item at whatever you want to scan – very painless and very quick, which is going to make it easier to absorb what story there is through scan points.

The Multiplayer: The multiplayer from Echoes is back and immediately accessible from the hub with no gameplay prerequisites. It's a little sad that it's local-only four-way-split-screen, but there is something to be said for having four people flailing around with Wii Remotes trying to shoot each other or drop bombs and bounce to safety while in ball form. Also, you can totally screen-watch to see who just picked up invincibility and thereby avoid making a tactical error in attacking them.

Myriad Tweaks: Trilogy supports 16:9 widescreen. They've added bloom lighting to all three games. Doors open faster. Loading times are faster. Samus can now do that ball-form jump where she drops a bomb and – with a well-timed Wii Remote flick – get extra air when it goes off in all three games. It might not seem like any one of these things really matters, but altogether, the tweaks go a long way toward making the games feel good and play well.

Tweaked, But Not Too Much: Nintendo says the tweaks to the control scheme don't compromise the difficulty in the game and that they've preserved the puzzle element in all the games. I believe them, because Samus' ball-form jump from Corruption could in theory wreck some jumping puzzles from Prime and Echoes. But during my hands-on time with Echoes, I didn't feel like anything had gotten easier. It just got prettier; and while that made it a little less frustrating in difficult jumping sections, it wasn't less challenging.

Collectibles Give Old Hands Stuff To Do: Throughout all three games, you can pick up different colored badges to buy collectibles like a Mii bobble head for Samus' dashboard in her ship or unlock the game's original soundtrack.

Final Thoughts
I'm pleased with Metroid Trilogy. I like multiplayer and I like getting three games for the price of one. I wish that Nintendo were using this time to make a sequel instead of remake some classics. But at least they're doing them well. And if nothing else, I can easily delude myself into thinking that Trilogy is just a way for Nintendo to clear its throat braving a Metroid Prime 4.

Article Link

Discuss. Also, I'll bite only if an art book is mentioned... Oh who the hell am I kidding, I'm probably gonna wind up selling the individual games I already have and buy this when it releases.

Gaia · **Reply #1 on:** May 22, 2009, 09:53:29 PM

Ah well, let's wait until Bungie does the same thing when it decides to come back to microsoft.

I never played any of the Metroid Primes except for the handheld, there's a chance I can easily get all three seprate, but eh.

Acid · **Reply #2 on:** May 22, 2009, 09:56:41 PM

I played MP1 and had loads of fun with it. MP2 was lacking though. Heard that MP3 was better. Now I can get the all.

Saber · **Reply #3 on:** May 22, 2009, 10:15:39 PM

I still demand Corruption for my GameCube >=O

Police Girl · **Reply #4 on:** May 22, 2009, 10:18:31 PM

I personally would've preferred separate discs for each, but oh well. I'm so buying this.

Solar · **Reply #5 on:** May 22, 2009, 10:20:42 PM

DAMNIT NINTENDO STOP GIVING ME REASONS TO WASTE MY MONEY!!!!

Afro-Shroom · **Reply #6 on:** May 22, 2009, 10:31:42 PM

while i'm not the biggest fan of the Prime series, it was enjoyable none the less.

Quote from: Taiyo on May 22, 2009, 10:20:42 PM

DAMNIT NINTENDO STOP GIVING ME REASONS TO WASTE MY MONEY!!!!

That's one thing they won't stop doing!

Flame · **Reply #7 on:** May 22, 2009, 10:53:55 PM

Why cant they just add the wiimote control scheme but leave in the GC one? for those who want to get the trilogy, but have the GC versions. after all, if the Wii ca use GC controlls, that should be a feature taken advantage of.

Afro-Shroom · **Reply #8 on:** May 22, 2009, 11:04:57 PM

then people would just play the GC versions instead.

HyperSonicEXE · **Reply #9 on:** May 23, 2009, 12:59:08 AM

Quote

It's a little sad that it's local-only

NINTENDO! URGH!

Jericho · **Reply #10 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:02:56 AM

Who honestly believed that they were going to patch online into the Echoes multiplayer? We'd sooner see a Wii version of Prime Hunters snazzed up and put onto the remnants of the disc space in that situation...

...

[tornado fang].

STM · **Reply #11 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:14:22 AM

So new graphics, forced rebuying of Metroid Prime 3 and arbitrary unlockables usually seen in a collection on top of waggle infestation.

I was fine with this when it was just Metroid Prime and Prime 2 alone. Would happily pay $30 then. But Prime 3? Why should I have to rebuy Prime 3 when I already own it and have no intention of selling it?

-1 Nintendo.

Acid · **Reply #12 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:15:49 AM

Good thing that I never bought or played MP3.

Go me! Go me!

Jericho · **Reply #13 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:16:26 AM

STM, waggle infestation? I didn't think Prime 3 was bad in that regard, although it does have it's faults.

STM · **Reply #14 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:19:49 AM

It wasn't bad, no. I just usually call giving something Wii controls waggle infestation. I liked the idea of Prime 3's controls in Prime 1 and Prime 2, even if I didn't like Prime 2 or Prime 3 a lot.

Jericho · **Reply #15 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:21:40 AM

Ah, I see. Carry on.

STM · **Reply #16 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:26:42 AM

My guess is, if the file for Prime 3 we have right now can be converted or used by this game (for all intents and purposes, it should), I guess I could sell my friend my copy of Prime 3... I just don't look forward to Hard Mode in Prime 2. I jokingly beat that mode with AR codes for Infinite Ammo and Infinite Health.

I love how overpowered the Annihilation Beam is. No wonder it's ammo restricted.

Afro-Shroom · **Reply #17 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:28:08 AM

Quote from: Acid on May 23, 2009, 01:15:49 AM

Good thing that I never bought or played MP3.

Go me! Go me!

That makes 2 of us...

Jericho · **Reply #18 on:** May 23, 2009, 01:34:20 AM

Quote from: STM on May 23, 2009, 01:26:42 AM

My guess is, if the file for Prime 3 we have right now can be converted or used by this game (for all intents and purposes, it should), I guess I could sell my friend my copy of Prime 3... I just don't look forward to Hard Mode in Prime 2. I jokingly beat that mode with AR codes for Infinite Ammo and Infinite Health.

I love how overpowered the Annihilation Beam is. No wonder it's ammo restricted.

I'm quite the opposite though, I [tornado fang]ing loved Prime 2, especially in hard. But yeah, the Annihilator beam was amazingly haxxed. Auto homing with the charge shot being as powerful as a Super Missile? Then the Sonic Boom on top of that?

I just realized how much of a bastard that beam is. As if multiplayer with my siblings wasn't good enough proof.

Satoryu · **Reply #19 on:** May 23, 2009, 07:00:30 AM

i do think Prime 2 is the weakest in the trilogy. but i was always planning on picking up the Wiimake. and getting to see what's done to Prime 1 for no extra cost seems like a good deal to me. i don't mind having two Prime 3s when one of them is for free.

Tickle Buffalo · **Reply #20 on:** May 23, 2009, 09:37:15 AM

Wow, I was complaining to one of my friends last night about how unfair it was that the elevens had MP1 with MP2 without anywhere else even getting a release date. I guess I should complain more often, maybe it'll get released in the rest of the world.

Quote from: Flame on May 22, 2009, 10:53:55 PM

Why cant they just add the wiimote control scheme but leave in the GC one? for those who want to get the trilogy, but have the GC versions. after all, if the Wii ca use GC controlls, that should be a feature taken advantage of.

Who cares? Nobody'd ever use the GC controls with the Wii ones available.

Align · **Reply #21 on:** May 23, 2009, 02:06:23 PM

Already have all three, minor tweaks and wiimote controls are not enticing enough..

Quote from: Acid on May 22, 2009, 09:56:41 PM

I played MP1 and had loads of fun with it. MP2 was lacking though. Heard that MP3 was better. Now I can get the all.

MP3 is a fine shooter, but not all that Metroid-y.

STM · **Reply #22 on:** May 23, 2009, 03:56:07 PM

There's still one way I would pick this up and it only just hit me this morning.

Prime 1 had a ton of changes done to it outside the initial U.S. release to make it much harder. A lot of bosses, towards the end anyway, got double their life, sped up, their arena slightly altered, and I think they also fixed one boss' music (the giant centipede.) If they can bring all that deliciousness over but remove the stupid male narrator, it'll pretty much do it for me. The thought of a much more stubborn final Metroid Prime fight makes me grin.

Legendary · **Reply #23 on:** May 23, 2009, 04:21:22 PM

I want a 2D Metroid compilation. That would rock.

I guess this is good too...Might pick it up. But stuff like Super Metroid would bring a tear to my eye. =D

Fxeni · **Reply #24 on:** May 23, 2009, 07:25:16 PM

I don't see why people complain about MP3 being on there. It gives a chance to the people who didn't buy it to get in on it. Also, it's amazing we have a compilation at all. They could've just sold each game individually for 30$ each instead of 50$ for all three. Yeesh people like to [sonic slicer] for no good reason.

I'm looking forward to playing at least Prime 1 through again, since it's my favourite of the 3. As for the other two... eh, I'll play them too I guess, but 1 gets the most of my attention.

News

Metroid Prime Trilogy Pack Coming Aug. 24th