Metroid Prime Remastered Review

There have been rumours circling of a Metroid Prime Remake for some time now, and finally, Metroid Prime Remastered broke out of containment. Now that we’ve had time to analyse this GameCube classic, let’s see what’s been done to bring it to the Switch.

In 2002, not only had it been eight years since Super Metroid, but Metroid Prime also successfully moved the series from 2D to 3D. Set between the original Metroid and Metroid 2: The return of Samus, where all but one of the Metroids hasn’t been wiped out (thanks to Samus). 2002 was an excellent year for Metroid fans, with the sequel to Super Metroid; Metroid Fusion, also releasing simultaneously.

For Prime, you’re not disadvantaged if you’re new to the series. The game will tell you what’s needed to know, and it’s also the first Metroid game to be full of readable lore. The story starts aboard a Space Pirate ship. After receiving a distress call and dealing with some deadly experiments that destroy the ship, Samus gives chase to a familiar foe which leads her to the planet Tallon IV. The planet contains several environments, all interconnected by tunnels or elevators with doors and areas inaccessible until you have the suitable ability or weapon to progress. Much like with the other Metroid games, there is that exploration where you make your way and work out where you can go and where to return to later. As a result, Tallon IV isn’t actually that expansive, but they get a lot of value from how the areas interconnect and all of the different paths that slowly become usable in the larger open spaces.

For all the time that has passed, Metroid Prime was and continues to be an excellent game. Retro Studio captured the essence of the original games and translated it into 3D. Instead of turning Metroid into a first-person shooter, it manages to play as an action-adventure game. Combat can still be tough, although I found it much more manageable with an extra 20 years of experience since last time and the new control scheme. The lock-on helps too. Platforming in first-person games can be a bit dicey, but with Metroid Prime, I never felt like a missed jump was due to the game. Once you get the Space Jump, moving around the big vertical areas is even easier. One thing that still gets frustrating is moving morph ball Samus onto the more finicky platforms. Some of the missile expansions are frustrating exercises in delicate movements and patience.

Visually, Metroid Prime Remastered is much more than cleaning up textures for HD. When it was re-released under the Metroid Prime Trilogy on the Wii, it already had some improvements. Remastered brings the game into High Definition, and it looks better than it has any right being. It helps that the game already looked great at the time, with cool effects like how the environment and lighting would impact Samus’ visor. Even after all these years, it’s still cool to get a glimpse of Samus’ face in the visor reflection or briefly see the visor fog up when walking through a jet of steam. Overall the original game design holds up by making the larger spaces more unique, along with the 3D versions of classic Metroid creatures.

The music also takes the familiar Metroid music players know and love and makes it even better. Even after many years away from the game, the tunes instantly took me back. Phendrana Drifts is a stand-out for me, but replaying the game makes me wish it was easier to listen to the soundtrack.

For those who have played the game before, the first thing you’ll notice on the updated controls, which default to twin-stick controls. This does make the game feel quite different to the classic controls, which are also included here if you prefer. It still feels vital to have the lock on in the new control scheme, as the fast-moving critters of Tallon IV can be hard to hit without a lock. The control scheme is also added with the Wii re-release, allowing you to bust out the motion controls. If you have the GameCube controller adaptor sitting around, you can play it as it was originally intended. I’m happy with the new controls, but it’s great there are multiple options for those who want them.

Metroid Prime Remastered emphasises the importance of exploring and remembering where to backtrack to use new skills. There is the bare minimum of guidance where you’ll get an optional prompt to point you where you should go next, but not the path there. If you do find you’re having a tough time or want to focus on exploration, there is a casual setting to help with combat.

If you want to 100% the game and get all of the scans, you’ll be spending a lot of time in Samus’ scan mode. It’s almost the precursor to Batman’s detective vision, which I also would use way too much instead of the normal view. There are many lore and creature scans to collect and read, I admittedly spend too much time trying to collect everything. Be sure to scan something before you kill it – there’s no going back at points.

Metroid Prime Remastered gives a classic game a new lease on life whilst simultaneously building anticipation for the long-awaited Metroid Prime 4. For now, we all need to keep our fingers crossed that Nintendo is giving Prime 2 and 3, and more GameCube games, this level of remaster treatment. If you’ve only gotten into Metroid in more recent years or played Prime back in the day, this game is worth checking out.

Rating: 4.5/5