The Wii’s Virtual Console feature, accessed through the Wii Shop Channel. It’s an educational feature designed to teach kids what gaming was like when their parents were kids…with a fee, of course. The currency? Wii Points. You buy them at a game store of any kind, and take them home and redeem them on your Wii! Of course, interested in classic gaming, I bought two Super Nintendo games that go by the aliases of Super Metroid and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
Let’s face it folks: kids my age don’t easily adjust to old games. I grew up on 3-D gaming, not 2-D sprites. When I played the original Metroid (for NES), I didn’t like it very much at all. And yet I simply ADORE Metroid: Zero Mission. And my cousin doesn’t even like the original Zelda and Mario games! I DO like those (well…Zelda 1 and the Mario games at least. I guess Zelda 2 is ok…), but the later entries (and remakes in Mario’s case) have been FAR better.
And yet Super Nintendo games are always as good as people claim. Not only do I love Super Metroid, but it also completes my Metroid collection, since I bought Metroid II: Return of Samus on the same day, and is also my favorite 2-D Metroid, and, should the Prime games have not existed, would be my VERY favorite.
“T3h St4t10n W5z Und3r 4tt4ck!”
The game actually gets off to a great start, surpassed only by the openings of the Prime games. Samus Aran has brought the baby Metroid she found on SR388 to the Federation for testing. It was found that they could harness its energy for the good of mankind! Satisfied, Samus left. But she had hardly passed the asteroid belt when…
T3h St4t10n W5z 5nd3r 4tt4ck!
She races back, and you get to play! After passing through several deserted rooms (although one inhabited by dead bodies…), you find the baby Metroid…and Ridley. After an epic battle (or maybe not so epic), Ridley takes off with the baby Metroid! Oh crap.
But at least that’s where the rest of the game kicks off. Samus will chase Ridley down to the surface of Planet Zebes (anyone else think it sounds like Metroid Prime?), and pretty soon, you’ll be right back in that classic Brinstar area collecting the Morphing Ball (which will hereon be referred to as the Morph Ball since that’s its modern name).
Morph Ball Acquired
Of course, the Morph Ball isn’t the only thing you’ll be getting, cause what fun would that be? Super Metroid actually introduced several items that would appear in many later entries in the series. While the Grappling Beam (known as the Grapple Beam in later games) and X-Ray Scope (known as the X-Ray Visor in later games) would only appear in the Metroid Prime games afterward (and you can understand why, as these items are a bit awkward, yet still fun to use, in 2-D), such items as the Super Missiles, Speed Booster, Space Jump, Hi-Jump Boots, Spring Ball (connected to the Hi-Jump Boots in later games), Power Bombs, Charge Beam, Plasma Beam, Gravity Suit, etc. would appear in the later 2-D titles, Metroid: Fusion and Metroid: Zero Mission (although Super Missiles in Fusion were just your normal Missiles powered up and would be used in place of the normal ones).
Another feature that was new when this game came out was the ability of the beam weapons to pile on top of each other, rather than being interchangeable like in Metroids 1 and 2, and this feature would also later appear in Fusion and Zero Mission. I mean, after all, the boring old Power Beam can’t last ya forever, can it? Thus, you can get the Charge Beam in Brinstar, and after getting the Hi-Jump Boots in Norfair (or getting good at Wall Jumping), you can get the Spazer, a beam upgrade that gives the Power Beam a wider range, although both are optional. Later, after beating Kraid and getting the Varia Suit, you can explore more of Norfair and collect the Wave and Ice Beams. Best of all, all of these beams add each other’s function. When you get the Wave Beam, the Spazer effect is added to the Wave Beam, and when you get the Ice Beam, the ice effect is added to the Wave and Spazer Beams. You can also take some beam abilities off to use some secret attacks once you get the Power Bombs, but they’re not really that great.
Metroid games have always been characterized by exploration, and this game is no different. In fact, I can hardly get around without a walkthrough! There are several areas on Planet Zebes, each chock-full of items and exploration. Most are new areas, but the ones that appeared in the original Metroid are COMPLETELY different. While the room in Brinstar where you obtained the Morph Ball is still present, the rest of Brinstar is characterized by a dense, pink jungle, a red, reactor-like setting, and, of course--Kraid’s hideout! Norfair has the same terrain, but different setup, and there is another area here known as Lower Norfair where Ridley has made his home. Tourian is just the same--Mother Brain’s home and overrun by Metroids. As for the new areas, Crateria is mostly just there as a landing site for your ship, getting the Bombs, and entering the Wrecked Ship, but Maridia is an aquatic wonderland where you find one of the four main bosses AND the Space Jump! The Wrecked Ship also has one of the four main bosses--and it’s a ghost, WAAAAAAA!!!
And as always, I’ll speak of the graphics and sound before I end the review. The graphics are, simply put, and in a word: beautiful. You’ll wonder why Samus’s normal Power Suit is yellow instead of orange (I think it’s so the Varia Suit would have a more distinctive look…or the SNES couldn’t animate a light orange), but she moves so fluidly. Every animation is perfect, and the backgrounds are also beautiful. In fact, it might be the best-looking SNES game ever! The music sometimes seems to be fully composed (Brinstar), or using normal MIDI music (Norfair), and yet even the MIDI music is great. The sound effects are also normal SNES MIDI, but who cares about sound effects anyway?
And thus, I must give this game a Pure Greatness Word. It is the best 2-D Metroid, no questions asked. To say anything bad about it would be to bash it for no reason whatsoever. So, buy it--it’s worth your eight dollars (800 Wii Points).
So What’s Good?
+ The story
+ The wealth of items
+ The beam system
+ The exploration
+ The graphics are the best of the SNES
+ Sweet soundtrack
…But Then What’s Bad?
- Nothing. At all.
So What Are the Words?
Story: Awesome! I say and I quote, “T3h St4t10n W5z 5nder 4tt4ck!”
Gameplay: Pure Greatness!! The vast inventory and exploration make this game a winner!
Graphics: Pure Greatness!! The best on the SNES. Period. [literally]
Music: Awesome! Samus is as free as a bird now. AND THIS BIRD YOU CANNOT CHANGE!!!
Final Word: Pure Greatness!! The best 2-D Metroid, and again: period.
Let’s face it folks: kids my age don’t easily adjust to old games. I grew up on 3-D gaming, not 2-D sprites. When I played the original Metroid (for NES), I didn’t like it very much at all. And yet I simply ADORE Metroid: Zero Mission. And my cousin doesn’t even like the original Zelda and Mario games! I DO like those (well…Zelda 1 and the Mario games at least. I guess Zelda 2 is ok…), but the later entries (and remakes in Mario’s case) have been FAR better.
And yet Super Nintendo games are always as good as people claim. Not only do I love Super Metroid, but it also completes my Metroid collection, since I bought Metroid II: Return of Samus on the same day, and is also my favorite 2-D Metroid, and, should the Prime games have not existed, would be my VERY favorite.
“T3h St4t10n W5z Und3r 4tt4ck!”
The game actually gets off to a great start, surpassed only by the openings of the Prime games. Samus Aran has brought the baby Metroid she found on SR388 to the Federation for testing. It was found that they could harness its energy for the good of mankind! Satisfied, Samus left. But she had hardly passed the asteroid belt when…
T3h St4t10n W5z 5nd3r 4tt4ck!
She races back, and you get to play! After passing through several deserted rooms (although one inhabited by dead bodies…), you find the baby Metroid…and Ridley. After an epic battle (or maybe not so epic), Ridley takes off with the baby Metroid! Oh crap.
But at least that’s where the rest of the game kicks off. Samus will chase Ridley down to the surface of Planet Zebes (anyone else think it sounds like Metroid Prime?), and pretty soon, you’ll be right back in that classic Brinstar area collecting the Morphing Ball (which will hereon be referred to as the Morph Ball since that’s its modern name).
Morph Ball Acquired
Of course, the Morph Ball isn’t the only thing you’ll be getting, cause what fun would that be? Super Metroid actually introduced several items that would appear in many later entries in the series. While the Grappling Beam (known as the Grapple Beam in later games) and X-Ray Scope (known as the X-Ray Visor in later games) would only appear in the Metroid Prime games afterward (and you can understand why, as these items are a bit awkward, yet still fun to use, in 2-D), such items as the Super Missiles, Speed Booster, Space Jump, Hi-Jump Boots, Spring Ball (connected to the Hi-Jump Boots in later games), Power Bombs, Charge Beam, Plasma Beam, Gravity Suit, etc. would appear in the later 2-D titles, Metroid: Fusion and Metroid: Zero Mission (although Super Missiles in Fusion were just your normal Missiles powered up and would be used in place of the normal ones).
Another feature that was new when this game came out was the ability of the beam weapons to pile on top of each other, rather than being interchangeable like in Metroids 1 and 2, and this feature would also later appear in Fusion and Zero Mission. I mean, after all, the boring old Power Beam can’t last ya forever, can it? Thus, you can get the Charge Beam in Brinstar, and after getting the Hi-Jump Boots in Norfair (or getting good at Wall Jumping), you can get the Spazer, a beam upgrade that gives the Power Beam a wider range, although both are optional. Later, after beating Kraid and getting the Varia Suit, you can explore more of Norfair and collect the Wave and Ice Beams. Best of all, all of these beams add each other’s function. When you get the Wave Beam, the Spazer effect is added to the Wave Beam, and when you get the Ice Beam, the ice effect is added to the Wave and Spazer Beams. You can also take some beam abilities off to use some secret attacks once you get the Power Bombs, but they’re not really that great.
Metroid games have always been characterized by exploration, and this game is no different. In fact, I can hardly get around without a walkthrough! There are several areas on Planet Zebes, each chock-full of items and exploration. Most are new areas, but the ones that appeared in the original Metroid are COMPLETELY different. While the room in Brinstar where you obtained the Morph Ball is still present, the rest of Brinstar is characterized by a dense, pink jungle, a red, reactor-like setting, and, of course--Kraid’s hideout! Norfair has the same terrain, but different setup, and there is another area here known as Lower Norfair where Ridley has made his home. Tourian is just the same--Mother Brain’s home and overrun by Metroids. As for the new areas, Crateria is mostly just there as a landing site for your ship, getting the Bombs, and entering the Wrecked Ship, but Maridia is an aquatic wonderland where you find one of the four main bosses AND the Space Jump! The Wrecked Ship also has one of the four main bosses--and it’s a ghost, WAAAAAAA!!!
And as always, I’ll speak of the graphics and sound before I end the review. The graphics are, simply put, and in a word: beautiful. You’ll wonder why Samus’s normal Power Suit is yellow instead of orange (I think it’s so the Varia Suit would have a more distinctive look…or the SNES couldn’t animate a light orange), but she moves so fluidly. Every animation is perfect, and the backgrounds are also beautiful. In fact, it might be the best-looking SNES game ever! The music sometimes seems to be fully composed (Brinstar), or using normal MIDI music (Norfair), and yet even the MIDI music is great. The sound effects are also normal SNES MIDI, but who cares about sound effects anyway?
And thus, I must give this game a Pure Greatness Word. It is the best 2-D Metroid, no questions asked. To say anything bad about it would be to bash it for no reason whatsoever. So, buy it--it’s worth your eight dollars (800 Wii Points).
So What’s Good?
+ The story
+ The wealth of items
+ The beam system
+ The exploration
+ The graphics are the best of the SNES
+ Sweet soundtrack
…But Then What’s Bad?
- Nothing. At all.
So What Are the Words?
Story: Awesome! I say and I quote, “T3h St4t10n W5z 5nder 4tt4ck!”
Gameplay: Pure Greatness!! The vast inventory and exploration make this game a winner!
Graphics: Pure Greatness!! The best on the SNES. Period. [literally]
Music: Awesome! Samus is as free as a bird now. AND THIS BIRD YOU CANNOT CHANGE!!!
Final Word: Pure Greatness!! The best 2-D Metroid, and again: period.
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