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Metroid Fusion did the impossible task of following in Super Metroid's footsteps.
Metroid Prime got off easy. It is a prequel to the second game in the series, which happens to be for the Game Boy. Metroid Fusion, the fifth game in the Star Wars-like series brings new ideas and new innovations to the table while managing to keep the basic game functions and gameplay intact. Nintendo's one key asset in making the first three games, Gumpei Yokoi, was not there because he had passed away five years before this game was released. However, his spirit clearly lives on in one of the most inspired games of 2002.
The story has Samus Aran getting infected by a parasite known as the X, which nearly kills her until she is saved by a vaccine which uses Metroid cells. Samus has been seriously damaged genetically, but she managed to survive. Now, she is off to B.S.L. research station to learn more about the X, but it seems that they have already attacked and are starting to infect the entire station from one end to the other. The story is easily the best of 2002 and it won an award. It doesn't have much in terms of dialogue and stuff like that, but what it does have is mystery, intrigue, double-and-triple crosses, and many surprises waiting for you and the sense of nostalgia. Truly one of the better works for Nintendo in this department.
Graphically, the game isn't too bad. There are better games out there graphically for the GBA, but Fusion uses the dark environments and the lush backgrounds to their advantage, but they could stand to be a little brighter in spots. Overall, though, not too bad.
The controls are simple, even though adjusting to the GBA does take a little work. The new moves, like being able to jump while in a ball and climbing onto the edges of platforms really works well. Hit detection is solid for the most part but it could have been tweaked around the edges. Some of it is a little unresponsive.
The game design is truly inspired by the ideas of Yokoi's work and the Nintendo programmers clearly spent a lot of time to make it feel like Metroid in a new environment, and they did an admirable job. Having it on a space station may seem limiting at first, but that opinion will quickly change when you see how much there is that doesn't show up on the map. It is around twice as big as Super Metroid, but the first two sectors on the lower level you enter aren't that interesting and some of the secrets and hidden passages could have been a little more obvious. Sometimes you are doing a guessing game.
Musically and soundwise, there aren't that many issues to complain about. The sound effects are very good, and the editing was very tight the whole way through. Maybe a little too tight in spots because you might not hear something that you should have, and the music does seem a little inappropriate at times, but it does work.
Originality is hard for a game like this, but the new moves and the new features help add some depth to the game, and the new bosses are very interesting, and fighting your own double is very cool, and it can be kind of scary at times, especially when you don't know what to expect.
Is this game fun? Of course it is. This is Metroid we're talking about. This is the Metroid we grew up with in the 1980's, and that chick hasn't aged a bit. She is still as hot as ever. The challenge is very nicely paced and it does go up and down in spots, and it is a little unfair, especially when fighting your own double in the early stages, but the game never wants you to let go, and you won't want to, either.
The gameplay is, once again, among Nintendo's best of all time. They know how to make the game fun and addictive, and there are very few hiccups that will hurt you. The game really comes together beautifully, even with the hiccups, which is pretty amazing. Generally, they can hurt the game on the whole, but it doesn't seem to affect it that much. Gumpei Yokoi really would have been proud to the sequel of his magnum opus, Super Metroid. Bravo, Nintendo. You have made a spirit happy today. -- Chris Vavra, PGNx Media
---- Jun 5, 2003
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