Three reasons Metroid games aren’t selling
Monday, June 2nd, 2008 at 6:38pm by Derek
Okay, so Metroid isn’t exactly a commercial flop. But if Samus ever decides to spend some social time with Mario and Link, she’d better keep a thick skin; they’d chuckle at her comparatively modest sales.
Within the overall industry picture, the Metroid series has always been successful. But by Nintendo’s standards, it has failed to captivate the amount of players the company’s other premier franchises have. On Wii alone, Super Mario Galaxy has more than tripled the worldwide sales of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, and so has Twilight Princess.
More anecdotally, it seems the critically acclaimed Metroid series continually fails to match the hype of competing franchises, even some less than half its age. But there are reasons Metroid has always been stuck in a squeamish spot between commercial disappointment and breakthrough success…and why it may always remain there.
This chart compares the worldwide sales of the Metroid series’ major console games relative to those of Super Mario Sunshine, the lowest-selling console Mario platformer ever. Released in 2002, Super Mario Sunshine has since sold 6.28 million copies worldwide, far fewer than any other proper Mario sequel but more than double the sales of Metroid’s most successful game, Metroid Prime.
Of course, pitting most video game series against the behemoth Mario franchise would result in unfair sales comparisons, but it does prove a point. When a mascot can, at his worst, double the sales of another, at her best, something is likely wrong with the latter.
Now, let’s be fair. There really is nothing wrong with the Metroid games. Rather, they often represent the pinnacle of immersive and atmospheric gaming. But by my estimations, there are three main reasons for the Metroid series’ lack of success relative to others.
3. The Niche-Factor
Most iconic video game series have blemishes their creators would likely love to forget. Castlevania, Sonic the Hedgehog, and even Nintendo’s own (Star Fox, anyone?) have skeletons in their closets. But gamers would be faced with a logical fallacy if tasked with finding a “bad Metroid game.” Save your energy; it doesn’t exist.
Just about every one of Samus Aran’s adventures has been received with glowing reviews over the years. So why hasn’t the series’ oft-praised, award-winning gameplay captured a larger audience?
Despite their quality, Metroid games aren’t exactly mainstream-friendly. The series’ standard has become to abandon players on a strange, isolated alien world to explore silent landscapes devoid of friendly life. The games offer no direct guidance; players are left to their own devices to discover what to do, where to go and how to get there. Given the massive size of the environments, the labyrinthine design of the passageways and the relative infrequency of enemy fire, Metroid games can be a downright bleak and protracted affair.
Of course, this is a critical part of the atmosphere that has come to define the series over the years, and the Metroid faithful wouldn’t have it any other way. But sales indicate the Metroid formula is a sharp contrast to those favored by the typical gamer, the one upon whom the industry’s biggest successes rely. While Nintendo positions the series alongside blockbusters like Mario and Zelda, Metroid has never subscribed to a mainstream formula, and the experiences it has offered over the years have crafted their own modest market niche.
2. The Disappearance
Halo 3. Call of Duty 4. Guitar Hero 3. The list goes on; for a video game series to be huge, it usually needs to break through as a prominent name by releasing consistent sequels. It’s just the nature of the industry.
Her nearly decade-long absence likely had a substantial negative impact on the profitability of Samus Aran.
Throughout both the NES and Super NES generations, Metroid had been one of Nintendo’s premier franchises. When Nintendo made the leap to 3D gaming with the Nintendo 64 console, it brought those premier franchises along for the ride and, in the process, created two of the finest games in the history of the medium. Super Mario 64 and the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time represented a new standard for Nintendo-developed titles, as well as gaming in general. But where was Metroid?
After her appearance in 1994’s Super Metroid, Samus Aran would disappear from gaming, save for an occasional cameo role, for almost a decade before being revived in 2002’s Metroid Prime, the series’ best-selling game. While the sales of Metroid Prime may indicate her sabbatical had no effect on her appeal, their modest stature in comparison to other Nintendo franchises suggests the opposite.
Had Metroid been nurtured with uninterrupted limelight treatment for two decades, as both Mario and Zelda have been, the series’ best-selling figure might have been much higher than Metroid Prime’s 2.83 million worldwide. A lot can happen in eight years, and it is possible that many either forgot about the series or lost interest.
1. The Marketing
Speaking of limelight treatment, it might be worth passing a memo through the offices of Nintendo HQ; it’s okay to promote games that don’t have “Wii” in their titles, too.
Jack disagrees with me on this one, but I stand my ground. When it comes to advertising for Metroid, one of its strongest franchises, Nintendo executives are asleep at the wheel.
Contrast the advertising efforts for the original Metroid Prime against those for the latest, Metroid Prime 3. In 2002, Nintendo of America wholly supported the outstanding efforts of then-unknown Retro Studios with seemingly endless media and public relations efforts, not to mention a national advertising campaign headed by the high-budget, absurdly sweet and relevant television ad seen below.
As for Metroid Prime 3, the opposite was true. Aside from devout Nintendo fans, few people had any idea a mature game of such high caliber was coming to Wii. The now infamous television promotions were lackluster at best, showcasing the game in a short ad with few videos and highlighted with the casual-friendly “Wii would like to play” banner. Not only did these ads understate the significance of the game, but they failed to express its essence and appeal, something accomplished ten-fold with the original Prime ad.
Nintendo’s approach to Metroid Prime 3 promotion was most abhorrent in terms of its media outreach. Though the game had first been revealed at E3 2005, major gaming outlets had been given little hands-on time with the game prior to its Aug. 2007 release. IGN’s Matt Casamassina reported only 19 days prior to the game’s launch that Nintendo had provided only three chances for hands-on time with the game, with one session limited to less than ten minutes.
People can’t get excited for a game they know nothing about.
Nintendo is making money. Mad money, in fact, and I’m sure many will argue the last thing Nintendo should worry about is the lackluster sales of Metroid relative to blockbuster casual titles like Wii Sports, Wii Fit and Wii Play. But ignoring established franchises is anything but a reasonable business decision. Nintendo should, at the very least, put some comparable effort behind the next Metroid.
No single reason is strictly to blame for Metroid’s respectable, “on-the-brink” success. It really is the result of each of these reasons equally, not to mention others we’ve skipped here. But a question remains: should the series be expected to sell better than it does, or is Metroid destined for the niche market status it currently holds?
Whatever the case, at least a few of us will be anxiously awaiting Samus’ next outing, no matter how many more millions Mario’s and Link’s will sell.
(Author’s note: All above sales figures are worldwide totals and were taken from video game sales tracking Web site VGChartz.com.)
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:20 pm
They aren’t?
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:23 pm
I think poor marketing is probably the biggest villain here.
I don’t believe that Metroid is as much of a niche as you say (it bears a lot in common with many franchises on competitor’s systems), but I can see what you mean. When I was a kid, I didn’t know where to start when I first tried playing Super Metroid, and gave up quickly. Now that I have a brain, it’s one of my favorite games of all time. The Metroid series is a thinking person’s game, and a lot of what you’ll find on Wii is not particularly deep.
So maybe it is a niche. Maybe it fits into a realm where the people who are playing it have more patience and skill at puzzle solving.
I guess that’d be why Nintendo insisted that Metroid Prime 3 was a “First Person Adventure” as opposed to a “First Person Shooter.”
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:29 pm
4. One of the few Nintendo franchises that doesn’t sell well in Japan. But your three reasons are better. Nice digs, D.
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Metroid is a conundrum. Despite being one of Nintendo’s better known franchises, it still remains a very hardcore and niche series. Metroid games require patience and thinking and are heavily based on puzzles and exploration, something very hard to promote without it looking like a mindless shooter. Also, Nintendo seems to give more priority to Mario and Zelda and little promotion towards Metroid (see Metroid Prime 3: Corruption). Of course, this is probably due to Metroid selling less than Mario, but what can you expect when you don’t put it out there in the first place. Nintendo also doesn’t whore out Samus to every sports incarnation or party game like they do with Mario and therefore is lesser known (some people still think there’s a man in that suit). I think one of the reasons that Metroid hasn’t become as tired of a formula as Mario or Zelda is because there has been hiatuses between her adventures allowing people to miss the series unlike Mario and Zelda which have seen consistent titles every console generation. This is disheartening to see Metroid suffer because it’s definitely my favorite Nintendo franchise and deserve more recognition. A series that have that has only 10 games (including a remake and a pinball game) and all of them great is something to be revered.
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:18 pm
^ Correct…Metroid sales just plain suck in Japan. Completely lack. Corruption sold less than 35,000 in its first week in Japan.
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:22 pm
[...] Article here (thanks KillerHeroes!) [...]
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:27 pm
There’s less advertising for Metroid BECAUSE it’s a rather niche series. Clearly Nintendo isn’t concerned about trying to make it a mainstream title either, which is probably a good thing because they’d have to modify the gameplay to make it marketable.
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:29 pm
I bought my Wii pretty recently so I didn’t have a chance to get Metroid Prime 3 when it came out. I’m thinking I’ll pick it up at some point, it looks like a fun game.
I loved the 2002 marketing ad. I didn’t have a Gamecube at the time, but the hype around Metroid Prime made me jealous. I can’t say the same for the other two games though.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Metroid would do much better if it actually had a fave to there evil. Aliens had that crazy looking alien in this you get lots of bugs and an archeologist view with out the indian jones wonder. The action was upped yet all hype is centered around your cast of characters. Even the little hype prime 3 had fail to show why they are cool. After playing and beating metroid prime 3 I was like WTF… there is so much they could have sold this game on yet few will get past the stomping monster with the 3 red orbs…LOL. Online play could have made this game bigger than halo just for the aiming system.
Also too Derek is right on. The game isn’t really scary and the exploring is not really action packed unless you make it way into the game. The pirate hunters was a very nice addition though that along gave the game life. Die hards will disagree but you need a better hook to get hype going than exploration. What if you could play as a ball and FP and as a 2d side scroller? Yet may that would not help either. The metroid fans are the reason why it sells so little I guess. They will not let it change enough to survive it seems. It’s too bad because it could have been the next golden eye. Here is too a Wiiware update letting you use the game disk to play online!
Not going to happen…LOL
Wait I got it the story is almost not there only the people that have beat the games knows the story. Sort of like how you have to play all MGS to know some of the stuff happening. Yet it has a crazy story to keep you playing. Metroid needs a sequel and a spin off with the spin off coming first to test the waters for some thing new. I really liked the DS online version yet it was hard to fight on the DS.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Just remember, Perfection itself is a niche. There are many flawless masterpiece games out there that never sell well despite great reviews and skillful craftsmanship. Everything by Capcom’s Clover Studio was simply outstanding and highly original, yet every one of their titles failed to meet any real sales estimates and the studio was eventually (and tearfully) shut down. Games like Ikaruga (the most perfectly designed shooter EVER), Okami, and Pyschonauts can go relatively unknown despite how amazing the games might be.
The real problem, however, is not the games, it’s the gamers. Video games are now mainstream in today’s culture. That’s the worst thing that could’ve ever happened to video games. If it’s not Halo, Guitar Hero or Madden, it’s “niche” and doesn’t sell. That’s because the industry figured out how to get jocks and frat boys to play games. It’s all about making money in the end. That sucks. It means that developers are forced to make ever more generic, one-size-fits-all games. Mediocrity is the ultimate destiny of mainstream video games. It’s already happened to music and movies. Games are next, save for the few NICHE titles that strive to be different and outside of the box, like Metroid. To hell with Mario. All hail Samus.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Wow… I hadn’t seen that ad for Metroid Prime before, but it was AWESOME. Very impressive to see something so well made coming from Nintendo’s advertising department at that point, and very disappointing to see the complete lack of advertising for serious games now.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:31 pm
It’s a great series of games, and I wouldn’t want Nintendo to change Metroid to appeal to the lowest common denominator, just to increase sales. The sales of Mario, Zelda, and the Wii series can appeal to everyone in the world, and get awesome sales, and that’s great because it helps to subsidize the creation of awesome games like Metroid.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:31 pm
That Nintendo ad was made by the creator of the movie Dark City, I believe. (Alex Proyas) is it? That says something about the quality of that commercial.
June 2nd, 2008 at 10:19 pm
Not all of the Clover Studio games were great they were the ones who made P.N.O.3 for the gamecube though all others were great. I don’t think nintendo should change metroid at all I’ve played trough Prime 3 and thought the story was great. I hate to see it become yet another mindless shooter
June 2nd, 2008 at 10:44 pm
I agree with Andrew G. the Metroid games get such a little slice of the marketing pie. As mentioned in the article; even when it comes to informing the gaming media about these games, Nintendo are severely lacking. This is so disappointing considering the efforts put into developing such games.
Nintendo haven’t made Metroid a priority and will probably never will. I agree that the subject matter is niche (being sci-fi) and the style of action (exploration over action) is not mainstream. With this said though, this franchise is very significant for Nintendo so it is continually frustrating to see it being neglected.
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:03 pm
Nintendo had a huge marketing campaign for Metroid Prime, and it yielded 2.83M.
I’m sure they are happy with half the sales (Metroid Prime 3) and almost zero advertising.
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Kale is so on point that it is scary. To make matters worst lots of games on the HD console just do not appeal to me. They could be doing so much more with all that power. Sad really hey well it’s a good thing development cost are not sky high on the Wii that their last hope it seems. Frat boys will grow out of the market as soon as they get their business degrees and jobs because office work sucks so much time.
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:34 pm
Clover did not make PN03 (which I thought was alright). Mikami did. It just needed more time in the oven, is all.
Anyway, mixing a bit of personal and anecdotal evidence, to me one reason the Metroid Prime games, at least, don’t sell as well as Mario and Zelda is because they’re FPS-style games. Let’s face it – those types of games generally don’t light a fire under the average Nintendo fanboy’s ass. We don’t get many of them and when we DO get them, we generally ignore them.
I know *I* don’t like them and I’m also sure lots of you guys here DO like FPS’s, but I RARELY see people on Nintendo sites raving about Halo 3 or COD4. Devil May Cry, Metal Gear Solid, Ninja Gaiden, sure (once you manage to see past the fanboyism, I mean). But I just don’t think the core Nintendo gamer enjoys shooters.
I’d like to see Metroid come back in 3rd person perspective (preferably RE4/Survival Horror style). I think, assuming Nintendo MARKETS it, you’d see MUCH stronger sales.
Mind you, I’m not saying that’s the ONLY reason it doesn’t sell as well. Brand identity is probably the biggest thing working against Metroid. It’s well known in ‘hardcore’ circles, but pales in name recognition compared to Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy or Resident Evil.
Of course, if I’m wrong about Nintendo gamers not like shooters, I think it’s safe to say the the Nintendo Defense Force is made up of about 1.5 million members, tops.
June 3rd, 2008 at 1:06 am
Samfish makes a pretty good point, to an extent.
If I’m speaking from a personal standpoint, I’d have to say that the only FPSs I’ve ever enjoyed are the Metroid series and Bioshock (and both of those are immensely creative, unlike other games of the same genre). I’d be hard-pressed to think of any others, really.
But it would be a shame to see Metroid turn into a 3rd-person shooter. I like 3rd-person shooters, mind you, but Metroid creatively represents Nintendo’s take on the FPS genre, just as Mario does so with platformers and Zelda does so with adventure titles. To take that representation out of operation would be a shame.
I’d still play a 3rd-person Metroid title, of course. But a little part of me would die for it.
June 3rd, 2008 at 6:51 am
I’ve always seen Metroid as an extremely niche series. Face it, most people don’t want to be abandoned in isolationist environments without a clue as to what to do. That’s why I don’t like the games. I absoluletly love the concept of the series, character(s), and respect the series for its polish and quality. I just don’t play the games because I don’t like that kind of atmosphere.
You can’t ignore the lackluster of the series in Japan either. As long as Metroid keeps the Metroid formula, you can pretty much forget about it taking off in Japan unless there is a cultural shift over there. Japan is much more socially minded as a cultural. For them it is more about the group than the individual. This is why first person shooter games, where the focus is usually on an individual bad ass that may or may not be operating for selfish reasons, don’t fly quite so well over there, but rpgs, which usually focus on a group of people working together typically for the greater good, are all the rage. This is a very basic overview of the social dynamic, and even be hard for Americans to grasp because in the US our culture promotes individualism. This might be another reason why the US market eats up FPS games too.
My point is that Samus is an individual badass. I think she is an awesome character, but her games don’t fly well with a lot of people for a lot of reasons.
June 3rd, 2008 at 8:51 am
It’s not just Metroid; other than Mario and Zelda, there isn’t a big stable “franchise” for Nintendo (in the traditional sense). I would still put Metroid as the 3rd pillar I guess but like has been shown, saleswise it pales in comparison to the other 2. But other series that have gone down the toliet, Star Fox and Donkey Kong, they both used to be on the same level as Mario, Zelda, and Metroid.
Donkey Kong lost it during the N64 era. Although DK 64 wasn’t a bad title, it wasn’t the big title DKC was on the SNES. And the GameCube games were way too gimmicky, and not to mention the sputter of the Mario Kart knockoff Diddy Kong Racing. I would hope they are making a killer DK game for the Wii but if I had to guess, if there is one it will probably be another gimmicky game using the Wiimote and will likely suck.
Star Fox 64 was the pinnacle of the series. Since then….eh…nope. Star Fox Adventures, well everyone knows that story. It was a great looking title but not a SF game. Star Fox Assault was better but still far from the greatness of SF 64. Star Fox Command on the DS was a step in the right direction but still it wasn’t very good.
So at the least Metroid is still pushing out quality games. The other 2 former big series for Nintendo have dropped down to barely making junior varsity.
June 3rd, 2008 at 9:20 am
I don’t see the marketing getting any better for this title either, unless Nintendo has some WiiWare 2-D retro return title up its sleeve for E3 or something.
As it’s been pointed out above, Metroid stinks in Japan. People just don’t play or buy it. Related to that, as we all know, Nintendo is a notoriously conservative Japanese company. Another part of this has to do with the controversial switch to FPS, but that’s another debate.
And, for all the handstands that Reggie does here in the states, he still answers to Iwata and a Japanese board of directors. They are conservative; they’ll market the games that have the best chance of generating profit–especially if that profit is coming from Japan.
Now, is this another Jack rant that blindly defends Nintendo? Not at all. In the immortal words of Chris Rock (paraphrased form his stand up act, natch)… I don’t entirely agree with Nintendo’s conservatism, but I understand.
June 3rd, 2008 at 10:04 am
i get seasick playing this game in first person. i have to roll around as a ball to keep from getting queasy. third person would be a great improvement.
June 3rd, 2008 at 1:23 pm
um… multiplayer???
I dare say I might still be playing Metroid if I could play against someone else- either locally or online.
June 3rd, 2008 at 4:05 pm
It’s because people are leaning away from the metroid and zelda-esque “You-have-to-open-this-door-by-doing-10-different-things-and-we-aren’t-gonna-tell-you-what-they-are”" gameplay and more towards “You-have-to-open-this-door-by-pressing-a-or-shooting-it” gameplay. That’s why Tim Schafer moved from making adventure games to making platformers and action games. People don’t want to spend hours figuring out some menial task, they just want to have fun. If Metroid becomes a more action-oriented game and less a puzzle-solving game it would sell heaps and heaps more.
June 3rd, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Metroid’s lacklusters sales are the result of the first-person turn that the series took in 2002. As a lifelong Metroid fan, I was against it then, and I’m against it now, and quite quite frankly, I’m GLAD it’s come back to bite Nintendo in the ass. Prior to 2002, no one thought of Metroid as a “shooter” franchise, but now? Now we got people like Derek calling Metroid Prime the best-selling Metroid game when in Japan, it didn’t even outsell Metroid Fusion (the title that REALLY revived the series, as it’s the only actual sequel that Super Metroid has ever had).
I know I’m not alone in this; the Metroid series began in two dimensions, and it should stay that way. If they’re going to make the games 3D, then goddamnit, make it so we can actually SEE Samus.
The first person view of the Metroid Prime series was always overrated, in my opinion, and battling enemies always took a backseat to exploration, area design, and creepy environments. As a Metroid fan, I couldn’t be happier to hear to that Retro Studio’s failed attempts at upholding the legacy of Gunpei Yokoi have had less than stellar sales.
I’m sick of Metroid being seen as a FPS. I’m sick of FPS fans who now call Metroid their own, and who think that going 3rd person would ruin the series, and that 3D is the best thing to ever happen to Metroid. Fuck 3D. Play Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion if you want to know want to really get the Metroid experience.
June 4th, 2008 at 12:59 am
Gentle Jones, you should try turning off the HUD lag in the options if you haven’t. I’ve heard it can help with the motion sickness some people encountered while playing the Prime games. I didn’t have any problems personally but you might give it a shot.
And Poochy, you sound incredibly stuck in your ways. What is so wrong with change? The Prime trilogy is an incredible series. It’s not like Nintendo stopped making 2-D sidescrolling Metroid games either, what with the release of Metroid Fusion and Metroid Zero Mission, so what exactly are you complaining about? Everybody wins — retro Metroid fans and newcomers to the series alike. You probably went into Prime not wanting to like it. If you actually gave it a fair shot, played all the way through it and STILL hated it, well, then it probably comes down to your personal taste. Again, the games were very well reviewed and the vast majority of Metroid fans would probably disagree with you.
June 4th, 2008 at 7:40 am
I love Metroid Prime’s design and it’s in-game environment. However, it’s really hard for me to get into the game(s).
Back on the Gamecube, I had just picked up a copy of Metroid Prime right after I played through Resident Evil 4. RE4 excelled in the storytelling guiding the player through each level, whereas Metroid seems more willing to just throw the player in a foreign environment and tell them to figure it out. In it’s own way, it’s pretty cool, but just harder to “get into” than a game that leads you along with more enhanced storytelling.
To each their own, but Metroid Prime has always been a bit too much “leave you in the middle of nowhere with no idea as to what to do next” for me.
June 4th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Fairlady Z: I actually liked the original Metroid Prime. I liked it a lot.
But in my opinion it would work better as something other than a Metroid game.
When the Mario series went 3D, it transitioned seamlessly; it didn’t lose a single core aspect of the series’ style of gameplay. Zelda, too, made a seamless transitition into 3D.
But Metroid?
In the Metroid Prime series:
- You can’t duck
- You can’t do a proper wall-jump
- The spider ball is EXTREMELY limited compared to it’s Metroid 2 counterpar
- Very crippled version of the Space Jump ability
- You can’t run (running was a major addition to Super Metroid, and really changed the feel of the game).
- No Speed Boost (another fan favorite ability from Super Metroid)
- The Screw Attack isn’t really a Screw Attack at all!
Sure, these are GREAT games, but they aren’t Metroid games!
If Mario and Zelda’s first entries into 3D had been less than seamless, don’t you think they still would have sold well? Of course, because they’re Nintendo games. But the really devout fans would’ve known the difference. If Link couldn’t spin attack in Ocarina of Time, some fans would have been in uproar. If Mario didn’t kill enemies by jumping on them in Super Mario 64, there would have been hell to pay, even if the game would have still sold millions.
That’s how I feel about the Metroid series—it’s Mario without his signature jumping ability, Link without his signature swords skills.
There’s no excuse for it; Mario and Zelda’s first entries into 3D were far more faithful to their 2D counterparts. Either the “vast majority” of Metroid fans are OK with settling for inferior incarnations of their favorite video game series, or the “vast majority” of them merely hopped aboard the Metroid train when Metroid Prime rolled around.
P.S. There hasn’t been a 2D Metroid game since 2004. I thought that was worth mentioning, considering there was a new 3D Metroid last August.
June 4th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Also, I thought I should add that there is an incredible lack of secret passages in the Metroid Prime trilogy when compared to the trilogy that Gunpei Yokoi, all-around genius and inventor of Game Boy, created.
June 4th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Poochy, I can see your point. They had to take out a few traditional hallmarks of the Metroid series in order for it to work in 3-D. But I still think this has happened with Mario and Zelda too. For instance, throwing fireballs was a staple of the Mario bros. series in just about every Mario game on the NES and SNES, yet they didn’t include it in Super Mario 64 because it doesn’t really make sense in a 3-D environment. They could’ve gone for fan service and tried to force it in somehow, but it would’ve been pretty useless because it was an ability designed with a sidescrolling dynamic in mind. IMHO, the same can be said for many of the Metroid abilities in your list that fell to the wayside in the transition to an FPS style genre.
I guess I just prefer to focus on how the gameplay is expanded and enhanced by the 3-D environment rather than how it has been crippled. For instance, I think swinging with the grapple is much more fun in 3-D, and manually aiming for enemies in Metroid Prime 3 with the Wii remote felt pretty fresh and exciting (to me, anyway). I’m not saying they’re better than the old games, just fun in a different way. There are a lot of things in Mario Kart Wii that I miss from the older versions (the feather item, the music, the awesome battle mode maps), so if I want to enjoy those I just go back and play them
June 5th, 2008 at 5:26 am
I understand why Poochy feels the way he does, but I disagree entirely. While Metroid did have to sacrifice many features during it’s transition into a FPA it managed to hold onto the Metroid feel. Being completely alone in a gigantic free world, riddled with deadly monsters, defeating insane bosses, gaining powerups, and spending hours searching for missile expansions. Even though Metroid Prime was a totally different type of game, there was no mistaking it for anything other than a metroid game through and through. And I can’t think of any better way retro could have made a metroid FPS so true it’s 2-D roots while still making it fun to play.
In fact, I would say that Metroids extreem makover helped broaded it’s audience and made the series seem fresh again. If Prime had just been another 2-D platformer it wouldn’t have made nearly the splash it did and would not stand out as well compared to it’s predecessors.
Thus I would attribute Metroids less than magnificent sales to it’s narrow appeal, and 8 year hibernation, however it could still have done very good if it had simply been marketed better. The game with the most advertising had the best sales, and numbers can’t lie. It’s a shame too because those are some great games, most of which I would say are way better than Super Mario Sunshine.