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Reviews - Super Metroid
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| Samus Aran kicks ass. |
| Game Info. |
Publisher
Nintendo |
Developer
Nintendo |
Genre
Adventure (side-scrolling) |
Number of Players
1 |
Peripherals
(none) |
Release
3/19/94 |
Rating
Kids to Adults(Everyone) |
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Media
(none) |
Super Metroid
A classic sci-fi adventure game
June 18, 2002
Now, before last month, I was probably the only person in the world who hadn't played Super Metroid. I know, I know, shameful, but once I got into it, I was hooked like a fish that was swimming and then saw a worm and then got hooked on the fish hook. Now I really know why Super Metroid is held in such high regard, and why people were so damn excited about Metroid Prime(GCN) and Metroid Fusion(GBA).
Gameplay
Super Metroid provides a very interesting mix of atmosphere, creepyness and platforming to make for a very rewarding game. The game begins with an introduction to our hero, Samus Aran, by telling the storylines of the two previous Metroid games. The Super Metroid picks up right where Metroid II left off; Samus recieves a distress signal from a space station that has the last metroid(these bad alien creatures) in their laboratory. Samus goes down to investigate... this is where you start playing. You go through the space station, fight this big alien pterodactyl thing named Ridley, who steals the metroid, almost kills you, and kills all the scientists, and then the space station self-destructs, with you narrowly making it out in time. Here's where the game really begins....
The entire game takes place on Planet Zebes, where Samus travelled in the first Metroid, although the landscape has changed a bit since then. Basically, you just kind of walk around in the game, trying to figure out the elaborate puzzles, or trying to find the map of this area, or hoping for a save point to come up soon. There is a lot of complex platforming action, and the bosses are huge, tough, and are usually guarding a special item. Speaking of special items, there are lots of them! You can upgrade your regular gun numerous times, to an ice beam, that freezes enemies, or a wave beam with a bigger range. The different guns can be combined, too, for instance, you could have a charge ice plasma wave beam, which means you could charge your gun up, and than your shot would have the range of a wave beam, the power of a plasma beam, and the icy power of the ice beam. You can also get missiles, super missiles, a grappling beam, power bombs, even X-Ray glasses to look for the game's many secret areas. A key technique throughout the game is turning Samus into a ball. In ball form, Samus can lay bombs, and can "bomb jump", with each bomb sending her a little bit higher. For most of the game bomb jumping is a move that you will have to learn well. Your suit is also upgradable, from your normal suit all the way to a suit that cuts your damage in half and lets you walk through lava! Your grappling beam also plays a big part in the game, with many areas that require it.
As I said before, the creepyness and atmosphere are huge parts of this game. If this game had come out now, it would have surely been Teen at the least. For instance, one of the bosses you fight has to be pushed back into a pit of lava; in a game like... say, Donkey Kong Country, the boss would just disappear and you'd get a big banana, but in Super Metroid, the bosses skin melts off, exposing its skeleton, and it's screaming the whole time. Then as you walk left, its skeleton jumps at you, only to crumble to piece on the ground. It's scary stuff, folks, and with the dark graphics and sometimes disturbing music and sound effects, Super Metroid has a feeling all its own.
9.6/10
Control
A to jump, B to run, X to shoot, L to aim diagonally down, R aims diagonally up, Select to change weapons, and start to pause. Phew, I said that all in one breath(What?!?). It basically works very well, simple enough to make playing the game a whole lot of fun. You can also completely customize the controls to your liking, which is a very cool thing-a-ding-ding.
10/10
Graphics
The graphics in Super Metroid are very moody, and help a lot with the game's gritty atmoshpere. Art direction is awesome, SM oozes with style. Strange space aliens lurk around every dark corner, metal pipes rust as quicksand pulls you in. The creatures all have very pretty and different designs, and they're all very cool looking. A cool effect used in the game is the blue shadow behind Samus as she runs. Every one of Samus' suits looks distinctly different, and you can even see the different weapons and items attached to her body in the menu. Every area also looks very different; you can always tell if you're in Norfair or Crateria or the Wrecked Ship. There's also a lot of transparancy used here, which is always a nice touch. Larger enemies sometimes get pixallated, though.
9.4/10
Sound
Music? What music? Okay, okay, so there's music, but it isn't all that memorable. A lot of it is slow-paced, which fits the action well, but the tunes never really stuck in my head. Samus' theme is cool, though, a little sound clip that plays when you get a new item or return from a save. There are, however, many very cool side effects for you to hear, like Samus' metal suit's footsteps, and the cries of some of the weird alien creatures. There's even some voice acting in the beginning! (Okay, it's two lines read by NOA's "Ask Dan" guy, but... still, it's there.)
9.0/10
Replay Value
About as much as there can be in an adventure game. I got 60% of the items in the game, and a time of just above 7 hours, which isn't too respectable in the world of Super Metroid. There are different endings(slightly) for the time completed. I got the second best. I did actually go right back to play a new game after I beat it, there was so much stuff I missed, and I actually played for a fair amount of time. That says something, baby.
9.2/10
Overall
If you see this game in a pawn shop somewhere, pick it up. You will be one of the lucky ones. Super Metroid is an awesome adventure game that warrants at least two play-throughs. There were whole areas and creatures I missed the first time through! With lots of bosses, and enough challenge to make you scream, Super Metroid is going to stay an awesome game throughout the ages, no matter what new hardware they cook up. Man, I love the Super Nintendo.
Final Score: 9.5/10
Review by: Starmand
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