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Metroid Franchise’s Heroine Gets Personal. For decades, Samus Aran has been known as one of the first female protagonists in video games and one of the most enigmatic. Having traded her haunted past for the solitary life of a bounty hunter, Samus finally tells her own tale in this revealing, personal story of her failings, her flaws and ultimately her motivation. Metroid: Other M is an unprecedented collaboration that blends the slick, action-packed production of the world-renowned Team Ninja development team with the game design talents of the creators of the original Metroid. Metroid: Other M is a dramatic new direction for a legendary franchise and a bold new blend between cinematics, storytelling and the best in interactive entertainment.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
250 of 316 people found the following review helpful
By John
Amazon Verified Purchase
Fun:
3.0 out of 5 stars
*Introduction*
The Metroid series is one of Nintendo's finest, and the new entry, Metroid: Other M, is finally here. After the excellent first person Metroid Prime series by Retro was concluded, it was announced that Metroid was returning to both third person view and Japanese development. Many fans were made uneasy when it was announced that Team Ninja would be heavily involved in the project, but the fact that it was being headed by Yoshio Sakamoto, who has been heavily involved with Metroid from the beginning, gave hope that the game would live up to its classic name. Sakamoto promised that this game would flesh out Samus's character as the most story heavy Metroid yet, but has this decision ultimately backfired?
*Story*
The story is the most controversial aspect of this game. Rather than opt for the minimalist approach of the other titles in the series, Metroid: Other M inserts a full blown Final Fantasy XIII style cinematic experience. The story begins with a recap of the events that took place in Super Metroid's final moments and leads into Samus receiving a distress signal from a space station called "the bottle ship." She arrives to find out that the Galactic Federation has already sent a squad of soldiers, led by her old commanding officer Adam Malkovich. She ultimately joins up with them and politely agrees to follow Adam's orders.
The most jarring aspect of the story is the way it fleshes out the character of Samus. While Samus has had spoken lines before in Metroid: Fusion, but they were never overly intrusive and didn't reveal a whole lot about her. However, in Other M, she not only talks, she talks a lot. For a series that has largely lived on letting the player form their own ideas about the character of Samus, this is a bit disconcerting. The personality she reveals as she narrates the storyline is bound to infuriate many fans who have long seen Samus as a stoic and strong individual who is in control of her emotions.
Throughout the game, Samus has many flashbacks to her time in the Galactic Federation with Adam which portray her as an insecure little girl who has trouble handling the fact that she's a woman in a man's world. From giving a thumbs down as a salute, to her monologues about how father figure Adam is the only one who understands her, this becomes cheesy and embarrassing to watch. Back on the bottle ship Samus continues to act submissive to Adam as she instantly agrees to disable all of her abilities at his request with zero hesitation. Later on in the game, there's a scene where Samus is so frozen in fear that she is unable to do anything. Samus comes across as insecure, uncertain, and even submissive at times.
Watching the story play out, it is incredibly difficult to believe that this could be the same bounty hunter who has courageously saved the galaxy on numerous occasions. In an attempt to make Samus more human and relatable, Other M goes overboard. It's one thing to have emotions. It's another thing to be crippled by them to the point of endangering lives. For a game series that has never had a lot of story and never really needed one, I have to question why the game creators felt the need to insert this melodramatic poorly plotted mess. The story is a major part of the game, and since you can't skip cut scenes, it is impossible to ignore.
Once you complete the game, a cinema mode unlocks where you can re-watch all of the cut-scenes strung together like a movie. Whether you'd want to is another story.
*Gameplay*
The gameplay in M:oM is also a controversial element. Other M opts to use only the Wii pointer and nothing else for control. You hold it sideways like a NES controller leaving only the d-pad and two buttons for input. If you want to fire a missile, you have to rotate the Wii remote so it is pointing at the screen, which changes the perspective to first person. This shift is rather awkward, and you can't move while you are in this view aside from an awkward dodge maneuver accomplished by quickly shifting the pointer off the side of the screen. The controls aren't broken, but they are not particularly good, either. They work, but only just.
The game itself plays more like an action game than a Metroid game. Almost all of the exploration you would expect from the series is gone, and for the vast majority of the game you are restricted to a linear path where doors will often lock behind you to prevent revisiting previous areas. There are some hidden missile expansions and energy tanks along the way, but the game pretty much tells you their exact position once you clear a room of enemies. The game only opens up to allow free exploration at the very end. This exploration makes it very clear why they decided to restrict the main story line so much, because when you have a few options of where to go, every other area is "now loading" for ten seconds, especially when you use the speed booster.
The combat in this game is very easy. Due to the limitations of using a digital control pad in 3d space, Other M includes a dodge move that occurs automatically when you are pressing a direction on the d-pad. This means you will almost never get hit by anything as long as you are moving around. Samus's gun also auto-aims, so most of the time you can just shoot blindly down a corridor and not worry about whether or not you hit anything. The only challenge comes from shifting to first person to fire a missile, which is only required for boss fights the majority of the time. This is more annoying and awkward than difficult, since it merely involves waiting until you have a large enough window of time to get a missile off without getting hit.
Throughout the game, Adam restricts the use of Samus's abilities until he deems them necessary, which means no more finding your abilities along the way, and also leads to illogical moments such as Adam not deciding it was appropriate to authorize the Varia suit to protect Samus from heat damage until she is already most of the way through the lava sector taking heavy heat damage along the way. This approach also means that there are no substantial new powerups for Samus to acquire. All of the significant abilities Samus has in this game are repeats from Super Metroid.
Also worth noting are frustrating sequences that involve freezing you in the first person perspective until you find some tiny hard to find object. Often you will pass the Wii cursor directly over the object you are supposed to examine without the game registering it, leading to a lot of time wasted passing over everything over and over in an attempt to find what you are meant to scan. These moments completely kill the pacing of the game.
*Replay Value*
After you complete the game, every door unlocks, and you are finally completely free to finish your collecting spree of leftover expansions. At this point, there is also an extra boss and epilogue sequence to find. However, this can all be done in less than twelve hours the first time through, and once you do, the only reason to replay the game is the hard mode that unlocks upon 100% completion. There is also a cinema mode and art gallery that unlocks. If you don't care about getting everything, a regular main story play-through only lasts around eight hours.
*Graphics*
The graphics look pretty good for a Wii game, but the actual art design is lacking. The game is filled with generic looking hallways and rooms that don't really stand out visually, and the themes never go beyond the typical generic fire, ice, and jungle areas. The only thing that stands out about them is the holographic effect that appears sometimes to remind you that these are only simulations on a space station. One high point of the visuals is that the animations are some of the most fluid I've seen on the Wii.
*Sound*
One of the most disappointing aspects of Metroid: Other M is that the game has almost no music during actual game play. The background noise consists mostly ambient sounds and, very rarely, one or two recycled tunes from past Metroid games. Expansions are also missing the familiar tune that used to play when you picked them up in other Metroid games. This is a very disappointing aspect of the game. The voice acting is alright, but it's not spectacular. Samus sounds monotone throughout the game and you'll be hearing her a lot. The sound effects for weapons and enemies are adequate.
*Overall*
In more ways than one, this game is a massive disappointment. The game is playable, but in a series as outstanding as Metroid, it sticks out like a sore thumb, and even taken on its own terms it fails to impress.
The Metroid series is one of Nintendo's finest, and the new entry, Metroid: Other M, is finally here. After the excellent first person Metroid Prime series by Retro was concluded, it was announced that Metroid was returning to both third person view and Japanese development. Many fans were made uneasy when it was announced that Team Ninja would be heavily involved in the project, but the fact that it was being headed by Yoshio Sakamoto, who has been heavily involved with Metroid from the beginning, gave hope that the game would live up to its classic name. Sakamoto promised that this game would flesh out Samus's character as the most story heavy Metroid yet, but has this decision ultimately backfired?
*Story*
The story is the most controversial aspect of this game. Rather than opt for the minimalist approach of the other titles in the series, Metroid: Other M inserts a full blown Final Fantasy XIII style cinematic experience. The story begins with a recap of the events that took place in Super Metroid's final moments and leads into Samus receiving a distress signal from a space station called "the bottle ship." She arrives to find out that the Galactic Federation has already sent a squad of soldiers, led by her old commanding officer Adam Malkovich. She ultimately joins up with them and politely agrees to follow Adam's orders.
The most jarring aspect of the story is the way it fleshes out the character of Samus. While Samus has had spoken lines before in Metroid: Fusion, but they were never overly intrusive and didn't reveal a whole lot about her. However, in Other M, she not only talks, she talks a lot. For a series that has largely lived on letting the player form their own ideas about the character of Samus, this is a bit disconcerting. The personality she reveals as she narrates the storyline is bound to infuriate many fans who have long seen Samus as a stoic and strong individual who is in control of her emotions.
Throughout the game, Samus has many flashbacks to her time in the Galactic Federation with Adam which portray her as an insecure little girl who has trouble handling the fact that she's a woman in a man's world. From giving a thumbs down as a salute, to her monologues about how father figure Adam is the only one who understands her, this becomes cheesy and embarrassing to watch. Back on the bottle ship Samus continues to act submissive to Adam as she instantly agrees to disable all of her abilities at his request with zero hesitation. Later on in the game, there's a scene where Samus is so frozen in fear that she is unable to do anything. Samus comes across as insecure, uncertain, and even submissive at times.
Watching the story play out, it is incredibly difficult to believe that this could be the same bounty hunter who has courageously saved the galaxy on numerous occasions. In an attempt to make Samus more human and relatable, Other M goes overboard. It's one thing to have emotions. It's another thing to be crippled by them to the point of endangering lives. For a game series that has never had a lot of story and never really needed one, I have to question why the game creators felt the need to insert this melodramatic poorly plotted mess. The story is a major part of the game, and since you can't skip cut scenes, it is impossible to ignore.
Once you complete the game, a cinema mode unlocks where you can re-watch all of the cut-scenes strung together like a movie. Whether you'd want to is another story.
*Gameplay*
The gameplay in M:oM is also a controversial element. Other M opts to use only the Wii pointer and nothing else for control. You hold it sideways like a NES controller leaving only the d-pad and two buttons for input. If you want to fire a missile, you have to rotate the Wii remote so it is pointing at the screen, which changes the perspective to first person. This shift is rather awkward, and you can't move while you are in this view aside from an awkward dodge maneuver accomplished by quickly shifting the pointer off the side of the screen. The controls aren't broken, but they are not particularly good, either. They work, but only just.
The game itself plays more like an action game than a Metroid game. Almost all of the exploration you would expect from the series is gone, and for the vast majority of the game you are restricted to a linear path where doors will often lock behind you to prevent revisiting previous areas. There are some hidden missile expansions and energy tanks along the way, but the game pretty much tells you their exact position once you clear a room of enemies. The game only opens up to allow free exploration at the very end. This exploration makes it very clear why they decided to restrict the main story line so much, because when you have a few options of where to go, every other area is "now loading" for ten seconds, especially when you use the speed booster.
The combat in this game is very easy. Due to the limitations of using a digital control pad in 3d space, Other M includes a dodge move that occurs automatically when you are pressing a direction on the d-pad. This means you will almost never get hit by anything as long as you are moving around. Samus's gun also auto-aims, so most of the time you can just shoot blindly down a corridor and not worry about whether or not you hit anything. The only challenge comes from shifting to first person to fire a missile, which is only required for boss fights the majority of the time. This is more annoying and awkward than difficult, since it merely involves waiting until you have a large enough window of time to get a missile off without getting hit.
Throughout the game, Adam restricts the use of Samus's abilities until he deems them necessary, which means no more finding your abilities along the way, and also leads to illogical moments such as Adam not deciding it was appropriate to authorize the Varia suit to protect Samus from heat damage until she is already most of the way through the lava sector taking heavy heat damage along the way. This approach also means that there are no substantial new powerups for Samus to acquire. All of the significant abilities Samus has in this game are repeats from Super Metroid.
Also worth noting are frustrating sequences that involve freezing you in the first person perspective until you find some tiny hard to find object. Often you will pass the Wii cursor directly over the object you are supposed to examine without the game registering it, leading to a lot of time wasted passing over everything over and over in an attempt to find what you are meant to scan. These moments completely kill the pacing of the game.
*Replay Value*
After you complete the game, every door unlocks, and you are finally completely free to finish your collecting spree of leftover expansions. At this point, there is also an extra boss and epilogue sequence to find. However, this can all be done in less than twelve hours the first time through, and once you do, the only reason to replay the game is the hard mode that unlocks upon 100% completion. There is also a cinema mode and art gallery that unlocks. If you don't care about getting everything, a regular main story play-through only lasts around eight hours.
*Graphics*
The graphics look pretty good for a Wii game, but the actual art design is lacking. The game is filled with generic looking hallways and rooms that don't really stand out visually, and the themes never go beyond the typical generic fire, ice, and jungle areas. The only thing that stands out about them is the holographic effect that appears sometimes to remind you that these are only simulations on a space station. One high point of the visuals is that the animations are some of the most fluid I've seen on the Wii.
*Sound*
One of the most disappointing aspects of Metroid: Other M is that the game has almost no music during actual game play. The background noise consists mostly ambient sounds and, very rarely, one or two recycled tunes from past Metroid games. Expansions are also missing the familiar tune that used to play when you picked them up in other Metroid games. This is a very disappointing aspect of the game. The voice acting is alright, but it's not spectacular. Samus sounds monotone throughout the game and you'll be hearing her a lot. The sound effects for weapons and enemies are adequate.
*Overall*
In more ways than one, this game is a massive disappointment. The game is playable, but in a series as outstanding as Metroid, it sticks out like a sore thumb, and even taken on its own terms it fails to impress.
63 of 91 people found the following review helpful
By A. White
Amazon Verified Purchase
Fun:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Objective Part of review:
A. Controls
Just like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, this game is controlled by holding the Wii mote sideways. Using the D-Pad you control Samus' movement in a 3D space. Although ideally a control stick would have worked more smoothly, the movement is surprisingly not that rough or game breaking. There is an auto-lock on feature when targeting enemies: If Samus is facing an enemy, then she will automatically target that enemy when firing; however, if the enemy is ever behind you, and Smaus is looking the other way, the only thing you will be shooting is the wall, which can be frustrating at times.
3rd person combat is worked around a dodge/shoot mechanic. A player taps the control pad before an enemy attacks, and Samus dodges, which leaves the player in a prime opportunity to follow up with a beam attack (dodging is very forgiving)*. Samus also has the ability to use melee attacks. With a charge beam, Samus can finish off enemies by either jumping on them or quickly approaching them when they are down: this mechanic does not work as smoothly as it should, as precision is often needed to be executed correctly.
To execute some of Samus' other abilities it is required to point the Wii remote at the screen. When you point at the screen you will be in the perspective of Samus' visor: first person mode. Whichever direction Samus is pointing is where you will be looking upon entering the mode. The transition can be seamless, but sometimes their will be a jump in cursor movements depending on how vigorously you are playing. In first person mode you are able to target enemies with a missile or beam shot, which is usually required to take down bosses or solve puzzles. However, in first person mode you are not able to move around. Don't expect to gun down all enemies in first person mode like Metroid Prime, you would only be making the game harder than it needs to be. A play style of combining 3rd person combat, and first person mode would be ideal and beneficial for the player.
Note: The controls won't come naturally, but the more you play the more fluid they can become. There is also a tutorial in the beginning of the game to help players get used to the play mechanics.
*Dodging also can be done in first person mode, just flick the cursor off the screen before an enemy attack hits you, which is hinted by green bars.
B. Gameplay
The classic Metroid formula is still intact. Work your way through various environments by using Samus' abilities: Morph Ball, and Grapple Beam to name a few. Defeat bosses and solve often times simple, but sometimes difficult, platform puzzles.
Note: It is important to listen when abilities are granted to Samus. This will help you understand new abilities effects, and make solving puzzles and defeating enemies easier. Some players have noted that this Metroid game is very linear compared to previous installments. You are often forced to travel a certain path for story purposes, and sometimes are barred from going to an area just visited. Once you complete the main story all paths are open.
Subjective Part of Review:
A. Graphics
Very beautiful and moody atmosphere. The color palette is saturated, which harkens back to side-scrolling Metroid games. Sometimes textures can be plain, but everything else looks high production. Enemy design varies, and fans will get a kick out of seeing old baddies again. Samus' and enemy animations are fluid during battle. Sometimes character animations during cutscenes look a little awkward, but supposedly real actors were used for motion capture.
Note: This is of course a Wii game. Compared to games on other systems, Other M appears lack luster because the lack of HD.
B. Sound
Music is vacant for the less climatic parts of the game, but the scores pick up when tensions rise. This helps with the mood of the game and can be compared to a movie. Fans will enjoy an infused classic-Metroid soundtrack, but might miss the constant use of a score.
The voice acting is not half bad. This might not be a pixar movie filled with experienced voice actors, but the cast does a good job with conveying emotion and character. Fans may complain about Samus' actor, but she is fit for voicing the often times stoic Samus.
Beam explosions, enemies roaring, and metal echoing. Not ground breaking, but it helps with the atmosphere.
C. Story
Nintendo's first go at modern cinematic story telling, and a good game for someone who hasn't played a Metroid game. The story can occasionally get confusing -- even for some Metroid fans, but the basic plot is fun and engaging. Is it recommended that you are familiar with the series? No, but for those who are, you have a nice treat awaiting.
Some fans may complain about the direction of Other M, especially how Samus' is portrayed. Western audiences in particular might be put off by typical Japanese story/character elements. Some of the lines can be a little cheesy, like most video game scripts.
The writing is a hit or miss with some dialogue being extremely ham-fisted: the baby, the baby.
Metroid Fan:
I love Metroid. I've played all the games, I've read the Metroid manga (fan translated; if interested, then google it), and I complete speed runs just for fun. If you are like me, then this game has a chance to not disappoint. Once you complete a 100% run of the game, a hard mode is unlocked; One where expansions of all sorts are vacant. Good LUCK!
Q. How do they compare to the Prime games?
In terms of quality I'd say the Prime games are are better, but Other M is still great. Same name different beast.
A. Controls
Just like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, this game is controlled by holding the Wii mote sideways. Using the D-Pad you control Samus' movement in a 3D space. Although ideally a control stick would have worked more smoothly, the movement is surprisingly not that rough or game breaking. There is an auto-lock on feature when targeting enemies: If Samus is facing an enemy, then she will automatically target that enemy when firing; however, if the enemy is ever behind you, and Smaus is looking the other way, the only thing you will be shooting is the wall, which can be frustrating at times.
3rd person combat is worked around a dodge/shoot mechanic. A player taps the control pad before an enemy attacks, and Samus dodges, which leaves the player in a prime opportunity to follow up with a beam attack (dodging is very forgiving)*. Samus also has the ability to use melee attacks. With a charge beam, Samus can finish off enemies by either jumping on them or quickly approaching them when they are down: this mechanic does not work as smoothly as it should, as precision is often needed to be executed correctly.
To execute some of Samus' other abilities it is required to point the Wii remote at the screen. When you point at the screen you will be in the perspective of Samus' visor: first person mode. Whichever direction Samus is pointing is where you will be looking upon entering the mode. The transition can be seamless, but sometimes their will be a jump in cursor movements depending on how vigorously you are playing. In first person mode you are able to target enemies with a missile or beam shot, which is usually required to take down bosses or solve puzzles. However, in first person mode you are not able to move around. Don't expect to gun down all enemies in first person mode like Metroid Prime, you would only be making the game harder than it needs to be. A play style of combining 3rd person combat, and first person mode would be ideal and beneficial for the player.
Note: The controls won't come naturally, but the more you play the more fluid they can become. There is also a tutorial in the beginning of the game to help players get used to the play mechanics.
*Dodging also can be done in first person mode, just flick the cursor off the screen before an enemy attack hits you, which is hinted by green bars.
B. Gameplay
The classic Metroid formula is still intact. Work your way through various environments by using Samus' abilities: Morph Ball, and Grapple Beam to name a few. Defeat bosses and solve often times simple, but sometimes difficult, platform puzzles.
Note: It is important to listen when abilities are granted to Samus. This will help you understand new abilities effects, and make solving puzzles and defeating enemies easier. Some players have noted that this Metroid game is very linear compared to previous installments. You are often forced to travel a certain path for story purposes, and sometimes are barred from going to an area just visited. Once you complete the main story all paths are open.
Subjective Part of Review:
A. Graphics
Very beautiful and moody atmosphere. The color palette is saturated, which harkens back to side-scrolling Metroid games. Sometimes textures can be plain, but everything else looks high production. Enemy design varies, and fans will get a kick out of seeing old baddies again. Samus' and enemy animations are fluid during battle. Sometimes character animations during cutscenes look a little awkward, but supposedly real actors were used for motion capture.
Note: This is of course a Wii game. Compared to games on other systems, Other M appears lack luster because the lack of HD.
B. Sound
Music is vacant for the less climatic parts of the game, but the scores pick up when tensions rise. This helps with the mood of the game and can be compared to a movie. Fans will enjoy an infused classic-Metroid soundtrack, but might miss the constant use of a score.
The voice acting is not half bad. This might not be a pixar movie filled with experienced voice actors, but the cast does a good job with conveying emotion and character. Fans may complain about Samus' actor, but she is fit for voicing the often times stoic Samus.
Beam explosions, enemies roaring, and metal echoing. Not ground breaking, but it helps with the atmosphere.
C. Story
Nintendo's first go at modern cinematic story telling, and a good game for someone who hasn't played a Metroid game. The story can occasionally get confusing -- even for some Metroid fans, but the basic plot is fun and engaging. Is it recommended that you are familiar with the series? No, but for those who are, you have a nice treat awaiting.
Some fans may complain about the direction of Other M, especially how Samus' is portrayed. Western audiences in particular might be put off by typical Japanese story/character elements. Some of the lines can be a little cheesy, like most video game scripts.
The writing is a hit or miss with some dialogue being extremely ham-fisted: the baby, the baby.
Metroid Fan:
I love Metroid. I've played all the games, I've read the Metroid manga (fan translated; if interested, then google it), and I complete speed runs just for fun. If you are like me, then this game has a chance to not disappoint. Once you complete a 100% run of the game, a hard mode is unlocked; One where expansions of all sorts are vacant. Good LUCK!
Q. How do they compare to the Prime games?
In terms of quality I'd say the Prime games are are better, but Other M is still great. Same name different beast.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Poor Characterization Plague What Might've Otherwise Been an Interesting Story
October 5, 2011
Fun:
3.0 out of 5 stars
When Metroid Other M was originally announced it made quite a stir. It was a curious being. Mainly because no one really knew much about it at the time. The only thing we knew right up front was that Samus was going to be given a voice. This was something made us all curious but, for the most part we sat back and waited. In the end, Metroid Other M didn't work out quite as well as I had hoped. It isn't that Samus has a voice that's the problem. It is primarily what that voice is used to do and how Samus is characterized. And we'll get to that momentarily. Metroid Other M isn't an all around terrible game. There are some aspects that are quite good. Gameplay wise, that is. It's the story and presentation of that story which suffer.
Metroid is primarily known as a video game which provides a lot of narrative through gameplay. Those who played Super Metroid previously understand this. The game carries a tale and even has one of the most heartwarming moments in video games. It's delivered without extensive cutsceenes and drowning us out in talk. Metroid Other M dispatches with that and provides a story told primarily through cutscenes. Yeah, much of the narrative is still there and I actually rather liked that Metroid would take a slightly cinematic approach. The problem with said approach, however, is that much of the story is told through the voice of a monotone Samus who, for the most part... just isn't that vibrant to listen to. And through the story we fail to learn much of anything about the other characters in it. Many of Samus's cutscenes involve long drawn out monologues that explain things to us that the game could be showing us... or better yet, letting us actually play and experience. What compounds this more is that you can't skip any of the cutscenes. If you get into a battle and lose you'll have to sit through the preceding cutscene once again.
What also compounds this is that the game limits itself primarily to Samus without really exploring the other characters. It's hard to care about the other characters when something happens to them when we've learned nothing about them. But even Samus's relationship with Adam isn't fully fleshed out. This is a man that is supposed to be the most important man in Samus's life but this particular relationship is hardly reinforced through the game. When we see Adam it's mostly him barking orders. But there's hardly a moment where we see the two connect. We have Samus explain to us how much she admires Adam but we never really see this come forth... except through Samus giving a thumbs down as a sign of respect.
The last aspect of the story that takes a backseat through all this is Samus herself. This is one of the hardest characters to really provide a lot of personality for because this a character who has earned her entire development and reputation through gameplay mostly. When it comes to Metroid Other M, Samus is portrayed as quite a different character than many of us who have played previous games (and read the comics) have come to understand. Samus expressing the kind of doubt in herself that she does seems distinctly out of character given how many times she's put herself in danger for the sake of the galaxy. Some may argue that Samus wasn't much of a character before, but I have to wonder how much time they invested in Metroid to come to this conclusion. Just because Samus didn't have a voice didn't mean she wasn't actually a character. As I said, Metroid did a lot of its narrative through gameplay. We learned things about her through the tasks we have come to perform through the series. Samus wasn't a perfect character by any stretch. In Super Metroid we watched her take on a very powerful Mother Brain she wasn't fit to destroy all by herself. In Metroid Fusion we see how Samus must avoid the SA-X because she isn't strong enough (and the game reinforces this any time you fight her by showing that she can destroy you easily). Metroid Fusion even gives us a glimpse into Samus's mind by showing us that Samus actually prefers to work alone. It's part of the reason she's a bounty hunter. Because she's able to work for herself. And I also have a hard time believing that a character such as Samus would express doubt in herself when confronting the Space Pirates when she has already done this numerous times before.
But in Metroid Other M we see her doing things like... refusing to use LIFE SAVING procedures just because Adam hasn't authorized that she could. This contradicts the Samus we've come to know. The one who has been shown to us through gameplay, and through some of the narrative that the series has presented thus far. At least in previous Metroid games Samus had the abilities but lost them and had to regain them... or simply didn't have them at all. But here it's that she has all these abilities... Adam just restricts her from using them. Meaning that even in moments where Samus's life is on the line she refuses to save herself because Adam won't authorize it. Even for players who are okay with how Samus is portrayed in Metroid Other M, this is something that even on a design level makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
That's not to say Metroid Other M is absolutely terrible. It's only to say that the execution of what it does is not that great. From the outset if someone just told you what the game was about you might actually find it interesting or even worth looking into. It is the portrayal of Samus and the way the story presents itself that's hard to swallow. Metroid Other M, as a result, is a game we can say has "potential," but doesn't own up to it.
Gameplay wise, Metroid Other M plays quite different. It's a lot of fast paced action that's easy to sink into. There are moments where it's actually a lot of fun, but even here you can see a few flaws that might not have had to happen. You'll hold your Wii Remote like a gamepad. You'll run through several corridors blasting away at the enemies while exploring your environments. It's here that Metroid Other M begins to feel like Metroid. At least to some degree. The game is pretty linear. You'll always know where to go and be kept on task. And while enemies are crawling all over they're definitely not hard to dispatch at all. Metroid Other M is a surprisingly easy game for the most part. The boss fights might have some complexity but Metroid Other M is not going to really test your mettle. You even have the ability to refill some of your health when you're really low. This is inviting to those who haven't experienced Metroid, but series veterans might not have a lot of trouble getting through the game at all.
You can also go into first person to blast away some of the bad guys and look around. You can do this simply by pointing the Wii Remote at the screen. Metroid Prime this is not, though. You can't move around in first person. You can only shoot. It seems kind of odd that we can't do a little running around or at least dodging attacks while in this mode.
Metroid: Other M is a simple game to play overall. And at points the gameplay is even a lot of fun to behold. It is the execution of its story and the treatment of its characters (not just Samus) that really hurt Metroid: Other M. You'll more than likely be able to play through it just fine, but it's hard to absorb the story it's trying to tell.
Metroid is primarily known as a video game which provides a lot of narrative through gameplay. Those who played Super Metroid previously understand this. The game carries a tale and even has one of the most heartwarming moments in video games. It's delivered without extensive cutsceenes and drowning us out in talk. Metroid Other M dispatches with that and provides a story told primarily through cutscenes. Yeah, much of the narrative is still there and I actually rather liked that Metroid would take a slightly cinematic approach. The problem with said approach, however, is that much of the story is told through the voice of a monotone Samus who, for the most part... just isn't that vibrant to listen to. And through the story we fail to learn much of anything about the other characters in it. Many of Samus's cutscenes involve long drawn out monologues that explain things to us that the game could be showing us... or better yet, letting us actually play and experience. What compounds this more is that you can't skip any of the cutscenes. If you get into a battle and lose you'll have to sit through the preceding cutscene once again.
What also compounds this is that the game limits itself primarily to Samus without really exploring the other characters. It's hard to care about the other characters when something happens to them when we've learned nothing about them. But even Samus's relationship with Adam isn't fully fleshed out. This is a man that is supposed to be the most important man in Samus's life but this particular relationship is hardly reinforced through the game. When we see Adam it's mostly him barking orders. But there's hardly a moment where we see the two connect. We have Samus explain to us how much she admires Adam but we never really see this come forth... except through Samus giving a thumbs down as a sign of respect.
The last aspect of the story that takes a backseat through all this is Samus herself. This is one of the hardest characters to really provide a lot of personality for because this a character who has earned her entire development and reputation through gameplay mostly. When it comes to Metroid Other M, Samus is portrayed as quite a different character than many of us who have played previous games (and read the comics) have come to understand. Samus expressing the kind of doubt in herself that she does seems distinctly out of character given how many times she's put herself in danger for the sake of the galaxy. Some may argue that Samus wasn't much of a character before, but I have to wonder how much time they invested in Metroid to come to this conclusion. Just because Samus didn't have a voice didn't mean she wasn't actually a character. As I said, Metroid did a lot of its narrative through gameplay. We learned things about her through the tasks we have come to perform through the series. Samus wasn't a perfect character by any stretch. In Super Metroid we watched her take on a very powerful Mother Brain she wasn't fit to destroy all by herself. In Metroid Fusion we see how Samus must avoid the SA-X because she isn't strong enough (and the game reinforces this any time you fight her by showing that she can destroy you easily). Metroid Fusion even gives us a glimpse into Samus's mind by showing us that Samus actually prefers to work alone. It's part of the reason she's a bounty hunter. Because she's able to work for herself. And I also have a hard time believing that a character such as Samus would express doubt in herself when confronting the Space Pirates when she has already done this numerous times before.
But in Metroid Other M we see her doing things like... refusing to use LIFE SAVING procedures just because Adam hasn't authorized that she could. This contradicts the Samus we've come to know. The one who has been shown to us through gameplay, and through some of the narrative that the series has presented thus far. At least in previous Metroid games Samus had the abilities but lost them and had to regain them... or simply didn't have them at all. But here it's that she has all these abilities... Adam just restricts her from using them. Meaning that even in moments where Samus's life is on the line she refuses to save herself because Adam won't authorize it. Even for players who are okay with how Samus is portrayed in Metroid Other M, this is something that even on a design level makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
That's not to say Metroid Other M is absolutely terrible. It's only to say that the execution of what it does is not that great. From the outset if someone just told you what the game was about you might actually find it interesting or even worth looking into. It is the portrayal of Samus and the way the story presents itself that's hard to swallow. Metroid Other M, as a result, is a game we can say has "potential," but doesn't own up to it.
Gameplay wise, Metroid Other M plays quite different. It's a lot of fast paced action that's easy to sink into. There are moments where it's actually a lot of fun, but even here you can see a few flaws that might not have had to happen. You'll hold your Wii Remote like a gamepad. You'll run through several corridors blasting away at the enemies while exploring your environments. It's here that Metroid Other M begins to feel like Metroid. At least to some degree. The game is pretty linear. You'll always know where to go and be kept on task. And while enemies are crawling all over they're definitely not hard to dispatch at all. Metroid Other M is a surprisingly easy game for the most part. The boss fights might have some complexity but Metroid Other M is not going to really test your mettle. You even have the ability to refill some of your health when you're really low. This is inviting to those who haven't experienced Metroid, but series veterans might not have a lot of trouble getting through the game at all.
You can also go into first person to blast away some of the bad guys and look around. You can do this simply by pointing the Wii Remote at the screen. Metroid Prime this is not, though. You can't move around in first person. You can only shoot. It seems kind of odd that we can't do a little running around or at least dodging attacks while in this mode.
Metroid: Other M is a simple game to play overall. And at points the gameplay is even a lot of fun to behold. It is the execution of its story and the treatment of its characters (not just Samus) that really hurt Metroid: Other M. You'll more than likely be able to play through it just fine, but it's hard to absorb the story it's trying to tell.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
honesty and overall review.
After playing this game a good bit I had to take it upon myself to return here and write a review for this game after reading other peoples reviews downing this game. Read more
Published 4 days ago by Taylor
2.0 out of 5 stars
It was okay for the price
My husband finished the game in 6 hours, but it was good for the price, we were told it was new but it came unwrapped so I am not really sure if it was new or not.
Published 13 days ago by katrina clement
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect Condition
Casing slightly damaged but disc works excellent! No glitches in the game whatsoever! The shipment came perfectly and a great thing too!
Published 19 days ago by Stephen
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great addition to the Metroid Series!
This game serves as a great bridge between the original Metroid Series and the beginning of Metroid Prime. If you are a fan this is a must buy!
Published 27 days ago by Everett Henry
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Game
I love this game! It was in great conditions, and the game plays just fine. Ten stars from my part!
Published 1 month ago by irvin
2.0 out of 5 stars
uuuuh
This game is hard to explain, I would say it is a mixed bag, but it is more low standard than not so it is slightly below a mixed bag. Read more
Published 1 month ago by GamerNinjaX Productions
3.0 out of 5 stars
It's okay
The trailer to this game was deceiving, I though it be like a first person shooter (though you can enter in that mode in this game but you can't move around... Read more
Published 1 month ago by A Pudgy Pug
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good Game
This game is great. A real nice upgrade to the classic series. My particular copy however, is the only game in my collection that has frequent problems initializing and loading. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bradley Czock
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review
I like so much this game. The game is how a old's Metroid style with graphics from this generation game. This game is very exciting
Published 1 month ago by gustavo
3.0 out of 5 stars
okay
I do not like it. It is hard to play. I bought it for me, I am a 44 years old probably I do not know how to play it. I gave it to my daughter to play it. I guess for her is good.
Published 1 month ago by Sonia
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