• Light/Dark
  • Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
  • We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.

Metroid Prime: A Triumph in 3D game design (from GameXplain’s “Under the Super Scope” series)

Phendrift

Phendrift

Member
Oct 25, 2017
32,326


Been waiting for this one to go up ever since Jonneh announced he was working on it! There's so much about Prime that's just amazing down to the smallest details. It's genius cannot be overstated imo.

Some points brought up in the video are
- Everything is contextualized. Very rarely will you find a "random floating platform." Everything has a place in the world and a reason behind being there. It helps immensely with immersion and world building, and is something Retro Studios continues to do well even to this day
- The player is able to really feel sense of growth by getting a "tease" of late game items on the frigate, getting those taken away, regaining them, and then surpassing them in the late game. And, the progression is handled so well that it's never overbearing

Overall, I love any excuse to discuss Prime, and I think Jon did a great job on this video. There's a lot more he discusses, including cons about the game such as some areas being unfriendly to backtracking, definitely worth a watch.

Personally, I don't think the game has aged a day. What about you guys?
 
Jonneh

Jonneh

Good Vibes Gaming
Verified
Oct 24, 2017
4,538
UK
Thanks so much for the thread! I'll just leave the Phendrana Drifts theme here as I foolishly didn't have a 5 minute segment dedicated towards it in the video:
 
JustAnotherOne

JustAnotherOne

Member
Jan 2, 2018
2,029
Still have the Metroid Prime Trilogy installed and untouched on my Wii U.. I should probably play it now.
 
Pascal

Pascal

▲ Legend ▲
The Fallen
Oct 28, 2017
10,251
Parts Unknown
Jonneh said:
Thanks so much for the thread! I'll just leave the Phendrana Drifts theme here as I foolishly didn't have a 5 minute segment dedicated towards it in the video:
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

tenor.gif
 

AndreGX

GameXplain
Verified
Oct 24, 2017
1,815
San Francisco
The only bad thing about Metroid Prime is when they replace the amazing overworld music



Jon, your video made me want to replay MP like right now
 
Y2Kev

Y2Kev

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,868
Watching now. It's amazing to me that the Metroid franchise has arguably the best interconnected game world and level design in both 2D AND 3D with Super Metroid and Metroid Prime. I think the game overall has some weaknesses (the shooting and core combat just isn't all that fun or engaging), but as design specimen they are untouchable IMO.
 
Toxi

Toxi

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
17,550
I don't quite agree about the artifacts. You gain access to Artifact Temple after the first boss and you are specifically directed there about a third of the way into the game by the hint system. It's not like the game waits until you defeat the Omega Pirate to tell you to collect the artifacts.
 
TheSpaceBetween

TheSpaceBetween

Member
Jan 11, 2018
9,655
One of the best for sure, and no, it hasn't aged a day. I actually do feel, in many ways, the sequels exceeded this game, especially in terms of environments, especially Prime 3 (Prime kept more classic video game themed levels, making the planet feel less cohesive).

Man, every time I watch a video on anything Retro related my craving for their new game just increases tenfold. It's been a brutal wait, but I trust it will pay off in the end!
 
gabegabe

gabegabe

Member
Jul 5, 2018
2,757
Brazil
I never had a Wii neither a Wii U, and I never figured out how to play it on an emulator. I hope Nintendo releases the trilogy on the Switch so I can finally play those games.
 
Jonneh

Jonneh

Good Vibes Gaming
Verified
Oct 24, 2017
4,538
UK
Toxi said:
I don't quite agree about the artifacts. You gain access to Artifact Temple after the first boss and you are specifically directed there about a third of the way into the game by the hint system.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Opinions on the artefacts seem to be mixed. I conducted a Twitter poll which had a near 50/50 split on whether people like or don't like their implementation. I think my issue is even when you find the Temple early, it's not exactly enforced as a primary quest. That's why it can be jarring to the pacing of the game to have you collect them right before the final boss. A decent chunk of them require late game items too which means that even on repeat playthroughs you can't just collect them all on your way. Some are fun to collect, others require some annoying back tracking.
 
Realeza

Realeza

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
1,904
I replayed Prime a little over a year ago. The game remains an absolute GOAT contender.
 
Toxi

Toxi

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
17,550
Jonneh said:
Opinions on the artefacts seem to be mixed. I conducted a Twitter poll which had a near 50/50 split on whether people like or don't like their implementation. I think my issue is even when you find the Temple early, it's not exactly enforced as a primary quest. That's why it can be jarring to the pacing of the game to have you collect them right before the final boss. A decent chunk of them require late game items too which means that even on repeat playthroughs you can't just collect them all on your way. Some are fun to collect, others require some annoying back tracking.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I can agree with that. The worst by far is the artifact at Phendrana's Edge, since it's so far from everything else and requires the X-Ray Visor and Power Bombs, which you shouldn't have until you're basically done with Phendrana.

I think being able to sequence break in the original Gamecube version of Prime actually helps avoid much of the tedium. The early Plasma Beam skip especially allows you to avoid a lot of backtracking. It's a shame the skips were removed or made much harder in later versions.

Regardless of my opinions on backtracking though, I really enjoyed this look back on one of my favorite games.
 
ryechu

ryechu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
880
The game is a good game. I like the game a lot. I should replay the game again someday.
 
Nere

Nere

Member
Dec 8, 2017
2,156
Definitely one of the best games of all time, I really hope Nintendo brings it on the switch as a preparation for the 4th one.
 
stone1024

stone1024

Member
Oct 27, 2017
205
Norway
Yeah one of the best games I've played so far, it's really something else. First time experiencing the game is pure magic.
 
BDS

BDS

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
13,845
Metroid Prime is my favorite game, I've probably played it ten times over the last fifteen years. It's about time for another playthrough but I'm trying to hold out hope for an HD remaster or port to Switch this year.
 

Deleted member 18347

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
2,572
After finishing God of War the first game I played was Prime. The design philosophy of GoW 2018 was so similar to Prime that I couldn't stop thinking of it every now and then.

Anyone could fire up the Wii version today and have a great time. It's an excellent game through and through.
 
TheSpaceBetween

TheSpaceBetween

Member
Jan 11, 2018
9,655
AndreGX said:
The only bad thing about Metroid Prime is when they replace the amazing overworld music



Jon, your video made me want to replay MP like right now
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...


Sebastopa said:
What? Tallon Overworld ver. 2 is a way better theme than that boring recycled music.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...


I think they both hit exactly what they were going for PERFECTLY. Yamamoto's soundtracks for the Prime games are some of Nintendo's best ever, especially Prime 1. I desperately hope he is doing Prime IV's as well.
 
Doskoi Panda

Doskoi Panda

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 27, 2017
14,999
Toni Codrea said:
Yeah, me too. If I remember correctly some of Prime 3 was built around the precision of the IR pointer so if they want it to work well I guess some parts will have to be redesigned, especially enemies since you're meant to lock onto some of them then move the crosshair to the weak spot. Federation Force fixed this exact problem with gyro but I don't remember how accurate it was.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Gyro can be even more precise than the Wii's IR tracking solution - you just lose the absolute point of reference (which helps Wii style IR aiming feel more like direct pointing than it actually is) and potential drift
 

Fanuilos

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
4,138
Jonneh said:
Super curious how they'll go about the control scheme. I imagine it'll lift a lot from whatever they're doing with Prime 4, possibly dual sticks with gyro?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Yeah, Prime 3 could be really interesting. Jamming my entire switch forward to use the grapple in handheld doesn't sound great.

EDIT:

Great video btw, I'm enjoying the series!
 
Xtortion

Xtortion

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,653
United States
Toni Codrea said:
Yeah, me too. If I remember correctly some of Prime 3 was built around the precision of the IR pointer so if they want it to work well I guess some parts will have to be redesigned, especially enemies since you're meant to lock onto some of them then move the crosshair to the weak spot. Federation Force fixed this exact problem with gyro but I don't remember how accurate it was.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Gyro while locked on could work, or they could let the right stick move the cursor around a fixed viewpoint while locked on. Think precision aiming in Goldeneye or when tapping the lock-on button with no enemies around Prime 1/2.

And wait, why are we assuming Prime Trilogy Remastered is a thing? (as much as I'd like it to be)
 
ClickyCal'

ClickyCal'

Member
Oct 25, 2017
59,696
Toni Codrea said:
It's kind of an open secret, isn't it? Emily said it had been talked about some while ago and at least one person I know has said that it is real. Not really confirmation or anything but I doubt it's not at least being worked on.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
If it really is happening, I think it has to be at least announced by the end of the year.
 
cowbanana

cowbanana

Member
Feb 2, 2018
13,773
a Socialist Utopia
Why is this game not on the Switch? Seems like a wasted opportunity. I've never played this and would very much like to. The Switch is my first Nintendo console and there doesn't seem to be any classic Nintendo games available for the system.
 
ClickyCal'

ClickyCal'

Member
Oct 25, 2017
59,696
cowbanana said:
Why is this game not on the Switch? Seems like a wasted opportunity. I've never played this and would very much like to. The Switch is my first Nintendo console and there doesn't seem to be any classic Nintendo games available for the system.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Nintendo going to nintendo with the weird decision to not bring any old games outside of a few year old wii u ports. It took years for them to even put just a few n64 games on the wii u vc. For prime trilogy specifically, it's hopefully still going to happen. It would help prime 4 sales a lot.
 
Ryszard

Ryszard

Member
Apr 7, 2018
395
I know port-begging is prohibited but I would kill for a remaster of the three Metroid Prime, and it makes sense...
 
wiill64

wiill64

Member
Oct 30, 2017
1,592
Awesome video and a great reminder to how fantastic Metroid Prime was. Hearing it's brilliant music again has got me wanting to play it again.
I love how much thought Retro puts into it's world design with nearly every platform having a logical reason for why it is where it is - almost nothing is just floating in mid air and it really helps to bring a sense of realism to an alien world.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.