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Chuy Zapatista's Metroid Prime (GC)
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| [January 15, 2008 03:05:49 AM]
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GAMEPLAY II:
My experience a second time around with Metroid Prime made me see things that I didn’t see the first time. The story is really non-existent; but that fact doesn’t really affect the gameplay that much. Metroid Prime is a relatively non-linear game so it doesn’t matter where you go on the map as long as you explore everything eventually. The aspect of the free roaming environment really makes the game fun and feels like anything can happen.
After a second session of Metroid Prime, I have found some kinks that could have been smoothed out. First off, I didn’t like the idea that everytime I entered an area that I had previously explored, the aliens that I killed came back. Another thing was that there was no fast way to get from point A to point B. If I hit a dead end and I wanted to go all the way across the map, I had to trek through each section that I was previously at and fight the same things over again.
In all honesty, I find the game fun and challenging. But there are some things that get repetitive.
DESIGN:
What makes Metroid Prime a good game from a design perspective is that it has its own unique feel as a first person shooter and in its controls. Metroid Prime makes the player feel like he/she is actually in the characters head. The helmet HUD is really a creative way to incorporate a part of the character into the game. I’ve been told that once I get used to the controls that I would enjoy maneuvering around the environment and really get more out of the game. The more I play and get used to the controls, the more I see that it is true. Although I still think that Halo-style controls would probably be more efficient in maneuvering, I can see that the existing controls are just right for this kind of game.
What I really liked about Metroid Prime is that the level design really held true to the older games. Much like the older Metroid games, the maps are non-linear and involve the player jumping onto ledges and fighting Metroids. I feel that it is a fitting addition to the Metroid series as a 3D game. It does what Super Mario 64 did to the Super Mario franchise. While some may argue that making a first-person, 3D Metroid game is defilement to the Metroid series, I would argue that a first-person shooter was a logical step for the Metroid franchise. The original Metroid games were platform shooters, it would make sense that when games went 3D that the Metroid series would come out with a game that puts the player in the perspective of Samus. What better way than to make it first-person?
I think that Metroid Prime is a solid game that really takes shooters to another level; It is as open ended as its predecessors and just as fun. I can’t wait to beat it an go on in the series.
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| [January 14, 2008 08:46:56 PM]
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Summary:
In Metroid Prime the player takes control of Samus Aran, a galactic bounty hunter that fights space pirates and parasitic creatures known as Metroids. The game takes place between the events in Metroid and Metroid II: the return of Samus and takes place primarily on the planet Tallon IV. Samus must explore the planet collecting power ups for her suit while battling space pirates.
Gameplay:
Metroid Prime makes good use of its first-person perspective. Unlike other games that make the HUD seem detached from the player, Samus’ helmet visor acts as the HUD. This makes the player feel like he/she is actually in the characters head. Metroid Prime goes even farther by having the visor react to its environment. For example, if a mist hits the player, the visor begins to fog up. These subtle details give a sense of surrealism to the game.
The narrative of the game is told through the cut scenes and by scanning the environment. While there is no actual dialogue so far in the game, I have derived the story by using the scanning ability to analyze my surroundings and learn more about the space pirates and the environment of Tallon IV. The cut scenes give the player some idea as to what is going on at certain moments as well. Overall the story doesn’t feel like it needs to be paid too much attention in order to appreciate the game.
One problem that I had with the game was the control scheme. It feels like I would have appreciated playing this game on a PC more than on the gamecube because of the difficulty I had controlling the movement of the character. If anything, I would have liked to have one stick to control movement and another to control where the player looks. I feel that this small problem made it difficult to lock on to targets and avoid enemy fire. I don’t think that it was a big enough problem that it dragged down the entire experience.
So far I have enjoyed playing Metroid and I look forward to completing the game.
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Chuy Zapatista's Metroid Prime (GC)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Sunday 13 January, 2008
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