What parents need to know
Metroid Prime Remastered is a first-person shooter in a 3D environment. It contains phases of platform jumping, puzzles, as well as exploration in addition to combat phases against alien creatures. It is the remaster of Metroid Prime originally released for the Nintendo GameCube in 2002, and later released in the Metroid Prime Trilogy for the Nintendo Wii in 2009.
The Remaster brings the original game up to date so that it is playable on Nintendo Switch by offering many types of controls adapted to the console, and especially completely redone graphics.
Metroid features bounty hunter Samus Aran in her armor exploring the galaxy in her spaceship. She is equipped with a projectile cannon replacing her arm in her armor, she can transform into Morph Ball, a metal sphere allowing access to narrow passages and triggering mechanisms.
In Metroid Prime, Samus must travel through the world of Tallon IV in order to retrieve 12 Chozo artifacts (an ancient civilization) that will lead the way to the Phazon meteorite crater.
She explores multiple environments sometimes composed of lava, ice, greenery or water. Note that the environments are very complex and labyrinthine. Losing your way and retracing your steps are usual in this title and planned by the developers.
Samus Aran acquires multiple skills during the adventure, skills that will act as keys to access previously inaccessible places or simply open doors with the new type of missile obtained. Metroid Prime is designed to increase the power of the main character and therefore the satisfaction of the player. It is also a way to teach the multiple skills as the adventure progresses. A very big tutorial in short.
The Metroid series
Metroid is a series very inspired by the Alien film series. It similarly features a strong female character armed with firearms who explores space colonies while confronting their creatures. The vibe however is not as gory as the movies and is suitable for teenagers.
Note that two other Metroid Prime games were released later on GameCube and Wii. Maybe they’ll be remastered as well.
A Metroid Prime 4 was announced a few years ago, but is still in development to this day. Finally, some special games have been released on portable consoles such as Metroid Prime Hunters, Metroid Prime Pinball and Metroid Prime Federation Force.
Each game can be played independently without problems.
For more details about Metroid please see our history here and the explanation of the series here.
Details
Release date: February 8, 2023 on Nintendo eShop,
February 22, 2023 for physical copy in store
Developed by: Retro Studios / Iron Galaxy Studios
Published by: Nintendo
Available on: Nintendo Switch
Game Type: 3D first-person shooter with platforming and exploration phases.
Themes: Space, alien, science fiction.
Average duration of a game: 1 hour
Total game lifespan: 14 hours. 18 hours to complete everything.
Business model: Need to buy the game once.
Game languages (texts only): French or English in particular
Number of players:
1 player locally
Available in digital (download) and physical format
The game was provided by the publisher for review. It does not influence our opinion.
| Age | Neophytes | Intermediate | Experienced |
| 3+ |  | | |
| 7+ | | | |
| 12+ | |  | |
| 16+ | | | |
| 18+ | | | |
Violence, fear, nudity?
The enemies are alien creatures, sometimes frightening. The atmosphere is intended to frighten, to panic, to surprise the player at certain times. Samus’ character is constantly isolated.
Samus and the aliens clash with laser guns and other projectiles. There are explosions, cries of pain. When enemies are hit, green or yellow splashes shoot out of their bodies. These splashes can be found in the scenery or near enemy corpses.
Minimum reading level required
A lot of reading, to understand the instructions and descriptions in the game.
Language level used
No problem.
Positive message
The main person is a courageous and independent woman.
Difficulty
There are several levels of difficulty (Easy and Normal) possible as well as several accessibility options.
Minimum level of execution on the controller required
Requires moving the camera into a 3D world and having a great sense of direction. It also takes sharp reflexes to win victory over certain creatures or obstacles.
Additional costs ?
none.
Our opinion
Metroid Prime has been a masterpiece that has been acclaimed for over 20 years. Retro Studios at the time had accomplished the feat of transposing the Metroid universe from 2D to 3D brilliantly, something that rare video game series have managed to do over the years.
It is a unique game with a special atmosphere. We dive into a world with multiple environments and fantastic creatures. Save points are scattered around the world. The design of the levels is fabulous, it is difficult to predict, we always act with caution because at any time we can die and lose our progress by finding ourselves at the last activated save point. The action phases are very well done, and some are very intense. The tension is palpable constantly.
The soundtrack is not to be outdone with compositions that you have probably already heard, at least in Super Smash Bros Ultimate.
The redone graphics are beautiful, it’s really a pleasure to see the work done by the developers. Few games manage to captivate us and immerse us in their universe for an extraordinary adventure. As you can see, Metroid Prime Remastered is one of them.
Note for gamers
For now, there is no way to unlock the Fusion costume for Samus.
Formerly available via the Game Boy Advance and GameCube connection and via the Metroid Fusion cartridge, it allowed Samus to be used in Metroid Prime with the same costume as in Metroid Fusion.
On Wii, you had to finish the first game of the Trilogy and then unlock it in the bonuses.
Perhaps a way to unlock it will be discovered in the future.
Yes, it is totally anecdotal and dispensable and it does not bring much.
Trailer
More info about the game: Official website of the game
To go further
For gaming veterans who like to dissect the work of developers, I recommend the excellent Boss Key from the YouTube: Game Maker’s Toolkit channel. The narrator explains the game design methods used, as well as the structure of the game.
Warning, the video naturally contains leakers / spoilers.
