Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

"Metroid has never been so good"

Story – 10/10

I wouldn't say you would have to have played through the whole of Metroid Prime to understand the story of Echoes but I think it might help. After all, there is someone identical to Samus trying to kill her in this game and if you didn't beat Metroid Prime then you won't know where this new Samus creature came from. But anyways, here is the low-down of the story of Echoes.

After completing her mission on the planet Tallon IV, Samus receives a distress signal coming from another planet called Aether. When Samus arrives on Aether, she finds out that some Galactic Federation troops chased a Space Pirate ship to Aether but after exploring around, every single one of them was killed by mysterious and dangerous, evil creatures called Ing. Samus finds a few survivors of Aether's people, the Luminoth, and learns that a meteor hit the planet a while back. It was another phazon meteor, like the one that hit Tallon IV… The force of the impact was so strong upon hitting Aether that it created a parallel planet in an unknown location. The Luminoth found portals leading to and from this parallel Aether and it was terrible. Creatures which the Luminoth named Ing inhabited this new planet, which the Luminoth gave the name Dark Aether, and they were intent on stealing Aether's planet energy for themselves. The Luminoth fought the Ing for a long time; both on Aether and Dark Aether, but it soon came to a point where they couldn't go on any longer… That's where Samus comes in. The distress signal reached her and off she went to see what the problem was. Samus' new mission is to destroy the Ing empire and return Aether to its former state with its planetary energy back where it belongs.

Gameplay – 10/10

Let's get things straight first of all. Anyone expecting Echoes to be another first person shooter, like Medal of Honor or Time Splitters, is wrong. There's a fine difference between the latest Metroid games for GameCube and classic first person shooters. Long time players of the Metroid games who first heard about the GameCube game being first person were quite worried at how the final game would turn out. The series had always been 2D side scrolling action and it seemed impossible to convert the series into a 3D first person game. But amazingly, Nintendo and Retro Studios pulled off an unbelievable game. Many praise Metroid Prime as the GameCube's finest game. Echoes continues the new formula of first person action and once again, it has been perfectly created. In fact, it's hard to see just how else the game could have been done in 3D for the Cube.

Many more classic moves from the old Metroid games that weren't in Prime make their return in Echoes such as the Screw Attack. It's performed very well where you double jump then tap B in a set rhythm to continuously travel in the air just as you do in the old games. The game screen switches quickly from Samus' view to third person view and it works like food and drink.

Anyone who has played Metroid Prime will know just how great that game was and expect Echoes to be just that and so much more. And you know what? It is. There's a whole new gameplay mechanic now that Samus has to travel between two parallel worlds; Aether and Dark Aether. Dotted around both planets are portals that take you to the opposite world and to activate them you need one of two different beams. I'll talk more about the beams in a while.

The main difference with Dark Aether is that the air is poisonous. Samus will quickly take damage if she stands out in the open, which is why the Luminoth placed Light Crystals all over the planet. These crystals create barriers which allow Samus and the Luminoth to breathe normally in. The Luminoth used them when they fought with the Ing. Some barriers can only be activated by Samus shooting them and they don't stay open forever. By switching between the two worlds, you can solve puzzles by going from one to the other and finding secrets. As you probably know if you've played other Metroid games, Samus has to collect all her items after she loses them to the Ing in the very beginning of the game. And as the Ing stole them, it means she can only get them back from their home planet, Dark Aether.

Now on to the beams I mentioned earlier. To activate the portals to and from Aether, she must shoot them with either the Dark Beam or the Light Beam. To activate portals that lead to Dark Aether, you need the Dark Beam and to activate portals that lead back to Aether, you need the Light Beam. In a new style to all previous Metroid games, the Light and Dark Beams require ammo which can be obtained from defeating creatures and plants. It isn't much of a problem because you can find something to kill almost anywhere but the times you'll most need them most are bosses so it's wise to keep your beams stocked. Of course, certain beams are better against certain enemies as you might well know too.

The scan visor returns which is another great part of the game. Scanning plays a big role in Echoes, as it did in Prime, where it tells you weaknesses of enemies and reads information from computers. Other visors include the dark visor and echo visor which are both new to this game and play special roles.

You needn't worry about difficulty and length for Echoes either. For someone new to the Metroid Prime mini-series, this game will take you around 30 to 40 hours to complete which is very impressive. For someone who has played through Prime, Echoes will probably take you around 20 to 30 hours. So there are no worries for a long game here. Difficulty is also catered for perfectly. If you are expecting a challenge with Echoes then you will get one. Some of the bosses are very tough and you'll often find yourself almost breaking the controller in anger until you've worked out a decent strategy. Metroid Prime 2 Echoes is brilliant in every gameplay department.

Controls – 10/10

Anyone who has played Prime will be right at home with the controls and you'll be able to dive right into the action from the word go. For new players, it is just like learning the controls to any other game but Echoes has a slightly different set up to first person shooters. Still, the set up which Echoes has is the one that works best for the game and as soon as you play it, you'll understand why.

Your main movement button, as always, comes from the control stick. To shoot your weapon, you tap A and hold it for a charged shot. To jump, you tap B and double jumps are performed by tapping B again while you're in mid-air. Pressing X turns Samus into the Morph Ball which makes its return again. As always, in morph ball mode, you can lay bombs by tapping A and move around with the control stick. The Y button shoots your missiles. The L button enables you to lock on to enemies and R makes you aim around freely. Z brings up the map. Visors are assigned to the D-Pad and beams are assigned to the C-Stick. Each direction caters for a different visor or beam. For example, tapping left on the D-Pad puts you in scan mode, and tapping right on the C-Stick changes your weapon to the Dark Beam.

It might sound a little complicated at first but it works so well and it becomes second nature once you've played around for a while.

Graphics – 10/10

Beautiful. Simply beautiful. Some of the best ever seen on any of the current generation consoles, it really is that good. From character detail to water effects, Echoes has it all. One gorgeous effect that makes its comeback in this game is the particles that appear all over Samus' visor. Enemy guts spurt all over her visor, water drips down it after you come out of water, steam covers your view when you walk near burst pipes. Rain even bounces off Samus' gun arm as the drops hit it. The attention to detail really is amazing.

The atmospheres for both Aether and Dark Aether have been created incredibly well. The dark, eerie locations of Dark Aether really prove the planet's name. The atmosphere does look dark and scary. Blues, reds and purples have been used to emphasize the how dangerous this world really is. Likewise, planet Aether is a lighter world. The beautiful lands and distant waterfalls look gorgeous. A lot of time has been spent on these graphics and you really do have to see them to appreciate them.

Sound – 10/10

Metroid Prime had an awesome soundtrack and Echoes is no exception. All new tunes have been created for each area in both worlds but Aether's locations is where it's at. Dark Aether's dark and evil lands don't have the cool remixed tracks that Aether has, and all of them have very catchy beats. Old time Metroid players will feel a whoosh of nostalgia when they hear remixed and updated tracks of their old favorite tunes. I certainly did. It really puts a smile back on your face when you suddenly realize it's an old tune, and you go, “Hey! I know this! It was in Super Metroid!”

Like the previous game, Echoes doesn't have voice acting. Really, there aren't many times that it could be used and I'm guessing that for Nintendo to have used it for the short talking scenes in the game, it would have cost too much money, so it was best to stick with written text. The closest you get to voices in the game are the Luminoth's mumblings when they speak Samus' screams when she takes damage. Metroid games haven't featured much dialogue until recently, Metroid Fusion and Echoes, and until Samus' missions involve any long speeches, I don't see voice acting playing an important role any time soon for Metroid.

Sound effects are right at the top in terms of quality. From beams being fired to enemies dying, everything is spot on and just as you would expect from Nintendo and Retro.

Overall – 10/10

Gaming perfection. Nintendo perfection. Retro Studios perfection. Nintendo are surely very thankful that they own Retro Studios because what they have done with the Metroid series is simply fantastic. I am very grateful that Nintendo own them because they have brought gaming perfection to the GameCube and the Metroid series alike. Metroid has always been class but there has never been a bad Metroid game and as long as Retro are on board, there doesn't look like there'll ever be one any time soon.

Any Metroid fan, and definitely any fan of the first Metroid Prime, needs this game. Nintendo brilliance once again.

Metroid has never been so good.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/22/05