Super Metroid

"One of the only games I've seen that lives up to all that's said about it."

I'm sure you've seen it before. In gaming magazines, fan sites across the web, hell, even the forum on this site right here. "OMG SUPER METROID IS TEH BEST GAME EVER!11!!" Well, like I said in the title, this is the only game seen that's really that good. It's got it all, and a bag of chips for the hell of it.

And I like to throw a dash of humor in my reviews sometimes. Makes it a little easier to read the blocks of boring text, eh?

Graphics: 9/10

Super Metroid is one nice looking game. These are the best graphics I've ever seen on the SNES. Not only is Samus very detailed, but she also breathes. And when she's underwater, bubbles come out of the vents on her helmet as she exhales. That's some detail, folks. All your enemies also have excellent detail, almost as nice looking as the backgrounds, walls, floors and ceilings. Certain visual effects like transparancy and even echoes of our heroine Samus when she runs using her Speed Booster are there, too.

Sound: 8/10

The sound is excellent. Samus' cannon has a fitting blast noise, though your missiles sound muffled. Enemy sounds are fairly scarce, but they're fitting when you do hear them. Bosses sound good. Kraid roars, for example. Doors make a nice "shoomp" when they open, too.

Music: 10/10

Expanding on the colorful and good soundtrack of the NES original, Super Metroid has moody tunes that suit your adventures as you explore planet Zebes. Brinstar has it's tribal-sounding drums with some nice chords added in, while lower Norfair has a pounding conga drum with epic chanting over it. (This is a song that made it into Metroid Prime, I might add) Another good one is the theme to lower Brinstar, which is very slow and chilling, with some damn fine piano work in it. (And this track was in Metroid Prime 2) I feel I've gone on long enough about the music, but it's incredible.

Controls: 10/10

Samus controls like a dream. Some may disagree, (*Cough*n00bs*cough*) but the controls are simply spot-on. As you might expect, you move left and right with left and right on the d-pad, crouch by pressing down once, turn into the Morph Ball by pressing down again, and do other tasks like shooting, jumping, and dashing with the face buttons. L and R are used for aiming on angles.

Don't like the basic controls? No problem! They're fully customizable, which is always very nice.

Gameplay: 10/10

A lot of tens, I know! But this game deserves them. Now, if you've played Metroid Prime, you've no doubt noticed that it's got a near-perfect blend of action and exploration. Well, in a sense, I feel Prime is this particular game, with an extra dimension added. Here's Super Metroid in a nutshell.

Step 1: Explore, also killing enemies and finding missiles and energy tanks.

Step 2: Find equipment.

Step 3: Use new equipment to explore new areas.

Step 4: Defeat a boss.

Step 5: Repeat process.

Step 6: ???

Step 7: PROFIT!

I know I just made it sound very repetitive, but the game has lush, fantastic environments, a great difficulty curve, memorable bosses, and a gripping final battle.

Now, a big part of Metroid games is the equipment. Not only is there fun in finding it, but getting and using it is also exciting. There's no shortage of stuff to find in Super Metroid, and this is also the only game which allows you to toggle items on and off. While not entirely useful, it's fun to try different beam combinations and the like. The main reason for finding equipment is being able to explore different areas. For example, you can't enter Norfair, an incredibly hot area, without the Varia Suit. (That's the suit you see on the package of most Metroid games; with the giant shoulders, which are probably cooling units) How about the water-filled Maridia? You need the Gravity Suit, which somehow allows Samus to move freely in liquid.

Atmosphere: 10/10

Okay, the atmosphere. A little special category for this review. The environments in Super Metroid aren't all that varied. You have your basic rocks and craters, your jungle area, the obligatory lava level, a watery environment, a wrecked ship, and a scary, sterile base. However, they're done very well, and the whole game radiates with this excellent feeling of lonliness. There's no one on the planet you can trust. Just you and your Power Suit.

Story: 7/10

As the game begins, Samus begins exploring a wrecked space colony. After a suspensful run through it, she finds the Metroid hatchling she spared in Metroid 2. Suddenly, eyes appear. It's Ridley, the dreaded space dragon! She manages to fight him off, but doesn't defeat him. As he escapes, the self-destruct timer begins. Running back to her ship, Samus retreats the station as it detonates, heading to planet Zebes, in pursuit of Ridley.

With that said, after this epic beginning, there isn't much of a story. The point of the game is to recover the lost Metroid hatchling, the last Metroid in existence. Though you should know the story by now, I won't spoil it.

As for the timeline, this is the second-to-last entry, followed by Fusion. Meaning by the time this occurs, Samus has already finished her Prime adventures and exterminated the Metroid on SR-388. Just so you know.

Replayability: 9/10

It's a lot of fun to play through Super Metroid once you've beaten it. You can play to find every missile expansion and energy tank, see if you can complete the game in the least amount of time possible, or maybe just exploit some glitches! Super Metroid has some fun glitches; in fact, I believe there's a guide on this site for Super Metroid glitches.

Overall: 10/10

So, it's big, it's bad, it's the game that set the bar for future Metroid games, and it's a bar I feel hasn't been passed yet. I don't think it ever will be, but that's not really a bad thing, now is it? The point is, this is one of the best SNES games, and definitely one of the top five best video games ever made. Just go get it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 12/11/07

Game Release: Super Metroid (US, 04/18/94)