Super Metroid

"What a success! Best 2D Metroid ever!"

Introduction

Super Metroid. One of the greatest games ever created on the SNES. And it ain't even an RPG, either! The Metroid series has been known for its unlinearity and exploration, and usually lack of focus on story, except for maybe an introduction, and that's about it, usually. That is, unless you remember the wild card, Metroid Fusion (a game almost as good as this one). Super Metroid's heroine, a bounty hunter named Samus Aran, can collect many awesome upgrades, too. But let's get down into detail.

Story

After Samus left Planet SR388 with the Metroid hatchling (the last Metroid), she took it to Ceres Space Colony so scientists could study it. After she left the space colony, she hadn't gone very far before she picked up a distress signal. It's been attacked! She immediately turns back to the Space Colony where she finds bodies lying around (no blood people). And who does she find at the end of the colony? Yup. Ridley, a space pirate from Metroid. He has the hatchling in his hand. After a brief battle with Samus, he quickly flies off and initiates a self-destruct mechanism. Samus escapes and chases him down to Planet Zebes. This is where it begins.

Graphics

Whoa, man! These graphics rock! With the exception of a 3D character game like Donkey Kong Country, these graphics could quite well be the best 2D graphics on the SNES. Like, Samus breathes (her suit moves as if she's breathing.) in place, and the detail is awesome. But Crateria, the surface of Planet Zebes, really rocks! Like, the sky is gray, and there are mountains and stuff. It's kinda stormy at first, if I'm not mistaken, but it looks good. And Brinstar looks much better than it did in Metroid. More detail on the floor, but also, it's green-ish, because it's the ''vegetation'' area, now. And in a long corridor room, the walls and stuff are pink, the background is blue, and there are these little white things that fall. Norfair rocks, too. It doesn't look as good as Sector 3 (PYR) in Metroid Fusion or Norfair in Zero Mission, mainly because there are no heat waves. But still, even for their time, they still rock today! And what about character detail besides Samus? Kraid in Metroid looked like some yellow blob dude in Metroid. Now, he's a giant green dinosaur-looking dude with 3 red eyes and scales. Ridley looks more like a dragon, and has more scales, a longer tail, and even better fireballs. But I think you get my point. These graphics rock!

Graphics: 10/10

Sound

Awesome! The title theme is the same kind as Metroid's, but there are more tunes and stuff. And the opening where Samus is giving her monologue rocks! Plus, when you fight Ridley, or you are escaping, this fast-paced music plays with a few up-and-down notes here and there. I was a little disappointed that that awesome theme in Bristar was missing. The one from Metroid. It's been replaced with something else. But to make up for that, Ridley's Lair rocks!! It sounds kinda deep, rather fast-ish, but it's so cool! You'll just have to play it and find out.
Sound: 10/10

Gameplay

Alright! Like I said in my introduction, the Metroid series is based mainly on exploration and stuff. This game is no exception. One good plot of story, unlinear, so you can go just about anywhere you want, and blast a bunch of enemies with your blaster. Also, it's full of exploration, so you can go around looking for upgrades like the Energy Tanks, Missile Tanks, and even Reserve Tanks, which allow you to recover if you run out of energy tanks. Also, you get MANY more power-ups than the previous installments of the series. You get the Super Missile, which is 3 times more powerful than a normal missile, the Grappling Beam, in which you can swing from walls or ceiling, the Gravity Suit, which lets you move freely underwater, the Power Bomb, a bomb that detonates and covers the whole screen, and the Speed Booster, which lets you run at incredible speed. But also, you get new moves, too. For one, you can combine your beams. You can also do this move with the Speed Booster, which lets you take a flying ram in which ever direction you're facing, and there's even a new wall jump, which lets you scale heights! There's just so much to this game to discover. Also, unlike the past two in the series, the levels have good diversity. Crateria is the surface of Planet Zebes. I've already described it. Brinstar is your vegetation area. It houses Zoomers and Side-Hoppers (bugs that hop from side to side) everywhere. Norfair is your lava-filled area. And then, you got the Wrecked Ship, a ship that's HAUNTED! Ghosts pop up at the scariest places: In your path if you're running or just where you are standing! Chilling, eh? Then there's Maridia, the water-filled area. You can't go through much of it freely. At least, not until you get the Gravity Suit. There are a lot of grapple points here, so have fun trying your acrobatics! Anywho, a lot to discover and varied levels really rock in this game!

Gameplay: 10/10

Replay

Cool. This game is fun to play over again. In order to get 100%, you'll need to search high and low for upgrades. This includes bombing suspicious walls, blasting them, and stuf like that. Also, if you get a good clear time when you beat the game, you get a different ending picture of Samus. So if you don't get it the first time, you'll probably want to try it again. It's not the absolute best game with replay value, but it's definetely still good!

Replay: 8/10

Overall: 9/10

Buy or rent? BUY! This game is a classic, and one of the best ever! It's the best 2D Metroid (not the best in the series, though. Save that for Prime. But this game is so close it's not even funny).

Awesome graphics, blasting the heck out of giant lizards, and looking around the planet caverns in search of all the upgrades make this game AWESOME!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/07/04