Metroid Prime Pinball

"A New Spin on Samus"

Metroid Prime Pinball

In a day where game franchises are blown out of proportion to appease the appetites of sales-hungry game publishers, Metroid Prime Pinball was inevitable. Nintendo's first mascot, Mario, had already gone into partying, golf, and tennis, where he was joined by many of his friends. Donkey Kong also took to the bongos and to the racetrack, often using bizarre methods. And the beloved Samus, previously unsoiled by unconventional remakes, was destined to find her way to the pinball field.

Needless to say, many were furious. Metroid fans from all across the globe seethed in anger at Nintendo for stooping so low as to manipulate Samus's unusual agility abilities for a game of pinball. It was unthinkable – outrageous – almost as bad as making Zelda Hockey, but nothing would make it go away. The sheer torture of knowing the famed bounty hunter had resorted to hitting bumpers at the request of some wealthy game developer was more than some fanatics could bear, and hate threads rose to an all time high. How could Nintendo have done this? It had changed the traditional Metroid series!

But change is not all bad.

Controls: 7.1

Once a pinball game is started, it relies on little more than a few well-placed flippers. Both the L and R buttons allow for basic movement of the flippers. If Metroid Prime Pinball was a typical pinball game, the L and R buttons are all that would be needed. However, it goes a small amount deeper. During game play, Samus can utilize bombs, power bombs, and missiles to attack foes. The B, Y, and X buttons perform these tasks nicely, as they are well positioned and are responsive.

In addition to combat, Metroid Prime Pinball also has table nudging. By moving a finger across the touch screen, players can move the table to slightly affect the ball's movement. Since this game lacks a tilt warning of any kind, pinball pros will be able to direct Samus at any point during the game. Fortunately the tilt will only go a short distance, so even the best will not acquire much benefit from the nudging. Although they are simple, Metroid Prime Pinball has accurate, responsive controls that will permit gamers to have an enjoyable, non-frustrating game of pinball.

Game Play: 7.9

As many know, pinball is a game played on a long, slanted table. Each table has a pit at its lowest part, and that pit is guarded by two flippers. The flippers have minor movement, but they have major importance. By using a flipper, players can knock the ball safely away from the pit and back up towards other parts of the table. There it will encounter bumpers, ramps, and other obstacles. Each of the items the ball encounters on the table will go towards one main objective: increasing the overall score.

That is the basis for pinball, but Metroid Prime Pinball goes several steps further. In both of the two main tables is a mode saucer. After Samus is hit into the mode saucer, one of several game modes will start. These typically involve defeating enemies, and gamers can succeed in these challenges by shooting Samus rapidly into an enemy or by deploying a bomb when Samus rolls casually by the enemy's position. For some challenges, Samus even leaves ball form and returns to her combat form. In combat mode, Samus can shoot enemies with missiles or power beams. It may sound like a strange transition, but it actually flows smoothly during the game. Once the player completes the specified task within the time limit, he or she will receive a large amount of points and something known as a Special.

Specials are highly valuable items that are collected by performing difficult feats, which include defeating enemies, going consecutively through several ramps, and completing the wall jump challenge. Not only do Specials provides an instant score increase, but they also add significantly to the bounty bonus, comprised of both collected Specials and enemies that have been defeated. The bounty bonus will accumulate throughout the entire game of pinball, and gamers will receive the points in the bounty every time they lose a ball. Since it continues to increase for each ball, it is important to focus on making the bounty as high as possible during a single pinball game. Also included in the tables are lights that will increase the bounty multiplier, which merely multiplies the current bounty. It is not too difficult to combine the bounty and its multiplier to achieve point bonuses in the hundreds of thousands, so players will want to affect the bounty as much as they possibly can.

Also in each course are small holding places that you can shoot Samus into. The first time she enters the holding place, it will shoot her back out and light up. Whenever she enters a lit holding place, a display will appear and start scrolling through bonuses. Eventually it will stop on one, and Samus will receive the bonus. Sometimes it is as boring as a force field, which goes between the flippers for a short period of time to prevent the ball from being lost, while other times it is as important as an extra life, power bomb, or bounty multiplier.

That just about covers the basics of the game play in Metroid Prime Pinball. It is simple, yet fun. Using this game play, Metroid Prime Pinball offers two different modes of play. One is Multi Mission, and the other is Single Mission. Multi Mission consists of all six tables, and in each table are Artifacts to collect. The Artifacts are gained in the same way that Specials are, but they have an even greater purpose than merely increasing the score -- they are needed to enter Artifact Temple. Once enough is accomplished in a single table, the mode saucer will display an arrow pointing towards the sky. If Samus goes to the arrow, the gamer will be able to choose which table to transport her to.

After players go through a few tables and acquire twelve Artifacts, they will be able to go to the Artifact Temple table and deposit their Artifacts. Upon completing the Artifact Temple table, they will enter the final table: Impact Crater. In that table lies a hideous creature that they must defeat to complete the game and see the credits. For added game play value, though, the game does not end. Multi Mission continues back at the beginning while keeping your previous score and bounty. A small number next to the score at the high score screen denotes how many times the game was completed. This only lasts until you get a game over, so you cannot save your progress.

Now, Single Mission is similar to Multi Mission, but it only plays one table at a time. The goal is to gain the highest score possible on each table. Two of the tables, Pirate Frigate and Tallon Overworld, are complete tables with varying enemies, modes, and bonus. By playing these levels, gamers will be able to earn high scores.

The other four tables, Phendrana Drifts, Phazon Mines, Artifact Temple, and Impact Crater, are merely boss tables. They each contain a boss that Samus must defeat as quickly as possible using her entire array of weapons. Unlike the other two tables, which keep track of points, these tables rely on times for the high score charts. Although these boss tables are fun, they lack game play value since each battle usually only lasts about a minute or two.

With six tables, Multi Mission, and Single Mission, Metroid Prime Pinball is no stranger to in-depth game play. However, it is also not its closest companion. It will only take a couple hours to beat Multi Mission the first time through, and it certainly does not take long to try out all of what Single Mission has to offer. The game play may not be in-depth, but it is immersive. Whether the amount of game play is good enough or not will truly depend on the replay value.

Rumble Pak: 7.8

Included in each game of Metroid Prime Pinball is a new accessory: the DS Rumble Pak. During the game, it will rumble at certain points. If Samus hits a bumper or an enemy, she is not the only person that is going to feel something. The rumble aspect of the Rumble Pak is great, and it makes the game feel very realistic.

The only problem with the pak is that it is loud. To make the game rumble it has to make a disturbingly noisy buzzing sound. When in play, this buzzing noise will cause annoyance, and the rumble feature is not worth the benefits when it is loud enough for players to hear it. However, this perturbing aspect has a simple remedy: fight fire with fire. If the music is turned up as high as it can be, gamers will not be able to hear the Rumble Pak. At any other volume, it is best to simply turn off the Rumble Pack using the game's option menu.

Graphics: 8.4

In this game, graphics are a high point. The game play might be 2-d, but that does not hinder the graphics. All of the tables, enemies, and items are done in 3-d, and they are not blocky 3-d either. The graphics flow smoothly from one frame to the next without slowing down or missing a frame, and every enemy moves around with mostly realistic motions.

Each and every second of game play is enhanced by impressive visualizations. Pinball may not be known as a genre with astounding graphics, but Metroid Prime Pinball breaks that stereotype. All of the levels look and feel as if they were taken straight from Metroid Prime, and the elements included in the tables will further that feeling. Tallon Overworld is a beautiful example of this, as it has Samus's ship, falling rain, and even waterfalls. The other tables have excellent details as well. Although Metroid Prime Pinball does not have quite the graphics allure as some of the outright 3-d DS games, it does bring a new and improved look to the face of plain pinball.

Sound: 8.3

With its beautiful graphics comes an awesome array of sounds. Every song in the game is suited for the table or situation it accompanies. Tallon Overworld has relaxing music, as it is set in a peaceful outdoor setting, while Pirate Frigate has more upbeat music. When it comes to boss or enemy battles, the music becomes even more intense.

Despite its quality, the music does have some issues. Since there are only a few tables and each table only has one or two songs that go with it, the music selection is limited. It is enjoyable enough where the repetition will not cause any discomfort for the first several hours of game play, but after a while it will lose its luster. In a game that relies heavily on replay value, that is a major negative.

Along with the music, sound effects also improve this game. Eerie Metroid screams, missiles explosions, falling rain, and clamoring bugs all have sound effects to go along with them. Actually, every action has an appropriate sound effect that is of the utmost quality. An announcer's voice is also included in the mix, and it is both understandable and enjoyable. It does not get annoying. Though it may not be as clear as it could have been, it is still excellent nonetheless.

Even with the lack of songs, Metroid Prime Pinball is a masterpiece when it comes to sound. Its music is entertaining, and all of the sound effects make the game come alive. The sound effects also fit in perfectly with the Rumble Pak, providing incentive to keep the music at full volume.

Replay Value: 7.9

When everything is said and done, it all comes down to replay value. Without it, this game fails miserably. Since the overall length of replay value ultimately depends on each individual gamer, only the players themselves will be able to decide how much replay value this game will have. This section, however, provides a fair analysis with regards to how much replay value this game will hold for every unique person.

Pinball games are all about high scores, so people really need to have an interest in attaining high scores if they are to milk out as much replay value as they can. If high scores do not hold enough appeal, this game will get dull in a matter of hours.

If high scores are of interest, though, this game's replay value will increase tremendously. It will not take long to overcome the preset high scores, but afterwards players will still have hours of wholesome pinball gaming at their disposal. Multi Mission and the two complete tables will hold the most replay value, but even the boss tables will be good for quick games.

Another part of the replay value of this game is Expert Mode. It is an unlockable option, and once it is earned gamers can turn it on or off. When Expert Mode is on, all of the tables, bosses, and challenges are harder. It applies both to Multi Mission and Single Mission and has its own high score tables, so it essentially doubles the replay value. With more difficult tables, it actually more than doubles the replay value -- players will have to spend a good portion of time on Expert Mode if they are to achieve good scores.

And finally, the last aspect of replay value is the online leaderboard sponsored by Nintendo. Using in-game codes, participants will be able to enter in their high scores online. The highest scorers will receive placement in the leaderboard, where everyone will be able to see their scores. This will quickly become something for hardcore gamers only, but those that decide to take up the challenge of getting on the leaderboard will have an insane addition to the replay value of their game.

Mutliplayer: 7.9

Using the DS's download play feature, Metroid Prime Pinball also has multiplayer for up to eight players, though it is almost devoid of interaction. When the game begins all players will start out on a special multiplayer level, Magmoor Caverns. Once there, they are all on their own. The goal of multiplayer is to be the first player to reach 100,000 points. Unfortunately, multiplayer is not customizable at all, so this will be the only goal of every multiplayer game. As for the lack of interaction, each player simply plays his or her own pinball game without regard to the other opponents. Yes, it is possible to send an occasional Metroid to the other gamers and yes, it is possible to see how the opponents are doing, but that is the extent of the interaction. It is fun, but it is also not anything spectacular.

Closing

No, change is not all bad. That is especially true in the case of Metroid Prime Pinball, as it has solid game play, great graphics, entertaining sound, and decent replay value. It may not be the best addition to the Metroid series, but it is also not a negative part of the series. On the other side of the spectrum, it has all the basics of a pinball, but it deviates from elementary pinball enough that it is considered much more than a classic pinball game -- it is much better.

Because it lacks in overall replay value, though, Metroid Prime Pinball is not a game that people should simply pick up and play to death in a matter of days. It is better if it is played for only a few hours every couple weeks. Players should keep it alongside their selection of current games and only play it occasionally to get a break from their other games. Doing that will still provide potential for awesome scores, and it will also keep this game from getting stale for several months.

In the end, this is not a must buy game, but it is also not one that should be overlooked. It is an excellent compliment to any game library, and a tribute to both Metroid fans and pinball fans. If you are the type of gamer that loves Metroid, loves pinball, loves playing for high scores in intense situations, or wants a game to play when you need an occasional break from other games, this is for you. If not, you may want to look elsewhere to satisfy you gaming desires. Overall, however, Metroid Prime Pinball does the unthinkable with amazing success. Now all that's left to wonder about is the profession Samus will take on next.

Overall Score: 8.2

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/23/06