Classic NES Series: Metroid

"O_O Good game, but if you buy it I will kill you"

Hm... Metroid... The first game of the Metroid series, originally made for the Nintendo Entertainment System... One of the BEST series out there. You play as Samus Aran, a mysterious bounty hunter/warrior on Zebes, where the Space Pirates are developing something to use Metroids, a jellyfish-like thingy that can suck the energy out of stuff, to use their energyish powers. You're trying to kill Mother Brain, the leader of the Space Pirates, and put an end to all this.

Gameplay- 9/10
Let me tell you, this game rocks. A lot. Basically, you go around three big areas, Brinstar, Norfair, and Tourian, (and two smaller areas, Kraid's Hideout and Ridley's Hideout) and you collect all of Samus's gear to get ready to kill Mother Brain. Pretty simple, yes? No, not really. You'll find yourself going back to find that one powerup. It's pretty much "find the first powerup and it allows you to get the next one." A little bit of choice of order, but not really. It doesn't sound all that bad but you'll find yourself dying a lot >_< Eh, but all is well, you'll manage.
Ok, controls are simple. Left and right on the D-pad to move, down to use the morph ball (gotta get the powerup first, but it shouldn't take you more than a minute to find it), Up to aim upwards, A to shoot, B to jump (might have gotten those 2 mixed up >_<), select to switch to missiles (after finding the missile power ups, of course). That's pretty much it.

Story- 7/10
Not much of a story. I've pretty much said it all already.

Graphics- 6/10
It's the same graphics they had for the NES version >_> Squarish shapes, funky colors... What more is there to say?

Sound- 7/10
Again, same sounds and music they had for the NES game. Not terrible, but not great. There's only about 7 or 8 different tunes throughout the game >_> But hey, they're kinda catchy.

Playtime/Replayability- 6/10
First time through, it should only take you about 3 hours, 4 at the most. Second time through, you can probably get 2 hours or maybe even less if you're a freak like me. Replay value is not much. You'd maybe only wanna play it like once or twice more after the first time, yanno, to get all the powerups and the best ending and stuff.

Ok, so, to rent or buy? Neither. Not worth your money. Why, you ask, after all the good things I've said about it? Here's why: It's included in like 2 (Metroid Prime and Metroid Zero Mission, if I recall correctly) other really good Metroid games as a bonus. You can get this game for $20 I think? Well don't. Pay an extra $10 for Metroid Zero Mission and get 2 great games instead of 1. Trust me. Overall, Metroid is a great game, but do not buy it unless you are a freakish Metroid collector. Spend a little extra money to get a remake of it, and the original.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/04