"Samus Returns Again, To Relive Her First Mission"

Being one of Nintendo's “Big Three,” is no easy job, especially for Samus Aran. Samus Aran's main goal as one of Nintendo's “Big Three” is to bring a more intense and moody feel to Nintendo, and so far, she has succeeded. From the original Metroid to the three-dimensional action-adventure that was Metroid Prime, Samus Aran and the Metroid series just keeps getting better, more interesting, and more impressive in every outing.

Gameplay|Control

The main focus of Metroid: Zero Mission is on the heroine, Samus Aran and her adventure in stopping the Space Pirates; which is never an easy task, even for an interstellar bounty hunter. Samus is, if you didn't know this already, a bounty hunter sent out into the far reaches of the galaxy to hunt the annoying Space Pirates. The Space Pirates have landed on the planet of Zebes and are using the planet as their research facility to breed and reproduce the deadly, life-sucking Metroids. The Galactic Federation (a UN of the future) sends you, Samus Aran, to the planet to stop the Space Pirates once and for all, and to destroy the Metroids.

Zero Mission is not just a re-make of the classic, Metroid game for the NES, but it is rather a totally new representation of Samus' first mission. Because the game is not a simple re-make, I will not treat it as such; instead, I will treat the game as a whole new Metroid adventure.

You start out as Samus, the orange-armor donning female with a tough attitude. You explore the many areas of the planet, you can acquire different upgrades; such as Morph Ball, Missiles, and the Varia Suit. All of these weapons will help you in your mission and each has their own interesting uses. The Morph Ball can let you roll up into a ball and reach tiny spaces, or small areas that would probably be inaccessible otherwise. The Missiles can help you destroy certain blocks and other things so you can access areas that are blocked. The Varia Suit can help you enter areas with high radiation and heat. There are many other weapons and other upgrades that will help you on your mission. All of these weapons are easy to handle and easy to control.

The game has a very impressive game play control scheme, which helps create an atmosphere that puts you in Samus‘ suit. When controlling Samus, you actually feel like part of the adventure; for example, if Samus gets stuck in a room, you will feel very attentive and will try to scurry for a way out. The controls are pretty much the same as in Metroid Fusion; A is jump, B is shoot, and R is missiles, its all-pretty simple and easy to learn, which makes the game so great. The controls really make you want to play more and more, which is a great thing.

As you get further in the game, you may frustrated by the amount of times you will get stuck in certain areas. Don't be discouraged by this because it is part of the game. The game was made so you would get frustrated; so you might actually feel what Samus is actually feeling on the planet. It's all part of the game, and this is what makes the game so fun to play.

There are a lot of added features in this game that may have never been included in previous 2D Metroid games. The added cut-scene's helped move the story and add a lot more back plot to the game. Plus, many of the items and missile capsules have been moved around from the original Metroid, making it a little bit more challenging for those who have already played the original. You will be very impressed by the game's power to draw you in, and in the end, you will be glad that it does.

Graphics

I always have a hard time describing graphics on the Gameboy systems because even though they are not supposed to be extremely detailed, I get the feeling that they should be. Nintendo; however, blew me away with the amount of detail that went into the game. From Samus' suit to spike-bellied Kraid, each little element in the game is perfectly assembled in a way that nobody could imagine. This is perhaps, one of the best-looking Gameboy Advance games I have seen.

There are several things that I was especially blown away by. The rocks and walls looked very believable for a GBA game, and so did many of the enemies. The bosses are so impressively done that you might actually stop to just admire the huge explosions and crumbling effects that these guys have on the arena. Another great thing about the game is the new and well-done, cut-scenes. They look like grade-A quality anime style sequences with some serious Nintendo style and ambiance. You will be impressed with the cut-scenes a great deal, trust me.

But, like in every game, there is some unimpressive substance. I said that the enemies looked really believable, but despite that, some enemies, like the Skrees and Zoomers, look kind of blurry. There are some other problems that are extremely minor, like little graphical glitches every so often, but nothing really damaging to the game's overall experience.

Sound

The classic Metroid music is in the game, but Nintendo also updated some of it with better sound quality and gave it a little more mood. The music is very good and is some of the best that Nintendo has ever done. The quality may be better than the original, but it is not superb. There are some muffling sounds in the music at times, but nothing overly faulty. The main thing is that the music is very moody and that it really makes the game come together well.

Samus' weapons and enemies all make the right sounds, but Nintendo didn't really impress me with them. I really would have liked more exploding sounds when a missile hit, or maybe some louder enemies, but the game's audio is certainly no meager shell. The audio is probably one of the lowest points in the game, but it is not that big of a deal.

Replay Value

The main complaint that everybody has about Metroid games, is that they are too short, and Zero Mission is no exception to that. Zero Mission will last between six and eight hours on easy, and maybe ten hours on normal, so don't look for a long game. Even after many complaints about Metroid Fusion, Nintendo still didn't listen to the fanbase and delivered another short game. But there are some pretty good un-lockables if you beat the game, one of which allows you to play something that many fans have enjoyed for years. After you beat the game once you can have the option to view the gallery, and you will also unlock a “hard” mode, which is actually harder than normal and easy. There is also a nice little connection feature with Metroid Fusion where you can view the “Fusion Gallery”. I guess the best part about beating the game once, is that you also unlock the original NES Metroid, fully intact and in its fundamental form. Go have fun!

Conclusion

Metroid: Zero Mission is more than a re-make; it is a totally new way of playing Samus' first mission. Everything that made the game so great the first time has been enhanced and upgraded. Now the game not only has a nostalgic feel, it is also its own superb game. Samus and Nintendo should get all the praise they deserve for delivering to us this instant hit. This is what all Metroid fans have been waiting for, a chance to be Samus for the first time, again.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/04/05