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[efyu_lemonardo]

Metroid has been getting a lot of attention on GAF recently, and although Nintendo has been very clear about the series still having a long life ahead of it, many of us probably still long for the day when it gets to join the ranks of higher tier franchises, receiving greater exposure as well as more frequent releases in the process.

Something many Nintendo franchises have in common is that eventually the worlds they take place in become big enough to act as settings for many types of gameplay.

Mario Bros.-->2D Super Mario-->Mario Kart-->Mario RPG/Paper Mario/Mario & Luigi-->3D Super Mario-->Mario & DK (minis series)-->Captain Toad

2D Zelda-->Zelda II-->3D Zelda-->Four Swords Adventures-->Link's Crossbow Training-->Hyrule Warriors

Lower tier franchises have also had their share of interesting spin offs:

Donkey Kong-->Donkey Kong Country-->Donkey Kong 64-->Donkey Konga

Starfox-->Adventures-->Command

Wario Land-->Warioware

Kirby-->Pinball/Tilt n' Tumble-->Air Ride-->Canvas Curse

Yoshi/Yoshi's Cookie-->Yoshi's Safari-->Yoshi's Island-->Touch & Go

In some of these cases Nintendo probably started off with an interesting gameplay prototype and later on decided it would be a good fit for the setting and aesthetics of an existing series.
It's also reasonable to assume they occasionally made the decision to take a different approach to existing I.P. in order to try and revive interest in a series or character. Sometimes this worked (Donkey Kong Country, Warioware) and sometimes not (Starfox Adventure and Command, Yoshi's Safari and Touch & Go).

Metroid has had its own attempts of course: as a first person adventure, as a multiplayer shooter, and even as a pinball game. But the argument could be made that consumers never truly saw these as separate series with an independent audience and release schedule, despite a period during the GC-->DS-->Wii transition, which saw both 2D (handheld) 3D (handheld and console) and spin off (pinball) releases pretty much simultaneously.

For the purpose of this thread I'm going to argue that:
A) a pinball spin off isn't really a serious attempt to diversify a franchise, and
B) even though Miyamoto himself has said there is room for both 2D side scrolling as well as 3D FPA Metroid games, not to mention a Metroid with the type of gameplay demonstrated in Nintendo Land, it seems likely that at least for the time being the rate at which a new game in the Metroid universe sees release will remain at about the same level it has been during the last seven years.

With that in mind, here's the challenge:

Design a new series, with different gameplay than the one currently associated with most Metroid releases, so that this series can stand on its own and allow for completely separate genres that take place in the Metroid universe. A multiplayer shooter is ok, but ideally I'm interested in something that would stand out much more from the original franchise. Something as different as Mario Kart is to Super Mario. With that said, it should still make enough sense for this series to take place in the Metroid universe (meaning a space/scifi/semi-realistic universe) in order for the concept to be coherent.

Can you do it GAF? And if so, can you create something with a potentially wider appeal than current Metroid games? Something that might even ignite interest among people who would normally not play a classic Metroid?

I would love to hear your ideas!

 

[chaosblade]

In a way that makes sense? I don't really see how. Metroid is essentially locked into a single character with no significant secondary characters they can actually do anything with, as well as gameplay elements and themes that they can't really deviate too much from (at least not without a lot of criticism).

They could certainly deviate away from Samus and do pretty much anything they wanted, the "Metroid universe" is incredibly generic sci-fi and it's really not all that thoroughly explored or explained within the games. A character-action game featuring some new character, a futuristic arcade racing game (hell, they could merge the F-Zero and Metroid universes and it could make sense), a space flight sim, whatever. But the Metroid name carries some expectations and I don't see why they would deviate from that. It's probably why they haven't in any meaningful way despite doing so with pretty much every other noteworthy franchise they have.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

In a way that makes sense? I don't really see how. Metroid is essentially locked into a single character with no significant secondary characters they can actually do anything with, as well as gameplay elements and themes that they can't really deviate too much from (at least not without a lot of criticism).

They could certainly deviate away from Samus and do pretty much anything they wanted, the "Metroid universe" is incredibly generic sci-fi and it's really not all that thoroughly explored or explained within the games. A character-action game featuring some new character, a futuristic arcade racing game (hell, they could merge the F-Zero and Metroid universes and it could make sense), a space flight sim, whatever. But the Metroid name carries some expectations and I don't see why they would deviate from that. It's probably why they haven't in any meaningful way despite doing so with pretty much every other noteworthy franchise they have.

That's basically what I feel too. I've tried coming up with new types of games to expand the Metroid universe, but I haven't been able to come up with anything big enough to really stand on its own.

What I'm basically wondering is if such a series could exist, and assuming it exists could it have a positive effect on the appeal of classic Metroid?

That's why I wanted to hear other opinions and suggestions from GAF.

 

[Pro from Dover]

Samus as Bounty Hunter?
I'm thinking of more in line of a Shadowrunner, taking odd jobs throughout the galaxy but with a more detective angle like Bladerunner or LA Noire.
I say this because while playing Other M, I kind of liked the idea of the pixel hunting and investigating with Samus. Heck, even the Goddam Batman plays detective.
Oh, and have it play like Metroid Blast on NintendoLand!

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

Samus as Bounty Hunter?
I'm thinking of more in line of a Shadowrunner, taking odd jobs throughout the galaxy but with a more detective angle like Bladerunner or LA Noire.
I say this because while playing Other M, I kind of liked the idea of the pixel hunting and investigating with Samus. Heck, even the Goddam Batman plays detective.
Oh, and have it play like Metroid Blast on NintendoLand!

Samus as a Batman type character is definitely something I've given thought to over the years. I still think it could work. Maybe something like what was shown of PREY 2?

You take on various assignments, customize your gear to suit each individual target, and in the process make your own investigations into the greater scheme of things, which have the potential to influence your alignment and agenda.

In the sense that you are in control of how you put together the pieces of the puzzle which constitute your worldview, Samus has a lot in common with Batman I feel. If translated successfully into a videogame, it also has the potential to be a very empowering experience.

 

[JinjoUnchained]

Ummm, didn't we already have Metroid Prime pinball?

On topic, I think Destiny would be much better in the Metroid universe. Take the basic concept, MMORPG-ish looting and grinding in a galaxy with multiple planets. Swap out the bland, lifeless enemies, characters, and levels of Destiny and swap in the great lore, beams, and art design from Metroid Prime.

Metroid X Destiny. You know you want it.

 

[maxcriden]

You should post your Trauma Team x Metroid idea.

 

[braves01]

Metroid x Rogue Leader/Star Fox

It would totally make sense in the universe, and is divergent enough from Metroid to stand on its own. However, it's maybe a little redundant considering Star Fox does roughly the same thing.

 

[explodet]

Space Pirate base building game.
With SCIENCE

 

[Banana Aeon]

I recently had a thought of a third person Metroid game, with split playstyle. With with the Power Suit, fully powered, based around different weapons that you can find, and equip to your beam, and the Zero Suit, stealth based, getting around enemies, and setting traps, if needed.

Instead of dying when your health depleted, your armor will fail, and you will need to find the next power station to rebuild it. The game would be fully beatable in both forms of play, so the only disadvantage you are at in the Zero Suit is that the enemies are much more aggressive, lack of firepower.

Instead of armor upgrades (because getting armor upgrades in a game that can beaten without the armor is kinda ridiculous) you find different beam upgrades, that you can fuse, to further modify the effects (ie a beam shot, plus a slicing shot creates a beam sword).

Map style in the reign of the old, massive and full of secrets.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

Space Pirate base building game.
With SCIENCE

You know, I never realized this before, but Portal does have quite a lot in common with Metroid Prime. Both rely on the same feeling of intense isolation as you explore ruined environments with sinister histories, gradually uncovering the truth about what happened to them as you gain novel abilities and use them creatively to navigate the environment..

I recently had a thought of a third person Metroid game, with split playstyle. With with the Power Suit, fully powered, based around different weapons that you can find, and equip to your beam, and the Zero Suit, stealth based, getting around enemies, and setting traps, if needed.

Instead of dying when your health depleted, your armor will fail, and you will need to find the next power station to rebuild it. The game would be fully beatable in both forms of play, so the only disadvantage you are at in the Zero Suit is that the enemies are much more aggressive, lack of firepower.

Instead of armor upgrades (because getting armor upgrades in a game that can beaten without the armor is kinda ridiculous) you find different beam upgrades, that you can fuse, to further modify the effects (ie a beam shot, plus a slicing shot creates a beam sword).

Map style in the reign of the old, massive and full of secrets.

I like this concept enough to say it may even work for the next mainline classic Metroid. There's something very appropriate about intentionally building this sort of freedom into the gameplay of a franchise that is known for its unintended hacks and shortcuts.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

Oh boy, oh man. I'm not going to get any work done this afternoon, lol. Will post later when I have this written down.

 

[Taramoor]

A lot of the world-building done in the Prime series is rife with possibilities.

If I were forced to take it away from the "Samus exploring abandoned planet/facility" gameplay style I think you could make a pretty good RTS using the Federation, Space Pirates, Chozo, and other alien races that have been introduced.

The incorporation of Hero units in the form of Samus, Adam, Castor Dane, Rhundas, Gorr, Gandrayda, Ridley, Kraid, etc. would be great for the RTS aspect as well as allowing you to introduce new characters and expand on existing ones.

To give it more of a Metroid feel you could require the players to locate different power-ups or artifacts around the map to unlock upgrade trees rather than the stock RTS idea of Research, and have certain areas of the map that were only accessible to specific units.

Nintendo doesn't have an RTS franchise, either, unless you count Pikmin or the Wonderful 101, which aren't quite the same thing as a Starcraft or Rise of Legends style game.

An RTS would also make a great showcase for the WiiU if they actually took the time to develop the property and build the touch screen functionality into the idea.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

You should post your Trauma Team x Metroid idea.

I may post it later on, if this thread gains traction.
For now it's not exactly the kind of idea I'm going for. It doesn't really stand on its own and I doubt it would appeal to more than a niche audience within the (already niche) Metroid fanbase.

A lot of the world-building done in the Prime series is rife with possibilities.

If I were forced to take it away from the "Samus exploring abandoned planet/facility" gameplay style I think you could make a pretty good RTS using the Federation, Space Pirates, Chozo, and other alien races that have been introduced.

The incorporation of Hero units in the form of Samus, Adam, Castor Dane, Rhundas, Gorr, Gandrayda, Ridley, Kraid, etc. would be great for the RTS aspect as well as allowing you to introduce new characters and expand on existing ones.

To give it more of a Metroid feel you could require the players to locate different power-ups or artifacts around the map to unlock upgrade trees rather than the stock RTS idea of Research, and have certain areas of the map that were only accessible to specific units.

Nintendo doesn't have an RTS franchise, either, unless you count Pikmin or the Wonderful 101, which aren't quite the same thing as a Starcraft or Rise of Legends style game.

An RTS would also make a great showcase for the WiiU if they actually took the time to develop the property and build the touch screen functionality into the idea.

Yep, a Starcraft type game in the Metroid universe is also something I've been thinking could work well, in addition to filling a hole in Nintendo's library of different genres.
Also really like your idea for a unique twist that helps separate it from the competition. It could provide for some cool genre-bending gameplay that feels uniquely "Nintendo" while also paying homage to classic Metroid.
Along with the "Samus as Batman" comparison made earlier in the thread, I feel like this is a concept worth fleshing out.

 

[Maintenance]

Touhou Metroid, similar to that Bayonetta 2D fanart. You can even make a huge Ridley for cheap laughs.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

Just do Halo Wars.

 

[Lunar15]

Co-Op Federation Trooper game (think Republic Commando) where you investigate a planet before Samus shows up. It can be a more straight forward, tactical co-op FPS over the action adventure exploration of Metroid. There's a lot of directions you can go with this kind of game, and going from the Federation viewpoint allows you to see some behind the scenes stuff with the space pirates vs. the federation. Heck, you could have the Troopers be an elite task force that went to SR388 first and discovered that the metroids had created a homeworld there.

Added bonus: Put it on the Wii U with split screen co-op and then one person with a GamePad can be Samus /a space pirate/a Metroid for some weird, asymmetrical fun.

Idea #2: Have one big city with bounties and you can use different hunters from the races Prime and Hunters established. You could have single player bounty hunts, but also do some online bounty hunts as well.

 

[Aerobatics]

Where's the Ridley character action game made by

Spoiler

Platinum

?

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

Co-Op Federation Trooper game (think Republic Commando) where you investigate a planet before Samus shows up. It can be a more straight forward, tactical co-op FPS over the action adventure exploration of Metroid. There's a lot of directions you can go with this kind of game, and going from the Federation viewpoint allows you to see some behind the scenes stuff with the space pirates vs. the federation. Heck, you could have the Troopers be an elite task force that went to SR388 first and discovered that the metroids had created a homeworld there.

Added bonus: Put it on the Wii U with split screen co-op and then one person with a GamePad can be Samus /a space pirate/a Metroid for some weird, asymmetrical fun.

Something like this?

I don't know.. it could be fun in theory but I'm not sure it would be a game with much appeal outside of the already small Metroid fanbase, or that it would even be all that great, in practice.
I mean, the original Republic Commando had a similar issue: Wouldn't you rather play as a Jedi Knight?

Idea #2: Have one big city with bounties and you can use different hunters from the races Prime and Hunters established. You could have single player bounty hunts, but also do some online bounty hunts as well.

So, like Monster Hunter?

 

[Zaku]

I want a Dungeon Keeper-style game, where you're controlling a band of space pirates building bases. Samus is an unstoppable, implacable force, so your goal isn't to try to kill her, because killing her is flat-out impossible.

No, your goal is to create as large and winding a base as possible, with as much backtracking as you can fit in before she unlocks all the doors and gets access to your reactor core, which would allow her to blow up your base.

The kicker is that your goal each level is to mine and/or pirate and escape with enough resources to build a better base at the next landing site. Each new base, Samus gets faster and tougher, and you have to up the defenses to match. How long you get to build the base would be impacted by how much piracy you commit: Lots of piracy means lots of resources, but you're more likely to draw down Samus to your base sooner, while relying on mining for resources leaves your lazy space pirates sullen and angry, because they didn't become space pirates to do work.

Eventually your goal is to save up enough resources to rent out some really badass mercenaries to try to take Samus out once and for all. You'd probably still fail, but at least your space pirate band has earned enough cash from their repeatedly-interrupted mining & piracy to retire to space Tahiti.

 

[Hesemonni]

Space Pirate base building game.
With SCIENCE

And tubes. Let's not forget the tubes.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

I want a Dungeon Keeper-style game, where you're controlling a band of space pirates building bases. Samus is an unstoppable, implacable force, so your goal isn't to try to kill her, because killing her is flat-out impossible.

No, your goal is to create as large and winding a base as possible, with as much backtracking as you can fit in before she unlocks all the doors and gets access to your reactor core, which would allow her to blow up your base.

The kicker is that your goal each level is to mine and/or pirate and escape with enough resources to build a better base at the next landing site. Each new base, Samus gets faster and tougher, and you have to up the defenses to match. How long you get to build the base would be impacted by how much piracy you commit: Lots of piracy means lots of resources, but you're more likely to draw down Samus to your base sooner, while relying on mining for resources leaves your lazy space pirates sullen and angry, because they didn't become space pirates to do work.

Eventually your goal is to save up enough resources to rent out some really badass mercenaries to try to take Samus out once and for all. You'd probably still fail, but at least your space pirate band has earned enough cash from their repeatedly-interrupted mining & piracy to retire to space Tahiti.

Or the goal could just be to gather enough resources and tech to rebuild Mother Brain or Ridley. Either way I think it's a worthy idea. Simply mining raw materials could also just be too slow a process for you to rely on it exclusively (or certain materials too rare), thereby adding an incentive to stealing existing resources.

In fact, if you wanted to design the game this way, you could make it so the player has to manage building and maintaining the "maze" Samus has to go through, while simultaneously coordinating the small scale pirate attacks that supply you with additional resources. Then the tradeoff between building and pirating would be directly related to how good the player is at managing multiple objectives, just like in an RTS.

For kicks: you could also allow the player to construct bases that may not be very difficult for Samus to infiltrate, but are exceptionally hard for her to escape from in time, once she's initiated the core's auto destruct

 

[explodet]

And tubes. Let's not forget the tubes.

No way you could forget the tubes.

 

[Pro from Dover]

I hope to see more from the folks who posted on that other Other M thread. It will be great to hear some ideas from them for a cool Metroid game.
Well, ideas that are more sophisticated than "anything other than Other M" anyways. It's crystal clear why some don't like the game, but the more "against" Other M they are, the more they must love Metroid as a series/franchise, yes? Time to put all that negative energy to something more meaningful.

 

[chaosblade]

I hope to see more from the folks who posted on that other Other M thread. It will be great to hear some ideas from them for a cool Metroid game.
Well, ideas that are more sophisticated than "anything other than Other M" anyways. It's crystal clear why some don't like the game, but the more "against" Other M they are, the more they must love Metroid as a series/franchise, yes? Time to put all that negative energy to something more meaningful.

Most of them probably also want something traditional though, a 2D Metroid that builds on Super or a new first person game akin to Prime 1 and 2.


Space Pirate Base Building is the best idea in this thread though. Even if it's a silly, small $10 eShop game it needs to happen. Could make good use of the gamepad too.

 

[Zaku]

Or the goal could just be to gather enough resources and tech to rebuild Mother Brain or Ridley. Either way I think it's a worthy idea. Simply mining raw materials could also just be too slow a process for you to rely on it exclusively (or certain materials too rare), thereby adding an incentive to stealing existing resources.

In fact, if you wanted to design the game this way, you could make it so the player has to manage building and maintaining the "maze" Samus has to go through, while simultaneously coordinating the small scale pirate attacks that supply you with additional resources. Then the tradeoff between building and pirating would be directly related to how good the player is at managing multiple objectives, just like in an RTS.

For kicks: you could also allow the player to construct bases that may not be very difficult for Samus to infiltrate, but are exceptionally hard for her to escape from in time, once she's initiated the core's auto destruct

Oh my god.

Ridley Rebuilder!

Let Mother Brain stay dead (she wasn't really a compelling villain anyway), but Ridley would be perfect! Even better: Every time you bring him back, you bring him back BETTER. He still dies to Samus, of course, as that's the natural way of things, but every time you bring him back he stalls her for longer and longer.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

I posted a link to this thread in the Stand and Be Counted thread, in the hopes that some GAFfers will rise to the challenge.

Meanwhile, I'll share an old concept of mine for a Metroid crossover. I don't think it would be the kind of game that ends up appealing to a whole lot of new players, and it probably wouldn't be good for more than a one-off, but maybe some of you can use parts of it to come up with something that can stand on its own. At the very least it's an amusing read.

And with that I give to you:

an unusual proposal for a crossover...

Trauma Team X Metroid

Lead a crew of Galactic Federation Doctors assigned the urgent task of purging the body of an unconscious Samus Aran of alien infestations. Gain new insight into the Federation's political intrigue as you attempt to balance your patient's health against the need to extract military grade biological samples.

I was thinking of it as a one time spin off, asking "what happened during all those times in the Metroid games when Samus was unconscious for extended periods?" such as the beginning of Prime 3, Other M, etc. This not only allows us to fill in some gaps in the timeline, it also gives us a glimpse of the Metroid universe outside of Samus in a way that doesn't feel artificial, in the sense that we're not inventing a new protagonist, and surprisingly enough allows us to hold on to many of the tonal staples the series is known for.

It also fits in the sense that it mirrors what we know the corporation did to Ripley in the Alien films (2, 3, and most obviously 4). The whole motif of exploring the body of the heroine and the strange alien alterations made to her and the parallels between this and exploring the external alien environments is something that lies at the base of both series. The subtext of how our patriarchal society is fundamentally lacking when it comes to understanding/accepting of the woman psyche has always been there from the start.

There seem to be a lot of very cool possibilities that can be implemented within Trauma Center/Team's template, and (crucially) they can be done justice on a small budget, since the main game is quite simple in terms of assets and complexity.

The whole core concept of treating the patient while simultaneously protecting the infector/virus is a good fit with the established Trauma Center gameplay, plus beyond the main story which would be centered on the Federation's need for bioweapons, there could be a secondary story thread in which we learn more about Samus' unique abilities indirectly by discovering changes/enhancements to her physiology (both those made by the Chozo as well as other unplanned mutations she's acquired over the years). It helps that the Japanese games always blurred the line between how much of those enhancements were mechanical/external and how much internal. This also enables a similar method of storytelling to what the Prime games did -facilitating building a bigger mental picture of the world and lore via scanning and analyzing pieces of evidence.

The other really interesting part in my opinion is that we're essentially "playing the bad guy". Every successful operation isn't just saving Samus, it's also enabling the creation of the very enemies and demons players already know she'll have to deal with in games like Prime 3, Other M, Fusion etc. On some occasions (such as Prime 3) we already know the Federation made alterations to Samus' physiology, and this would be a good opportunity to add a sinister twist to the story: maybe the Federation chose to keep Samus infected as a human experiment (prototype for the soldiers later in the game) and lied to her when they said they couldn't cure her. Side missions could have the player performing lab experiments, as there would be a need to culture and study the extracted organisms outside of Samus' body in order to better understand how to treat her, but also to learn about how to use these organisms as effective bioweapons.

Other missions could include containing a viral outbreak in the lab due to one of the members of staff not following protocol when storing a sample taken from Samus in an earlier mission, (or maybe they did follow protocol but the virus was more mobile than previously believed, and this is how that fact is discovered), performing emergency operations on both humans and alien species in the facility (this would also be useful to provide reference points for the player, in comparison with Samus' unique anatomy), learning about ancient Chozo medical and bio-engineering techniques through some secretly uncovered artifacts and using that knowledge for your cause, dissecting various fauna from the Metroid universe in search for enzymes or other proteins with certain desired stabilizing characteristics (which could be needed to counter the side effects of phazon injection, for example), performing autopsies on Space Pirates and other creatures whose bodies were recovered from the sites of earlier fights against Samus (even bosses such as Nightmare and Spore Spawn could be included here) and more.

I think there's definitely enough to explore around this concept for a successful one-off game, and the more I think about it the more I feel having such a game could even strengthen the franchise as a whole.

 

[pinkurocket]

A puzzle game where you have to contort bodyshapes to fit into a small morph ball.

 

[Jobbs]

a new super metroid style game would be the odd strange novel new thing at this point. they've fuckin' done everything BUT that.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

a new super metroid style game would be the odd strange novel new thing at this point. they've fuckin' done everything BUT that.

I feel your pain bro, but I don't think they've done anything suggested in this thread so far.

 

[popyea]

Some sort of creature hunting/collecting game. Something that focuses on the biology of the creatures and their ecosystems, with an underlying theme of mutation used somehow. I can't think of any decent gameplay that would facilitate that at the moment though. Those are just the things I like about Metroid that might be interesting to focus on.

 

[HK-47]

Something like this?

I don't know.. it could be fun in theory but I'm not sure it would be a game with much appeal outside of the already small Metroid fanbase, or that it would even be all that great, in practice.
I mean, the original Republic Commando had a similar issue: Wouldn't you rather play as a Jedi Knight?



So, like Monster Hunter?

Hell fucking no.

 

[NewGame]

Metroid would make a very interesting open world game. I mean, Metroid is already pretty open once you figure out how to sequence break but in Metroid Prime, that feeling of 'exploring' is so amazing I get shivers just thinking about it.

I'd really like to see whole explorable 'planets' to collect bounties or something. They tried this in Metroid Prime 3 but it felt like they were segmenting what was already in Prime 1/2.

Metroid: Galaxy

But something less lame sounding.

 

[Mista Koo]

A 3rd person open world action adventure. Explore planets as Samus, taking missions from the federation, bounty hunting, and just exploring for the heck of it. Fly your gunship around to move from one planet to another, discover new ones, or follow your escaping bounties. Add in z-targeting and auto platforming for that mainstream appeal, maybe some dungeons with puzzles in them.
The problem is just like most things space related it can be about StarFox instead and that universe would probably serve it better. Unless you somehow can make it moody, serious, or even epic.

One of the unique things about the series is the ball form, which can lend itself to eShop puzzle games similar to Super Monkey Ball or Roll Away/Kula World.

A few years back I sprited a Super Mario World styled Samus and thought of making a Mario clone set in the Metroid universe where everything is cartoony and you always have the fire flower.

 

[FryHole]

Ok, this isn't particularly creative but I guess that's why I don't work for Nintendo.

Back in the ST/Amiga days, I played and loved a game called Damocles, the second game in the Mercenary series.

Each game has an ultimate objective, which in the case of Damocles is to escape the planet you begin on and stop Damocles, a ruddy great comet, from destroying same.

It's a very open game with (it says here) five different solutions including one in which you destroy another planet to alter the gravitational pull affecting the comet's path so it misses the original planet. You begin with a knackered space craft and your ultimate objective, and then it's down to you to reach the goal before Damocles hits.

You explore, you find objects and hints, you succeed or fail. Once the spaceship is operative, you are able to leave the planet - seamlessly, if I remember correctly - land on other planets, cross the whole damn solar system, while you search for a solution.

So I reckon this kind of scenario and gameplay could work very well for a Metroid game. Samus being a bounty hunter, this could easily fall into her remit as she's offered a job of some sort that goes off the rails early on, resulting in some kind of doomsday situation that has a number of ways in which it can be ultimately solved. It'd be more of an adventure game than others in the Metroid series, with less frequent combat and a heavy focus on puzzle solving and exploration. A time limit adds that extra layer of tension to the game, and the open ended nature would encourage replays as people find new ways to successfully complete it.

Give the game a similar universe to play in with seamless hopping between worlds and we're golden.

EDIT TO ADD: there's no way in hell this succeeds in the "can you create something with a potentially wider appeal than current Metroid games?" stakes though. Would probably only appeal to relics like myself, unless someone with godlike marketing skills managed to sell it as the No Man's Sky of Metroids.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

I know this is not 100% "new" but I think it has a few new elements so that it can be refreshing. Apologies in advance for the wall of text.


Elevator Pitch
==============
First Person Metroid with Mirror's Edge traversal options, featuring Bounty Hunter Missions and RPG-like Tech trees for Samus' Suits.


What you say?
=============
Right. Critically-acclaimed Metroid games have been, for the most part, exploration-focused games. We want to build on that and make sure that traversal while exploring properly conveys the acrobatic/agile abilities of Samus' suit. We also want to expand the experience and introduce two new pillars to the Metroid core experience: Side Missions and RPG-like Tech Tree elements for Samus' suit.


Oh, alright. Tell me more.
=====================
Ok, good. Let's start with the basics: traversal in the game comprises wall running (vertical and horizontal), double jumping (off walls), ledge grabbing, dashing, sliding, in addition to the staples of the Metroid series: space jump (double jump), grapple, morphball, etc. These are the basic movement capabilities of the suit. Character speed will be controlled with the analog stick and can go from slow walk to full on run. Once the character is running, the player may initiate a short yet controlled dash by pressing the dash button once, or an incrementally accelerated dash by repeatedly tapping the dash button.


What about the RPG stuff? Final Fantasy in my Metroid?
===========================================
Not really. What we're talking about is a tech-tree progression for Samus' suits in that you can choose different configurations for each by enhancing or adding modular abilities and powerups. You can configure a suit for acrobatic attacks, another for weavy weaponry/defense, for hacking, etc. There will be improvements available for all suits (heat resistance, shock resistance, etc) and then there will be modular abilities than may only be used in a single suit at a time (rapid fire, area-of-effect attacks, cloaking device, etc). The progression for each ability/powerup will unlock as Samus completes research/science-oriented side missions successfully.


Wait, let me stop you right there. What do you mean side-missions?
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Well, as the player goes through the game, certain side characters will become entangled in the story and will assist Samus by researching, designing and developing abilities and power-ups for her suit and ship. The way that Samus will interact with these characters is through side-missions that will pop up at certain points in the game. They will be presented to Samus via picture-in-picture video/dialog on her Suit's HUD or her ship (depending on where she is when contacted). When in the ship, Samus can choose to start one of these missions by pointing at it in the Ship's navigation system and navigating to the selected location. These missions will not advance the main story but will provide much needed enhancements to the suit and/or ship. Mission types include: retrieving ancient artifacts or research materials. Rescuing engineers or scientists from space pirate ships/bases. Capturing experimental enemy weapons. Extracting high value targets for interrogation.


Alright. Is Metroid Prime scanning back in the game?
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Oh boy, are we glad you asked. There will be scanning in the game, but it won't be done like Prime's. You see, in this Metroid game, Samus' ship is actually a fully featured vehicle with an on-board AI that communicates with Samus' suit while she's in the field. Like Metroid Prime, this game will present the player with multiple visor options depending on the current Suit; one of these options will allow Samus to highlight elements that catch her attention and, should she decide to scan these items, she can task her ship AI to do so. Most of the environmental elements and/or creatures encountered will only require a couple of seconds of the AI to scan, while others may take closer to half a minute (bosses, complex structures, etc). Samus will designate targets for the AI to study, while being free to continue moving about or defending herself from enemy attacks. A progress indicator will appear in a corner of her HUD without obstructing her view, and once the scanning is complete, the information will appear as a picture-in-picture detail, again, without obstructing her view. If she's still in view of the scanned object/organism, then an augmented reality representation of the information will appear surrounding it. Every line of text will be narrated by the AI, but Samus can also choose to download the information directly to her brain cortex so that she call remember it at will (this is the equivalent of pausing the game and reading the description. We're big on immersion, you see).


I don't like this about a ship AI. Don't put Cortana in my Metroid
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We understand. Let's clarify this: the AI will be primarily a mechanism to allow Samus to move freely while the scanning is done in the background. To explain why the ship is moving about the planet/orbital station/etc while Samus is exploring, to mask the act of saving the game (again, keeping the immersion intact), etc. There won't be a love story between Samus and her AI (well, AniHawk will probably write some fanfiction but that's what he does) and the AI won't go rogue (or rouge for that matter). The AI will have some involvement in the story, but this is not the AI's game. This is Samus' game through and through.



I was also writing how a vertical slice of the game would work but I'm afraid I could go on and on and on for pages and I don't want to bore you guys, haha. Hopefully this isn't too on the safe side for this thread.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

I was also writing how a vertical slice of the game would work but I'm afraid I could go on and on and on for pages and I don't want to bore you guys, haha. Hopefully this isn't too on the safe side for this thread.

Please do share as much as you like. I want this thread to contain as much constructive feedback about possible future directions for the franchise as GAF can come up with.

Hell fucking no.

Fair enough. Sell it to me then. What differentiates between playing as a GF marine and playing as a weaker, less isolated version of Samus?

 

[Castef]

I would love to hear your ideas!

I've spent some time designing some kind of "next step" in the "Metroidvania" genre.

I think that the design - which right now I'm not sharing here - is quite nice, even though it is more of an evolution than a revolution.

Strictly 2D, involves the presence of two main characters (which are actually three... and that would be very interesting, in a Metroidesque sense...)

I should be prototyping right now...

 

[FunkyPajamas]

Co-Op Federation Trooper game (think Republic Commando) where you investigate a planet before Samus shows up. It can be a more straight forward, tactical co-op FPS over the action adventure exploration of Metroid. There's a lot of directions you can go with this kind of game, and going from the Federation viewpoint allows you to see some behind the scenes stuff with the space pirates vs. the federation. Heck, you could have the Troopers be an elite task force that went to SR388 first and discovered that the metroids had created a homeworld there.

Added bonus: Put it on the Wii U with split screen co-op and then one person with a GamePad can be Samus /a space pirate/a Metroid for some weird, asymmetrical fun.

Idea #2: Have one big city with bounties and you can use different hunters from the races Prime and Hunters established. You could have single player bounty hunts, but also do some online bounty hunts as well.

I *love* this. Great idea.