Metroid Prime 2 Echoes controls can be summed up in three words: identical to Prime. That means youll find the same control scheme from the original Prime in Echoes, and that also means you wont find Dual Analog. Simply put, if you liked Metroid Primes controls, youll like the controls in Echoes. If you hated them, youll hate them again here.
Dark Aether isnt quite as large as Aether in terms of real estate, but its still pretty darn big, and its a whole lot more dreadful and downright unsettling. In fact, its probably best that Retro has chosen not to include too much more Dark Aether exploration, because as it stands, there is a fairly decent balance between the exploration feel of Aethers gorgeous lands and the sense of cautious progression imposed by the sinister atmosphere of Dark Aether.
Overall, Echoes is detectably more structured than Prime was, which also makes it feel a slight bit more linear but not in a bad way. In Prime, almost the entire adventure was spent simply searching for suit enhancements. Bosses were scattered throughout unexpectedly to protect the more important upgrades, which were generally lying in a seemingly random location on the map. In Echoes, instead, the collection of the three keys leading into each temple actually serves to simplify the adventure for the player, and the tension leading up to the boss battle therein is wonderful.
Of course, it should also be noted that the environments do not remain the same throughout the entire game. The first time through a room you may battle plants and other relatively harmless creatures, and then later on when you must return, you may find yourself in a battle with a deadly foe. This variation helps to keep subsequent trips through familiar territory interesting, especially once you have become significantly more powerful than the enemies in that particular location.
In keeping with Primes strengths, Echoes presents a challenge that is nothing to scoff at in fact, its more challenging than Prime ever was. For one, the bosses in Echoes are relentless. Youll be fighting for your life in many of the games later multi-stage battles, and youll probably still lose a good number of times before you finally get it right. This is certainly not a game for the weak
but its oh-so satisfying to win a battle in Echoes the beasts youll encounter are so powerful and unremitting that victory often seems like a superhuman feat. Its delightfully gratifying.
Metroid Prime 2 Echoes is the new best-looking game on the GameCube. In terms of visuals, there is nothing else out there quite like this game. Gorgeous lighting effects abound as beams and flood lights cast their glow on the alien walls. Pistons chug and gears twirl as sparks spew out of the realistic machinery that makes up the games foreign industrial objects. Textures are wonderful for the most part and seams are nearly undetectable on the polygonal surfaces that make up the breathtaking locales. Oodles and oodles of effects help to tell the story and send chills up your spine, such as the thick atmospheric fogging in many Dark Aether areas.
The art style is incredible almost Myst-like in atmosphere at times, as magic, mystery, and foreign machinery mingle to produce an unforgettable atmosphere. Architecture is again amazing; alien structures stretch toward the sky, twisted and magnificent. Stuff like cracks and wedges that absolutely did not need to be included are there anyway just to drive the sense of surrealism home.
Metroid Prime 2 Echoes features great music as well. From atmospheric and minimalist to driving and heart-pounding, Kenji Yamamotos dynamic score has done it again. Everything feels very sci-fi and foreign, just as you might expect from a Metroid game. If youve heard Metroid Primes music, you can expect more of the same great style of game music.
Echoes also includes a few great remixes from older Metroid games. A few of the songs youll recognize include remixes of the Super Metroid Brinstar music (which alone almost makes you want to play multiplayer), the Super Metroid Brinstar Red Soil Area music, and the Item Room music. Its nostalgic but also well-placed; not many songs are as eerie and dissonant as the Brinstar Red Soil Area music, and youll discover that all over again while playing Echoes.
Overall Comment
I was excited; I was worried
but Echoes had me floored starting from a couple hours in. Yes, its true that its merely a sequel and that it feels almost exactly the same as the first game, but who am I to complain about that? Metroid Prime was amazing, and Echoes is amazing as well. If you dont mind playing some more of the same type of thing you found in Prime, albeit with a bit of a darker twist, you will love Echoes like your firstborn child. Retro, Nintendo: I salute you.
Gameplay: 9.5/10.0
Graphics: 10.0/10.0
Sound: 9.5/10.0
Fun Factor: 9.5/10.0
Depth: 9.5/10.0
Final Score: 9.6
