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[SlipperySlope]

I will have to play it again to understand this as I forgot about that part, I just thought finding something in those crazy maze-like levels with your weird ass gameplay elements was like nothing else back then.

Other M has a decent difficulty I'd say but is bordering on too easy but not anything that hampers or enhances the game for me.

The gameplay in Metroid 1 was awesome. No faults there, there was nothing like it.

But definitely play it again. And don't use an emulator (except for the Wii's).

I can even forgive the password system. But never the 30 health.

 

[Deleted member 30609]

I probably died more in Other M than any other Metroid too, but that was more because of bullshit one-hit kills (that fucking elevator, the lava beast that destroys the tunnel) or just not being able to figure out what to do during a timed event (

Spoiler

saving Anthony, the final battle

). Oh, and I died by falling into lava a couple of times because the camera gave me a bad angle of the next jump I was supposed to make and getting out of lava after you fall in is next to impossible thanks to the controls.

maybe it's just because I speak 'video game' more fluently than 'movie-like narrative', but as I was playing the game I was sure moments like these would be the real point of contention in post-game discussions. Lazy design like this rears its head so often in this game. It's Western-styled scripted sequences implemented without a true understanding of why they should work and where in the game they should be placed.

 

[Boney]

How is getting out of the lava that difficult?

Not to mention you get checkpoints all the time. And I guess you can die from the elevator and the lava beast. Elevator is a bit obtuse, although I saw it coming from a mile away and well, the beast is just pressing the d-pad.

Totally agree with the last Waldo part, did it on my second try, but that's because these parts are horribly constructed.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

I actually think this game would have been far better served being a 3DS title.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

maybe it's just because I speak 'video game' more fluently than 'movie-like narrative', but as I was playing the game I was sure moments like these would be the real point of contention in post-game discussions. Lazy design like this rears its head so often in this game. It's Western-styled scripted sequences implemented without a true understanding of why they should work and where in the game they should be placed.

My problem with gaming is stories and themes take way from the creative process.

That's why Mario games are so great, they are just random obstacle courses of precision and skill.

It's not easy to tie in a story to really get the best out of gameplay, I feel it limits the imagination in favor of having something of coherency and to show high production values.

 

[Deleted member 30609]

I actually think this game would have been far better served being a 3DS title.

I would have been a lot more forgiving if that were the case, that much is true. Maybe it's because handheld games are inherently lower-investment experiences than sitting down in front of a TV and turning on a console.

 

[KevinCow]

The gameplay in Metroid 1 was awesome. No faults there, there was nothing like it.

But definitely play it again. And don't use an emulator (except for the Wii's).

I can even forgive the password system. But never the 30 health.

I haven't tried this so I can't vouch for it, but it looks like it should fix your one issue with the game.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

I actually think this game would have been far better served being a 3DS title.

I like it as a Wii title because the creator showed that you can take the Metroid out of the wild but not the wild out of the Metroid.

This game retains the oldschool feel really well for me and I didn't think it was going to(thought it'd be all together weird and different) and that's cool.

I even like the d-pad controls.

 

[SlipperySlope]

I probably died more in Other M than any other Metroid too, but that was more because of bullshit one-hit kills (that fucking elevator, the lava beast that destroys the tunnel) or just not being able to figure out what to do during a timed event (

Spoiler

saving Anthony, the final battle

). Oh, and I died by falling into lava a couple of times because the camera gave me a bad angle of the next jump I was supposed to make and getting out of lava after you fall in is next to impossible thanks to the controls.

As for dying in non-bullshit ways, it was probably about the same as most Metroid games. Once or twice on a few of the tougher boss battles, and I think the only time I died outside of a boss battle was in the enemy gauntlet in the post game.

The lava isn't that difficult to get out of for me. The game just designs it so that you lose X amount of health before it will let you jump. 9 times out of 10 I can get out on the first jump attempt.

As for the 1 hit kills, the lava beast kind of annoyed me. But those are few and far between. My main problem was with some of the bosses. Like the first time you fight that flying boss at the top of the elevator thing (

Spoiler

the boss you fight multiple times

). First time fighting him was a little hard because I wasn't used to multiple quick dodges yet.

Took me like 8 tries to beat the final boss

Spoiler

The Metroids kept on raping me. It's HARD fighting five of those fuckers at once, and they have Matrix-esque dodge abilities.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

Totally agree with the last Waldo part, did it on my second try, but that's because these parts are horribly constructed.

I spent literally a half hour or around that on one of those parts not knowing what to look for and when I found it on a fluke, I felt really satisifed but not at all.

I don't know if those are worse or the parts were you have the over the shoulder view and walk slowly and can't do anything.

 

[etiolate]

Plus etiolate has been no stranger to using straw men.

when

 

[SlipperySlope]

I haven't tried this so I can't vouch for it, but it looks like it should fix your one issue with the game.

Eh, that correlates with my "don't play it on an emulator" comment. It's cheating. Like using Game Genie.

 

[etiolate]

A straw man is when you attack an argument that your opponent didn't actually make instead of addressing the issues they actually did make.

Of course, typically that usage is reserved for when a person uses it intentionally. When the opponent is incapable of actually articulating their argument in a proper fashion like etiolate then things just go straight to hell.

I like how I have now been attacked for snobbery for being articulate but am not articulate in order to excuse your mistake.

 

[Boney]

I spent literally a half hour or around that on one of those parts not knowing what to look for and when I found it on a fluke, I felt really satisifed but not at all.

I don't know if those are worse or the parts were you have the over the shoulder view and walk slowly and can't do anything.

Definately the Waldo parts. Each of them are horrible, mainly because they work entirely different than regular FPS. Instead of holding B and locking on to the closest target, you have to let go and point at the specific pixel for a second. They could be good, but they suck.

Over the shoulder parts are generally ok except for the lab part which drags on and on and on.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

Over the shoulder parts are generally ok except for the lab part which drags on and on and on.

Is the point to create tension or to give you some respite from all the combat and fast flowing bulk of the game???

 

[SlipperySlope]

Definately the Waldo parts. Each of them are horrible, mainly because they work entirely different than regular FPS. Instead of holding B and locking on to the closest target, you have to let go and point at the specific pixel for a second. They could be good, but they suck.

Over the shoulder parts are generally ok except for the lab part which drags on and on and on.

I hate the Waldo parts. There was at least two occasions where I went over the target several times and it never turned red. Like, 10 times. Never red. Then on the 11th try, for some unexplained reason, it then turns red and I can continue. Game could have done without these parts.

 

[jman2050]

I like how I have now been attacked for snobbery for being articulate but am not articulate in order to excuse your mistake.

Well it was more being attacked for attempting to be overly wordy and failing horribly at it. The whole "no one knows what the hell you're talking about" does kind of tie into that.

 

[Deleted member 30609]

I didn't mind the close-up RE4esque segments, but they needed to allow you to dodge and/or shoot in that mode so that there was actually some tension. I was never worried because I knew there wasn't a tool in the kit that would have actually allowed me to deal with any danger, hence making me feel safer than usual in that mode, which seems to be the opposite of the affect they were going for.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

I actually think this game would have been far better served being a 3DS title.

I agree, although what I really want for 3DS is a 2D Metroid with tons of layers of parallax and the ability to travel between foreground and background as an integral part of getting around the map.

 

[Boney]

Is the point to create tension or to give you some respite from all the combat and fast flowing bulk of the game???

I'm pretty sure they had to meet the deadline, but when they revealed the game they talked about how these investigation parts, Samus has to gather information and surround the area. My guess is that they didn't have enough time and just put it as is. They act as great buffer between gameplay and cutscenes and are ideal for small room movements, pity they were only 2 bathrooms.

I hate the Waldo parts. There was at least two occasions where I went over the target several times and it never turned red. Like, 10 times. Never red. Then on the 11th try, for some unexplained reason, it then turns red and I can continue. Game could have done without these parts.

You have to hold the cursor for like a whole second before it reacts and in the perfect pixel that's barely noticable. Whoever let this parts fly from testing is a god damn idiot. Just make it work like regular shooting and they would've worked very well. (except for the last one with all the shit flying around.)

 

[RagnarokX]

when

Here's one: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=23157165&postcount=6654

 

[victreeb3l]

I agree, although what I really want for 3DS is a 2D Metroid with tons of layers of parallax and the ability to travel between foreground and background as an integral part of getting around the map.

Just the idea of that makes me cream my pants.

Paper Metroid. Haha.

 

[KevinCow]

I agree, although what I really want for 3DS is a 2D Metroid with tons of layers of parallax and the ability to travel between foreground and background as an integral part of getting around the map.

I think this might be the first time you and I have ever agreed about Metroid.

 

[_Alkaline_]

I didn't mind the close-up RE4esque segments, but they needed to allow you to dodge and/or shoot in that mode so that there was actually some tension. I was never worried because I knew there wasn't a tool in the kit that would have actually allowed me to deal with any danger, hence making me feel safer than usual in that mode, which seems to be the opposite of the affect they were going for.

I can definitely agree with this.

I had little issue with the controls or slower pacing, and I liked the cinematic edge it provided, but the fact you can't shoot always meant something bad could never happen. And that's a pretty huge oversight.

 

[Boney]

I can definitely agree with this.

I had little issue with the controls or slower pacing, and I liked the cinematic edge it provided, but the fact you can't shoot always meant something bad could never happen. And that's a pretty huge oversight.

As I said, they probably had to rush those parts. Heck, you can only open 1 door.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

The over the shoulder stuff, and more specifically the bathrooms weirdly reminded me of Dead Space, and how it communicates similar themes to Other M more successfully. In fact, the style of presentation in Dead Space (with constant control over the character's movement and a seamless in-game HUD and menu system) captured some of the same spirit of deep integration I get from Super Metroid. Meanwhile, Other M's ambition to create a seamless experience has been boasted in developer interviews, but the game actually feels very fragmented between its various parts imo.

 

[Version 3.0]

This is called an opinion so don't act like just because you say so it's a fact. It fits in the same style as fusion.

Sure, there are similarities, but Fusion had more buttons, manual controls, and its story was only amusingly bad, not puke-inducing. I hesitate to associate Other M with any other Metroid game, even Fusion, because it's just not a nice thing to do. But I guess you're right. I can't pretend that the latest Indiana Jones movie doesn't exist or isn't an official entry in the series, and the same is true of Other M.

 

[Version 3.0]

I actually think this game would have been far better served being a 3DS title.

Well, there would be more buttons available so they'd give us control back...but that's true even of the GBA. And the Wii, when used intelligently.

 

[Boney]

You jump and you shoot.... why would you need more buttons?

alternative answer:

SMB1 is the worst game on the planet. (it's even true for Galaxy.)

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

Sure, there are similarities, but Fusion had more buttons, manual controls, and its story was only amusingly bad, not puke-inducing. I hesitate to associate Other M with any other Metroid game, even Fusion, because it's just not a nice thing to do. But I guess you're right. I can't pretend that the latest Indiana Jones movie doesn't exist or isn't an official entry in the series, and the same is true of Other M.

Other M got some important stuff right too though. Running and flipping around feels great and looks cool and the screw attack was basically exactly what I've always wanted from it in 3D. The enemy designs were awesome and very faithful to the older games, the beams felt more in tune with classic 2D Metroid than the Prime series ever did, and the speed boost was fun to use, even if they did simplify it as bit. The bosses were also pretty awesome in general. There were a few weak ones (first person sequences come to mind), but for the most part the second half of the game was chock full of great battles.

The story does admittedly suck, but largely as the result of excess. I think if they had gone with all the same themes but pared it down to just the essential elements the whole scenario would have come across better. I still think Sakamoto is a good idea man. The whole

Spoiler

Ridley sub plot with the fuzzy critter

was in tune with what I'd like to see in terms of narrative. If they could make a sequel that focused a bit more on the happenings of a cryptic alien world and less on the inane thought life of a formerly silent protagonist I think they'd be onto something.

 

[Deleted member 30609]

The over the shoulder stuff, and more specifically the bathrooms weirdly reminded me of Dead Space, and how it communicates similar themes to Other M more successfully. In fact, the style of presentation in Dead Space (with constant control over the character's movement and a seamless in-game HUD and menu system) captured some of the same spirit of deep integration I get from Super Metroid. Meanwhile, Other M's ambition to create a seamless experience has been boasted in developer interviews, but the game actually feels very fragmented between its various parts imo.

Dead Space's very deliberate first-person experience from a third-person perspective was really, really special. It makes me sad that Dead Space 2 is making it seem like it was accidental, rather than intentional.

 

[Mael]

So how tough is this game in terms of obtaining 100% of items?

I love trying to get 100% in Metroid games, but all the games seem to be differently difficult when it comes to item locations. Metroid Prime 3 was easy, Metroid Prime 2 wasn't too bad. I was only able to obtain 99% in Metroid Prime, because for the life of me I don't know where the hell the last missile expansion could be, and I've looked everywhere. With Fusion, I just didn't have the patience for finding everything and I gave up. With Zero mission it took a good amount of time, but I was able to successfully search every nook and cranny in that game and find everything.

Right now I'm trying to get 100% in Super Metroid for the first time (even though I've "beaten" the game several times before) and it's probably the toughest Metroid game when it comes to item collection, probably due to the less sophisticated map system. I'm stuck at 93% now and I feel like I've X-Rayed every single pixel in the damn game. I've re-searched all areas except for Norfair/Ridley, but holy crap the idea of searching every nook and cranny of that giant area is just off-putting at this point.

So yeah, I'm a HUGE Metroid fan but in terms of collecting everything, the games for me vary in terms of the effort required to obtain the ol' 100%. What is Other M like in this regard?

Incredibly lame....Once you can actually research what you've missed all the items are visibles on the map. You just have to solve crappy 'puzzles' to get your 'reward'.
I'll put it this way :
It's like in Corruption when you have the sattelite showing where all the items are except you have all the maps. And seeing what the reward for 100% is, I'd say don't bother.

Sure, there are similarities, but Fusion had more buttons, manual controls, and its story was only amusingly bad, not puke-inducing. I hesitate to associate Other M with any other Metroid game, even Fusion, because it's just not a nice thing to do. But I guess you're right. I can't pretend that the latest Indiana Jones movie doesn't exist or isn't an official entry in the series, and the same is true of Other M.

There was a new Indiana Jones movie?

 

[Version 3.0]

You jump and you shoot.... why would you need more buttons?

alternative answer:

SMB1 is the worst game on the planet. (it's even true for Galaxy.)

Because auto-dodging stinks, auto-grabbing stinks, not being able to fire a missile unless I'm in first-person view (and the game says it's okay) stinks, auto-aiming isn't preferable...you know all this. You can convince yourself that you love the "Metroid for Morons" controls; that's your prerogative. But don't play stupid and pretend you don't know these would be my answers.

 

[Version 3.0]

Other M got some important stuff right too though. Running and flipping around feels great and looks cool and the screw attack was basically exactly what I've always wanted from it in 3D. The enemy designs were awesome and very faithful to the older games, the beams felt more in tune with classic 2D Metroid than the Prime series ever did, and the speed boost was fun to use, even if they did simplify it as bit. The bosses were also pretty awesome in general. There were a few weak ones (first person sequences come to mind), but for the most part the second half of the game was chock full of great battles.

Somewhat true, although the Space Jump was something of a disappointment since you can't ascend using it, which was always just a matter of timing and would've worked fine. Its exclusion is just an excuse to force you to use the crappy grapple. What bothered me about most of the classic moves--the Space Jump/Screw Attack, the Speed Booster/jump, wall jumping and morph ball usage is that it was all so dumbed down. In older Metroid games, you couldn't just mash the jump button to stay airborne when Space Jumping. You couldn't just mash the jump button to wall jump. Shinesparking was considerably more advanced, particularly in Zero Mission. And this game was completely devoid of any intelligent or difficult morph ball movement or puzzles.

On the most basic level, movement and firing felt good, I suppose. I wouldn't call that a huge accomplishment given the gameplay's 2D nature, but sure, it's something they didn't screw up. I give them full credit for the awesome boss fights. It's sad but true, though, that the list of what they got wrong is so much longer than what they got right.

 

[Kard8p3]

Somewhat true, although the Space Jump was something of a disappointment since you can't ascend using it, which was always just a matter of timing and would've worked fine. Its exclusion is just an excuse to force you to use the crappy grapple. What bothered me about most of the classic moves--the Space Jump/Screw Attack, the Speed Booster/jump, wall jumping and morph ball usage is that it was all so dumbed down. In older Metroid games, you couldn't just mash the jump button to stay airborne when Space Jumping. You couldn't just mash the jump button to wall jump. Shinesparking was considerably more advanced, particularly in Zero Mission. And this game was completely devoid of any intelligent or difficult morph ball movement or puzzles.

On the most basic level, movement and firing felt good, I suppose. I wouldn't call that a huge accomplishment given the gameplay's 2D nature, but sure, it's something they didn't screw up. I give them full credit for the awesome boss fights. It's sad but true, though, that the list of what they got wrong is so much longer than what they got right.

My list of wrongs looks like this

the story(found it entertaining but it was still bad)
where waldo moments

Those are my only real problems with the game but I can see how you could be unhappy with other elements of the game.

 

[etiolate]

Well it was more being attacked for attempting to be overly wordy and failing horribly at it. The whole "no one knows what the hell you're talking about" does kind of tie into that.

People were able to understand me, maybe not you. I admitted I was dealing with elements that were not common knowledge, but I went to explain those elements and people ignored them. I eventually gave some links. The continual focus upon me as a person instead of the words seem spoken to lead to most of the strawmen.

And don't be frightened by paragraphs.

RagnarokX:

uh thats not a strawman or even close


Come on people.
I recommend you all stop while you're behind.

 

[etiolate]

The enemy designs were awesome and very faithful to the older games,

I actually found them tacky looking. I loved the designs in the 2d games, but copying straight over to 3d without a thought was not so smart on an art design level. You have to think how these things will appear in your graphics engine. The purples ad pinks and greens in the Ninja Gaiden shiny sheen actually look... well like I said, tacky and out of place.

 

[Mael]

I actually found them tacky looking. I loved the designs in the 2d games, but copying straight over to 3d without a thought was not so smart on an art design level. You have to think how these things will appear in your graphics engine. The purples ad pinks and greens in the Ninja Gaiden shiny sheen actually look... well like I said, tacky and out of place.

the funniest part is that for example the design of the 2-legged creature was better in the scan in Prime 1 than in Other M...
They could have redesigned it a little so they didn't look so out of place.
damn they were trying really hard to make it like a retro revival

 

[Tenbatsu]

This game is awesome. Going for my 3rd run soon after I forget about all the items location

 

[Boney]

I convince myself I love Metroids for Morons. Hopefully we get more of this style.

See you on monday boys, I'm leaving for the beach.

 

[RagnarokX]

RagnarokX:

uh thats not a strawman or even close

Instead of arguing the actual position you argued against "lol fanboys". It was more of an ad hominem, but it's still a straw man in that you switched to attacking a superficially related and harder to defend argument.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

No Metroid game needs or forces 100% aim.

Most of Super and Fusion is just spamming bullets at various heights down a hallway or in the general direction of the enemy. NES Metroid doesn't even allow to aim anywhere but in 3 directions at enemies, most that are lower than you can aim.

All three Primes feature lock on, which is just auto aim except you pick your target. The difficulty of those games increases incredibly if you try to go without lock on, and you can only have that option in Trilogy anyway.

Really, the only Metroid game that requires any sort of aiming is Hunters. And I'd be hard pressed to find someone that says Hunters is the perfect example of Metroid shooting done right.

When I played Other M, auto aim just made it so I didn't have to spam 15 bullets down a hallway, just one for each enemy.

 

[victreeb3l]

This game is awesome. Going for my 3rd run soon after I forget about all the items location

Gonna do the same once I finish Super Metroid.

Playing through it now and really missing the auto aim

 

[daakusedo]

I finish it today. Thanks Yoshio.

 

[Easy_D]

Prime 2 is, by far, the most difficult Metroid for what my opinion's worth.

(And it's better for it.)

I'm just gushing over Echoes at the moment. It has completely hooked me, and it just keeps getting better.

If the first two hours or so were that little bit better, it'd probably be my favourite Gamecube game. It starts very slowly, and not in the good HL2 way, either.

Prime 3 is way harder imo, at least on Hyper Mode difficulty, hard mode in Prime 2 was managable at least ):

 

[Deleted member 30609]

I hadn't considered the Hard modes, I've never really tried them, I'm not really into the Prime games for the combat.

I just got all the Sky Temple keys. It was so much easier than I remember! It was so cathartic to cruise through the dark world kicking ass with the Light Suit and Annihilator (using it on the light beacons is so awesome). I didn't even need the temple warp, I just used the interconnecting elevators and I did it really smoothly. It didn't feel awkward because there was so much to do in the old areas with my new items, which is a testament to Retro's awesome design right there.

I have 200 missiles and 7 Power Bombs. I only have 150 beam ammo, so I'm going to track down the rest of those and the last three energy tanks before moving forward.

Oh, and Quadraxis was way easier than I remembered, but it's still a great boss.

The visors in this game and Corruption always disappointed me compared to Prime's. The Echo Visor's use is so specific and limited and the Dark Visor has about five real uses outside of the occasional combat encounter throughout the game. The thermal and x-ray visor in prime were just cool to use, if nothing else. The effect they had on the world looked so much more awesome than anything in Echoes.

 

[quadrax1s]

Oh, and Quadraxis was way easier than I remember, but still a great boss.

hell yeah! i love the bosses in echoes. that's where the game shined imo

 

[sammy]

I've been taking this game slow so far and soaking it in, because it's just plain good Samus fun. What it lacks in exploration (donno' how explorative it gets later on..) it makes up in controls.

 

[Kard8p3]

Just did another 100% run. For some reason I still had trouble finding a few of the missile expansions. The ways to get some of them just completely slipped my mind. Still I absolutely love this game and I really hope we get another game using this engine in the future.

 

[BigJonsson]

Just finished the main story...........I really enjoyed this game

Hope we get another