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[Ledsen]

Let Kojima do Metroid! Nuff said!

And I would want more of this:

[IG]http://files.g4tv.com/ImageDb3/238356_S/The-Search-For-The-New-Spider-Man-Narrowed-To-Five.jpg[/IMG]

And less of this:

[IG]http://mmomfg.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/master-chief.jpg[/IMG]

You are the most wrong person ever on GAF. Also the Mary Sue argument is a complete straw man.

 

[jarosh]

fusion also had pretty bad writing and a silly story. but at least it stayed more or less in the background and we weren't subjected to horrific voice acting and hours of awful cutscenes.

that said, fusion was 10 times the game other m was. it has infinitely better level design and gameplay and a much more interesting, better designed world.

ultimately it's not the story that makes other m such an awful game. it has an abundance of gameplay flaws and nonsensical mechanics. it has some of the worst, most boring level design in metroid history. it has a painfully linear progression that makes fusion feel like gta in comparison. it has no interesting secrets, nothing to truly explore or discover. it focuses on scripted, shallow battles against repetitive enemies, ninja gaiden style, complete with a dodge/win-button.

other m is a bad game period. the fact that it has an absolutely horrendous story and laughably amateurish, sub-fanfic level storytelling, is just the cherry on top of the gameplay-turd.

 

[Ledsen]

fusion also had pretty bad writing and a silly story. but at least it stayed more or less in the background and we weren't subjected to horrific voice acting and hours of awful cutscenes.

that said, fusion was 10 times the game other m was. it has infinitely better level design and gameplay and a much more interesting, better designed world.

ultimately it's not the story that makes other m such an awful game. it has an abundance of gameplay flaws and nonsensical mechanics. it has some of the worst, most boring level design in metroid history. it has a painfully linear progression that makes fusion feel like gta in comparison. it has no interesting secrets, nothing to truly explore or discover. it focuses on scripted, shallow battles against repetitive enemies, ninja gaiden style, complete with a dodge/win-button.

other m is a bad game period. the fact that it has an absolutely horrendous story and laughably amateurish, sub-fanfic level storytelling, is just the cherry on top of the gameplay-turd.

This is all that needs to be said. Perfect.

 

[MarshMellow96]

You cannot ignore the story because the game itself is so linear.

Still, I enjoyed it. End of.

 

[darkpower]

You are the most wrong person ever on GAF. Also the Mary Sue argument is a complete straw man.

Why? Because my opinion didn't validate your own?

 

[[Nintex]]

This game should've been tested, I don't think anyone at Nintendo ever tested the final product when it was put together.

 

[Ledsen]

Why? Because my opinion didn't validate your own?

Because no one ever said they wanted Samus to be a "Mary Sue". Also, please stop it with the "it's my OPINION", it's redundant.

 

[Ellis Kim]

If you don't want to actually discuss why the game is the way it is, then fine. Sakamoto was given carte blanche to make this game so I don't think it's unreasonable to direct criticism of some story elements at him.

And that's exactly the case.

What does that say about Sadamoto? That the man had too much power in the project, or that the other two in the trio of project heads didn't slap Sadamoto's hands enough? Culturally, is Samus' introspective narrative style something that's universally poor, or is it an issue with cultural and linguistic conversation-structure differences that's simply lost in translation?

I'm guessing there's a little bit of all of that within the final product.

@Jarosh: I'd like you to try reviewing the game outside of the pretext of it being a Metroid game, and see how that would readjust your views.

I firmly believe that Other M, when played without thinking about traditional Metroid tropes, and what "makes Metroid Metroid," that you'll find a fine product in Other M as a high-quality Wii action title.

But seeing as how that's not how most people approached Other M (including myself), that the game suffered for not keeping up appearances on the gameplay side of things.

 

[Ushojax]

This game should've been tested, I don't think anyone at Nintendo ever tested the final product when it was put together.

Yeah, the bit with the power bombs at the end was unbelievable. I've never seen anything like that in a Nintendo game before.

 

[Attack You]

I like to think of Other M as "Team Ninja's Metroid." Nothing less, nothing more. That's as far as I want to discuss this, 'cause you people are psychotic. Er, well, other than I agree that Other M's level design is easily the least inspired in the entire series, but I need to play Corruption to solidify my opinion on that.

 

[Magicpaint]

No, it would be even worse if I just said what people wanted me to in order to validate their own beliefs that they want to treat as absolute fact.

I just mean that as a fiction writer you strive for quality in your writing, otherwise you wouldn't be a writer since it's about getting your hands dirty and going through painstaking process of rewriting to get something even half decent, so I'd think if you saw a turd of writing you'd spot it from a mile and realise how half assed it really is. It is possible to enjoy Other M's story for what it is, to even like it is fine, but I don't see how the writing is anything but below par.

fusion also had pretty bad writing and a silly story. but at least it stayed more or less in the background and we weren't subjected to horrific voice acting and hours of awful cutscenes.

that said, fusion was 10 times the game other m was. it has infinitely better level design and gameplay and a much more interesting, better designed world.

ultimately it's not the story that makes other m such an awful game. it has an abundance of gameplay flaws and nonsensical mechanics. it has some of the worst, most boring level design in metroid history. it has a painfully linear progression that makes fusion feel like gta in comparison. it has no interesting secrets, nothing to truly explore or discover. it focuses on scripted, shallow battles against repetitive enemies, ninja gaiden style, complete with a dodge/win-button.

other m is a bad game period. the fact that it has an absolutely horrendous story and laughably amateurish, sub-fanfic level storytelling, is just the cherry on top of the gameplay-turd.

110% agreed.

 

[legend166]

The actress did nothing wrong, it's just that the dialogue was terrible. You should never have a character in a visual medium like film/games vocalising their emotions in that way. I think the way Samus acted around others, saying very little except to Adam and Anthony, was fine. She is not supposed to be chatty and when she had to interact with the GF troops she did an acceptable Ripley impression. I don't care that she has a voice, but she shouldn't be saying more than a few words, that's just her character. They didn't need that shitty voiceover to tell Samus' story, the graphics and animation were of a high enough quality to convey that on their own.

You can't just have your characters announce how they feel. That makes me feel angry!

 

[AniHawk]

fusion also had pretty bad writing and a silly story. but at least it stayed more or less in the background and we weren't subjected to horrific voice acting and hours of awful cutscenes.

that said, fusion was 10 times the game other m was. it has infinitely better level design and gameplay and a much more interesting, better designed world.

ultimately it's not the story that makes other m such an awful game. it has an abundance of gameplay flaws and nonsensical mechanics. it has some of the worst, most boring level design in metroid history. it has a painfully linear progression that makes fusion feel like gta in comparison. it has no interesting secrets, nothing to truly explore or discover. it focuses on scripted, shallow battles against repetitive enemies, ninja gaiden style, complete with a dodge/win-button.

other m is a bad game period. the fact that it has an absolutely horrendous story and laughably amateurish, sub-fanfic level storytelling, is just the cherry on top of the gameplay-turd.

other m's biggest problem was that it was a game knit extremely tight around its story. for a moment, completely ignore what was in the story and look at the game itself:

1. unskippable cutscenes kills the pacing of the game (covered extensively, i know)
2. adam granting samus powers kills the sense of reward players get from finding new areas, and weakens the level design because there's actually nothing to accomplish.
3. the decision to go from '2.5d' to '2d and kinda 3d but still controlled by the wii remote only' was something team ninja suggested early in the game's development. if i had to guess, the decision was probably to better serve sakamoto's idea of a cinematic 2d metroid in 3d space. it's only a guess though.

sakamoto basically confirms that it was made story-first. for me, this is always the warning sign of a game that will have a lot of significant problems, because the designer is thinking themselves an artist first and a designer second (or not at all). see also: naughty dog/jak ii and david cage/heavy rain.

 

[Mafro]

Guys, guys. How awesome would a Fusion sequel on 3DS using the Other M engine be?

 

[Magicpaint]

Guys, guys. How awesome would a Fusion sequel on 3DS using the Other M engine be?

I'd prefer it to be completely 2D, plz thanks.

 

[robor]

Haha, what? I'm not sure how you could possibly think that I misused those words. You must really have no idea what in the hell you're talking about. I suggest that you give your own vocab list a quick punch into Google and realize that the fact that you're not a junior doesn't suddenly excuse you from being a pompous half-wit.

Anyway, I can accept that Super Metroid is creative and unique when it comes to its narrative. However, you should feel embarrassed saying that its the pinnacle of video game storytelling. For one thing, it isn't. For another, the game barely even tells any kind of story at all. The story is literally just a bookend for the game; you get some at the beginning, and the end. What's there is cool, but you can tell that the game wasn't made so that Sakamoto could tell could tell a story. It would be seriously depressing if that kind of minimal effort was the best we had.

You don't know what you're talking about and you misinterpreted his post.

So sorry about this.

 

[Mike M]

I just polished this game off my backlog recently.

Kind of surprised so many people are hung up on the narrative, that was the least of my problems with the game.

 

[robor]

The camera system in Other M is it's greatest achievement.

 

[Sir Ilpalazzo]

I think the way Samus acted around others, saying very little except to Adam and Anthony, was fine. She is not supposed to be chatty and when she had to interact with the GF troops she did an acceptable Ripley impression.

I agree with this. I never really got the hate for Samus's voice actor - the script was poor, but a monotone voice fits Samus very well, and the way she talked to most people (not to Adam or to the player) seemed accurate.

I think one of the developers said they picked her English voice because they wanted a lesser-known VA who would make Samus sound direct, and although that might have just been damage control, I think it really worked out.

 

[TheAtomicPile]

You don't know what you're talking about and you misinterpreted his post.

So sorry about this.

Now I'm lost. Whatever.

 

[CoffeeJanitor]

You can't tell me that Samus's characterization in Metroid Prime wasn't Chief-esque. It's the characterization that most remember.

I enjoyed this game. Good action, memorable bosses, and the combat showed off the agility of Samus's fighting style. Where's Waldo was biggest flaw; the hit boxes were too small and it ruined the flow of the game. The writing was bog standard bad video game writing. Considering my general low opinion of video game writing on the whole, it didn't bother me. Anthony at the very least entertained me as a "big, loud black dude" stereotype. I will remember him.

What characterization are you talking about here?

fusion also had pretty bad writing and a silly story. but at least it stayed more or less in the background and we weren't subjected to horrific voice acting and hours of awful cutscenes.

that said, fusion was 10 times the game other m was. it has infinitely better level design and gameplay and a much more interesting, better designed world.

ultimately it's not the story that makes other m such an awful game. it has an abundance of gameplay flaws and nonsensical mechanics. it has some of the worst, most boring level design in metroid history. it has a painfully linear progression that makes fusion feel like gta in comparison. it has no interesting secrets, nothing to truly explore or discover. it focuses on scripted, shallow battles against repetitive enemies, ninja gaiden style, complete with a dodge/win-button.

other m is a bad game period. the fact that it has an absolutely horrendous story and laughably amateurish, sub-fanfic level storytelling, is just the cherry on top of the gameplay-turd.

GAT DAMN someone give this man a medal!

 

[CoffeeJanitor]

EDIT: DP

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

I really enjoyed Other M, especially on the second play-through, but I wish the dialog sounded more like the scanning entries in the Primes.

I remember scanning a dead trooper and it said something like, "Death resulted from an accelerated heart rate caused by intense terror."

If you could somehow translate the feeling I got from reading that into spoken dialog, I'd be pleased as punch.

 

[AniHawk]

I agree with this. I never really got the hate for Samus's voice actor - the script was poor, but a monotone voice fits Samus very well, and the way she talked to most people (not to Adam or to the player) seemed accurate.

I think one of the developers said they picked her English voice because they wanted a lesser-known VA who would make Samus sound direct, and although that might have just been damage control, I think it really worked out.

i think they picked her english voice because they didn't want to pay too much for a trained voice actor when they could just pick up somebody from the surrounding area (she had done some theater around seattle)

 

[TunaLover]

I just begin my second playthrough on hard difficulty =)
I loved the atmosphere in Other M, even the story!

 

[Davey Cakes]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

 

[hikarutilmitt]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

Yes, absolutely yes.

 

[heringer]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

Hell yes.

 

[erpg]

Rentals are still cheaper.

 

[Magicpaint]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

Rent it first then if you like it, you can buy it.

Either way, just don't expect the quality you'd normally associate with Metroid.

 

[jarosh]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

if you enjoy hours of dreadful and unskippable cutscenes with laughably bad, painfully amateurish writing, boring level design that doesn't reward or even allow exploration, an entirely automated and linear way of progressing based on arbitrary trigger points, a shallow, repititive combat system, clumsy d-pad controls and constant, awkward, unnecessary viewpoint switching for an important mechanic and many more puzzling and annoying design decisions, then: yes, hell yes!

 

[MarshMellow96]

Every time!

 

[AniHawk]

if you enjoy hours of dreadful and unskippable cutscenes with laughably bad, painfully amateurish writing, boring level design that doesn't reward or even allow exploration, an entirely automated and linear way of progressing based on arbitrary trigger points, a shallow, repititive combat system, clumsy d-pad controls and constant, awkward, unnecessary viewpoint switching for an important mechanic and many more puzzling and annoying design decisions, then: yes, hell yes!

still like it better than steinbrenner.

 

[CoffeeJanitor]

if you enjoy hours of dreadful and unskippable cutscenes with laughably bad, painfully amateurish writing, boring level design that doesn't reward or even allow exploration, an entirely automated and linear way of progressing based on arbitrary trigger points, a shallow, repititive combat system, clumsy d-pad controls and constant, awkward, unnecessary viewpoint switching for an important mechanic and many more puzzling and annoying design decisions, then: yes, hell yes!

Reading analysis of this game makes it seem a lot worse than it actually is, but yeah.

If anything it's a shit ton of cool gameplay ideas thrown together with poor delivery, so it's maybe worth a rent.

 

[Boney]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

yes yes yes yes yes

 

[Neon_Icarus]

I was glossing over Amazon.com today and I noticed that this game, once again, has dropped to $20.

My question is: yes or no?

At that price? Definitely.

The game has its flaws, but it still ended up being one of the most fun games last year for me.

 

[SabinFigaro]

I've been putting some time into this one lately, and it's been pretty good so far.

Of course, the writing is shitty and the VA painful, but I don't really care. I also find the upgrade "system" (apart from the logic behind the power bomb) to be really, really stupid.

Oh well, it looks and plays good: fast and fluid. It's definitely a change from the slow, methodical pace of the Prime series, but it loses some of the atmosphere in the process. Probably my one major complaint is the lack of the superb atmospheric soundtrack. Right now, it's just, there.

Although the Metroid series is one on my favourites, I can appreciate a different perspective on it. Something about the battle system, with the sensemoves and lethal strikes is incredibly satisfying, even if it is somewhat out-of-place. I wouldn't want another game in this style, but I'm greatly enjoying it at the moment.

 

[MadOdorMachine]

I've been putting some time into this one lately, and it's been pretty good so far.

Of course, the writing is shitty and the VA painful, but I don't really care. I also find the upgrade "system" (apart from the logic behind the power bomb) to be really, really stupid.

Oh well, it looks and plays good: fast and fluid. It's definitely a change from the slow, methodical pace of the Prime series, but it loses some of the atmosphere in the process. Probably my one major complaint is the lack of the superb atmospheric soundtrack. Right now, it's just, there.

Although the Metroid series is one on my favourites, I can appreciate a different perspective on it. Something about the battle system, with the sensemoves and lethal strikes is incredibly satisfying, even if it is somewhat out-of-place. I wouldn't want another game in this style, but I'm greatly enjoying it at the moment.

Yeah, the story, music, upgrades and controls were all underwhelming imo, but it was made up for with brilliant camera work and fast paced action. That's the only thing that I would like to see stay in a sequel. It was really nice to see Samus move in third person. If they could just add in more exploration and some puzzles along with fixing all the complaints I'd be very happy.

 

[_Alkaline_]

if you enjoy hours of dreadful and unskippable cutscenes with laughably bad, painfully amateurish writing, boring level design that doesn't reward or even allow exploration, an entirely automated and linear way of progressing based on arbitrary trigger points, a shallow, repititive combat system, clumsy d-pad controls and constant, awkward, unnecessary viewpoint switching for an important mechanic and many more puzzling and annoying design decisions, then: yes, hell yes!

So much hate for a game that still has some golden moments within admittedly a fair amount of mediocrity.

 

[Lijik]

So much hate for a game that still has some golden moments within admittedly a fair amount of mediocrity.

You could say this for about any mediocre game.
Theres a few shining moments in Flips Twisted World (as a random non Other M example), but that doesn't mean the rest of the bullshit is worth it.

 

[Magicpaint]

So much hate for a game that still has some golden moments within admittedly a fair amount of mediocrity.

Metroid is a series with very, very high standards. A mediocre action game with adventure elements slapped together isn't going to garner much praise or admiration, unfortunately.

 

[_Alkaline_]

You could say this for about any mediocre game.
Theres a few shining moments in Flips Twisted World (as a random non Other M example), but that doesn't mean the rest of the bullshit is worth it.

Perhaps, but I still feel it's important to acknowledge what a game does right even if the overall package is disappointing. Even if it's just a passing mention.

Metroid is a series with very, very high standards. A mediocre action game with adventure elements slapped together isn't going to garner much praise or admiration, unfortunately.

You're talking to a Metroid freak right here. Absolutely Other M was disappointing given the series' pedigree but that doesn't mean I'll condemn it without even mentioning what it does right (and it does do a fair few things right).

 

[gkryhewy]

I'm playing this game now off my backlog. It's really good! Some of the best graphics and atmosphere on Wii. I suppose that the linear nature of it is, for me, actually a positive, since I more and more find the Metroidvania style of exploration to be pretty tired and laborious.

My only real complaint is the clumsy D-pad controls.

 

[Magicpaint]

You're talking to a Metroid freak right here. Absolutely Other M was disappointing given the series' pedigree but that doesn't mean I'll condemn it without even mentioning what it does right (and it does do a fair few things right).

I think the things it does right aren't anything special given what we're USED to getting in Metroid, though. What it gets wrong -- and there are so, so many things it does wrong -- is far more baffling. I was positive about this game because I believed a Metroid game ought to have a certain level of quality no matter what, but Other M totally proved that wrong to me.

 

[Ridley327]

I think the things it does right aren't anything special given what we're USED to getting in Metroid, though. What it gets wrong -- and there are so, so many things it does wrong -- is far more baffling. I was positive about this game because I believed a Metroid game ought to have a certain level of quality no matter what, but Other M totally proved that wrong to me.

This is made more frustrating by the fact that the game was masterminded by the same man who has been the chief creative source for the series since day 1. It really hurt to see such a talent put out a game like this.

 

[Boney]

The music in this game is amazing. Probably not the best in the series, but definately a great change of pace.

Dem drums

And I really don't think the level design is bad. Much simpler than the overly complex designs in prime (especially 2), but I think that's a good point. It offers a good amount of puzzles without ever slowing down. You go so fast <3

 

[Magicpaint]

This is made more frustrating by the fact that the game was masterminded by the same man who has been the chief creative source for the series since day 1. It really hurt to see such a talent put out a game like this.

Really. I know a part of me wants to blame Team Ninja's involvement in the first place, but reading interviews and hearing Sakamoto's thoughts on the game leads me to ultimately believe he wanted the game exactly the way it turned out, and that's too bad.

And I really don't think the level design is bad. Much simpler than the overly complex designs in prime (especially 2), but I think that's a good point. It offers a good amount of puzzles without ever slowing down. You go so fast <3

It's much simpler than even Prime 3 and that can't be a good thing in a series that's supposed to be about exploring a huge labyrinthine world. The level design is OK for a middling action game but awful for Metroid. In 2D Metroid you also go fast, but level design wasn't sacrificed.

 

[PowderedToast]

i love other m. the tone and ambition of the story is great and while the actual dialogue is mixed in quality, sakamoto is not a writer so i don't expect it to be top shelf, not mention what i would imagine was a difficult translation. he took the (overpraised) minimalism of metroid and breathed new life and into it by channeling old-school genre science fiction, and despite the purist's stance - it makes sense. if the execution was stronger i think more people would realise that the choice was creative and logical. i mean, fuck, a red and gold suited female space bounty hunter who fights space pirates and has a space-dragon for a nemesis? you cannot disagree that metroid's mythology has a place in pulp-fiction.

 

[The Technomancer]

I actually really enjoyed the controls and the action, through and through. Liked the d-pad control, like the remote flipping, all of it. Found it fluid and fun.

 

[Boney]

It's much simpler than even Prime 3 and that can't be a good thing in a series that's supposed to be about exploring a huge labyrinthine world. The level design is OK for a middling action game but awful for Metroid. In 2D Metroid you also go fast, but level design wasn't sacrificed.

it's not about that for me. That's why I'm not a big fan of the original.

It offers some nice platforming, puzzles, and interconections. It doesn't reach Super and Zero Mission levels, but on it's own right, it's quite good.

but woosh i'm out of here, i've had my say plenty of times about it. I just recommend everybody to try it out, but beware, you might hate it with a passion. Which is better than finding it meh at least. It stirs emotions.