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[BRSxIgnition]

I think there are more creative ways to show how dangerous a planet is than just piling up some dopey looking space marines.

I'd argue that they didn't simply 'pile up dopey looking space marines' - they showed the ambush of the ship in a flashback, and then through logs on both sides of the fight, showed their thoughts through multiple different viewpoints through multiple different time periods.

Some troopers lost their minds over time, some pirates called the 'two hunters' a curse, and some troopers didn't even believe in Samus, casting off the name as myth/legend.

It really added a lot of depth to the world without removing the feeling of isolation - of being the only one left to do the job.

Prime 2 did a ton of things right. Prime 4 could do a lot worse than following that kind of formula and expanding on it.

 

[ec0ec0]

just make prime 2 again.

 

[sfried]

just make prime 2 again.

Prime 2 but better, no Dark Worl/Light World gimmick, and devs are focused excusively on delivering the perfect single player experience (i.e. no multiplayer). Also sequence breaking.

 

[Spyder_Monkey]

Prime 2 but better, no Dark Worl/Light World gimmick, and devs are focused excusively on delivering the perfect single player experience (i.e. no multiplayer). Also sequence breaking.

So basically Prime 1?

 

[ec0ec0]

Prime 2 but better, no Dark Worl/Light World gimmick, and devs are focused excusively on delivering the perfect single player experience (i.e. no multiplayer). Also sequence breaking.

who in their right mind would expect a better game than prime 2!?

also, a gimmick? gaf really loves to throw that word out. If people want to call things as tightly designed as metroid prime 2 world design (the dark world was amazing) or, another one that turns people off, majoras mask time system, a gimmick, that's their thing.

And i agree that prime 2 multiplayer wasn't that good (in the end, samus, her movement, moves, shooting, etc.. were designed for a single player, exploration game, not multiplayer), but i didn't feel like the campain suffered becuase of it.

Anyway, i agree that, they shouldn't bother with multiplayer.

 

[Dryk]

Do you think they will use this Samus design from earlier Metroid Primes or go for the more popular design from the 2D games, Other M & Smash.

I find this design way better

Failing that they could at least go with the one from Hunters

 

[BRSxIgnition]

Found this video by GameXplain that talks about how World of Goo on Switch uses Pointer Controls.

I wonder if they'll be able to incorporate this into MP4, and if it'll accompany another style of play or not if it is?

 

[Cerium]

Found this video by GameXplain that talks about how World of Goo on Switch uses Pointer Controls.

I wonder if they'll be able to incorporate this into MP4, and if it'll accompany another style of play or not if it is?

Without an IR receiver it won't be precise enough and will require constant recalibration.

More likely I envision something like Splatoon or Zelda, with dual analog plus gyro for added precision.

 

[RagnarokX]

Found this video by GameXplain that talks about how World of Goo on Switch uses Pointer Controls.

I wonder if they'll be able to incorporate this into MP4, and if it'll accompany another style of play or not if it is?

Gyroscopic aiming is better than IR pointer anyway. No need for pointer controls. Gyroscopic aiming gives you all of the control you get from pointer aiming without being forced to aim at a specific spot.

 

[BRSxIgnition]

More likely I envision something like Splatoon or Zelda, with dual analog plus gyro for added precision.

Gyroscopic aiming is better than IR pointer anyway.

Agreed for the most part - a combination of Dual Sticks + Gyro would work well for Metroid, assuming their don't overdo the gyro-part of the controls.

 

[RagnarokX]

Agreed for the most part - a combination of Dual Sticks + Gyro would work well for Metroid, assuming their don't overdo the gyro-part of the controls.

Splatoon does it well. Dual sticks for running and turning, gyro for precise aiming. They'll probably keep the lock-on, too, so you gyro aim around the lock-on target.

 

[MoonFrog]

Personally, I do think Prime 2 is the pinnacle of the series with respect to room design.

I said this above but I think it is when Retro came to own morph ball. I also just think the puzzles/platforming is stronger than Prime.

I also think it has the best soundtrack in the series.

And the best bosses, overall.

Again repeating myself, but I think the temple approach and having every major gadget tied to a boss or miniboss hurts the game.

The game is too predictable in its structure and keeps you in one place for far too long. Super and Prime 1 do a much better job of keeping the upgrades irregular and mixing up the pacing between long dungeon delving and quick jaunts through a place to get elsewhere.

Prime 2 is a lot like if you took the design choices of SS to the extreme. Completely meld the overworld and the dungeon but still have the dungeon structure--you work one place until you beat the boss and then you don't need to come back much.

Couple that with doubling rooms via dark Aether and you get a game with pacing that doesn't keep your world changing like Prime 1 does.

 

[E-Cat]

This pic made me realize that MP4 could very well be a UE4 game, which would be funny as hell when one remembers the misconception that MP1 was made with a heavily customized UE2 engine.

It wasn't?

 

[MoonFrog]

Splatoon does it well. Dual sticks for running and turning, gyro for precise aiming. They'll probably keep the lock-on, too, so you gyro aim around the lock-on target.

I love gyro aiming.

 

[FloweryMarston]

The only problem with gyro is that sometimes you have to reset your position. I would like to be something like in zelda where you draw the bow by pressing zr and the aiming is already centered, so you can play in a very relaxed manner without having to always position your hand to aim. Would the game also have lock on?

 

[TheInternetNomad]

A multiplayer push would be cool imo. Local + online switch parties would be awesome if done right

 

[Cerium]

It wasn't?

It wasn't.

 

[BRSxIgnition]

My only worry with Gyro aiming is that it'd get rid of the cool feeling of moving the arm cannon around in-front of the visor, and that tilting the screen too much would lead to bad viewing angles and disorientation. (Haven't played Splatoon 2 or BotW yet, waiting for my Switch to come in.)

 

[E-Cat]

It wasn't.

Was the engine made in-house, then?

 

[Mister Wolf]

Without an IR receiver it won't be precise enough and will require constant recalibration.

More likely I envision something like Splatoon or Zelda, with dual analog plus gyro for added precision.

Dual analog is all I ever wanted from a Prime game.

 

[MoonFrog]

My only worry with Gyro aiming is that it'd get rid of the cool feeling of moving the arm cannon around in-front of the visor, and that tilting the screen too much would lead to bad viewing angles and disorientation. (Haven't played Splatoon 2 or BotW yet, waiting for my Switch to come in.)

It usually is pretty subtle tbh. Sure it can get wonky if you start in a weird place, but a reset button handles that.

I don't know. I really like aiming that way. I played a lot of BotW in handheld mode with no problem.

I'm assuming though that there would probably always be a non-gyro option too?

 

[Zel3]

Galactic Federation and a focus on Sylux are 2 things that worry me.

I want isolation in Prime games.

 

[Cerium]

Was the engine made in-house, then?

Yup.

 

[MoonFrog]

Galactic Federation and a focus on Sylux are 2 things that worry me.

I want isolation in Prime games.

They said that too, in the fact sheet.

 

[ITSMILNER]

How long after this interview do we think they started work on Prime 4? The fact we just saw a teaser with no footage makes me wonder if it only started late last year

 

[KayMote]

I really wouldn't be too sad, if they dropped the Sylux ending altogether. This could not have been an interesting direction the series was heading to.

 

[BRSxIgnition]

Someone really needs to follow up on these statements and ask if anything - especially the Sylux stuff - is still making it into Prime 4.

 

[Cerium]

How long after this interview do we think they started work on Prime 4? The fact we just saw a teaser with no footage makes me wonder if it only started late last year

He could have been deflecting and they had actually already started pre-production with NLG, given that Federation Force was wrapping up. If that was the case, a late 2018 release is possible, but I wouldn't bank on it until we know more.

If it's not NLG after all then the timeline is a lot more ambiguous.

 

[balohna]

Well, the Prime trilogy already does too much to really have it fit with the mainline games. I say just continue keeping them as two separate continuities that pay no mind to each other instead of worrying about making them fit. Prime may not make much sense without Metroid Prime being in the picture, but they could just say that it refers to the first person nature of the games.

It's almost like how you'll get Amazing Spider-Man and Spectacular Spider-Man, or Action Comics and Superman. Two continuities that both "count" and exist in the same universe but don't directly overlap.

I would love a 3D Metroid 5, though. At a certain point it feels like the 2D games should become the side stories.

 

[MoonFrog]

I'd imagine at least the Sylux stuff gets in. Tanabe has been wanting to do that for 10 years, at least. Perhaps since Hunters. I doubt he gives up on that.

Who knows what form that takes though?

 

[Cerium]

It's almost like how you'll get Amazing Spider-Man and Spectacular Spider-Man, or Action Comics and Superman. Two continuities that both "count" and exist in the same universe but don't directly overlap.

I would love a 3D Metroid 5, though. At a certain point it feels like the 2D games should become the side stories.

You'll get 2.5D Metroid 5 from Mercury Steam and Sakamoto and like it.

 

[MoonFrog]

You'll get 2.5D Metroid 5 from Mercury Steam and Sakamoto and like it.

Hopefully true on both counts.

 

[balohna]

You'll get 2.5D Metroid 5 from Mercury Steam and Sakamoto and like it.

Haha, well at least I'll like it.

 

[RagnarokX]

I love gyro aiming.

Me, too. I can't do dual analog, but I can do gyro. Much more precise.

My only worry with Gyro aiming is that it'd get rid of the cool feeling of moving the arm cannon around in-front of the visor, and that tilting the screen too much would lead to bad viewing angles and disorientation. (Haven't played Splatoon 2 or BotW yet, waiting for my Switch to come in.)

The way to think of gyro is that you basically have 3 sticks. You run around with the left stick, right stick turns the camera, and the gyro moves your reticle around the screen and tilts the camera mostly on the Z axis.

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

I think they could add some complexity to him without changing his "shape". That kind of thinking is why we have the mechanical mess that is the Bay Transformers designs or why the new Power Ranger's megazord looks like shit

It's most likely not even a year in. It's logical that development would have began soon after the release of Federation Force.

 

[AmayaPapaya]

I think Prime 2 is the best game in the series. Doing Prime 2 + Dishonored 2 + something cool, would make for a fantastic experience.

I don't know if I agree with some others that they should make a multiplayer element, as I worry that the campaign will already be too much to handle and multiplayer will just bloat the budget, making it too expensive. I don't think anyone will pick up Prime 4 just because it has a fantastic multiplayer mode. Do people pick up Naughty Dog games for multiplayer? They think it's a fantastic add on, but I don't think anyone actually does. Maybe Nintendo could figure out a way for the multiplayer to pay for itself, like those games, through DLC or microtransactions? I guess at that point it's worth it. Whatever is necessary to keep Metroid alive, at no expense of the single player.

Something I would love to see Nintendo do, would be to go all out on the morph ball. Give it as much functionality as they can and do interesting twists. An idea I had the other day was for them to remake the spider ball so it actually grows spider legs and could climb up walls. Maybe give it other transformations as well?

Also, Prime 2 showed Metroid can have a great story without messing with the series trademarks. Hopefully they flesh that out. I like people's idea of being hunted by the Federation and Sylux. Have Sylux take Dark Samus' role and the Federation be a new enemy type. Maybe have Far Cry/Breath of the Wild style camps that the player can ambush and get story related material? Not too sure about that idea, but it might work depending on the structure of the game. It could add to the sense of fear and isolation, or break it, if not done well. All that, plus a time manipulation device that allows you to go between the present and the past where the ancient civilization was thriving, as a ghost, would be mind blowing!

 

[GuessMyUserName]

Sylux making it in is 1000% happening. Prime 3 ending, Tanabe's comments, Federation Force ending less than a year ago... there isn't a single chance Sylux isn't involved with Prime 4. That's the path set out by the last mainline Prime and it's evidently still on their mind as recently as last August.

To comment on concerns what Sylux means for isolation... nothing really. Just as Dark Samus didn't mean the end in Prime 2.

 

[RagnarokX]

It's almost like how you'll get Amazing Spider-Man and Spectacular Spider-Man, or Action Comics and Superman. Two continuities that both "count" and exist in the same universe but don't directly overlap.

I would love a 3D Metroid 5, though. At a certain point it feels like the 2D games should become the side stories.

Yeah, I don't get why people lose their minds over the idea of multiple continuities. If they're both treated as equally valid there's no reason to get up in arms. Keeping the Prime games and mainline games as one continuity has no benefits since they don't even really connect to each other and causes problems because they don't share notes and things that happen in one cause continuity errors in the other.

I dunno, I don't think either continuity is really the side story. You got one where Samus was raised for a personal mission by the Chozo to destroy the Metroids they created and to deal with Ridley, and one where the Metroids are just a minor nuisance and Samus has to deal with bigger threats and a more militaristic Space Pirate army alongside the Federation. The 2D game universe is more like the Alien franchise and the Prime game universe is more like... Starship Troopers?

 

[MoonFrog]

Sylux making it in is 1000% happening. Prime 3 ending, Tanabe's comments, Federation Force ending less than a year ago... there isn't a single chance Sylux isn't involved with Prime 4. That's the path set out by the last mainline Prime and it's evidently still on their mind as recently as last August.

To comment on concerns what Sylux means for isolation... nothing really. Just as Dark Samus didn't mean the end in Prime 2.

Yeah. I mean, for all we know Sylux is just a recurring antagonist also on a planet you have a mission on for reasons you don't know.

Or perhaps you are specifically on a planet to kill him.

Or...

etc.

There are plenty of ways to bake him in without making him omnipresent.

Yeah, I don't get why people lose their minds over the idea of multiple continuities. If they're both treated as equally valid there's no reason to get up in arms. Keeping the Prime games and mainline games as one continuity has no benefits since they don't even really connect to each other and causes problems because they don't share notes and things that happen in one cause continuity errors in the other.

I dunno, I don't think either continuity is really the side story. You got one where Samus was raised for a personal mission by the Chozo to destroy the Metroids they created and to deal with Ridley, and one where the Metroids are just a minor nuisance and Samus has to deal with bigger threats and a more militaristic Space Pirate army alongside the Federation. The 2D game universe is more like the Alien franchise and the Prime game universe is more like... Starship Troopers?

The thing I don't like about separating them like that is I like the Chozo in Prime 1. I like the stuff about their disappearance and the spiritual/technical stuff. I always thought that was a perfect fit with the Metroids. I mean, the creatures suck a mysterious life force. Seems very much on the edge of spiritual stuff and technology. I would love a Prime game that picked up on that stuff and dealt with a world that was an epicenter of the Chozo existential crisis.

 

[Cerium]

Sylux is clearly a Tanabe conspiracy to get another Metroid rep into Smash (who isn't too big).

 

[Zero-ELEC]

Finally his plans will come to fruition.

I love teases like that paying off.

Its, their.

Never his.

 

[GuessMyUserName]

I wouldn't even be surprised if Sylux never even speaks or at least doesn't re-state his background and his story is basically left to in-game lore scans like most Prime background story.

Sylux is clearly a Tanabe conspiracy to get another Metroid rep into Smash (who isn't too big).

This has honestly been part of what I loved about other bounty hunters in the Metroid universe. Helps that Metroid always established the different hunters as such unique alien races which was cool.

 

[EmCeeGramr]

I'm like 90% sure that Sylux's entire thing is going to turn out to be a very basic twist like

-They're going to take off their helmet and be a clone of Samus made by the Federation so we get the third evil Samus in the series but they're an actual person and not an alien monster
-They're an inverse Samus whose family was killed by accident by the Federation and covered up

 

[Caayn]

As someone who thinks that Prime 2 was the best of the Prime trilogy: I'm intrigued.

 

[RagnarokX]

The thing I don't like about separating them like that is I like the Chozo in Prime 1. I like the stuff about their disappearance and the spiritual/technical stuff. I always thought that was a perfect fit with the Metroids. I mean, the creatures suck a mysterious life force. Seems very much on the edge of spiritual stuff and technology. I would love a Prime game that picked up on that stuff and dealt with a world that was an epicenter of the Chozo existential crisis.

But the Metroids are bioweapons the Chozo created to exterminate the X Parasites on SR388. The Chozo on Tallon IV were a group of hippy Chozo who left Zebes long ago to get in touch with spirituality that have nothing to do with the Chozo that created the Metroids. I kinda don't like how the Chozo get around in the Prime universe and shared their tech with other advanced races. Makes Samus feel a bit less special and makes you wonder how the Chozo could disappear, though I guess technically the Chozo are still around even in the 2D universe; they just left Zebes. Even the Federation is using Chozo tech.

 

[MoonFrog]

I'm like 90% sure that Sylux's entire thing is going to turn out to be a very basic twist like

-They're going to take off their helmet and be a clone of Samus made by the Federation so we get the third evil Samus in the series but they're an actual person and not an alien monster
-They're an inverse Samus whose family was killed by accident by the Federation and covered up

I mean...Perhaps he defies my expectations and I find him cool for some reason or like his story but I'm mostly just hoping it is simple and unintrusive as possible.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

I remember being really down with the idea of a more action based Metroid spinoff which would be a squad based shooter with Federation troopers. Couldn't stop laughing when the Metroid: Federation Force trailers hit.

Prime 4? Definitely on board for it unless they bungle it badly. Will be great to see it with assets designed for something more powerful than the Wii.

 

[Thud]

More Sylux is good. Da electro bomber.

 

[MoonFrog]

But the Metroids are bioweapons the Chozo created to exterminate the X Parasites on SR388. The Chozo on Tallon IV were a group of hippy Chozo who left Zebes long ago to get in touch with spirituality that have nothing to do with the Chozo that created the Metroids. I kinda don't like how the Chozo get around in the Prime universe and shared their tech with other advanced races. Makes Samus feel a bit less special and makes you wonder how the Chozo could disappear, though I guess technically the Chozo are still around even in the 2D universe; they just left Zebes. Even the Federation is using Chozo tech.

Idk. I always took it to be supposition that because Metroids kept the X at bay that's why they were created/their sole purpose, when it could be just a way Metroids were used. Been a while since I played Fusion but I thought that they came to that conclusion just because X appeared after Metroids died out.

As to Tallon IV Chozo...I don't think we have the timeline for their leaving or for the introduction of Metroids to SR388.

Maybe that kind of information is in the manga or whatever?

...

I don't mind the "ancient star farers helping each other" line in Prime.

I do not like pretty much everything about the Federation in Prime 3.

 

[dampflokfreund]

That comes from Shikamaru Ninja who knows Nintendo's developers and internal structure better than anyone. He's making an educated guess but he would know things that we don't.

Also job postings on the NLG site ask for experience with Physically Based Rendering which is used almost exclusively for realistic art styles, and for complex character rigs which implies nonhuman enemies with lots of limbs.

The latter could be anything but there are really not that many Nintendo franchises that would call for PBR.

PBR has nothing to do with a realistic art style. Infact, many Nintendo are afaik using PBR such as Mario Kart 8, Mario Odysee, Zelda BOTW, ARMS and many more... So a job posting for experienced PBR programmers means aside from NLG developing HD Nintendo games, nothing.