onionhead2001's Full Review: Metroid Prime 2: Echos for GameCube
This review is pretty late to the party, which means it won't get too many reads, but anything I can do to turn a few more people on to this spectacular (but difficult) game will be worth it. I'm particularly inclined to write after seeing that Echoes has only received one other review with an undeservedly mediocre score. This game deserves better than that, and it deserves to be played by anybody with a taste for classic gaming.
The Basics:
Metroid Prime: Echoes is billed as a "first person adventure," and is the sequel to Metroid Prime -- a game which I still consider to be the best and most complete video game ever made. While at first glance MP:E appears to be a first person shooter, it is not, and should neither be characterized as one nor compared to one. Apart from their common point-of-view, the game mechanics are completely different, and the two Metroid Prime games serve up an experience that can simply not be found in any other series.
Like its side-scrolling predecessors, MP:E focuses on exploration and discovery, with a healthy dose of spine-rattling combat to keep things interesting. If you've played Metroid Prime, then this game is basically a second helping with a few twists.
Story:
Fresh from her victory on Tallon IV, Samus receives orders to investigate the disappearance of some Federation Marines on planet Aether. She finds that the Marines were decimated by shadowy creatures called the Ing, and that the planet's resident Luminoth race (sort of kindly, overgrown moth-men) are locked in battle with the sinister Ing to reclaim their home.
Of course, there are some Space Pirates mucking things up, and they continue to unwisely travel with Metroids on board. They'll never learn, but we'll keep having fun.
Controls:
I'm going to dispatch, straght off, with any notion that MP:E should have the option of dual-analog controls (the sort of double-joystick controls generally used by console FPS games, like Halo). It should not. In fact, it would be difficult to imagine any of this game's spectacular battles functioning properly with any control mechanic other than the one used. Those who wish for an alternate control scheme are actually just wishing to play a different game.
To a large extent, the controls are an evolution of the Z-targeting mechanism pioneered in Ocarina of Time. Once you've "locked on" to an enemy (or object, or anything...), all movement occurs relative to its position. Since aiming is handled by the targeting system, you are left to supply the timing and strategy necessary to make the shots count. This is a tremendous variation on the typical FPS formula, and the core reason why the two types of games are so wildly different.
Samus Aran's other functions are well-mapped to the comfortable Gamecube controller, and the controls are simple to pick up (but tough to master, in Nintendo style). The analog movement is responsive and well calibrated. Jumping is a snap, and you should be able to tackle the copious platform jumping segments without worrying that poor controls will cause you to miss your mark (unless the Screw Attack is involved, in which case... good luck). And rolling Samus around while she's in sphere form remains one of gaming's strangest pleasures.
The controls are not flawless, however. Some of Samus's more advanced techniques are a bit awkward. The grapple beam continues to offer a rather stiff sensation, and it can be unnecessarily difficult to aim your swing. And the screw attack and wall jump, making their first appearance since the old side-scrolling days, just don't work very well at all. The wall jump is particularly offensive, and only works in the two or three rooms for which it has been designed. It smacks of fan pandering (can we PLEEEEASE have the screw attack back?), and should have been left out entirely since it feels so terribly out of place.
Graphics and Sound:
The Metroid series continues to set the bar on what the Gamecube is capable of, and there are plenty of awe-inspiring moments to be found here. This game is the perfect marriage of art direction and a top-notch graphics engine. Of particular mention are the incredibly detailed environments, which may even be a step up from the ones seen in the first game. Cracks and rubble are rendered in full, rather than suggested with textures. Organic material feels organic. Enemies move with convincing realism, and their animations convey life and intelligence. Despite its dark tone, the game is not afraid of color, and knows how to use it in a striking rather than jarring manner.
The game makes good use of sound, and you will eventually learn the slowly oscillating hum of a nearby (but hidden) power-up, or the chatter of enemies who have snuck up from behind. The music is appropriately moody and atmospheric, but not terribly memorable.
Gameplay:
Echoes relies on the established Metroid foundation -- start out weak, and gradually develop your character until you're wrecking aliens left and right. By and large, it doesn't stray far from the formula established in the first Metroid Prime. This would be a graver concern if not for the fact that there are no other games out there like Metroid Prime, so this is your only chance to enjoy that type of play if you've already been through part one. Basically, the lack of internal originality is more than balanced by the fact that nobody else is making games like this. Nobody.
The adventuring is punctuated by boss battles, of course. These battles are not run-of-the-mill by any standard, and you will occasionally find yourself standing in the shadow of some of the most titanic bosses you've ever seen. One, in particular, was so intimidating that I stopped playing for a few months after witnessing its strength. I just couldn't handle going back in there after the first time he crushed me. The battles are decidedly more difficult than the ones seen in the first game, and endlessly clever in how they expect you to use all of Samus's techniques and weapons.
Despite similarities to its prequel, Echoes is not entirely more-of-the same. In many ways, it feels like an expansion pack -- offering enough new bits and pieces to spice things up without reinventing the wheel. I have mixed feelings about both major changes in Echoes:
Reload!
For the first time in the Metroid series, your ammunition supply is limited. Apart from your main arm cannon, everything you fire (beams, missiles, bombs) are in finite supply and need to be replenished. This is particularly frustrating in the midst of a boss battle, when the one weapon you need is the one you just ran out of.
The game provides a relatively convenient means of refilling your supplies (by dispatching enemies with the opposite beam), but the system begins to feel more like a nuisance than anything.
The Dark Side
Echoes also introduces the concept of light and dark worlds -- overlapping dimensions in which actions in one may effect reality in the other. This is not a new idea to anybody familiar with Zelda or Soul Reaver, but it does add another layer of challenge when solving puzzles and navigating the world. Dipping into the dark world can be a daunting task, since the very air can harm you when subjected to its atmosphere. Truth be told, in the early stages of the game, this corrosive effect of the Dark World can be so frustrating that the game ceases to be fun.
Both of these new mechanics are interesting, but serve to make the game more difficult than its prequel. Veteran Metroid players will eat it up (as I did). But, objectively, the game is less accessible to the casual player, and, in the early stages, less fun.
These details are reasonably small in light of the epic game that surrounds them, but they are not trivial, and may terminally impact a gamer's enjoyment depending on his levels of interest and skill. But for those willing to fight a little harder and die a little more often, the game may be more rewarding in the end.
The game also culminates in an annoying key hunt, similar to the first one. This was one of the major complaints levelled against the first one, and it's unfortunate to see that nobody listened to reason. Careful players will likely find many of the keys as they progress through the game, but there are bound to be a few that you have to go searching for to access the final part of the game.
Games like Metroid almost always operate on a lock-and-key mechanism, but there is some disappointment when you're searching for literal keys. The high-jump can be considered a sort of "key" that helps you get past the "locked" cliff. But it also augments gameplay in other ways, so it's a fun sort of key to acquire. In the future, Retro would be wise to simply give Samus more combat abilities, and use these in place of actual keys.
Still, the key hunt does not ruin the game, and it will give players a reason (however artificial) to re-check previously explored lands, likely stumbling across a few extra energy tanks and missile expansions in the process.
Summary:
I won't go so far as to suggest that Retro Studios topped their spectacular freshman effort with this sequel, but they've certainly crafted an epic game which deserves to wear the Metroid name. Echoes is bigger, tougher, and ultimately more rewarding than its prequel. But it is also more frustrating and less accessible to more casual gamers.
Because of this element of frustration, and the knowledge that this game was not designed to accomodate casual gamers, I'm giving Echoes four stars instead of five. But fans of the series and devoted gamers should take note -- this is a top-notch game which earns five stars in my book.
Addictive outer space adventure as you help Samus fight enemies, solve puzzles and explore incredible new places More advanced graphics and game contr...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2010 Shopping.com, Inc.