23rd February 2003, 5:26 AM
Review: Metroid
Platform: NES
Rating: 9.0/10
<blockquote>Metroid is one of the defining moments of the NES, at any point in it's life. It was the huge, non-linear, and difficult quest of Samus Aran, bountyhunter extraordinaire, who hunts a not-so-nice group of guys called Space Pirates, who, like any self-respecting villains, have aspirations to dominate the galaxy. The tool they plan to use in search of this goal is the Metroid. A large creature shaped roughly like a squid, Metroids have the capacity to completely destroy almost anything, making them the perfect weapon if they can be brought under control. As Samus, you will search miles and miles of the dangerous underworld of the planet Zebes, hunt down the Space Pirates and their leader, the Mother Brain, and destroy the Metroids, all while trying your damndest to stay alive. </blockquote>
Graphics: 9.0
<blockquote>The various areas below the surface of Zebes are large, well-detailed, and diverse in looks. They range from the cavernous Brinstar to the firey Norfair to the high-tech base of Mother Brain, Tourian. Mother Brain's henchmen Ridley and Kraid also have their own domains, one an almost-pleasant area flowered with shrubs, the other an awfully strange place. Each section has it's own graphical variations as well, which makes for a pleasant visual experience. Of the early NES games, this probably makes some of the best uses of the machine's limited color palette. It manages to be colorful without ruining the dark atmosphere.
Enemies are all over the place, so you can't help but notice that they look pretty good, all things considered. Of course there's some palette-swapping going on, but there is still a rather diverse assembly of critters who want you dead. For it's time the number of enemies, and the level of animation were pretty advanced, and it shows through that design was a strength of the developing team. There are only three bosses in the game, but all are large, well-animated, and properly dominate the scene. </blockquote>
Audio: 8.0
<blockquote>The music in Metroid is excellent, and there are some catchy tunes here that have become staples of the series for good reasons. The problem lies in the simply massive areas you're exploring: You're in one area for such a protracted period of time that the music, as good as it is, will repeat and repeat until you really do start getting tired of it, and you'll wish there was a larger selection of tunes to break the monotony, even if nothing more than slight variations. That of course would be restrictive, as cart size was precious, so that can't really count much against the score. The sound effects are pretty standard.</blockquote>
Gameplay: 9.5
<blockquote>To start with, Metroid is a very difficult game. It WILL kick your ass, no matter how good you think you are. Health is a rare commodity for a good long while, your initial weaponry is weak and there are hordes of nasty things out there who like nothing more than to see your yellow self go boom. Though the game is definitely above the average skill level, it isn't insanely difficult either, it is balanced well and the curve isn't too steep. This game does require you to be adventurous, and it requires you to both take some risks and to be imaginitive. There are tons of secrets, most of them vital to your success, and the game gives you absolutely no hints as to where you can find these hidden items. Therefore, you have to take it upon yourself to explore every nook and cranny, to look in the least obvious places and discover the secrets of the planet Zebes. In addition to your exploration, you'll be firing that trusty arm cannon quite often, which can be upgraded three times to three lethal new levels, and soon enough you'll be complementing that with missiles. There are also extra items that complement other aspects of Samus Aran, and allow for higher jumping, lava-walking, and using her own body as a weapon, and more.
You have a serious lack of health at the beginning, which forces you to take a crash course in avoidance and being dodgy, because until you find a few of the precious Energy Tanks, you simply cannot take damage unnecessarily. Even small, seemingly-harmless enemies can take you down with a few hits. Fortunately, upon death they drop health tabs and other goodies to keep you rocking, but even still, often times trying to kill an enemy for five points of health can end up costing you four times as much, so know what you're getting into before shooting at anything that moves.
To add to the fact that the underworld of Zebes is gigantic, you will have to map it by memory, because the game does not do it for you. You will have to learn to memorize landmarks to aid your navigation, and it is almost certain you will get lost a few times. It's fortunate that there is little in the way of backtracking involved.
To top it all off, you have one life to live. Lose that life and you are given a long password. This is your only means of continuing, as this was in the days when battery-saving was in it's infancy. That the password is so long is incentive enough not to die, although it is a good idea when you want to break from the game for awhile. Make sure you get it down though, because you get only one chance. Metroid is a game that shows no mercy. And fans wouldn't have it any other way.</blockquote>
Final Word
<blockquote>Metroid is a classic for many good reasons, and is a blast to play if the heavy challenge doesn't daunt you. Any self-respecting NES afficionado should have this game in their collection, without doubt. And lucky you, it was a common, popular game, so if you're not a total slouch, you can easily obtain a copy of this game on the cheap. And you should. Because you definitely will not regret it. </blockquote>
Platform: NES
Rating: 9.0/10
<blockquote>Metroid is one of the defining moments of the NES, at any point in it's life. It was the huge, non-linear, and difficult quest of Samus Aran, bountyhunter extraordinaire, who hunts a not-so-nice group of guys called Space Pirates, who, like any self-respecting villains, have aspirations to dominate the galaxy. The tool they plan to use in search of this goal is the Metroid. A large creature shaped roughly like a squid, Metroids have the capacity to completely destroy almost anything, making them the perfect weapon if they can be brought under control. As Samus, you will search miles and miles of the dangerous underworld of the planet Zebes, hunt down the Space Pirates and their leader, the Mother Brain, and destroy the Metroids, all while trying your damndest to stay alive. </blockquote>
Graphics: 9.0
<blockquote>The various areas below the surface of Zebes are large, well-detailed, and diverse in looks. They range from the cavernous Brinstar to the firey Norfair to the high-tech base of Mother Brain, Tourian. Mother Brain's henchmen Ridley and Kraid also have their own domains, one an almost-pleasant area flowered with shrubs, the other an awfully strange place. Each section has it's own graphical variations as well, which makes for a pleasant visual experience. Of the early NES games, this probably makes some of the best uses of the machine's limited color palette. It manages to be colorful without ruining the dark atmosphere.
Enemies are all over the place, so you can't help but notice that they look pretty good, all things considered. Of course there's some palette-swapping going on, but there is still a rather diverse assembly of critters who want you dead. For it's time the number of enemies, and the level of animation were pretty advanced, and it shows through that design was a strength of the developing team. There are only three bosses in the game, but all are large, well-animated, and properly dominate the scene. </blockquote>
Audio: 8.0
<blockquote>The music in Metroid is excellent, and there are some catchy tunes here that have become staples of the series for good reasons. The problem lies in the simply massive areas you're exploring: You're in one area for such a protracted period of time that the music, as good as it is, will repeat and repeat until you really do start getting tired of it, and you'll wish there was a larger selection of tunes to break the monotony, even if nothing more than slight variations. That of course would be restrictive, as cart size was precious, so that can't really count much against the score. The sound effects are pretty standard.</blockquote>
Gameplay: 9.5
<blockquote>To start with, Metroid is a very difficult game. It WILL kick your ass, no matter how good you think you are. Health is a rare commodity for a good long while, your initial weaponry is weak and there are hordes of nasty things out there who like nothing more than to see your yellow self go boom. Though the game is definitely above the average skill level, it isn't insanely difficult either, it is balanced well and the curve isn't too steep. This game does require you to be adventurous, and it requires you to both take some risks and to be imaginitive. There are tons of secrets, most of them vital to your success, and the game gives you absolutely no hints as to where you can find these hidden items. Therefore, you have to take it upon yourself to explore every nook and cranny, to look in the least obvious places and discover the secrets of the planet Zebes. In addition to your exploration, you'll be firing that trusty arm cannon quite often, which can be upgraded three times to three lethal new levels, and soon enough you'll be complementing that with missiles. There are also extra items that complement other aspects of Samus Aran, and allow for higher jumping, lava-walking, and using her own body as a weapon, and more.
You have a serious lack of health at the beginning, which forces you to take a crash course in avoidance and being dodgy, because until you find a few of the precious Energy Tanks, you simply cannot take damage unnecessarily. Even small, seemingly-harmless enemies can take you down with a few hits. Fortunately, upon death they drop health tabs and other goodies to keep you rocking, but even still, often times trying to kill an enemy for five points of health can end up costing you four times as much, so know what you're getting into before shooting at anything that moves.
To add to the fact that the underworld of Zebes is gigantic, you will have to map it by memory, because the game does not do it for you. You will have to learn to memorize landmarks to aid your navigation, and it is almost certain you will get lost a few times. It's fortunate that there is little in the way of backtracking involved.
To top it all off, you have one life to live. Lose that life and you are given a long password. This is your only means of continuing, as this was in the days when battery-saving was in it's infancy. That the password is so long is incentive enough not to die, although it is a good idea when you want to break from the game for awhile. Make sure you get it down though, because you get only one chance. Metroid is a game that shows no mercy. And fans wouldn't have it any other way.</blockquote>
Final Word
<blockquote>Metroid is a classic for many good reasons, and is a blast to play if the heavy challenge doesn't daunt you. Any self-respecting NES afficionado should have this game in their collection, without doubt. And lucky you, it was a common, popular game, so if you're not a total slouch, you can easily obtain a copy of this game on the cheap. And you should. Because you definitely will not regret it. </blockquote>