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_Metroid Prime 4: everything we know so far_
/Samus is coming to Switch...eventually/
It was during its E3 2017 livestream that Nintendo announced Metroid
Prime 4 for Nintendo Switch with a logo and little else. No release
date, no developer information, no footage. Nothing.
To say fans were left hungry for details is an understatement; ten
years is a long time sans new Samus. A brand new Metroid Prime title
for the Switch is an exciting proposition - the Metroid Prime games,
released between 2002 and 2007, were critical gold for the GameCube
and Wii consoles; to see the series return on Nintendo’s most
successful console in years would be fitting.
However in January 2019 fans were disappointed to learn that Metroid
Prime 4 is now even further away as Nintendo scrapped the project and
decided to start again with the help of Retro Studios.
Regardless of the extra wait time, we're excited to see Metroid Prime
4 on the Nintendo Switch (whenever that will be). So here's
everything we know about Metroid Prime 4 on Switch so far.
*Cut to the chase*
• *What is it?*
A brand new Metroid Prime game
• *What can I play it on?*
Nintendo Switch
• *When can I play it?*
No release date just yet, but don’t expect it for a while
*Trailers*
Back at E3 2017, Nintendo released a first-look trailer for Metroid
Prime 4. Check it out below:
[see web-site...]
_News and rumors_
*Nintendo scrap Metroid Prime 4 and start again*
In a shock announcement back in January 2019, Nintendo revealed in a development update video that it scrapped the current project as it
wasn't happy with the current progress. However, Nintendo still plans
to reboot the project with help from original creators Retro Studios.
“This change will essentially mean restarting development from the
beginning, so completion of the game will be delayed from our initial
internal plan,” Nintendo's senior managing executive officer Shinya
Takahashi explains in the update video. “We strongly recognise that
this delay will come as a dissapointment to the many fans who have
been looking forward to the launch of Metroid Prime 4.”
You can watch the development update from Nintendo below:
[see web-site...]
*Bandai Namco developing Metroid Prime 4?*
After it was first announced, Nintendo did tell us one thing about
the developer of Metroid Prime 4 - Retro Studios, the studio behind
the original trilogy, wouldn't be working on it.
The developer was then a mystery, until a report from Eurogamer in
February 2018 stated that it was Bandai Namco working on the game.
With information from several anonymous sources, Eurogamer reports
that Metroid Prime 4 was initially being worked on by Bandai Namco
Singapore, before Bandai Namco Japan took the lead so that Singapore
can focus on another title.
Though nothing has been confirmed by Nintendo itself, this is a rumor
that’s been going around since fans started to piece together the
LinkedIn job descriptions on the pages of various Bandai Namco
Singapore staff.
*The story*
There’s so little Metroid Prime 4 information out there that piecing
together the story is nigh impossible. What we will say is that
Metroid Prime 3’s ending didn’t strike us as open enough for any kind
of direct continuation. Though Samus’ went into hyperspace, giving
the opportunity for a sequel to enter a new world or galaxy, we’d say
the core story of the original trilogy is now closed.
Back in 2015, Eurogamer interviewed series producer, Kensuke Tanabe,
who stated that “The stories of Dark Samus and Phazon are done”
adding that any new games in the series would focus on other
Prime-series elements.
Given that the game is not being created by Metro Studios, this is
likely to have an impact on the story or, the very least, the
direction of the franchise.
*Gameplay*
One thing we can be fairly confident in is that, like other Prime
games, Metroid Prime 4 is likely to be a first person shooter. Other
than that we can’t say what kind of gameplay changes will arise from
either the new developer, or the new Switch platform.
Coming in as a fresh start with a new developer, there’s actually
plenty of room for Metroid Prime 4 to innovate. Given The Legend of
Zelda and Super Mario franchises have embraced more open worlds, we
wonder if this is something that Nintendo will want to bring into the
Prime series, too.
It’s like that, like other Switch games, there will be optional
motion controls with the Joy-Cons - we’re imagining aiming, firing,
an environment scanning, for example.
_What we want to see_
*A more open world*
As we said above, this is a new start for Metroid Prime and a new
developer means room for changes. Though we’re worried it could be a
case of ‘be careful what you wish for’ we’d be interested to see the Metroid Prime games follow in the footsteps of Zelda and Mario to
embrace a more open-world format.
The first three titles were already pretty big, but the Switch offers
more scope. We think the Super Mario Odyssey approach of large
interconnected worlds could translate well. The Metroid series is
replete with interesting environments we’d love the chance to see
more of and the Switch is the console that has enough power to make
that possible.
*Be accessible*
Just as a new start with a new developer is a chance for innovation,
it's also a chance to welcome a new generation of Metroid fans. It's
the same with any series that goes on for a long time - there's a
certain amount of assumed knowledge and lore that makes coming in as
a new player feel more like a chore than a joy.
We'd love to see Metroid Prime 4 take a Monster Hunter: World
approach by retaining what makes it great while giving new players a
way in.
*New weapons and abilities*
The Metroid series has some seriously cool weapons and abilities for
Samus’s armor and we’d like to see more of them. By all means, bring
back the classics but bringing a couple of exciting new upgrades to
the table will make us feel like we’re truly progressing in the game
as well as the franchise as a whole.
*Make it feel like a true Switch game*
With its motion controls and HD Rumble, the Switch has more than its portability to help its games stand out. We'd love to see Metroid
Prime 4 make the most of them, though perhaps more of the HD Rumble
and less of the motion control.
Motion control could create some fun and interesting shooting and
environment scanning opportunities, but integrating HD Rumble into
puzzle solving or integrating it into combat situations to act as an
enemy alert would be interesting.
*Bring in Sylux*
Back in 2015, producer Kensuke Tanabe said that the ship at the end
of Metroid Prime 3 actually contained Sylux, a Hunter from Metroid
Prime: Hunters.
Tanabe said that he'd like to create a Metroid game which featured
both Sylux and Samus and explored their dynamic, something which we'd
also like to see happen; the characters have an unexplored and
potentially interesting history. It's known that Sylux isn't the
biggest fan for Samus or the Federation, yet he uses a Federation
weapon. That alone has us thinking he'd make an engaging villain for
a new title.
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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