Community Review: Metroid: Other M

19 responses to “Community Review: Metroid: Other M”

1. 

   Chris Bobridge

   September 6, 2010 at 5:43 pm

   I’m pretty happy with it so far, though I’m only three or so hours in. It seems to mesh some references to the original with a new approach to a Metroid game.

   Reply
2. 

   Scruffy

   September 6, 2010 at 6:31 pm

   Just got the Varia suit, and the game is starting to test my patience… not because of the difficulty (it IS a Team Ninja game after all, and i’m finding it a bit harder than previous Metroids), but because Samus is now a whiny little brat with a daddy complex.
   Take the ability unlocking. Samus is fully powered, but won’t use her abilities until Daddy, sorry, Malkovich says so. When you’re running through a freakin’ volcano, constantly taking damage from the heat, why wait for a bloody rubber stamp to activate your heat-resistant suit!?
   Then there’s the tacked on first-person sections, the worst of which are the “You can’t progress until you lock on to the exact pixel we think you should look at, you know, the one we could have just shown you in a cut-scene” sections.
   In spite of my gripes, the game has had some highlights so far. Combat (in third person) is smooth and fun, and the finishing moves look kinda cool. It is interesting to see a Metroid game with an actual story, and to hear Samus speak. Which she does, at great length. The cut-scenes look good, and it’s great to see Nintendo do something different and try to freshen up a franchise instead of pumping out the same old material. However, i’m not yet sure if this experiment worked or not.

   Reply
   1. 

      Palstran

      September 6, 2010 at 7:26 pm

      What do you mean “interesting to see a Metroid game with an actual story”

      The way they told the previous stories through environment and gameplay was great. The abandoned space stations. Alien relics. Strange alien wildlife. I loved scanning things to find out more in metroid prime.

      Just because they don’t have the good guy and bad guy commentating everything doesn’t mean its not story telling

      Reply
      1. 

         Scruffy

         September 6, 2010 at 8:47 pm

         Whoops. I guess i meant a more conventional story, as in dialogue driven. Yes, previous Metroid games have told stories; in fact, i consider Super Metroids’ story to be one of the greatest stories ever told in a game. I meant it was interesting to see them go the other way, instead of letting the player dig around for the story , they go the usual video game/hollywood movie approach of shoving the story down your throat. “Actual” was a poor choice of word, i guess.
         And in “interesting” i don’t necessarily mean “better”. Just interesting to see what a Metroid game in that storytelling style would be like.

         Reply
         1. 

            Palstran

            September 7, 2010 at 12:01 pm

            Ohh.. thats ok then.

            Hope I didn’t get all up in your face. 🙂

            Reading all these posts I think its a must buy!

            Reply
   2. 

      Junglist

      September 7, 2010 at 1:06 am

      Haha, I had a similar reaction. Who is this guy telling me, an independent bounty hunter, what to do? Why do I need clearance to take less damage?

      I found the combat quite easy though due to the dodging. Holding 1 and rapidly tapping to the side dodges everything, and instantly charges your beam, which can be abused in pretty much every situation except for when a boss has an AoE attack.

      The story and boss fights really ramped up in the last 30% of the game IMO. Enjoy!

      Reply
3. 

   Palstran

   September 6, 2010 at 6:52 pm

   wow you work fast Junglist. 😉

   Looking forward to see what people think. I loved prime but missed the next two. might need to get the trilogy and other M all at the same time!!

   Has anyone seen a bargain price for other M?

   Reply
4. 

   WOJAus

   September 6, 2010 at 7:03 pm

   Why don’t you also keep posting the reader reviews?

   Reply
   1. 

      Junglist

      September 7, 2010 at 1:00 am

      Yep, I’ll definitely continue that.

      Reply
5. 

   Cerzel

   September 6, 2010 at 7:24 pm

   I’m still waiting for my copy to get here. Will update with impressions when it does.

   Reply
   1. 

      Cerzel

      September 11, 2010 at 6:06 pm

      So, my copy got here and I’ve been playing it a bit. I got up to after the fight with the dinosaur-like monster with the glowing green ball of weakpoint on its gut at the back, where you turn off the virtual reality machine thing.

      Let me preface this. I love Metroid. I’ve played every Metroid game, and aside from Echoes (which I dropped due to how much I disliked it) I have finished them all. Super, Zero Mission and Fusion I’ve gone through many times over. I love the series. The dark mood of the games, and the great exploration and gameplay. The amazing music. Fusion brought in a more involved story, and while it limited the player’s ability to sequence break, it was still a great game. Prime brought us a new way to play Metroid, and while it had its issues, it still retained that feeling. Prime 3 brought us other people to interact with. In some ways it did this well: Quick, short talks and mission objectives, and in other ways it did it poorly: Escort missions and severely limited progression. But it still felt like a good way to bring other people into the series, and felt like a Metroid game.

      Other M does not feel like a Metroid game. In the entire time I’ve played so far, there has not been a single path I could take that left the main one. Not one. There was one single room I could choose to take that was not my destination, and it quickly led me to a dead end, so I had to go back. The game has been 99.9% linear. There’s no sense of exploration. You just follow a simple path.
      The combat feels like what you’d get if you took Devil May Cry, gave only one shooting weapon, and context-sensetive melee attacks only. The dodging seems to happen all the time when you’re not even trying to dodge, and never when you are. The music has been entirely forgettable. The first-person gimmick is poorly done and irritating.

      And then there’s the story part of it. Let’s get Samus’ voice out of the way. It’s not that it doesn’t suit her. The voice itself isn’t too bad. It’s the voice actor. The delivery is just plain poor. Inflections in all the wrong places and flat, emotionless delivery.
      Now let me say this. Since when Fusion first came out, I was hoping we’d get a game exploring the deal with Adam. It sounded intensely interesting from what you learnt of it in that game. And so when Other M first got announced, I was thrilled to hear we’d get that story.
      So far, there’s been little. I can admit that much. But the presentation has been poor, and the consequences it has on the gameplay are ridiculous.
      Samus herself chooses at the start to not use bombs or missiles until Adam says so, in case she hurts his feelings or something. I know of how this system continues on, and it’s just insane. You can’t use weapons you have because Adam hasn’t given you the go-ahead. Never mind that from the very start it should be plainly obvious to him that your most heavy artillery will probably be needed.
      This is also why you’re forced down one path. At one point, I came to two doors. One was locked, the other was not. Long story short, you’re to go through the unlocked door, go through some more linear paths, to see a cutscene where Samus notes a dead body has been killed by something other than the last dead body she saw. Then you go back to that split, and Adam unlocks the door for you so you can get to your objective. Which was through that door all along.
      The handholding and railroading is infuriating.

      I won’t comment on Samus just yet, because I don’t think I’m far enough to have that great a handle on her character.
      But so far this game has been nothing but a disappointment. It’s disgusting to see Metroid fall to this.

      Reply
6. 

   David No.1

   September 6, 2010 at 8:21 pm

   I thought it was worth playing… and more! It’s an awesome Metroid game no matter what anyone says!

   Things that rocked my face off:
   -Fun through and through. Couldn’t stop playing.
   -Samus has character. I like it! She’s also pretty! 😉
   -Arguably best looking Wii game
   -Item searching, weapon upgrading.
   -Controls actually work. I was skeptical about this ‘only Wii-mote thing’

   Things that didn’t rock so much:
   -Only 3 sectors to explore?! The other 2 sectors dont even count….
   -Samus and her Daddy issues.
   -When the game just freezes and forces you to look for that ‘specific’ thing in fist person view. 15 minutes of wondering what to look for inst fun Nintendo!!!!

   For the record;
   I beat ‘the story’ in 9 hours with a 56% item completion rate and ‘cleared’ the game in 13 hours with a 100% completion rate. 🙂

   Reply
7. 

   YapoWapo

   September 6, 2010 at 9:14 pm

   I finished the game this morning and currently working through finding every item so here’s what I’ve thought of the game:

   At first, I think it takes some getting used to with the switching between perspectives, but at least for me, you get used to it after quickly. And surprisingly, it works well. I guess you can’t help but wish that you could move in that mode, but the 3rd person combat is absolutely awesome. After you get most of the powerups, essentially it becomes Sensemove after sensemove with a charge up shot of your beam but it just looks so awesome dodging enemies and bosses.

   The boss fights are amazing as well. I won’t spoil them for you, but there’s a couple in there that are probably some of my favourite, since the first time you fight Dark Samus.

   There’s heaps more I could say about this, but first of all, if you like Metroid, give this game a go. If you’re new to the series, give this game a go. I really loved it and see myself playing through it again – until Halo Reach comes out 😛

   Reply
8. 

   Cypher

   September 6, 2010 at 10:59 pm

   Dammit. Now I really do have to buy a Wii for it…..
   I love Metroid. I wish I was the Power Suit’s codpiece…
   Can you even call it a codpiece?
   😀

   Reply
9. 

   Irvyne

   September 6, 2010 at 11:13 pm

   This game is kinda confusing me… I’m a Metroid nut. I own every game in the series. (Except for that terrible “Prime Hunters” game on DS. I played that and sold it. It was awful… and I don’t consider it a real Metroid game)

   But this one… it’s weird. The graphics are beautiful, and it’s nice to see the world expanded, even if the acting is pretty terrible. But… I just can’t make myself love it. Which is a first for the series. (with the exception of the abovementioned game… let’s never speak of it again)

   It’s often frustratingly difficult. I think I’ve got more “Game Overs” in my few hours playing this, than I got in the entire Prime series. But whenever I die, I don’t say, “Ah well, one more go.” I’m much more inclined to yell at the T.V. and angrily turn off the Wii. When I do return to the game, it’s with a cautious, “All right, I’ll give it another try…” Not excited to jump into the boots of Samus Aran again. Just working towards getting through the game because, let’s be honest, I’m a Metroid nut. I feel like I’m contractually obliged to enjoy it.

   The constant change in perspective it weird, as well. Sometimes Samus is in quasi 2-D running mode. Sometimes she’s rooted to the spot while in first-person. To search around the room, this feature works fine. In battle, it’s terrible. Makes shooting missiles very awkward. Then there’s the times when the view suddenly switches to RE4-mode while Samus explores the space station toilets and such. Playing the Prime games, you begin to appreciate how absolutely seamless the switch between 1st- and 3rd-person perspective is. In Other M, it’s not seamless. It’s jarring.

   I’d hardly say I hate the game, I’m honestly enjoying it to some degree. But I’m not getting anywhere near the same sense of enjoyment or immersion I’ve got from any of the Cube, GameBoy Advance or Super Nintendo editions. And I haven’t finished it yet, so these are only really impressions of the first 5-6 hours.

   Reply
10. 

    Rick

    September 7, 2010 at 1:00 am

    Just finished the game yesterday. I decided to chop the game up into multiple sessions, that way, the game would last me longer. Summed up, the game is a good game, and I do recommend fans of the series to buy it. Is it better than super metroid? No, but you all ready knew that. Go in with an open mind and you will find that the game is better than good.

    What I liked:

    Difficulty- I hadn’t died this many times in a while. Feels refreshing after playing so many core nintendo games that have been too easy and should’ve been difficult.

    Story- Good story. I thought the cut scenes work great, and after the beginning, the story does get better so give it a chance. Again be open minded.

    Bosses- Some awesome bosses in this game. A few that you didn’t see coming. Some bosses are difficult, but I believe that fighting certain enemies are harder than any boss fight I played. Still, great stuff.

    Other- I really like how fast this game plays. Samus is fast and responsive. It just feels good moving around and shooting stuff. Good use of the upgrades and some new ideas on level design.

    What I didn’t like:

    World size- Yes this game takes place entirely on this damned ship. Wish the map was bigger, that would also make the game longer, too short in my opinion.Still a good game though.

    Upgrade system- I like some new implementations, and after finishing the game, the way things are unlocked is not so bad, and sorta makes sense, however, I prefer the ol’ school way, its more rewarding.

    Other- Yes, Samus’ issues are annoying, and somewhat embarrasing when they hit u with certain unexpected dialogues. almost makes you think if this game was made that way to appeal to evryone. Look however, get passed that first little bit, and I promise shes not that bad as the game progresses, and it gets better. Still, dont try this crap again nintendo, keep it real.

    Overall a good game. Metroid is my favorite game, Ive played them all. Been playing them since I was 7-8 and I gotta say i give this game an 8/10. This game is better than prime 3 and fusion for sure. Its either third or second best metroid game. Prime might be better than this, and super metroid is still the best metroid game out there. So check it out for yourself!

    Reply
    1. 

       Irvyne

       September 7, 2010 at 8:13 am

       Serious?? Better than Fusion?? Fusion would have to be my second-favourite Metroid game ever! (Behind, of course, the mighty Super Metroid… unbeatable)

       Reply
11. 

    Matt Reid

    September 7, 2010 at 12:37 pm

    Other M held my interest long enough to finish it and start the hard mode, but it is by no means a classic. The story isn’t compelling, the item system just plain sucks, and the length of the game was waaaaay too short.

    It’s not terrible, but it’s near the bottom of my list for favorite Metroid adventures so far.

    Shameless plug: http://www.metroidmetal.com 😉

    Reply
12. 

    Adam

    September 16, 2010 at 12:57 pm

    I just finished playing through the game today and I have to say… its not bad as a lot of people are making it seem. Sure it does have a few annoying little problems in it but there not so bad that u can’t get passed them, in fact i found it wasn’t difficult at all really. You do find yourselve shooting off screen at some points and the first person mode can be a little annoying because you’re stationary while using it and become very vulnerable “BUT” when playing through the game you should learn eventually when it’s a good time to use it. It would have been better if it was strictly a 3rd person game or at least give you the ability to use missiles while in 3rd person.

    Another problem is the length of the game. Over all it took me 8:39 hrs to complete (only 36% items) compared to the 14 hrs to complete each prime game. The story felt as if it was cut too short, there could have been a few more bosses using some of the main antagonists instead of finishing them abruptly.

    Although it has those issues, it does have it’s good points. It is extremely fast pace, the battles are very intense. The dialogue and CG is extremely good. I like that they actually put the story along with the gameplay instead of having to collect data on it. After beating the game you unlock a mode where you can watch all the cut scenes. I did so and it took 2 hours to complete the entire thing, while they had to skip around, it’s almost like watching a movie.

    OVERALL – 8.7/10 : Great

    Presentation – 9.5/10
    gameplay – 8.5/10
    lasting appeal – 7.6/10
    sound – 9.0/10
    graphics – 9.0/10

    Although it has its problems, it is a great game. I would recommend this too all metroid fans, but if you are the type that prefers gameplay and controls over story then this isn’t for you.

    Reply