This week represents a late summer perfect storm of video game release hype. With a series of massive releases hitting store shelves this week, including Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Lair, Blue Dragon and Warhawk, one can hardly believe this is August, not the middle of November.
Personally, the only thing on my “buy or die” list is Metroid Prime 3, but with Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix also hitting digital stores this week, I’m sure I’ll be plenty busy.
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii) Samus is back for another first-person adventure. One of Nintendo’s big three for 2007. Do want.
Lair (PS3) Factor 5′s dragon riding game may not be getting great reviews, but it sure is pretty.
Blue Dragon (Xbox 360) Sakaguchi and Microsoft are banking hard on this easy-on-the-eyes RPG.
Today I am a man. I spent a good two years watching Crecente unbox happy things at his palatial mountaintop abode with envy in my heart, and now, thanks to convenient GC 07 scheduling, it is my turn. *opens box, takes picture* There you go! Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, a T-shirt several sizes too small for me, and a lapel pin, to symbolise…I dunno, the guy Samus took to the prom. I’ll fool around with the game a bit in my very limited free time this evening, and maybe post some impressions tomorrow when you are all too busy buying the game to read them.
360 achievements are nice, sometimes, but they’re not really my cup of tea. Little too competitive for my liking. I would also have thought they were a little too competitive for Nintendo’s liking, but on that, I’m so wrong. Looks like MP3 will feature some kind of achievement system, where pulling off certain feats/tasks sees you awarded coloured tokens. Some of these tokens are for you (i.e. you use them to unlock hidden/extra stuff), but some are for you to send to friends (so they can unlock stuff).
It’s certainly different. And officially unconfirmed (this info all comes from a GameFAQs poster who apparently played the game at his local GameStop). But you can definitely see a blue token being awarded in this trailer (7:59), and the whole notion of a caring, sharing system of achievements instead of one centred around pissing contests is certainly more Nintendo’s style.
Interesting Metroid Prime 3 Feature [Go Nintendo]
The latest Metroid Prime 3: Corruption preview clips added to WiiWare in tandem with the latest Wii firmware update give us a better look at one potential returning Metroid staple. The “Aurora”—more commonly known as the Mother Brain to Metroid and Super Metroid fans—is heavily featured in one of the clips, indicating that a starring role (or at least a cameo) for the organic computer is more than likely.
What’s even more interesting is that we may even see multiple Auroras, as the narrator explains that the old school Tourian bitch is just one of many Mother and Father Brains. It’s confirmed: My interest in Metroid Prime 3 has never been so high.
For those without a Wii, still at work or stuck on an alien planet with only Internet access, here’s one of the new Metroid Prime 3: Corruption videos that’s available on the Wii. Impressions: the game is super fast, and seems only made faster by the free-aiming (lock-on) that Crecente dug back at E3.
My mindset: let this be good for those of use who grew tired of Wii Sports after 10 minutes and haven’t had much since. Metroid Prime 3 Bridge Battle Gameplay [gametrailers]
Heads up! Head over to the Wii Ware section on the Shopping Channel and download a totally free Metroid Prime 3: Corruption preview. After downloading, it becomes its own Wii Menu channel. It’s not a demo, but has trailers and other vids from the game. This kicks off a “Month of Metroid” for Nintendo with Metroid (available for 400 points) and Super Metroid (800 points) getting Virtual Console releases on August 13 and August 20th respectively. MP3: Corruption drops August 27th. Finally a reason to use the Wii again.
Thanks to all who sent this in!
With Metroid Prime 3: Corruption just a few short weeks away from release on the Wii, it looks like Nintendo is set to ramp up with hype with a pair of Virtual Console releases. Images for both Metroid for the NES and Super Metroid for the SNES have appeared on the VC web server and spotted by an eagle-eyed NeoGAF poster. Another image for Sega’s RPG Shining In The Darkness has also recently been added, indicating that it too may soon join the download service.
While the ESRB has yet to issue a rating for either Metroid title, usually a reliable measuring stick for what’s on deck, that doesn’t rule out a smart marketing move by Nintendo. Don’t be surprised if both show up next Monday or the following.