It's Metroid-obsession month on Nick's Vox so I'll share a nice article I ran across today. Here's a history of Metroid development which probably lends too much sympathy to the series based on "poorly timed releases" but a great read nonetheless.
Super Metroid is on the Wii virtual console as of last week and apparently is enticing enough for me to download it. I recall never actually being able to finish this game as a child even though I had the first couple levels as a walkthrough in some ancient game guide tome.
The 1994 mechanics are actually interesting to think about while playing because you'll be completely lost in this game unless you understand the concept of shooting and/or bombing every wall, ceiling and floor you see for ways to find other rooms. It's easy if you know this because you've got a constant flow of new places to go, one of which gives you a new item which you use to find other new places... you get the idea. Unfortunately, if you miss a location you have to backtrack and then it gets boring. I think this was my fate as a child playing this game.
The game itself is still pretty fun. It's obviously way dated in terms of graphics but I've been mulling over this idea that the post-realism-in-games era will return to games like this that forgo being ultra-immersive for a smooth, high-quality and ultimately more fun experience. I'd buy an HD version of Super Metroid for my 360 with a ton of weapons, 4x the map size and really slick animations. Wouldn't you?
My Groups
-
Voxaholic Updated: 42 minutes ago
-
The Academy of Fine Ideas Updated: 1 hour ago
-
Photography Updated: 2 hours ago
