Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Rating: 10
Platform: Wii
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Retro Studios
ESRB: Teen
(The captions say "Grand Finale" and "Shoot first; stare in awe at the level design later.")
With the current rise in popularity of games suited for a wide audience, there's been a lot of nervous speculation that core gamers looking for immersive graphics, a deep story, and an intense challenge might be left out in the cold. If Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is an indicator, all the doubting can stop now-the stunning visuals and immersive gameplay to the finale of the prime series proves that the Wii is ready for the mainstream gamer.
Built from scratch for the Wii, Corruption is possibly the first game that can't be confused graphically with the systems of the previous hardware generaton. But while Corruption showcases great lighting, special effects, and an unwavering frame rate, the real brilliance is the game's artistry. The locations, the enemies, objects of all sizes-the galaxy that bounty hunter Samus Aran patrols is absolutely stunning. No matter whether you're climbing along mossy cliff walls or wandering the halls of a steampunk-inspired, abandoned factory in the sky, you'll find extraordinary attention to detail everywhere you look. Space stations and ancient ruins are displayed with equal deftness-it's evident Retro's talented artists had a clear vision and were given the opportunity to execute it perfectly. Combined with excellent audio work and a stellar soundtrack, the experience is nothing short of completely immersive.
If you haven't been following along with the Prime series, don't worry; Corruption's storyline stands on its own just fine, although fans of the trilogy will also enjoy Corruption's continuity with the previous games' plots. Corruption takes place about six months after the end of Metroid Prime 2, and Samus must stop a computer virus from infecting the Galactic Federation's network, an act believed to be the work of the space pirates. Before she can hop into action, she gets infected with Phazon, a material that she can use to boost her strength for short periods of times, but that can also kill her if she's not careful. Armed with this new power, she must first save the network, then attack the space pirates head-on. To keep you on the right track between story moments, you'll be reminded occasionally of your next objective-considering the amount of freeroaming exploration you can do, the reminders come in handy.
As with the other Metroid (Prime) games, calling Corruption a first-person shooter is misleading-there's nearly as much adventure, puzzle-solving, and platforming as there is combat. The secret is flawless level design that allows for a lot of freedom to explore, but you always have the sense that you're in the right place at the right time, and you know when you've reached a dead end because you don't have the right equipment. The developers at Retro have the uncanny ability to maintain platforming elements from a first-person perspective like no other studio- you can jump across wide gaps with confidence and visualize a route through a sticky situation. Samus' new arsenal of weapons also integates smartly into the level design, as many of them serve secondary purpose for opening doors pr solving puzzles.
Since its introduction, gamers have seen great potential in the Wii remote as a a natural controller for first-person action games. But while several titles have pulled off the method adequately, Corruption is the first that doesn't leave any room for you to consider whether it would be different with a traditional controller. From shooting enemies to targeting grapple points to scanning artifacts into you logbook, the system works impeccably. You'll also use the Wii remote to manipulate devices, such as to insert an object into a wall by shoving the remote toward the screen, then cranking it clockwise to lock the object in place. You'll use the nunchuk's motion controls to latch onto objects to perform various tasks, such as ripping debris away from a door, or a shield off an enemy. When we tried these maneuvers earlier in production, the fely merely adequate-obvious refinements have now made this one of the most polished aspects of the game.
There will be murmurs about the lack of a multiplayer mode a rather light implementation of WiiConnect24-ignore them. Metroid has always been about quality single-player adventuring. To that end, Corruption exemplifies the Metroid experience better than any game before it. Deeply enjoyable and satisfying, this is the title that gamers have been waiting for."
