Hardcore gamers wowed by the announcement of Super Mario Galaxy 2 at the Nintendo Media Briefing this morning better strap in for the next announcement. Nintendo is teaming with Team Ninja to create a brand new installment of the Metroid series for the Wii. Citing Team Ninja's "proven track record in the mature space" (Team Ninja is responsible for the Ninja Gaiden franchise), Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime is pleased to introduce a newer, darker look for Samus.
The trailer for Metroid: Other M shows off a huge action-oriented adventure with third-party views for epic fight scenes as well as some through-the-visor gameplay. In the teaser trailer, Samus is just tearing apart aliens and monsters with multiple weapons, including a winged beast the looks an awful lot like Ridley. (Really, once you see the trailer, you will realize you have never seen Samus like this; it's loaded with brutal action.) Fils-Aime also says the game will "take you deeper into Samus' story."
The partnership is an intriguing and promising step forward for not just Metroid, but Nintendo. Team Ninja is known for delivering seriously hardcore action. This is a recognition of the need to deliver core experiences for core gamers that have supported Nintendo in both fat and lean years.
Set between Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion, this action-tinted adventure for Wii promises to delve further into Samus's story and her relationship with the late commander for whom she named Fusion's AI, Adam Malkovich.
Yesterday's press conference was the first reveal of Other M, and all we've seen so far is a trailer. But what a trailer: A fan-oriented mystery that slowly unfolds to reveal itself as a Metroid game, then explodes into a flurry of colorful action.
You got your Ninja Gaiden in my Metroid! (You got your Metroid in my Ninja Gaiden.) As flashy and exciting as the trailer for Other M looks, many Metroid fans were left feeling ambivalent about the prospect of Team Ninja -- known for its violent, high-octane action games -- creating a new entry in the iconic Metroid series. The trailer shows lots of Ninja Gaiden influence, with anime-style cut-scenes, large 3D arenas for boss battles, and surprisingly brutal deathblows that show Samus grabbing an enemy's head, jamming her arm cannon into its face, and firing away. Then again, a team of Texans managed to turn the series into a first-person shooter and make it work, so who's to say this won't as well?
Shortly after the game's debut, I had the opportunity to speak with Other M's creators, Metroid co-creator Yoshio Sakamoto and Team Ninja head Yusuke Hayashi about their goals with this latest chapter in bounty hunter Samus Aran's story. In 30 minutes' time, my feelings on Other M shifted from ambivalent to ardent. Though much remains to be seen of Other M, it's clear that Sakamoto and Hayashi are working to ensure this adventure lives up to their fans' expectations.
1UP: If somebody had told me twenty years ago that Metroid and Ninja Gaiden would be teaming up, I don't think I would have believed it. How did you guys decide to get together to create Metroid: Other M?
Yoshio Sakamoto: My team is actually part of the handheld Metroid side, separate from Metroid Prime. So, when the Wii came out, it was my desire to create a Metroid game for this new console. But our roots were in the handheld -- more of the 2D realm. When we were thinking of different concepts and ideas that we could make into reality with this new Metroid, we realized that we didn't actually have the know-how to produce something that was 3D.
It wasn't that I didn't think my team was up to the challenge, I just wanted to find the perfect partner to help make that a reality. So after consulting with Nintendo, I decided to approach Tecmo and Team Ninja with that proposal. I'm very grateful that Team Ninja accepted. I'll let Mr. Hayashi continue with the story.
Yusuke Hayashi: Team Ninja has always tried to push the limits of the 3D action genre -- tried to make the ultimate experience for the player. When Mr. Sakamoto approached Team Ninja and me, we saw it as a new challenge that we'd like to take on. We felt it was a natural progression and definitely a challenge, but something we'd like to take on and something that would be beneficial for everyone. That's why I decided to accept the proposal.
Also, on the Team Ninja side, there are a lot of Metroid fans!
1UP: When I think of the two series, they seem very different. Metroid is very slow, methodical, exploratory, while Ninja Gaiden is very fast, violent, and action-oriented. How do you reconcile those two and create something that takes advantage of your strengths, but still feels like a Metroid game?
YH: We want to try and take the best of both. As you progress through the game, there will be more action-oriented, faster-paced sequences. But then you'll have your careful, exploratory parts of the story as well. We actually used it to our advantage to try and marry the two concepts together.
YS: When I brought the proposal to Team Ninja, I had no idea what their response would be. As we progressed through development, of course there were differences of opinion, but we were able to work through those and ultimately create something that's better than either of us could have expected. It's been a really collaborative, creative process, and I feel that the result is something that's very positive.
1UP: What most people love about Metroid is that it offers a huge, open world. It's non-linear, there's so much to explore, and you can move about at your own pace. Is that something you're going to be retaining for this game, or is it going to be more of a linear, level by level progression?
YS: If you think about this one as being maybe similar to Metroid Fusion, then I think you'll have an idea of how the story will play out. It's still linear in the sense that there's a progression, but there are side areas that players can go into. It will retain that true, Metroid feel.
1UP: Team Ninja is known for their cinematics and storytelling. Is that something that will factor in heavily?
YS: As I mentioned before, it's kind of similar to Fusion in that there's an overarching story that the player will experience as they progress through the game. It is a game, but within it is a larger story that will unfold as the player progresses.
1UP: So is this being positioned as a spinoff game? Or is it really the next game in the series -- Metroid 5?
YS: It's part of the flow, storywise, between Super Metroid and Fusion.
1UP: When I saw the trailer this morning, I knew it was Metroid as soon as I heard, "Any objections, Lady?" which I recognized from Fusion. Will Other M delve into Fusion's backstory and Samus's relationship with Adam?
YS: Yes, it will reveal a little of Samus' backstory and also what happened between Super Metroid and Fusion. In Fusion, Adam was no longer there, so it'll explain what happened.
1UP: There was another character who seemed to be a...bounty hunter, maybe? Can you talk about his role?
YS: He's a Galactic Federation Soldier. He's one of Adam's soldiers.
1UP: The Metroid series chronology has become pretty long and complicated with the Prime games and the games you've created directly. Are you taking into account all the titles that have come before, or are you sticking to the story that you, as R&D1, have developed?
YS: Actually, the Prime games are just one incident within the greater story that I've worked on personally. It's not as if I was really thinking about how the Prime games fit into the sequence because, they were just one incident. But Other M will be more part of the R&D1 produced games. Maybe in "grand scheme" it would be around...3.5.
1UP: Ah okay, Super Metroid And A Half. What is the "Other M" in the subtitle?
YS: Other M has several meanings. As the story unfolds, those meanings should gradually reveal themselves.
1UP: I noticed that at the end of the trailer there appeared to be another Samus. What role does she play?
YS: She's not actually a second Samus, but she's a very, very important character within the game.
1UP: Ninja Gaiden has a reputation for being extremely difficult, and while Metroid has been difficult, it doesn't pride itself on breaking players. Do you intend it to create a challenging Metroid, or will you go easy on us?
YH: Our goal isn't to make something that will break players. It's for Metroid fans and new players alike, so we're not taking the same approach as with Ninja Gaiden.
1UP: Mr. Sakamoto, you've mentioned a few times that your expertise and experience lie with handhelds. So, why is this a Wii game? Will we see a more traditional Metroid on DS or a future handheld system at some point?
YS: Each platform has different things to offer to the player. And because this game is being developed for the Wii, it offers things that cannot be done on the DS. I can't say whether there will or won't be a portable title, but, if we were to create something for a handheld system, it would definitely include features that couldn't be done in Other M, and vice versa.
YS: We have three companies collaborating on this game; a team we've dubbed Project M. With Nintendo, Team Ninja, and another company that's focusing on the cinematics working together, we've broken down the walls that define each company and joined forces to form a separate entity. It's unlike anything that's ever been done at Nintendo; It's more than just a collaborative effort -- it's one group working toward a common goal.
well NES metroid came out in 1986, and the gameboy metroid II game out in 92. ...actually, the gameboy didn't even come out until 1988. so, while it's not impossible, i doubt they were thinking of that at the time.
if anything, i'd bet it was either referring to the player going through the game a second time, or just a shit translation (i.e; "space may be invaded one day by another metroid")
i'm just thinking that maybe "another m" is a play on that ending screen.
I'm still not sure about this game yet. When Itigaki left team ninja he took a lot of them with him. It not being a first person game is also a minus for me since the Prime games did it so well. This one might have been better if it was made before the Prime trilogy.
November 6th, 2012: Americas new Independence Day.
looks purdy. cool use of the controller, flipped back and forth for vantage point.
i loved the prime series, but i also love the retro 2D style. plus, the japanese hated the prime series, so this (along with the brajillion expected video cut scenes) is sure to make them rearry happy!
