Game Review – Metroid: Other M (Wii)
by Grimman on Sep.17, 2010, under Nintendo Wii, Reviews
Metroid: Other M is the very first Metroid game with heavily emphasized story aspect, not to mention being the very first Metroid game that is played from third-person point of view. Did Nintendo and Team Ninja hit the home run with this game or should it be forgotten time and never be mentioned again? Let’s find out!
Story
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Other M takes place between the events of Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion. Weeks after destroying Mother Brain and planet Zebes, Samus receives a distress signal from a dormant space station known as the Bottle Ship. Samus goes to investigate the ship and runs into Galactic Federation troopers, one of them being her former superior commanding officer Adam Malkovich. Samus tags along with the GF troopers as they investigate what the hell is going on in the Bottle Ship. From there on, the story follows the paths of mystery, betrayal, drama and action.
The story aspect of Other M is not mind blowingly great. There is not really anything that we haven’t seen before when it comes to the plot. There are the basic betrayals and drama moments which have been done before. The story at least keeps you a little bit interested and you really want to know what is going on in the Bottle Ship. Samus’ back-story, which is partially explored through various flashbacks, is somewhat uninteresting and overdramatic.
Gameplay
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The gameplay aspect of Other M is probably the best aspect of the game. You control Samus in a true NES styled control scheme, i.e. holding the Wiimote sideways. Samus controls quite well with the D-pad and it almost feels like you are playing those good ol’ 2D Metroid games. There are some minor difficulties when, for example, you need to push a computer console or stand on a platform because you can’t really inch yourself forward using the D-pad. When you point the Wiimote at the screen, the game changes to first-person mode, allowing you to shoot missiles and explore the surroundings. There are some forced first-person parts where you need to locate some key element in your surroundings, which can be tedious if this element is small and blends into the surroundings.
When it comes to combat, you can just shoot away because the game uses auto-aim system. This is acceptable because aiming in third-person mode can be a little bit difficult. Switching to first-person mode during a heat of battle can be a little bit risky, but missiles do deal more damage and can make your fights less tedious. Samus can also perform special moves, such as Overblast and Lethal Strikes, which deal more damage and finishes off enemies. Shooting your way through enemies and performing these moves feels really satisfying.
Numerous items from previous Metroid games also make an appearance, like Speed Booster, Screw Attack and Space Jump. These items help you advance through the game, get items that were previously unreachable and of course they help you kill your enemies faster ( <3 Screw Attack ). It should be noted that in Other M you don’t actually lose any of your items: you need to wait for Adam to authorize them. Fear not! There is still plenty of missile and energy tanks for your item collecting pleasure!
The game isn’t that long. If only Nintendo would have cut some of the story aspects and added more gameplay, I would have been satisfied. More gameplay, less story/cutscene interruptions!
Graphics
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Metroid: Other M is truly one of the best looking games on the Wii, plus add to that the well-made CGI cutscenes, which may even rival some of the best CGI cutscenes from other games. When looking at the graphics, you can’t but help to think that some game developers are really not using Wii’s capabilities to its full potential.
Sound
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When it comes to sound, the music is not really that memorable. The music is more like “ambience music” where the music fits into the locations and notable moments of the game. Now this is also one of the very first Metroid games where the voice acting plays a heavy role in the game. Now we actually hear Samus talk.. a lot. Samus usually thinks about the current situation of the Bottle Ship, which is understandable, but when she starts talking about Adam and her past that she so much regrets, it can sometimes be a little bit annoying. Voice acting and dialog isn’t the worst I have heard, but it still could have been better.
Last Words
Overall, Metroid: Other M is a decent game that is worth checking out if you are a fan of the Metroid series or you are just looking for something new to try. It isn’t a masterpiece when compared to some of the previous Metroid games, but it still deserves to have its place on the Metroid timeline. Nintendo definitely took the risk of trying something different, which by no means turned out to be bad! It just needs some more tweaking.
