Developer(s) – Nintendo R&D1 & Intelligent Systems
Publisher(s) – Nintendo
Director(s) – Yoshio Sakamoto
Producer(s) – Makoto Kano
PEGI – 7
Released in 1994 coming up to the twilight years of the Super NES, and finding critical acclaim worldwide and commercial acclaim mainly in North America, Super Metroid is considered to be one of the most influential games of all time. Along with Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, it helped to pioneer the so-called Metroidvania genre of games. The 2D side-scrolling open-world experience focused on combat, epic story, and exploration. I decided that as I’ve now reviewed a great number of games in the genre, I’d examine the game where the groundwork was laid. And find out whether or not the experience still holds up to this day, and for me, it did not disappoint.
Graphics – 10/10
One of the standout features of the game is undoubtedly its beautifully crafter 16-BIT visuals with the game taking place across a number of locations that have since become iconic and synonymous with the Super NES era. Including Brinstar, Norfair, and Maridia. This game’s visuals have gone on to inspire a number of retroactive indie titles over the last decade such as Blasphemous and Axiom Verge, and not just Metroidvania titles. For the time, these graphics were revolutionary. And the accompanying soundtrack, composed by Kenji Yamamoto and Minako Hamano, perfectly compliments the wonderfully horrific atmosphere this game perpetuates throughout, which in and of itself, was very much out of character for a Nintendo game at the time, as most Super NES titles, for the most part, focused on happy-sounding music and brightly colored environments.
Gameplay – 8/10
Super Metroid followed the basic model of the original Metroid but with drastic improvements. Players could now combine different types of weapons to create more powerful ones. And the boss fights littered throughout are far better. There’s even more cause for exploration than in the original game or Metroid 2: Return of Samus. And it also comes with the synonymous Metroidvania map system. Something which was sorely lacking from the previous two games. And something that every other Metroidvania title would adopt in increasingly innovative forms from then on. Few side scrollers at the time encouraged exploration to the extent that this game did. And it was a welcome breath of fresh air for those who got the chance to play it back in the day.
Controls – 8/10
The game’s control scheme, however, isn’t perfect. Whilst most Super NES games used the Y and B buttons for attack for primary movement and combat controls, this game uses the X and A buttons for that purpose. And among Super NES fans, this will have caused some confusion for players back when it was released. And can still potentially cause confusion for modern-day players looking to play it for the first time. As indeed I found, since I wasn’t introduced to this game back when it was released. Kind of like Metroid Prime, it can take a bit of time for players to get used to initially. What the developers did add in terms of controls, however, was the facility to shoot diagonally. Which again, was sorely lacking from the original games, and furthermore included in the re-release of the first. Metroid: Zero Mission for the Game Boy Advance.
Lifespan – 7/10
A thorough playthrough of the game can take an average of around 4 hours. Which is about an exceptionally long amount of time for a game to have lasted back in the days of the Super NES. Although the game can be completed within half an hour (indeed, as this title has become particularly popular among speedrunners), it’s not a game that’s designed to be rushed through. And whilst it may sound like a paltry amount of time for a game to last compared to what gamers are used to these days, it was relatively unheard of at the time. And most fans of the game have ended up playing it multiple times throughout the years anyway.
Storyline – 7/10
Taking place in the latter stages of the Metroid timeline, the alien lifeform (the Metroid) that bounty hunter Samus Aran had recovered from planet SR388 at the end of Metroid 2: Return of Samus had been delivered to a research facility by her for further study. But shortly thereafter, the space station is attacked by the leader of the Space Pirates, Ridley. Who then captures the Metroid specimen. And takes it to the nearby planet Zebes, and Samus is in pursuit of him.
The game is also a lot more cinematic than games of the previous generation. The game’s opening cutscene, in particular, has become an iconic moment in Super NES history. It’s also among one of the earliest examples of how gameplay sequences can be used to build up tension within the confines of the story. As there are sequences whereby Samus must escape from certain places within a designated time limit before it explodes.
Originality – 10/10
There is no understating how unique and influential this game was back in the day. Any game from which an entire genre is created stands out as being among the most influential of all time. Doom gave birth to the first-person shooting genre, Rogue paved the way for the Roguelike genre. And Super Metroid was the primary pioneer of the Metroidvania genre. Even Castlevania: Symphony of the Night adopted several gameplay elements that this game had first.
Happii
In summation, as well as being one of the most influential video games of all time, Super Metroid also stands out as one of the best titles on the Super NES. And is an experience that still holds up and one that I would highly recommend. Regardless of the issues, I may have had with the controls, the immersive gameplay, wonderfully rendered graphics, and engrossing story more than make up for it.