My Ten Favorite Nintendo Games - Entry 1

~Intro~

            It took me a long time to finish a selection of ten favorite Nintendo games. It was taking me even longer to list them in a top ten order. So, I decide to scrap ordering the ten I had chosen, and now will post simply my “Ten Favorite Nintendo Games”, in no order. I plan on doing one each week, along with one of my top ten favorite PC games (though I was able to order those).

            I’ll start my favorite Nintendo games with one that, were I to order the list, would certainly be in the top five if not the top three: Metroid Prime.

~Metroid Prime~

            Metroid Prime is one of a kind among Nintendo games. There is no other Nintendo game that offers solitary exploration and non-linear structure in a first-person perspective. Being a connoisseur of first-person games with adventure or role-playing elements  (System Shock, Thief) I have a special taste for the kind of game Prime is.

            Prime translates the Metroid game experience brilliantly. It perhaps is the most satisfying 2D to 3D translation of Nintendo’s, right alongside, if not ahead of, Super Mario 64. Much of the game’s structure and gameplay is Super Metroid through and through. The Prime-specific elements, such as scanning enemies and reading log entries, gives the game a flavor of its own, saving it from merely being just “a Super Metroid in 3D” (though that wouldn’t have been bad).

            Like most Nintendo games, the Metroid series takes gameplay traditions and dilutes them into simple and accessible mechanics. The first three Zelda games did this brilliantly, diluting the very complex dungeon-crawler experience of CRPGs into a more understandable design.

Metroid does this too. Samus is basically a role-playing game hero, leveling up and being able to do more and better because of this. But, instead of being built out of the D&D ruleset, Metroid is built on a simple design of finding new items that upgrade Samus, allowing her to explore more areas and defeat more enemies. Metroid Prime is a ‘Nintendo-take’ on games like System Shock 2. Samus’ beams are like keycards, and her items like RPG character upgrades, though they don’t cost cybernetic modules (and save stations don’t cost nanites). A Shock 2 comparison is a stretch, and I use it to illustrate that Nintendo’s games, like Metroid, are accessible hybrids of many gameplay designs.

Prime isn’t easy, but it is accessible. Despite this, there’s a lot going on in the background. There’s the beam, visor, and suit upgrades; the health and missile expansions; additional power-ups (morph-ball bombs, grapple beam); scans of creatures and objects; and log entries. I love the backstory that the log entries create. This is another element of Prime that can be compared to something from Shock 2, in this case Shock’s PDA audio logs.

Prime’s accessible yet complex gameplay is coupled with a well-crafted atmosphere. The music and visuals both make the game very aesthetically pleasing. The music’s role is made more important by how it builds up with additional layers as you progress, notably in the Tallon Overworld and Chozo Ruins sections. Visual effects with Samus’ visor, such as water droplets smearing down it, or her eyes reflecting in it when being hit by certain attacks, enrich the game’s flare.

Prime also allows players the satisfaction of feeling more and more powerful as they progress. As you first explore Tallon IV, you feel inadequate. You can’t blow up Benzium materials. You can’t grapple. Enemies take a lot of shots to defeat. But, before you know it, you’re blowing up every rock, swinging around like Donkey Kong, and melting enemies with the Plasma rifle. I love games that give you this feel of progression.

There are a couple things I dislike about Prime. One, first-person platforming is awkward, and in Prime there’s a lot of it. In most cases it isn’t done poorly, but there are a few instances where it is annoying to jump delicately from one platform to the next. Two, there are some ridiculous boss battles. These in themselves are not bad, but when they come out of the blue they halt the flow of gameplay and inspire frustration and woe. I think of Thardus and Omega Pirate. This is a nitpick more particular to me—I’m not fond of boss battles (except in JRPGs). Given how much I love exploring around in Prime, getting stuck at one big baddy grates on me.

However, any negatives I can think of with Prime are vastly outshined by the game’s positive qualities. The successful translation of the Metroid formula into 3D, the non-linear exploration and player upgrading, and the excellent sound and visuals make for one of the best Nintendo games ever made. I’d also call it the Gamecube’s best and one of the best ever.