Metroid Prime 4: Beyond this is probably my most anticipated game to date, but that's despite Nintendo's marketing efforts. Early reviews simply didn't paint the picture of the sequel fans have been waiting nearly 20 years for, but today Nintendo finally unveiled a trailer that puts everything that's truly great about the Metroid series into focus.
The new trailer repeats several shots we've seen in previous previews, but we can also see new locations, enemies, and abilities. We see Samus overlook imposing fortresses, explore vast worlds and underground catacombs, battle strange alien enemies and use powers to reach new locations, all with a sense of mystery and intrigue hanging over the entire adventure. He even has a mid-fight scan!
In other words, we finally have a trailer that seems to understand why people love Metroid. I'm probably reading too much into the marketing, but the first few trailers since the game's re-launch just didn't seem to capture the atmosphere. First we got narrative view Covering the absolute basics, which I think was a fair enough introduction for potential new fans, but there wasn't much to grab hold of.
But the real problem was the September trailer, which showed off a lot of weak-looking action and unsettling focus on a bicycle roaming an apparently open world. Today's trailer corrects the shortcomings of this bike, making Samus's ride look as badass as it should, with the obligatory Akira slide to bring it all together.
Whether Prime 4 can survive nearly two decades of hype remains to be seen, but this trailer brought my inner 14-year-old Metroid fan back to the screaming levels it first inspired a look at that big space battle in May. We'll soon find out if Nintendo and Retro can succeed.
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