| Metroid: Zero Mission | |
|---|---|
.jpg) North American box art | |
| Developer | Nintendo R&D1 |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Director | Yoshio Sakamoto |
| Producer | Takehiro Izushi |
| Designers |
|
| Artist | Hiroji Kiyotake |
| Writer | Yoshio Sakamoto |
| Composers |
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| Series | Metroid |
| Platform | Game Boy Advance |
| Release | |
| Genre | Action-adventure |
| Mode | Single-player |
Metroid: Zero Mission[a] is a 2004action-adventure game developed and published byNintendo for theGame Boy Advance. It is aremake of the originalMetroid (1986), with updated visuals and gameplay.
Like otherMetroid games, the player controls the bounty hunterSamus Aran. Samus travels to the planet Zebes after learning that theSpace Pirates are experimenting withMetroids, hostile parasitic creatures, which they plan to use to take over the universe. The gameplay focuses on exploration, with the player searching forpower-ups to reach previously inaccessible areas. The remake adds items, additional areas, mini-bosses,difficulty levels and a rewritten story that explores Samus's past.
Zero Mission received praise for its new content, graphics, gameplay and improvements over the original, but criticism for its short length.Nintendo Power named it one of the best Nintendo games. It was named the best Game Boy Advance game byGameSpot and the ninth-best byIGN.
As of February 2025,Zero Mission had sold over 439,000 copies in the United States and 69,000 in Japan. It was rereleased on theVirtual Console service forWii U and theNintendo Classics service forNintendo Switch.
Metroid: Zero Mission takes place on Planet Zebes, a large,open-ended world with areas connected by doors and elevators. The player controlsSamus Aran as she travels through the planet's caverns and environments, hunting Space Pirates. Along the way, the player collectspower-ups that enhance Samus's armor and weaponry, as well as grant her special abilities. These abilities allow Samus to access previously inaccessible areas,[1] so that the game can be played linearly or non-linearly. For example, the player may come across caverns that bypass certain sections, a method termedsequence breaking. To save their progress, players can enter either Save Rooms or Samus's ship on Crateria. As a remake ofMetroid,Metroid: Zero Mission's layout bears a resemblance to the original, and various powerups and items make reappearances from previous games in the series, with similar uses, effects, and appearances,[1] but it adds items, areas, andmini-bosses,[2] as well as a new area named Chozodia.[1]
Zero Mission is the firstMetroid game to include a sequence in which the player controls Samus without her Power Suit. In this sequence, Samus is more vulnerable to damage, must crawl through ducts on her hands and knees without her Morph Ball mode, and her only weapon is a weak pistol that briefly stuns enemies. Samus retains all energy tanks she acquired previously.[3]
Completing the game unlocks anemulated version of the originalMetroid.Zero Mission allows players to unlock theMetroid Fusion picture gallery by linking betweenZero Mission andFusion cartridges via theGame Boy Advance Game Link Cable.[1]
| Metroid | |||
| Story chronology | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main series inbold, remakes in parentheses | |||
| [4][5][6] | |||
Space Pirates attack a Galactic Federation-owned spaceresearch vessel and seize samples of Metroid creatures. Dangerous floating organisms, Metroids can latch on to any organism and drain its life energy to kill it. The Space Pirates plan to replicate Metroids by exposing them tobeta rays and use the Metroids as biological weapons to destroy all living beings that oppose them. While searching for the stolen Metroids, the Galactic Federation locates the Space Pirates' base of operations on the planet Zebes. The Federation assaults the planet, but the Pirates resist, forcing the Federation to retreat. As a last resort, the Federation decides to send a lone bounty hunter to penetrate the Pirates' base and destroyMother Brain, the mechanical life-form that controls the Space Pirates' fortress and its defenses. Considered the greatest of all bounty hunters,Samus Aran is chosen for the mission.[1]
Samus lands on the surface of Zebes and explores the planet, traveling through the planet's caverns.[1] She comes across Kraid, an ally of the Space Pirates, andRidley, the Space Pirates' commander, and defeats them both. Samus finds and destroys Mother Brain. While Samus leaves the planet in her ship, it is attacked by Space Pirates, causing it to crash back onto Zebes, near the Space Pirate Mothership.[7] With both her ship and Power Suit destroyed, Samus infiltrates the Mothership, leading her to Chozodia, where a Chozo Statue offers her a trial. Upon passing the trial, Samus is rewarded with a new fully upgraded Power Suit. Continuing to explore the Mothership, Samus reaches the Mecha Ridley,[8] a robot built in the likeness of Ridley. After defeating it, Samus escapes the planet using one of the Space Pirate's shuttles, while the Mothership self-destructs.[7]
Metroid: Zero Mission was directed byYoshio Sakamoto, who had worked on everyMetroid game butMetroid II: Return of Samus (1991).[9] He was the only member of the originalMetroid (1986) team to work onZero Mission.[10] While working on the concept for the nextMetroid game afterMetroid Fusion (2002),[10] one of the developers suggested portingSuper Metroid (1994) to theGame Boy Advance, but Sakamoto decided to port the originalMetroid instead.[11] The development team decided to return to the roots ofMetroid gameplay by creating a game based on the NES original. Sakamoto, noting thatFusion's gameplay and structure were drastically different from previous games, wanted to "show people who had never played aMetroid game prior toFusion, the roots of theMetroid franchise, that this is whatMetroid is, this is the style of gameplay that Metroid sprang from [...] at the same time, retell the story of Samus's original mission".[10]
The team originally used a cuter visual style to evoke the original NES graphics, but reverted to a more realistic style after Nintendo of America said it would harm sales.[12] One of the biggest challenges that the developers faced was adding enough elements to makeZero Mission feel new, while keeping the spirit of the originalMetroid.Zero Mission uses a rebuilt version of thegame engine used forFusion.[10]Metroid Fusion had offered connectivity withMetroid Prime on theGameCube, andZero Mission was planned to offer similar functionality withMetroid Prime 2: Echoes, but these plans fell through. Sakamoto explained that because there was not enough development time forZero Mission, compounded by the fact that both of their release dates were too far apart, the team was prevented from doing so. They did, however, manage to include the ability forFusion to connect withZero Mission.[9]
Zero Mission introduces cinematics to push the story forward. Sakamoto believed in the importance of having a story to complement a game. He found it particularly difficult to convey the plot in a way that the player can understand, because of the sparse use of dialogue in theMetroid series. The story forMetroid: Zero Mission was rewritten to explore Samus Aran's backstory more than in the originalMetroid. Cinematics are used to show Samus' memories to move the story forward and to keep the plot open for interpretation. Sakamoto said this was intended to expand the original story while retaining some mystery. The game is the first in the series to let the player choose adifficulty level at the start; each of three levels varies in the amount of damage caused by enemies with the third option only unlocked after finishing the campaign once.[10] The battle withMother Brain marked the end of the originalMetroid, butZero Mission offers an extra story segment featuring Samus in her blue Zero Suit.[9]
Nintendo revealedMetroid: Zero Mission at theE3 convention in 2003.[13] It was released in North America on February 9, 2004,[14] in Australia on March 19,[15] in Europe on April 8,[16] and in Japan on May 27.[17]Zero Mission was the best-selling Game Boy Advance game in the United States in its debut month, selling 151,807 units, and was the third-bestselling game across all video game systems in that month.[18] By May, sales dropped to seventh among Game Boy Advance games, with 31,619 copies sold and $938,681 in revenue.[19] By February 2005, it had sold over 439,000 units in the United States and 69,000 in Japan.[20]Zero Mission was released on theWii UVirtual Console in Japan on June 19, 2014.[21] This was followed by the release in Europe on March 12, 2015,[22] and in North America on January 14, 2016.[23] It was released for theNintendo Classics service forNintendo Switch on June 19, 2024.[24]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | 90.19%[36] |
| Metacritic | 89/100[37] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| 1Up.com | A[25] |
| Eurogamer | 9/10[26] |
| Famitsu | 34/40[27] |
| Game Informer | 9.5/10[28] |
| GamePro |  [29] |
| GameSpot | 8.5/10[2] |
| GameSpy |  [32] |
| GamesRadar+ | 89%[31] |
| GameZone | 9/10[30] |
| IGN | 9/10[33] |
| Nintendo World Report | 9.5/10[34] |
| X-Play | [35] |
Metroid: Zero Mission received "generally favorable reviews", according toMetacritic.[37] Several reviews named it one of the bestGame Boy Advance games. The Japanese magazineFamitsu gave it a score of 34 out of 40.[17]X-Play andGamePro enjoyed the game;X-Play said it was "perfect for blasting space pirates on the go",[35] andGamePro was "constantly surprised" by it.[29]GameZone said it surpassed the "style and addictive action" ofMetroid Fusion.[30]Nintendo World Report called the game a masterpiece and the perfect example of aMetroid game, saying it mixed all the best elements from the other games and layered them on top of the originalMetroid level design and concepts.[34]Eurogamer appreciated every minute of the game and said it was one of the best games for the Game Boy Advance.[26]
A number of reviews were pleased with the content added toZero Mission.Game Informer appreciated the new material, and believed that fans of theMetroid series would "absolutely adore"Zero Mission, which they considered one of the greatest games in history.[28]1UP.com consideredZero Mission one of the "most ambitious, comprehensive and successful" remakes for a game such asMetroid, feeling it expanded on its source material with refined control, gameplay ideas retrofitted from its sequels, new plot elements for later games, and innovations which add complexity to the series.[25]
Criticism focused on the short length.IGN feltZero Mission said it "looks, sounds, and plays absolutely wonderfully", but was too short and too easy.[33]Eurogamer was also critical of the length.GamesRadar liked the game but felt it should have been longer.[26]GameSpot was disappointed with the length, but blamed the captivating quality that compelled them to complete the game in a few sittings.[2]GameSpy saidZero Mission was "stale" and that players less familiar withMetroid games would get more enjoyment from it.[32]
Nintendo Power namedZero Mission the 46th-best game for any Nintendo system in 2006.[38] In their March 2010 issue, they namedZero Mission the eighth-best game released on a Nintendo console in 2010s.[39]Zero Mission was votedIGN's Game Boy Advance Game of the Month for February 2004,[40] andIGN staff named it the best Game Boy adventure game of 2004[41] and the ninth-best Game Boy Advance Game.[42]GameSpot also named it the best Game Boy Advance game of February 2004,[43] and nominated it for the year-end "Best Game Boy Advance Game" award.[44]Electronic Gaming Monthly also named it the best handheld game of 2004.[45] During the8th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, theAcademy of Interactive Arts & Sciences namedZero Mission "Handheld Game of the Year".[46] In 2009,Official Nintendo Magazine ranked the 94th-best Nintendo game.[47]Nintendo Power ranked it the best Game Boy Advance game in its August 2011 issue.[48] In 2020,IGN namedZero Mission the fifth-greatest video game remake.[49]
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