| Metroid | |
|---|---|
 North American NES box art | |
| Developers | |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Director | Satoru Okada |
| Producer | Gunpei Yokoi |
| Programmers |
|
| Artists |
|
| Writer | Makoto Kano |
| Composer | Hirokazu Tanaka |
| Series | Metroid |
| Platforms | Famicom Disk System,arcade,NES,Game Boy Advance |
| Release | |
| Genres | Action-adventure,platform,Metroidvania |
| Mode | Single-player |
| Arcade system | PlayChoice-10 |
Metroid[a] is a 1986action-adventure game developed and published byNintendo. The first installment in theMetroid series, it was originally released in Japan for theFamily Computer Disk System in August 1986. North America received a release in August 1987 on theNintendo Entertainment System, with the European release following in January 1988. Set on the planet Zebes, the story followsSamus Aran as she attempts to retrieve the predatoryMetroid organisms that were stolen bySpace Pirates, who plan to replicate the Metroids by exposing them tobeta rays and then use them as biological weapons to destroy Samus and all who oppose them.
The game was developed byNintendo Research & Development 1 (Nintendo R&D1) andIntelligent Systems. It was produced byGunpei Yokoi, directed by Satoru Okada and Masao Yamamoto, and scored byHirokazu Tanaka. It pioneered theMetroidvania genre, focusing on exploration and searching for power-ups used to reach previously inaccessible areas. Its varied endings for fast completion times made it an early popular title forspeedrunning. It was also lauded for being one of the first video games to showcase a female protagonist.
Metroid was both a critical and commercial success. Reviewers praised its graphics, soundtrack, and tight controls.Nintendo Power ranked it 11th on their list of the best games for aNintendo console. On Top 100 Games lists, it was ranked 7th byGame Informer and 69th byElectronic Gaming Monthly. The game has been rereleased multiple times onto other Nintendo systems, such as theGame Boy Advance in 2004, theWii,Wii U and3DS via theVirtual Console service, and theNintendo Switch via theNintendo Classics service. An enhancedremake ofMetroid featuring updated visuals and gameplay,Metroid: Zero Mission, was released for the Game Boy Advance in 2004.
Metroid is anaction-adventure game in which the player controlsSamus Aran insprite-renderedtwo-dimensional landscapes.[1][2][3] The game takes place on the planet Zebes, a large,open-ended world with areas connected by doors and elevators. The player controls Samus as she travels through the planet's caverns and hunts Space Pirates. She begins with a weak power beam as her only weapon, and with only the ability to jump. The player explores more areas and collects power-ups that grant Samus special abilities and enhance her armor and weaponry, allowing her to enter areas that were previously inaccessible. Among the power-ups that are included in the game are the Morph Ball, which allows Samus to curl into a ball to roll into tunnels; the Bomb, which can only be used while in ball form and can open hidden floor/wall paths; and the Screw Attack, asomersaulting move that destroys enemies in its path.[2][3]
In addition to common enemies, Samus encounters twobosses, Kraid and Ridley, whom she must defeat in order to progress. Ordinary enemies typically yield additional energy or ammunition when destroyed, and the player can increase Samus's carrying capacities by finding storage tanks and defeating bosses. Once Kraid and Ridley have both been defeated, the player can shoot their statues to open the path to the final area and confront theMother Brain.[2][3]
| Metroid | |||
| Story chronology | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main series inbold, remakes in parentheses | |||
| [4][5] | |||
In the year 20X5, theSpace Pirates attack a Galactic Federation-owned space research vessel and seize samples ofMetroid creatures—the predatory lifeforms discovered on the planet SR388. Dangerous floating organisms, the Metroids can latch on to any organism and drain itslife energy to kill it. The Space Pirates plan to replicate Metroids by exposing them tobeta rays and then using them 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.[2][3]
As a last resort, the Federation decides to send a lone bounty hunter to penetrate the Pirates' base and destroyMother Brain, the biomechanical 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.[2] Samus lands her gunship on the surface of Zebes and explores the planet, traveling through the planet's caverns, finding upgrades such as missiles, bombs, energy tanks, the Maru Mari, Screw Attack, and Ice Beam, and uses these weapons to dispatch the alien creatures who get in her way. She comes acrossKraid, an ally of the Space Pirates, andRidley, the Space Pirates' commander, and defeats them both. Eventually, Samus kills the Metroids, and finds and destroys Mother Brain.[3] A timed bomb goes off to destroy the lair and Samus is able to escape before it explodes.[6]
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AfterNintendo's release of commercially successfulplatforming games in the 1980s, includingDonkey Kong (1981),Ice Climber (1985),Super Mario Bros. (1985), and the critically acclaimedadventure gameThe Legend of Zelda (1986), the company began work on anaction game.[7] The word "Metroid" is aportmanteau of the words "metro" and "android".[8][9] It was co-developed by Nintendo'sResearch and Development 1 division andIntelligent Systems, and produced byGunpei Yokoi.[10][11][9]Metroid was directed by Satoru Okada and Masao Yamamoto (credited as "Yamamoto"), and featured music written byHirokazu Tanaka (credited as "Hip Tanaka").[9][12] The scenario was created byMakoto Kano (credited with his last name), and character design was done byHiroji Kiyotake (credited with his last name), Hirofumi Matsuoka (credited as "New Matsuoka"), andYoshio Sakamoto (credited as "Shikamoto").[9] The character design for Samus Aran was created by Kiyotake.[13][14]
The production was described as a "very free working environment" by Tanaka, who stated that, though being the composer, he also gave input for the graphics and helped name areas. Partway through development, one of the developers asked the others, "Hey, wouldn't that be kind of cool if it turned out that this person inside the suit was a woman?" This idea was incorporated into the game,[15] though the English and Japanese instruction manuals use masculine pronouns for Samus.[citation needed]Ridley Scott's 1979 horror filmAlien was described by Sakamoto as a "huge influence" after the game's world had been created. The development staff was affected by the work of the film's creature designerH. R. Giger, and found his creations to be fitting for the theme.[16] Still, there were problems that threatened timely progress and eventually led Sakamoto to be "forcefully asked to participate" by his superiors, hoping his previous experience could help the team. Sakamoto stated he figured out a way to bypass the limited resources and time to leverage existing game media assets "to create variation and an exciting experience".[17]
Nintendo attempted to distinguishMetroid from other games by making it anonlinearadventure-based game, in which exploration was a crucial part of the experience. The game often requires that the player retrace steps to progress, forcing the player to scroll the screen in all directions, as with most contemporary games.Metroid is considered one of the first video games to impress a feeling of desperation and solitude on the player. FollowingThe Legend of Zelda,Metroid helped pioneer the idea of acquiring tools to strengthen characters and help progress through the game. Until then, most ability-enhancing power-ups like the Power Shot inGauntlet (1985) and theStarman inSuper Mario Bros. offered only temporary boosts to characters, and they were not required to complete the game. InMetroid, however, items are permanent fixtures that last until the end. In particular, missiles and the ice beam are required to finish the game.[7]
After defeatingMother Brain, the game presents one of five ending screens based on the time to completion.Metroid is one of the first games to contain multiple endings. In the third, fourth, and fifth endings,Samus Aran appears without her suit, and for the first time, reveals herself to be a woman. In Japan, theDisk Card media used by theFamicom Disk System allows players up to three differentsaved game slots inMetroid, similar toThe Legend of Zelda in the West. Use of an internalbattery to manage files was not fully realized in time forMetroid's international release. The Western versions ofMetroid use apassword system that was new to the industry at the time, in which players write down a 24-letter code and re-enter it into the game when they wish to continue a previous session. Codes also allow forcheats, such as "NARPAS SWORD"[7] and "JUSTIN BAILEY".[citation needed]
Tanaka said he wanted to make a score that made players feel like they were encountering a "living organism" and had no distinction between music and sound effects. The only time a melodic theme is heard is when Mother Brain is defeated in order to give the victorious playercatharsis. During the rest of the game, the melodies are more minimalistic, because Tanaka wanted the soundtrack to be the opposite of the "hummable" pop tunes found in other games at that time.[18]
Officially defined as ascrolling shooter game,[citation needed]Metroid was released by Nintendo for theFamicom Disk System in Japan on August 6, 1986.[19][7] An arcade version of the game was released in July 1987 for Nintendo'sPlayChoice-10 system.[20] It was released on theNintendo Entertainment System in North America in August 1987, and in Europe on January 15, 1988.[19][21]
The game was re-released several times viaemulation. Linking theGame Boy Advance gameMetroid Fusion (2002) with theGameCube'sMetroid Prime (2002) using alink cable unlocks the full version ofMetroid on the GameCube.[22] The game is unlocked as a bonus upon completion ofMetroid: Zero Mission (2004).[23] A stand-alone version ofMetroid for the Game Boy Advance, part of theClassic NES Series collection, was released in Japan on August 10, 2004, in North America on October 25, and in Europe on January 7, 2005.[24] The game arrived on theWii'sVirtual Console in Europe and North America in 2007, and in Japan on March 4, 2008.[25]Metroid was one of the ten NES games released as part of theNintendo 3DS Ambassador Program for people who purchased theNintendo 3DS prior to its first price drop. It was released in North America on August 31 and in Europe on September 1, 2011.[26][27]Metroid was released for all 3DS owners on March 1, 2012.[28] It was also one of the 30 games included on theNES Classic Edition, released in 2016.[citation needed]
AtE3 2010, Nintendo featuredMetroid among NES andSNES games in a tech demo calledClassic Games, to be released for theNintendo 3DS. Nintendo of America presidentReggie Fils-Aimé said "not to think of them asremakes". Miyamoto said that these classics might be using "new features in the games that would take advantage of the 3DS's capabilities".[29]
In 2001, a remake,Metroid: Zero Mission, was released for theGame Boy Advance. It features an extended storyline, improved visuals, various new abilities, and revised level design.[30]
Metroid was a commercial success, reported to be "famous" and "very popular" by 1989.[31][32] As of 2004, 2.73 million units ofMetroid have been sold worldwide.[33]
| Aggregator | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| GBA | NES | Wii | |
| GameRankings | 62%[35] | 63% (retrospective)[34] | N/A |
| Publication | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| GBA | NES | Wii | |
| AllGame | N/A | 5/5[38] | N/A |
| Computer and Video Games | N/A | 80%[31] | N/A |
| Famitsu | N/A | 5/5[39] | N/A |
| GameSpot | N/A | N/A | 5.5/10[40] |
| IGN | N/A | N/A | 8/10[41] |
| Nintendo Life | N/A | N/A | 6/10[42] |
| Beep | N/A | 3/5[36] | N/A |
| Famicom Hisshoubon [ja] | N/A | 4/5, 4/5, 4/5[b][37] | N/A |
A reviewer in the Japanese video game magazineBeep said they found themselves absorbed into the game, while finding it took time to use the game's controls and found the only negative to be the long loading time on the Famicom Disk System.[36] All three reviewers inFamicom Hisshoubon [ja] complimented the gameplay, with one reviewer writing it did not have the disjointed feeling that similarpersonal computer games had and another saying the game grew better as Samus becomes stronger in the game. The third reviewer initially thought it would be similar to the gameMighty Bomb Jack, but was surprised at its originality. Two reviewers complimented the background music and graphics, with one saying that ifSuper Mario Bros. felt like being in amanga comic,Metroid made the player feel like they were in aspecial effects film.[37]
Catherine Cella ofPennywhistle Press describedMetroid as fun, noting its graphics as detailed and colorful, but calling the password-based save system tedious.[43]Computer and Video Games said it was a "tough" platform arcade adventure with a "very handy" password system and recommended it to "avid" arcade adventurers.[31]Game Players praised its "fast-paced" gameplay.[32]Computer Entertainer praised the graphics as "outstanding" and the gameplay as being "full of surprises around every corner".[44] BothComputer and Video Games andComputer Entertainer complimented the ability to restart the game where they had last left off through Nintendo's new password system.[31][44]
In 2006,Nintendo Power rankedMetroid as the 11th-best game on its list of the Top 200 Games on aNintendo video game console.[45] Two years later, the magazine namedMetroid the fifth-best game for the Nintendo Entertainment System in its Best of the Best feature, describing it as a combination ofSuper Mario Bros.'s platforming andThe Legend of Zelda's exploration and character upgrades.[46] The game was ranked 44th onElectronic Gaming Monthly's original 100 best games of all time in 1997,[47] dropped to 69th in 2001,[48] but was ranked 11th on its "Greatest 200 Videogames of Their Time" in 2006, which ranks games on their impact at the time (whereasEGM's earlier lists rank games based on lasting appeal, with no consideration given to innovation or influence).[49]Game Informer ranked it 6th best game of all time in 2001[50] and 7th in 2009, saying that it "started the concept of open exploration in games".[51] In 2004,Metroid was inducted intoGameSpot's list of the greatest games of all time.[52]GamesRadar ranked it the fifth bestNES game ever made. The staff said that it had aged after the release ofSuper Metroid but was "fantastic for its time".[53]Metroid's ranking of multiple endings entices players to race the game, orspeedrunning.[7]Entertainment Weekly called it the #18 greatest game available in 1991, noting its gameplay as a high mark, despite calling its visuals "simplistic".[54]
In a retrospective focusing on the entireMetroid series,GameTrailers remarked on the original game's legacy and its effect on thevideo game industry. They noted thatMetroid launched the series with its ever-popular search and discovery gameplay. The website said that the combination of detailedsprites, original map designs, and an intimidating musical score "generated an unparalleled ambience and atmosphere that trapped the viewer in an almost claustrophobic state". They noted that the Morph Ball, first introduced inMetroid, "slammed an undeniable stamp of coolness on the whole experience and the franchise", and they enjoyed the end segment after defeatingMother Brain, describing the race to escape the planet Zebes as a "twist few saw coming". They said the game brought "explosive action" to the NES and a newfound respect for female protagonists.[7] Noting thatMetroid is not the first game to offer an open world, or the first side-view platformer exploration game, or the first game to allow players to reach new areas using newly acquired items,Gamasutra praisedMetroid for being perhaps the first video game to "take these different elements and rigorously mold them into a game-ruling structure".[55]
Reviewing the original NES game,AllGame awardedMetroid with the highest rating of five stars.[38] The review praised the game aboveMetroid II: Return of Samus andSuper Metroid, stating that "Metroid's not just a classic because of its astounding graphics, cinematic sound effects, accurate control, and fresh gameplay, but also because of its staying power".[38] Reviewing theClassic NES Series version of the game,GameSpot noted that eighteen years after its initial release,Metroid "just doesn't measure up to today's action adventure standards", giving the game a rating of 5.2 out of 10, for "mediocre".[1] For theWiiVirtual Console version,IGN commented that the game's presentation, graphics, and sound were basic, but they were still pleased withMetroid's "impressive" gameplay, rating the game 8.0 out of 10, for "great", and giving it an Editor's Choice award. The review stated that the game was "still impressive in scope" and that the price was "a deal for this adventure" while criticizing the number of times it has been re-released and noting that it takes "patience" to get past the high initial difficulty curve.[56] InGameSpot's review of the Virtual Console version, they criticized its "frustrating room layouts" and "constantly flickering graphics". In particular, the website was disappointed that Nintendo did not make any changes to the game, specifically criticizing the lack of a save feature.[57]
Metroid's gameplay, focusing on exploration and searching for power-ups to reach new areas, influenced other series, mostly theCastlevania series.[58] The revelation of Samus being a woman was lauded as innovative, andGameTrailers remarked that this "blew the norm of women in pieces, at a time when female video game characters were forced into the role of dutiful queen or kidnapped princess, missile-blasting the way for other characters likeChun-Li [from theStreet Fighter series] andLara Croft [from theTomb Raider series]".[7]
In his bookMaestro Mario: How Nintendo Transformed Videogame Music into an Art, videogame scholar Andrew Schartmann notes the possible influence ofJerry Goldsmith'sAlien score on Tanaka's music—a hypothesis supported by Sakamoto's acknowledgement ofAlien's influence on the game's development. He also noted that the game emphasises on the silence to create a claustrophobic atmosphere.[59] Schartmann further argues that Tanaka's emphasis on silence was revolutionary to videogame composition:
Tanaka's greatest contribution to game music comes, paradoxically, in the form of silence. He was arguably the first videogame composer to emphasize the absence of sound in his music. Tanaka's score is an embodiment of isolation and atmospheric effect—one that penetrates deeply into the emotions.
— Andrew Schartmann,Maestro Mario: How Nintendo Transformed Videogame Music into an Art, Thought Catalog (2013)[60]
This view is echoed byGameSpot'sHistory of Metroid, which notes how the "[game's music] superbly evoked the proper feelings of solitude and loneliness one would expect while infiltrating a hostile alien planet alone".[3]
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