Now that the release ofThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis mere weeks away, the next logical milestone release for Nintendo is likelyMetroid Prime 4. After first being announced in 2017 shortly after the launch of the Nintendo Switch,Metroid Prime 4has experienced a bit of a tumultuous development with duties changing hands from a new team at Bandai Namco back to the series' original developers Retro Studios in 2019. Retro Studios completely scrapped all the work that had been done previously to start fresh with a vision more in line with the original trilogy ofMetroid Primegames, but no trailers or gameplay have been revealed yet.
With no idea of what to expect in the eventual release ofMetroid Prime 4, there are plenty of possibilities at play - including the borrowing of someideas from 2021’s excellentMetroid Dread.Dreadnot only brought theMetroidfranchise back into the spotlight for Nintendo, garnering plenty of Game of the Year nods in the process, it was also the most successfulMetroidtitle to date. With development of the title now back in the experienced hands of Retro Studios and a recent series entry that pushed the envelope, fans have a lot to look forward to in the eventual release ofMetroid Prime 4.
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Metroid Prime 4 Could Lean More Into the Horror Aspects of Metroid Dread
As adirect sequel to 2002’sMetroid Fusion,Metroid Dreadsuccessfully borrowed some of the tension and, well, dread ofFusionin its atmosphere and story. While not much is known about which period of theMetroidtimelinePrime 4will take place in, there’s an opportunity for the game to act as a direct sequel toMetroid Dreadand continue the trend of venturing further into the atmospheric horror and unease of the most recent titles in the largerMetroidnarrative. The revelations concerning Samus' origins and heritage and the way thatMetroid Dreadends leave plenty of opportunity for the next game in the series to continue diverging into sci-fi horror territory.
The first-person perspective of theMetroid Primefranchise has proven to be well-suited to horror games.Resident Evil’s successful balancing act between newer numbered entries using first-person perspective and third-person remakes of classic games could be a model thatMetroidfollows moving forward. After2 successful 2DMetroidtitles that used horrorelements in their gameplay and story, the nextMetroid Primecould carve out a new identity as the first fully survival-horror title in the franchise and establish a delineation between the 2D and 3DMetroidgames.
One of the most interesting iterations on theMetroidformula that developer Mercury Steamimplemented in bothSamus ReturnsandMetroid Dreadis the parry mechanic. Allowing players to have Samus block attacks at the last minute to stun enemies adds a wrinkle to gameplay and makes the shooting combat have an extra layer of strategy and engagement.Metroid Prime 4could take this mechanic one step further and have Samus initiate melee combat after a successful parry, similar to the system found in the recent remake ofResident Evil 4. There also exists an opportunity for Samus to discover new upgrades to these melee abilities hidden in the map.
TheMetroidseries is known to have each game begin with a reason for Samus to lose all of her accumulated abilities and upgrades, only to have to scour the map for them to proceed further in the game. For over 30 years, players have acquired the Morph Ball, Wave Beam, Missiles, and other series staples. Opening up melee combat as an option also provides incentive for there to be melee-themed upgrades to Samus' suit, perhaps even new melee-focused weapons.Metroid Prime 4has been largely absentfrom Nintendo’s showcases, but there’s strong reason to believe fans will finally discover what’s in store for the franchise in the coming months.
