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Metroid: Other M | 
| From: Nintendo
Category: Video Games
Department: Electronics
List Price: $49.99
Buy New: $36.79
as of 9/6/2010 00:13 PDT details
You Save: $13.20 (26%)
New (34) Used (9) Collectible (3) from $37.00
Seller: CE Bellefontaine
Rating:  42 reviews
Sales Rank: 11
Platform: Nintendo Wii
Genre: adventure_games
ESRB: Teen
Media: Video Game
Edition: Standard
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Number Of Items: 1
Batteries Included: No
Operating System: Nintendo Wii
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: RVLPR3OE
Model: RVLPR3OE
UPC: 045496901912
EAN: 0045496901912
ASIN: B002BSC4ZS
Publication Date: August 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Metroid - Other M takes the best elements of 1st-person and 3rd-person gaming to create a seamless blend between game play, story-telling and dynamic cinematography, that feels like a movie you can control; you can hold the Wii Remote controller sideways while navigating and battling in 3rd-person; however, at any moment, you can switch immediately to Wii Remote pointer controls to examine and explore the environments in 1st-person perspective | | • | Metroid fans know more about Samus' suits and weapons than they do about what drives her; that's about to change, the story begins immediately following the events of Super Metroid, when a baby Metroid gave its life to protect Samus, with voice acting and a rich story, you will learn the engaging back-story of Samus as she weaves through an action-packed adventure aboard the Bottle Ship, a decommissioned space facility; as she hurtles into this new adventure, Samus will encounter her first men | | • | The development of Metroid - Other M is an exciting collaboration between Nintendo's Yoshio Sakamoto and Team Ninja; Sakamoto was the director of Super Metroid in 1994; Team Ninja is the renowned action developer of Ninja Gaiden. Metroid - Other M pairs Sakamoto's expert level design and exploratory focus of the classic Metroid series with Team Ninja's signature stylish, no-holds-barred action |
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Product Description
For decades, Samus Aran has been known as one of the first female protagonists in video games, and one of the most enigmatic. Having traded her haunted past for the solitary life of a bounty hunter, Samus finally tells her own tale in this revealing, personal story of her failings, her flaws and ultimately her motivation. Metroid: Other M is an unprecedented collaboration that blends the slick, action-packed production of the world-renowned Team Ninja development team with the game design talents of the creators of the original Metroid. Metroid: Other M is a dramatic new direction for a legendary franchise and a bold new blend between cinematics, storytelling and the best in interactive entertainment.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 42
 Twilight + Monkey Island = Metroid? September 6, 2010
T-Flava
OK, I have nothing against the beloved franchises of Twilight and Monkey Island. I am a huge fan of the latter, matter of fact. However, if I'm going to start off by complaining, I would say that Nintendo should have left these elements out of this series; they do not flatter Miss Aran.
The Twilight influence is apparent in the story... if you like your dialogue over-romanticized and labored (in a Metroid game? I do not jest), you'll love this. Unfortunately, I prefer the old "Prime" way of learning the story, by scanning the environment (see also Batman: Arkham Asylum). The cutscene graphics are gorgeous for Wii, however. In retrospect, I would have rather seen straight visual cutscenes with no dialogue at all, just images to move the story along, a la LEGO Star Wars.
The Monkey Island aspect comes into play when Samus is forced to scan the screen automatically (an interactive cutscene, if you will) and the player must focus on a graphic in order to move the story forward. This is the backbone of the Monkey Island franchise (Sam & Max, other point and click adventure games), but should not be ever seen in a Metroid game, in my humble opinion. If you just googled Monkey Island and/or Sam & Max because you've never heard of them, I've made my point. Also, the parts of the game where Samus tiptoes around drive me nuts, as they're generally unnecessary, and slow the pace of the game down considerably.
On the upside, the graphics, as I mentioned earlier, are great, both in play and in the cutscenes. Although it sounds like my Wii is running a marathon (constant clicking, wheezing, general noise), there has not been any lag in gameplay. Music is sparse, but that's nothing new for Metroid; it helps to maintain that "alone on a desolate planet" feel the games have been incorporating since '86.
Level designs may be a bit tedious at times, but even the best designed areas in any Metroid game get old when you're forced to retread them for the 700th time. The 'authorization' of weapons can be annoying (if you get to the part where you receive clearance to use the ice beam, you'll understand), but I suppose that the designers wanted to place their stamp on the franchise, especially with an outside developer (Team Ninja) on board for the first time. Also, the 1st and 3rd person switch-off are not bad at all; I suppose if I were right-handed it would be even easier to aim the damn controller, but I'm adapting.
The hand-to-hand combat is also fun; there are some new ways to take out classic enemies that I enjoy employing, and it's button-mashing, so the gameplay chugs along. I also appreciate that this game allows the player to replenish missiles and health at the touch of a button; old Metroid games could get a bit frustrating if you showed up to a fortified door with no missiles or fought a boss with no health.
All in all, this is a refreshing take on the Metroid series, combining the old with the new. I hope that future installments in this legendary Nintendo canon will eliminate the parts of the game that slow it down and ham it up, and incorporate even more interesting ways to kill space aliens apart from the ol' arm-cannon.
 video game review September 6, 2010
videogamefan
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Not a good video game. I think Nintendo isn't doing a good job of coming out with FUN!! Video games. Examples of great games include: Ocarina of Time, Metroid Prime, Goldeneye 007(N64), etc. Not worth your $50.
Are you a fan of the Metroid series? Then don't buy this game. September 6, 2010
Frank Lloyd Washburn
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
I'll start this review with a caveat: I am an enormous Metroid fan. I've played and beaten literally every Metroid game with the exception of the first two for the NES. I love the style, the atmospheric storytelling, Samus as a strong female character - it's a very beloved series to me.
Team Ninja ruined the name of Metroid with Other M.
I'll break this down.
Graphics:
I have to hand it to them, graphically, this is an amazing looking game. It's smooth and polished, from the pre-rendered CG cutscenes to the in-game graphics.
Unfortunately, that's about all there is that's good about this game.
Level Design:
I loved exploring the worlds of Metroid: deep jungles, dark caverns, flying cities... And I hated Team Ninja's Bottle Ship (the spaceship upon which the entirety of Other M takes place). For the first half hour, I was quite nervous about the level design, as I was running down long hallway after long hallway. What kind of spaceship consists entirely of long, empty, metallic hallways? Then I got to a jungle area, and my fears were eased - but only briefly. I quickly became enraged as I discovered that literally 90% of the rooms have one entrance, and one exit. If you are not LITERALLY running down a hallway, then you are almost always still FUNCTIONALLY doing so - your goal is to move from one end of the room to another, in the exact means that Team Ninja wants you to. Time after time again I had to look up walkthroughs online because I could NOT figure out how I was to progress - all too often, it was because of a morph ball opening was tucked away in some corner of the room, almost impossible to see unless you already knew where to look.
Which brings me to my next point..
Gameplay mechanics:
Okay, the running around vs. first-person switching actually wasn't too horrible.
What WAS horrible was every time you encounter a story-specific mini-game that I'll call "Find the pixel." I call this "find the pixel" because at various points in the story, you'll be forced into first-person mode and your goal will be to find in the environment a story-related clue... except that these clues are hidden deep in the environment and you literally have to focus your cursor DIRECTLY over the pixel that Team Ninja has decreed to be the target.
Example (mild spoilers, but really I'm just saving you some frustration): One of these moments happens in a grassy clearing. Your ultimate target is alien blood. Sounds straightforward, right? Wrong. The alien blood is GREEN. GREEN BLOOD IN A GRASSY CLEARING. Thanks, Team Ninja, for wasting 10 minutes of my life on that asinine moment, as I rotated around and around, scouring the environment for the clue.
Oh, also, in previous Metroids I loved finding upgrades and becoming more and more powerful. That's nonexistent here, as Samus starts off with all of her powers, but decides that she needs authorization from her superiors to use them. That sounds ok... except when you're burning to death in lava and your superior refuses to give you authorization to unlock your Varia Suit.
This method of unlocking occurs for every single power... except one. They do NOT tell you that that power is unlocked, and Team Ninja expects you that in the throes of Samus dying, you are to suddenly feel inspired to attempt to use a power that has never been authorized - and to remember how to use it from the tutorial, which you probably played through more than 10 hours ago.
Oh, also, there are less than a dozen primary enemy types. You'll spend almost the entire game fighting slight variations of the exact same enemies. Fun!
Music:
The music for this game is practically nonexistent. The majority of the game will play 30-second loops of ambient noise. The cutscenes will employ sweeping orchestrated music that swells at the cheesiest moments, making it impossible to take what's occurring on-screen seriously. But then again, that's probably not even possible, because:
Story/Character Development:
The story in Metroid: Other M is the single worst story I've ever experienced tied to a mainline Nintendo franchise. It has glaring plotholes, horrible prose, and poor voice acting. Remember the baby Metroid from Super Metroid? In an effort to jam down our throats that Samus has maternal instincts, Team Ninja has her refer to that Metroid as "the baby" almost 20 times within the first 5 minutes of the game. It's nauseating. If I get attached to a puppy, I don't constantly refer to it as "a baby." It's a puppy. I'm going to call it a puppy. Ergo, IT'S A METROID. CALL IT THAT.
The translation was of the text was good, in that the vocabulary is sophisticated and that there are no grammatical errors. Other than that, it was horrific. The dialogue sounded as if it were written by a highly intelligent 14-year-old who writes vampire fanfiction in his spare time - overly dramatic, gauche, maudlin, and inappropriate.
A key line, delivered by a Galactic Federation official: "Samus, you're forbidden from using Power Bombs. They're dangerous against living things. That's a nice way of saying they can vaporize humans!"
..... Excuse me? Whoever wrote that needs to be struck in the face with a copy of Ender's Game. Or Neuromancer. Or any piece of science fiction worth reading.
In sum:
The gameplay mechanics are acceptable. However, the level design is excruciatingly boring, the joy of upgrading Samus' abilities are completely forgone for the sake of a laughable Authorization mechanic, and the story - the very reason you are playing the game - is wretched.
To those who say, "You just don't like a story-heavy Metroid!" No, all Metroid games have story, especially the Prime series. They simply employ atmospheric storytelling devices - skillfully - instead of forcing you to watch laughable cutscene after cutscene unfold.
To those who say, "I loved the development of the human side of Samus, seeing her vulnerabilities!" - If you mean to say you liked seeing a strong, independent, highly intelligent female character reduced to a maudlin, overly emotional cliche that has absolutely no resemblance to her actions as established by the Metroid franchise... then that's your own prerogative.
I will never buy another Team Ninja game again.
 Loved It September 5, 2010
M. Morales
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I won't lie. If you liked Metroid 1 through Fusion, and don't like first-person shooters, you'll enjoy Metroid Other M. Back is the classic exploration and creepy ambient soundtracks that truly made the original Metroid games the best Horror franchise back in the day. If you preferred the Metroid Prime series, which I consider more of a Sci Fi shooter, Other M may not be for you.
 Major repackaging manages to breathe life into Samus September 5, 2010
Brian Long (Ogden, UT USA)
Other M is a major deviation from the recent Wii Metroid run in virtually every stripe. For all of those who busted their behinds to get a shot of Samus without her helmet, you'll finally get your wish, as this includes cinematics and screens without even the trademark armor. Full dialogue and interactive NPC's mean that there's an actual plot line apart from collect the same set of equipment. And while side of the internal monologues are a bit cheesy, they still manage to add appeal and depth to a character that's thus far been a virtual mute.
Other M starts with a retconn immediately following Metroid Prime. Strangely lamenting the death of the baby Metroid, Samus answers a distress call from a Federation ship where she runs into several of her old squadmates, including her old CO.
Controls have radically changed. You're back to a 2-d on 3-d platformer, with movement and combat on one hand and stand alone aiming on the other. This present an annoying challenge at times, as you can no longer move while trying to fire precision shots or missiles, though this is easily balanced by useful auto-aiming during your platformer views. The camera gets poorly placed a few times, but otherwise, combat manages to flow fairly well. A few of the weapons are overblown, and fill up half the screen unnecessarily. The Scanner Visor is gone, and this is a major disappointment for me, as I thoroughly enjoyed the AI analysis of background items and enemy units. But otherwise, there's only a handful of nits with combat, but thos're easily overlooked given smart level design that can really make you think.
Voices are JRPG with some of the hookiness removed. They had to make a few bows to bizarre dialogue and pacing, but voices are good and conversations believable, though there are a few scenes that're simply weird. Graphics are a touch off, though mostly from overshadowing, but there is a good almost Resident Evil atmosphere of creepiness present, especially during certain scenes that'll make you hair stand up despite yourself.
Overall, this is classic Metroid, reinvigorated with an actual voiced cast and an introspective Samus, who's been rather devoid of personal input thus far. While I'm annoyed at the a few of the changes, overall the core gameplay is there, backed up by a well put together story that manages to be genuinely creepy at times.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 42
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