Gamer’s Playlist – The Advantage Tear into Kraid’s Lair…Do They Survive?

Yes, I do love The Advantage (any chance you guys can reunite and do more of this stuff?). I spotlighted them a couple of months ago, but I finally got to check out Elf-Titled from my library and found it clock-full of excellence. One of those splendid tracks is Kraid’s Lair from Metroid. There’s a darkness in this track many others omit, and I personally think it’s among the better remixes of the classic tune. Enjoy!

Kraid’s Lair – The Advantage (NES, Metroid, Nintendo, Hirokazu “Hip” Tanaka)

Metroid Zero Mission – Deja Vu

Metroid Zero Mission (Game Boy Advance)

The Mission – Samus Aran, bounty hunter, must infiltrate her former home world of Zebes, now overrun with a Space Pirate menace, and eliminate the threat before they have a chance to wage war with the Galactic Federation.  It is also believed that the Pirates have incorporated alien life forms to utilize as weapons.  These must also be terminated at all costs.

…Yes, it’s a remake of the first Metroid.  Samus does have some new skills, new foes and a whole new endgame to engage, though!

The Game – The game’s plot is relatively unchanged, but the game engine is anything but the same.  Samus must traverse a completely remade Zebes, one that has more ties to its Super Metroid rendition than the NES original, and there’s far more going on than the original featured.  The boss count is greatly increased, the amount of supplies to pick up multiplied by a significant amount, and it’s far more player-friendly.  A map helps greatly, and Samus has a slew of skills from Super Metroid and Fusion as a part of her repertoire here (which I’ll get into shortly).  Cutscenes spruce up the proceedings, and there’s a completely new section following the battle with Mother Brain that is very well done and unexpected, with a completely different gameplay style that I personally really liked.  In short, Zero Mission refines its origins quite nicely with very few mistakes.

In fact, the only major nitpick I could throw at it is the revision of Kraid.  In Metroid, he was a stout little lizard beast who would lead to a massive surprise for his return in Super Metroid, where he became gargantuan in size and even had a fake-out minion outside his lair.  Alas, Zero Mission aborts this entire novelty for another mammoth Kraid encounter, which just destroys that neat bit of continuity.  Ah well.

Samus Aran – Samus carries over a lot of her tricks learned in Metroid II, Super Metroid and Fusion into Zero Mission on top of her original arsenal.  Power Bombs, the Power Grip, the Charge Beam, the Speed Booster, the Plasma Beam, and a true Gravity Suit were all added into the game to further boost Samus’ talents.

One thing Zero Mission did not carry over from its original was the Justin Bailey suit, instead inventing a whole new outfit for the Metroid canon to adopt – the Zero Suit.

After defeating Mother Brain, a whole new segment appears where Samus must infiltrate a Space Pirate Mothership to be able to escape Zebes.  Her Power Suit was disabled while she was attempting to flee the planet before she was shot down, so she’s equipped with her Paralyzer and this skintight blue suit.  Apparently this suit became all the rage in Nintendo-land, because they keep using it over and over again, from Echoes to Corruption to Other M to even Smash Bros. Brawl and various cameos (Fatal Frame 4).  Personally, I don’t mind the Zero Suit, but I do prefer Samus to be in her Power Suit – that’s how I envision her.

Curios – Crocomire, the famous midboss from Super Metroid, was planned to be in this game but was scrapped somewhere along the line.  Another Super Metroid nod casualty included the ability to enable or disable aspects of Samus’ arsenal.

- Mother Brain has an eye here, which her original NES sprite did not feature.  She also can attack you, the first time she could in this form.

- Shinesparking is taken to a ridiculous degree here – if you’re good at that, kudos to you, because I’m not! XD

- Connecting this to Metroid Fusion via GBA link cable enables you to check out all of the ending art from that game in a special gallery.

- Beating Zero Mission will unlock the NES Metroid as a bonus.

Availability – Only for the GBA at this time, but it isn’t too tough to track down.

My Thoughts – This is my second favorite 2D Metroid, and 3rd overall in the overall franchise.

Data Files:

Metroid Prime 2 Echoes – Restoring the Balance

Metroid Prime 2 Echoes (Gamecube)

The Mission – Shortly after the events of Metroid Prime, Samus is deployed to the planet Aether in order to discover the whereabouts of a Galactic Federation Marine vessel that had given its last report around the planet before disappearing.  Upon arrival, Samus’ ship is damaged by the extreme weather surrounding the atmosphere of Aether and is forced to land.  She stumbles upon the corpses of the Marines, and scattered among them are bodies of her nemesis, the Space Pirates.  However, this isn’t as clear cut a mission as it first seems.  Aether is in the middle of a power struggle between two beings inhabiting two different dimensions on the planet.  The Ing, sinister blob-like beings who seek to plunge Aether into darkness, are overwhelming the diminishing population of the Luminoth, the guardians of “Light” Aether.  The Ing are capable of reanimating the dead or forcefully taking over the living a la parasitic domination, and this trait has made the balance swing dangerously in their court.  Another menace is the doppelganger Dark Samus, who stalked Samus to Aether and intends on absorbing her completely into her psyche.  Dark Samus shows Samus the path to the “dark” half of Aether, the one where the Ing are fully in power and are at their strongest.  She is overwhelmed but left alive, minus her best gear, and realizes quickly that her standard Power Suit and weapons were not up to the task of fighting either threat – fortunately, the few Luminoth who remain are willing to work with Samus and enable her to incorporate their technology into her suit, giving her new abilities that will grant her a chance at conquering these two antagonistic powers roaming about in Dark Aether.

In the end, the Emperor Ing is crushed, the light of Aether fully restored, and Dark Samus is defeated…for now.  Its role in the Prime series has not reached its conclusion, and it will haunt Samus in the last game in the Prime trilogy, Corruption.

The Game – Retro Studios returned to develop Prime’s sequel, and decided to tweak the Metroid formula, for better or worse, with Echoes.  The major shakeup revolves around the Light and Dark aspect of Aether, and this is embodied in many different ways.  Samus has an evil twin to conquer, the planet has two dimensions to explore, and the dark and light forces have distinct stylistic traits that help symbolize this battle between these two adversaries.  The Ing are simple and organic, using their parasitic capabilities to consume the living and the dead to build their ranks.  The Luminoth are advanced technological beings, with complicated architecture, weapons and devices.  The Ing are not stupid, though – they know what key treasures of the Luminoth to capture and defend, and Samus notes in her encounters with these guardians that they are able to utilize the Chozo and Luminoth technology they protect into their very bodies.  The Boost guardian, for example, is quite adapt at using that skill to punish Samus in that fight.

The issue with having two dimensions to roam around with is that it can become very confusing to the player.  Retro did an admirable job trying to minimize problems with the help system, limiting the Dark parts of the map to smaller chunks, and by throwing in several gates to be able to jump back and forth between dimensions, but on the whole the Dark half is not that fun to wander around in.  That’s partly due to its volatile nature – extended stays in Dark Aether will whittle Samus’ energy down over time unless you step in a Light Barrier.  Naturally, most battles will occur in vast stretches of darkness, and you need to blast the scattered Barriers to enable them, so combat is not as free-feeling as it was in Prime (or in the Light sections of the game, for that matter).  Most of the boss fights take place in Dark Aether as well, so a dwindling life bar is something else you have to keep tabs on while you fight.  If you like extra pressure, then this probably won’t be an issue.

The addition of an ammo system might, though.  Unarguably the biggest complaint with Echoes was that Samus couldn’t barrage opponents with a constant stream of beam shots – the Dark and Light beams required ammo to fire, and this could be a major thorn if you happen to run out.  Ammo is somewhat plentiful in the scenery’s pods and barrels, but when the beams are required to get out of a room or return to the other dimension, it can be a little annoying to see you’re out of “bullets”.  Retro aborted the concept for Corruption, but I wish that it didn’t see the light of day for Echoes, too.

To wrap up, Echoes expects players to have experienced Prime, because it’s much harder than its predecessor was.  Definitely play Prime first!

Samus Aran – Samus herself saw new suits added to her arsenal, plus some new beams and visors.  The Dark and Light suits were radical departures from the Chozo-styled suit we’ve seen in the past, and are solid designs that helped build upon the new technology premise Retro was gunning for.  The Light and Dark beams, plus their successor the Annihilator Beam, played off of the standards set by Prime, but were novel changes.  She also had access to a Dark and Echo Visor, which helped Samus in her encounters with the Ing and Dark Samus.  The Screw Attack came back for Echoes after being benched for Prime, although it functions more like a wall jump here than an enemy slayer in the 2D Metroids (although it does have that capability, it’s just really unwieldy).

After Prime made such valiant attempts to get Samus out of the “skimpy clothing reveal” line of ending reward, Echoes is the first game to use the Zero Suit as a reward for completion.  It doesn’t serve much of a purpose stripping Samus of her Varia Suit to stand in front of her ship and look back at the player (with DEAD EYES AH), but one could argue it’s a little less demeaning than her Justin Bailey outfits.

Curios – Ridley sat out of this one, making it one of two games he made no formal appearance in (the other is Metroid 2: Return of Samus).

- Echoes featured a somewhat lackluster multiplayer mode.  My opinion was obviously not impressed by it.

- Oddly enough, Warioware: Smooth Moves borrowed a scene from Echoes for a microgame.

- The game was used to demonstrate the Wii controller back when it was known as the Revolution.

Availability - Echoes did fairly well for the ‘Cube, and shouldn’t be too hard to find.  It’s also on the Wii trilogy.

My Thoughts – Echoes is a fine sequel that made some design flaws, but it’s definitely worth some playtime if you enjoyed Prime.  I’m happy to have it.

Data Files:

Yoshio Sakamoto Reflects on Metroid

Siliconera continues to bring over intriguing interviews recently translated interviews from Japan’s developers, and this time they’ve conjured up Yoshio Sakamoto’s thoughts from 2003 where he discusses his early days with Nintendo and reflections on the Metroid franchise (among other games he’s had a hand with).  Neat stuff.  Keep doing these, Siliconera!

Metroid Oddities AND Wildcat’s Favorite Series Cameos Extravaganza

Just to show that I haven’t forgotten about Metroid in the last month (I don’t know if I should take on these franchise-wide challenges anymore – they wear me out XD ), I’ve decided to discuss the three curious Metroid offshoots and a smattering of cameos from the series today.  Let’s begin with the weirdos.

Oddities

Super Smash Bros. (series)

Samus Aran has made a playable appearance in all three games thus far, armed with her Charge Beam, Screw Attack and Bombs for her specials (the Missile would join in for Melee onwards), the Grapple Beam for her throw/tether recovery, and the ability to fight as Zero Suit Samus in Brawl.  Zebes has been the most popular place from Metroid to battle, with the majority of the three game’s stages being plucked from there (SSB – Planet Zebes, SSBM – Brinstar, Brinstar Depths, SSBB – Norfair), with only Frigate Orpheon representing the potential worlds outside of that doomed planet.  Ridley has been in all three games (background in Planet Zebes in SSB, trophy in SSBM and boss/trophy in SSBB).  Kraid made his sole 3D appearance in Melee in the Brinstar Depths stage, and a Mother Brain-styled prop in the background shakes up the acid on the Melee Brinstar stage.  Metroids appeared as Assist Trophies, and the Screw Attack has been an item from Melee onward.

Metroid Prime Pinball

Developed by Fuse Games, who preceded this title with Mario Pinball Land, this revisits the setpieces of Retro’s Metroid Prime, but forces Samus to bounce around in Morph Ball form in a pinball re-imagining of that game’s events.  Apparently it was pretty decent!  I will admit to not having played it, so I don’t know how much more I can go into it at the present.

Metroid Prime Hunters

Another Prime spin-off, but this one was handled by Nintendo Software Technologies.  This was a second attempt to create a pure Metroid FPS (Echoes’ shoddy attempt of a multiplayer mode predated this a bit), and although it worked a little better, it required extensive use of the touch screen to control, and honestly I don’t think the Metroid universe needs to have the FPS style infest it.  Nintendo backed off from that angle after this game’s release, and I don’t know if we’ll see it return beyond the updated Echoes multi in the Wii Prime Collection.

Notable Cameos

The ones I’m including here are ones I find neat.  Metroid Database has a slew of official Nintendo ones as well as a few done by fans of the franchise for a more complete list than the one I provide.  Screen shots courtesy of one of my haunts, NinDB.

Kid Icarus (NES)

Metroid and Kid Icarus were in development at around the same time by R&D1, so I suppose the devs, hoping that the Metroids would be notable enough, snuck in an eerily similar Komayto (or in Japan, Kometo, or “child Met”) to populate the Greek-styled worlds of Pit and Co.  They’re on their way back for the 3DS Uprising, too.

Tetris (NES)

Samus, alongside a heap of other oddly-rendered Nintendo heroes, pop up in this celebratory screen for those who conquered Game B on the “speed 9, height 5″ settings.  She turned out the best, honestly.

Kirby Superstar (SNES)

Kirby can occasionally transform his Stone ability into this great Samus pose from Metroid II’s box art.  It’s pretty rare but also really awesome.  Samus’ Screw Attack symbol is also a treasure that can be earned in the Great Cave Offensive, here called the “Screw Ball”.  Clever pun.  In the DS remake, the Samus statue is seemingly gone but the Screw Attack remains.

Super Mario RPG (SNES)

Square must have liked Metroid a little to sneak Samus into Peach’s bed in the Mushroom Kingdom castle.  To see her, according to NinDB admin Fruguy64:

When you reach Land’s End for the first time, instead of completing it, head all the way back to the Mushroom Kingdom and sleep in the Castle’s guest room. When you wake up, head to Princess Toadstool’s room and check the bed.

Also, an action figure of Samus appears with a few other Nintendo cameos in a box in Booster’s Tower at the top.

Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (SNES)

Among the more obscure cameos in this game (Japanese-only Famicom Fairytales: Yuuyuuki and Shin Onigashima, anyone?) is Samus and some Metroids.  Here’s the details courtesy again of NinDB to gain Samus’ Heart Star in Iceberg L2:

To earn her Heart Star, collect the Ice power before you enter the volcano and defeat all of the Metroids that you find hidden in each room. After defeating them all and reaching the end of the stage, Samus removes her helmet and awards you with her Heart Star.

Failure to defeat all of the Metroids will keep Samus’ helmet firmly on.

Those are my top 5, although there are plenty of others.  What Metroid cameo’s your favorite?  Feel free to share in our comments!

Metroid Prime – A New Threat is Born

METROID PRIME (Gamecube)

The Mission – Set between the events of Metroid and Metroid II: Return of Samus, Samus Aran is sent off to the new world of Tallon IV, a former Chozo planet, to uncover the whereabouts of the Space Pirate’s recent invasion of the planet and why they’ve taken a foothold there. Landing on a nearby Space Station, Samus is stunned to find a variety of corpses littering the ship, and is even more surprised to see Ridley make a triumphant resurrection from his apparent demise in Metroid. Following the demon to Tallon IV, she sets out to track down the Pirates and eradicate their presence from this world. Along the way she discovers that the Pirates are reproducing Metroids on Tallon IV and are experimenting with a dangerous substance called Phazon, which is producing strange but potentially promising effects on the test subjects for use as weapons. With these two projects the Space Pirates could become even more threatening to the safety of the universe, so Samus commits herself to sabotaging their efforts as best as she can (which comprises the plots for the next two Prime games Echoes and Corruption). Unfortunately, Samus becomes a victim to Phazon’s influence, being coated in a Suit overwrought with the material. While it didn’t cause her any immediate harm, the Suit would later merge with the defeated husk of the Pirate’s breeding achievement, Metroid Prime, creating a foe potentially more sinister than even the Space Pirates – Dark Samus. All this is unbeknownst to Samus, who left the planet following the defeat of Meta Ridley and Metroid Prime, losing the Phazon Suit, and then escaping the chaotic self-destruct sequence, but she would come face to face with this new terror in the near future.

The Arsenal of Samus Aran – The Arm Cannon Pt. 2

Welcome back to The Arsenal of Samus Aran.  This time we’ll wrap up her versatile Arm Cannon by covering beams that appear in only a handful of the games as well as her missiles.  Her primary beams were covered last time in case you missed it.

Note – There be spoilers within!

Metroid Fusion – The Hunter Becomes the Hunted

METROID FUSION (Game Boy Advance)

The Mission – After the events of Metroid: Other M, Samus Aran is sent out once more to SR-338, the former Metroid homeworld, in a survey mission with the Biological Space Laboratories.  Upon arrival, the team discover a new species of life, which they quickly dub the “X”.  Unaware of what the X are capable of, Samus and her crew return to a nearby space station, but Samus has been infected by the parasitic X, which have the talent of infecting a host, replicating their appearance and traits, and then slaughtering them and moving on to the next.  She loses consciousness and nearly dies as her ship rams a nearby asteroid – luckily, her ship ejected her toward the colony.  Onboard, the medical staff manage to surgically remove her Power Suit, and in a brilliant stroke of luck, was inadvertently injected with the vaccine – the team used a Metroid DNA sample that also featured Samus’ DNA, but the X were devoured by the formerly indigenous Metroid population of SR-338, making Samus the perfect counter to the X threat.  Before Samus fully recovers in her new Fusion suit, the X invade the lab, creating essentially an isolated chaos that Samus must now penetrate to be able to escape with her life.  The biggest threat is that her former Power Suit, maxed out from Super Metroid and Other M, has taken on a life of its own thanks to the X and is now patrolling the ship in search of her.  Inheriting the susceptibility of cold temperatures from her Metroid injection on top of its predatory absorption of the X, she now relies on her former commanding officer Adam, replicated as a computer AI, to traverse the lab, conquer the X and manage to flee the doomed colony.

Wildcat’s 100 Favorite Game Tunes

Kurt Katala over at Hardcore Gaming 101 is running a poll to determine what video gaming tunage is most liked among the forum and blog there, and I decided to participate and compile my favorites.  I’ve done quite a few Song Highlights on these tunes, and will be doing plenty more in the near future spotlighting them and providing some explanation, but here’s my list (with Youtube links to sample the song – hopefully they all work!):

TOP 5

Mega Man 3, Protoman’s Whistle Concert, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uikEuigprFE

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Midna’s Lament, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7GWf3e_I3w

Chrono Trigger, Memories of Green, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr9-OcPLO3M

Beyond Good & Evil, Home Sweet Home, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTdcJWDNsao

Castlevania, Wicked Child, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7PFm7mrdVY

The Rest:
A Boy and his Blob (Wii), Forest, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC_u7bmVsSc
A Boy and his Blob (Wii), Plains, http://youtu.be/pfmiI9AttYc
Age of Mythology, Suture Self, http://youtu.be/KhvklZT0LMg
Age of Mythology, Chocolate Outline, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBpz9S6I07g
Banjo-Kazooie, Click Clock Wood (spring), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXoaTcf_3vo
Batman (NES), Stage 1/5, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlGDKfgz4fA
Batman (NES), Stage 3, http://youtu.be/zERK-4IgQAg
Beyond Good & Evil, Hillyan Suite, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p48dpXQixgk
Bionic Commando (NES), Area 1, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hl5UCCBCXI
Bionic Commando (NES), Area 2, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIvcYCbWMfY
Blaster Master, Level 1, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUnwRFMo6D0
Blaster Master, Level 2, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIjIUyXrBJg
Body Harvest, Outdoors (Violin), http://youtu.be/pC41_–XeqQ
Body Harvest, Indoors (piano), http://youtu.be/wURLANzjDLk
Breath of Fire, Deep Forest, http://youtu.be/1iCbSLFrqrU
California Games (NES), Flying Disc, http://youtu.be/5iYMN2FKkoY
Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, Bloody Tears, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjazC45Qkww
Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, Aquarius, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MORo75YOHWs
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, Hail from the Past, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fg1PDaOnU2Q
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, Jail of Jewel, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtRdjcXfXsc
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Dracula’s Castle, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgF0uBjCds0
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Crystal Teardrops, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWwJEQt90qk
Chrono Trigger, Wind Scene (Yearning of Wind), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqZaFDA7PXY
Contra (NES), Level 1, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UqXbEwqwF8
Contra (NES), Level 3, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U58a-svZok8
Deus Ex, Hong Kong Streets 1, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzvw8uSWucM
Diablo, Tristram Village, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8jJJXgNLo4
Donkey Kong Country, Theme (Simian Segue), http://youtu.be/nLT1-5laF0A
Dragon Quest IX, Heaven’s Prayer, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myjd1MnZx5Y
Dragon Quest IX, I Won’t Lose, http://youtu.be/aycArJW4klo
Dragon Quest VIII, Strange World, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN9Up_0zuUs
Dragon Quest VIII, Heavenly Flight, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taVdFgxvhRg
Ducktales, Transylvania, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UuHesrJROw
Fire Emblem (7 in series order), Wind Across the Plains, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFWOvIrBCgc
F-Zero GX, Captain Falcon’s Theme, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L0pW3Eol6k
Grandia II, Carbo, http://youtu.be/1XqprRUVSJo
Grandia II, Mirumu, http://youtu.be/ZG_oW5XH71Y
Hotel Dusk: Room 215, Big Dreams, http://youtu.be/cgy5_a9fx4g
Hotel Dusk: Room 215, The Last Sleep, http://youtu.be/BwdCg8Gqqfk
Jet Grind Radio, Magical Girl, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_h9f939bW3c
Kirby’s Epic Yarn, Outer Rings, http://youtu.be/y3DAHtoitXY
Kirby’s Epic Yarn, Butter Building, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfdJbaCfXjQ
Kirby’s Adventure, Ending, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OVKyjZs-nU
The Last Ninja, Stage 1, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiLvoMpLQFA
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Forest Temple, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4o3EMdYaKw
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Spirit Temple, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0PVz2pIEcw
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Kakariko Village, http://youtu.be/LdERRFGaUjY
Legend of Zelda, Death Mountain (Final Dungeon), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_NPA7caCsc
Mario Kart 64, Credits, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYwZT3CvpMw
Mega Man 2, Air Man, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FINefcN9pPc
Mega Man 2, Wood Man, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbK2uCp4-sQ
Mega Man 3, Snake Man, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM-Fub7Oc_A
Mega Man 5, Wave Man, http://youtu.be/Nd2O6mbhCLU
Mega Man 5, Charge Man, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PEukLWNKsg
Mega Man 6, Flame Man, http://youtu.be/qdWeTin2mho
Mega Man 6, Mr. X stages, http://youtu.be/uhJ7Ss-puVY
Metroid, Ending, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQeUkUp4uRc
Metroid Prime, Phendrana Drifts (second version), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbbUv1hz6mE
Metroid Prime, Tallon Overworld, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mziw3FQkZYg
Monster Tale, Ancient Ruins, http://youtu.be/iQ1D6UJW5Jg
MULE, Main Theme, http://youtu.be/VI2e-jwjhN4
Muramasa: The Demon Blade, Seifu Meigetsu A, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUF1lkbvoUs
Muramasa: The Demon Blade, Bosyoku Souzen A, http://youtu.be/c9qBwD4bxO8
Ogre Battle 64, Premonition, http://youtu.be/Rel-IOyQTX0
Ogre Battle 64, The Sensational World, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSnlp1YAUJ0
Okami, Shinshu Plains (1 and 2), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yKG-Qu4WvM
Okami, Hanasaki Valley, http://youtu.be/EtKh1Uac2Og
Perfect Dark, Chicago – Stealth, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJbwLjKhVGw
Persona 4, Your Affection, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ChrBp1pEGM
Persona 4, The Almighty, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNVMKpk__HQ
Persona 4, Reach out to the Truth, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzFl6sWHmXI
Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations, The Dark Fragrance of Coffee, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxzTrWUajZg
Portal, Still Alive, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6ljFaKRTrI
Red Dead Redemption, Far Away, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IkvAb6THQY
Resident Evil 4, Sorrow (end credits), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0k4kGkH6Bk
Secret of Mana, A Wish, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLK8IrYrZxA
Secret of Mana, Into the Thick of It, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3N9lrq-rks
Shadow Hearts: From the New World, Dead Fingers Talk, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5clzlxOZQeU
Shadow Hearts: From the New World, Adios, http://youtu.be/-lkRjV7Zp-k
Skies of Arcadia, Kingdom of Ixa’taka, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F-hJjD3XAs
Skies of Arcadia, Lower Valua, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlJxG1FmMOU
Silent Hill 3, You’re Not Here, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz3ufaZCoVw
Sonic CD, Sonic Boom, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJXKoubh9sQ
Super Ghouls and Ghosts, Ice Forest, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4URokdL-dfM
Super Mario 64, Koopa’s (Bowser’s) Road, http://youtu.be/0rygsWPCjNQ
Super Mario 64, Water Course Theme (Dire Dire Docks), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqcPSbkS9TQ
Super Mario Galaxy, Gusty Garden Galaxy, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z2kxFCQ_mQ
Super Mario Galaxy 2, The Tico and the Hat, http://youtu.be/Xev0rnBJIzA
Super Mario RPG, And My Name’s Booster, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJoGF1oLd0o
Super Metroid, Maradia, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxobPQMNY_w
Super Metroid, Brinstar (Plant Overgrown), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ULlqfeNLWY
Tales of Symphonia, Like a Glint of Light, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFWadiZkA_8
Tales of Symphonia, Dry Trail, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvnAkAQK82E
Zoda’s Revenge: Startropics II, Dungeon Theme #2, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF-30Dg9Xs4
Zoda’s Revenge: Startropics II, Dungeon Theme #6, http://youtu.be/22ATqffTkIk

The Arsenal of Samus Aran – The Arm Cannon and its Beams

Welcome to part 2 of Samus Aran’s weaponry specials, this time focusing on her primary attack – blasting foes from afar with her Arm Cannon.

Arm Cannon – Samus’ projectile weapon is stationed on her right arm, and features several modifications to make it more effective, varying from game to game.  The default beam is the Power Beam, named after Samus’ Power Suit, and serves Samus decently in the early goings, but the deeper she gets into the game the more she will need upgrades to take on the nastier creatures she encounters.

Some of these upgrades include the Long Beam (allows Samus to shoot full screen, only seen in Metroid and Zero Mission), the Charge Beam (Samus can power up her shots into larger volleys, and can also perform a pseudo-Screw Attack in some games – this has been a consistent part of the Arm Cannon since Super Metroid, and is also her B attack in Smash Bros.), the Wide Beam (only in Fusion, giving it a wide berth when fired), the Spazer Beam (in Metroid II and Super Metroid, working in a similar fashion to the Wide Beam by giving Samus laser-like shots that spread out), and her alternate firing mode, her Missiles (which will be covered later on).  Let’s tackle the other beams one by one.

Wave Beam
Appears in: Metroid, Metroid II: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid: Other M

The Wave Beam has been one of the more variable elements in the Metroid series.  In Metroid and Metroid II, it’s a quivering orb that moves in a wave-like pattern that can travel through walls.  Super Metroid altered the look when it was combined with other beams, but it keeps up the classic shot when fired alone.  Fusion and Zero Mission went with Super Metroid’s combined style for the beam (since you can’t deactivate individual beams in these two games).  In Metroid Prime, the beam took on electrical properties and can home in on enemies if charged, but it loses the wall-passing aspect.  Other M unites the two prior concepts of the Beam into one, making it an electrical attack that can pass through some walls.

Examples:

Ice Beam
Appears in: Metroid, Metroid II: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion*, Metroid Prime, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid: Other M

Samus’ Ice Beam is one of her more potent upgrades, allowing her freeze enemies and then use their frozen husks as platforms.  She’ll be able to freeze most enemies, includng those immune to other weapons.  And without it, Samus would not be able to survive the Metroid onslaught in most games. Most of the games make the Ice Beam a small blue blast on its own.

*In Fusion, Samus was unable to pick up the Ice Beam due to her infusion of Metroid DNA, but at the very end while engaging the Omega Metroid, the SA-X reunites with her and grants her the Beam for the final showdown.

Examples:

Plasma Beam
Appears in: Metroid II: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid Prime 3 Corruption, Metroid Other M

The Plasma Beam made its debut in Metroid II: Return of Samus, and it commonly can tear through enemies when it’s equipped.  In Metroid Prime, the beam took on fire properties and was a short-range laser of flame.  Corruption kept some of these properties, but removed the short range aspect and could fire faster, but its overall strength was reduced.  Other M returned it to Super Metroid’s interpretation.

Examples:

Grapple Beam
Appears in: Super Metroid, Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Metroid Other M, Super Smash Bros. series

Super Metroid introduced this beam, which the 3D Metroid games snatched onto and never let go.  In short, it allows Samus to swing over chasms, although Corruption made it a more vital part of gameplay, allowing Samus to rip shields away from enemies and absorbing energy.  Other M reverts it back to Super Metroid’s status, but allows two occasions to utilize it to attack bosses.  In Smash Bros., Samus uses it as her throw and can also use it as a tether recovery.

Examples:

Next time, we’ll go into Samus’ less common beam additions, as well as her missile options.