The Metroid Divide

Divides in gaming are not an uncommon or unusual occurrence. Splits in the fan base can, and do, happen regularly. Divides in opinions, in styles, in preferences – in just about everything where there is the possibility for a rift to appear. There is the divide between Nintendo gamers and other gamers; the divide between so called “casual” and “hardcore” gamers; and not only the divide in Zelda known as the split timeline, but the divide in opinions amongst Zelda theorists as to where the games are placed around the split.

Of recent, a new divide has arisen in the Nintendo gaming world, which I have titled “The Metroid Divide”. The Metroid Divide refers to the crude distinction between Metroid Prime – considered the core or model of the series – and the newest installment: Other M. From the usage of plot, right through to gameplay, and even overall style, the famed Metroid Prime Trilogy and Other M are so very different.

The fanbase knows it all too well, and are not shy to express their feelings. It seems almost near miraculous for a person to have enjoyed both. Choosing a side is subconsciously mandatory. Let us dive into the canyon that has arisen in the midst of the series and try to understand, or at least appreciate, both sides of the divide, regardless of which side of it we stand.

The best way to convey the divide is through an anecdote of my own. “My Maiden Metroid Mission” – my first experience of the series – was with Other M earlier this year. I enjoyed the game to levels that the word “enjoy” cannot aptly convey, as I wrote in my review (link just above). For me, it was the perfect balance of an enthralling storyline and captivating gameplay. Challenging but fun.

My review ended with the bold claim that Metroid could easily be my second favorite gaming series to Zelda if the rest of the titles lived up to Other M. At that time I was excited to get stuck into The Metroid Prime Trilogy – having picked up the Wii, three-in-one Collector’s Edition. As it was no longer available for sale off the shelf at that stage, it could have proved a challenge to track down, but frankly – I was keen to get a hold of it and spared no expense. No doubt, a mistake I would soon discover.

Everything I did before actually starting to play the Metroid Prime Trilogy games themselves was a delight that lived up to what I thought of Other M. The title screen encapsulated an awesome mood; the special booklet that came with the Collector’s Edition outlined a superb sounding, complex storyline; and then I started playing Metroid Prime. Suffice to say, four hours was quite enough for me. That storyline that I’d read wasn’t conveyed in the game itself. It was like back in the NES days, where the entire story was in the manual. It was devoid of conveying that plot through cutscenes and in the game itself.

No, I wasn’t ignorant. I knew Other M style cinematics where not to be experienced there in Prime, but what I found, was something very devoid of a storyline drive – something necessary for me as a gamer. At the time of release, Prime was a big step up in the amount of attention given to storyline, compared to earlier installments in the series. For my taste – which loved Other M – Prime was all about the gameplay and neglected storyline, even with all of the extra attention it was given.

There is no way that I can call Prime “bad gameplay”, because it is good; perhaps even the best of its genre. Nintendo grouped the Prime Trilogy as “First-Person Adventures” (FPA), but it was at heart, a First-Person Shooter (FPS). It was far from my style, which to date, has only truly enjoyed very few First-Person Shooters such as the original Nintendo 64 GoldenEye 007. By no means was Metroid Prime a horrible game – quite the contrary when you consider its acclaim – it just wasn’t for me. Plain and simple, it wasn’t to my tastes.

At the very moment that I found myself shelving Metroid Prime, I realized why those Metroid fans who loved Prime didn’t feel similarly about Other M. It was for the same reason that I didn’t enjoy Metroid Prime, just they were on the opposing side of the divide. The reasoning is really quite simple. Prime lovers had been waiting out for the next Metroid title, to come after their precious Prime, but Other M failed them. It failed them because it wasn’t Prime. It wasn’t even remotely like Prime. It was its own game.

It was not the Metroid they knew and loved. I can only describe it as similar to the rage a Zelda fan would exert if Skyward Sword turned out to be a shooter. It is really the same thing, just the other way around. Metroid Prime was a FPS and Other M was an action-adventure, like Zelda. Genre, style – that is the Metroid Divide. Metroid went from story being the background, to story being the forefront. I dare say that Prime fans could still have loved Other M with its cinematic story if the gameplay remained the same – but it did not.

Metroid Prime fans could not accept the change away from the FPS-style and couldn’t truly enjoy the game because of it. Not because it was a bad game, but because it wasn’t what they wanted out of Metroid. It was a variation from the established formula of core Prime gameplay. Just imagine for a second if Other M was not a Metroid game. It could have the same gameplay, and the same story just tweaked to remove the Metroid specific aspects like Mother Brain, Samus and Metroids. Other M would have been more successful, and even loved by many Prime fans.

This acknowledges that Other M was not bad, it was just an intrusion into the fan’s Metroid series that they wanted to be a certain way. The outcry of Metroid fans at Other M is understandable. Again, just imagine the action-adventure Zelda going RPG (Role-Playing Game). It is not absurd to say that Other M was likely an attempt at reinvigorating the Metroid series, alike to Super Mario Galaxy and what Skyward Sword is shaping up to be. It was a breath of fresh air, but all the fans wanted was the same old air they’d been breathing for eight years.

Because of that we have two sides to the Metroid fanbase. Of course there are people who adore both Prime and Other M, and I praise their ability to enjoy games for what they are. Mostly, though, we have two fanbases standing either side of the Metroid Divide. Prime fans – who claim to be the real Metroid fans – on one side, and the Other M group on the other side – which many will claim is full of “casuals” and people who don’t know what the “real” Metroid is. Many of them very well know what the “real” Metroid is, it just isn’t of interest to them.

What needs to be understood is that all three Prime games are excellent, and so is Other M. Sad to say, but in this case different does mean bad in the eyes of the separated groups of fans. We simply need to appreciate that both are good, regardless of our tastes. Regardless of how disappointing Prime was after Other M to some, and regardless of how much of a deviation from the established Metroid formula Other M was for some – we need to accept them for what they are – great games.

The pivotal question raised by the Metroid Divide is, where to now? Here we are in 2011 at the series’ 25th anniversary. There are rumors that the series has been shelved for the time being, and that is no surprise given it consistently undersells. Let’s not even mention how its silver anniversary seems to have been completely overlooked, especially by Nintendo. What is to become of the Metroid series? Is this divide only temporary?

We must remember the initial outcry from fans when Prime brought the series into the realm of First-Person Shooters, and wonder whether this is similarly just a passing gripe that will vanish with time. Despite initial reactions, The Prime Trilogy is now the model games of the series. Will Other M eventually slide into be accepted like that, or will the Metroid series split of into two very different styles? Mario manages RPGs, platformers and many more genres. Will Metroid make a distinction between future installments as either of the Action-Adventure-Arc, or of the FPS-side of the divide?

Despite how many people currently claim to “hate” Nintendo due to a fiasco known as “Operation Rainfall” – a charade which won’t last much longer – we all truly know that Nintendo will not deliberately abandon either side of the Metroid Divide if the series does continue. They are more likely to abandon all Metroid fans, instead of favoring one side of the divide. It is likely that the next title in the series, if it eventuates, will claim to “bring the series back to its core, but also cater to newer fans of the series” whose first experience was Other M.

Can such a game truly be made that pleases both sides of the Metroid Divide? Can one game build the bridge that seems all the more necessary as the fanbase continues to tear itself apart? I cannot honestly say that the future looks bright for Metroid, and the fact its 25th anniversary can pass so uncelebrated by Nintendo says a lot for it. Maybe it truly has been shelved, because redeeming the divided fanbase will not be an easy task. If anyone can bridge the gap, Nintendo can do it, but we fans – on both sides of the divide – are left to wonder if Nintendo is even interested in giving Metroid a future at all.