Metroid: Other M. Despite its rough edges, it is as revolutionary for the Metroid series as Prime was. Though, I can almost guarantee its sequel, if made in the same vein, but with more polish, will trump every game in the series except Super... and there is potential to even top Super if they get the atmosphere perfect.
What MoM needs to be considered "polished:"
- Wiimote + Nunchuk combo instead of Wiimote-only. The d-pad isn't even decent for 3D movement; this isn't the early PS era anymore. Swapping between facing sideways and pointing is clunky, no matter how you serve it up, and is frustratingly clunky on Hard (especially when you have a 2-3 second window to shoot a missile and sense-move).
- A better translation. It is of no fault of either Sakamoto or Jessica Martin for the poor dialogue in the opening cutscenes... but the translator, who clearly is using a thesaurus well beyond his ability.
- Better level design. Although decent, the same corridors and generic areas get dull after a while. There certainly are some good areas, but most are just exceedingly generic.
- More rough edges. No, this isn't an ironic joke. The best Metroid games always have that "dirty" look to them. The areas Samus explores are old, decrepit, or just plain hostile and dangerous. Other M's art is good, but its way too clean for a Metroid game. Gears of War level grit isn't necessary... but they should learn from Super and Prime more.
- No more cheap deaths. I know its part of Team Ninja's design philosophy to use badly designed areas and obstacles to kill the player completely randomly... but this is Metroid we are talking about here, where every death comes from player error or lack of skill... not falling victim to a random occurrence due to bad design. (Though, I complain about this merely due to Hard mode, its inherent design is poor despite being more fun).
- More old themes, less generic sci-fi music. As great as electronica mixed with orchestrated music is... unless you can come up with memorable tunes, there is no reason to go beyond the old favourites (or remixes of old favourites). Hiring a Nintendo composer probably would have fixed these issues.
It has its rough edges, but it is the foundation for a fantastic game, that with all the planets in the right alignment, could give Super a run for its money. The addition of a narrative is perfect for the Metroid universe, all they need to do is make it even more compelling, fix the niggling issues and turn the levels from generic to awesome.
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Also... I have to make a comment here, something I don't understand. Where do people get the idea that Samus has something romantic for Adam? Throughout the time I was playing the game, the only feeling I ever got between them was Samus viewed him as a father-figure. She was respecting him because he was/is a male influence she never had as a kid (Mother Brain being her female influence when on Zebes with the Chozo). At no point was there ever an inkling of anything romantic between them. She cared for him like a daughter for her father, and rebelled against his authority as a teenager, and respected it as an adult. They never once even touched one another, which even for an unrequited romantic involvement would have occurred.
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