There was an argument in the Gamecube forums about which game was better, Metriod Prime or Resident Evil 4. I love both games and have completed them and every game in their series. When I wrote this response, I surprised myself at how much I poured into it. I'm posting it here, so that those who are interested can read it, but just mostly so I can read it later on. I doubt my opinion will change in the future, but....you never know.;)
Greg Kasavin reviewed both Metriod Prime and Resident Evil 4 for the GC.
Metriod Prime 9.7
Resident Evil 4 9.6
The argument is over.
Resident Evil 4 was a technical masterpiece. It really blew everyone's mind. Not only did it show that the Gamecube could be lethal competition to the Xbox and PS2 in the right hands, but it also reinvented the Resident Evil series as a whole. With gameplay that was not only some of the best third person shooting out there, Resident Evil 4 also breathed new life into the series; a series that was severely stagnant. While it is easily the best game in the series, it still brought with it alot of the problems which the series has been unable to shake off since it's inception...namely, terrible characters (especially the villans), ridiculous storylines with NO payoff at the end of the game which beg more questions than answers.
Metriod Prime was not the technical achievement that Resident Evil 4 was, but it was a major triumph in game design. The adventure genre has never been so flawlessly converted to 3D. While many complain of backtracking and seeing the same environments, this is what the adventure genre demands: exploration. The world that Metriod gave us to explore and the ways to explore it was ingenious. Not only was in geographically varied, but it was seemless and believable. The voluntary reading of Log entries told a convincing science fiction tale, narrated from the perspective of your enemies without any cutscene interruptions. It featured a 3D map system that was both easy to understand and useful. The weapons and visors all served the context of the original Metriod premise well. All this perfection after the series had been in a hiatus for eight years. The designer's were new; of a different nationality and experience level. Theprevious game in the series (Super Metriod) was named the "greatest game of all time" ( EGM issue #150 ). In every possible way, this game was destined to disappoint. Only it didn't.
What it really comes down to is:
Some gamers need to shoot things, feel their adreneline pumping and feel terrified as their enemies close in. They love insurmountable odds and beating those odds. That's fine.
Some gamers need to explore. They want to stand on an alien vista, overlooking vast terrian with he presence of a great mystery that needs to be solved. They need to explore and uncover those mysteries at their own pace, as they see fit to do so. That's fine too.
Greg Kasavin is a professional when it comes to opinions about games. He is BETTER THAN YOU. He is better than me. He decided that Metriod Prime deserved a score of 9.7. He decided that Resident Evil 4 deserved a score of 9.6.
The End