No, no I don't have any concrete proof, just an opinion looking at current trends:

The Phantom Hourglass became the best selling Zelda game in history this year in Japan

The Phantom Hourglass' touch control scheme could be easily modified to the Wii, giving the game a larger accesibility to the casual market

Cel-shaded is more appealing to the casual market

Player backlash from Twilight Princess was actually worse than that of Wind Waker

The cel-shaded art style competes better with what the Xbox 360 and PS3 can do, while the realistic art style of Twilight Princess reveals the Wii weaknesses

The Zelda series has come to the point where it needs to reinvent itself, just like Ocarina of Time did

Don't get me wrong, I loved Twilight Princess...in fact, I'd even be as bold to say it might be my favorite game of all time. But Twilight Princess was delayed too long, and then when it came out, alot of people realized that it really wasn't what they wanted anyway. Wind Waker was unsuccessful compared to other Zelda's...but there were so many extrenuating circumstances regarding the timing of the release of that game that it can hardly be blamed on the game's design. With Phantom Hourglass selling like hotcakes among a new audience in Japan, I foresee Nintendo thinking that this is the way to go with the Zelda series.

Those who think I'm completely off...please present your arguments intelligently. It makes for more interesting debate.

eh a 7 or a 7.5 but itll still be the second best game on the system. Its just Gamespot is so brutal on ratings, like EA sake. 7.5 but it is an amazing game. im sure gamespot will whine about something pointless and stupid to give it a 7 or at the highest an 8guyguyguy1234

Agreed. I'll be surprised if Super Mario Galaxy rates as high as Super Mario Sunshine did (8.0) . They're expecting something better than Super Mario 64 over at Gamespot.

Well, the dreams that fanboys have been fasting for since the end of the 16 bit era have come true. Is it everything they always wanted? How long will it last?

fyi hunters takes place in between mp1 and mp2

Nintenfreak165

Corrected.

What a bunch of jerks. They obviously didn't understand your question. The very beginning of the Metriod timeline starts at:

Metriod: Zero Mission ( Gameboy Advance )

Metriod Prime (Gamecube)

Metriod Prime: Hunters ( Nintendo DS )

Metriod Prime 2: Echoes (Gamecube)

Metriod Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)

Metriod II: The Return of Samus (Original Gameboy)

Metriod 3: Super Metriod ( SNES / Wii Virtual Console )

Metriod 4: Metriod Fusion ( Gameboy Advance )

Metriod: Zero Mission is a remake of the original Metriod, and a better beginning to the series than the original Metriod. I didn't include the original Metriod on the list because Zero Mission basically renders it obsolete. Yet, if you would really like to play it, it is available for the ( NES / Wii Virtual Console ) and a free version of the game comes with Zero Mission and Metriod Prime.

In my opinion, they are all exceptional games. The original Metriod is the hardest to get into. After that, Metriod II, with no maps and nothing really leading the way can be extremely difficult as well. Metriod Prime 2: Echoes is the least favorite of the 3D Metriods, because of it's difficulty and amount of dedication it takes to do well at that game. The best games, in my humble opinion are Super Metriod and the original Metriod Prime. Happy hunting.