Retro Studios has really come a long way. Back in the beginning of the GameCube era, they were a new developer without any major successes under their belt. Their biggest project, Raven Blade, seemingly floundered in the development stage. Then something crazy happened. Nintendo gave the small Texas-based developer the keys to the Metroid franchise, and in the face of overwhelming scrutiny and criticism, made a first-person adventure starring Samus that kicked all of our asses. Who the hell saw that coming?

Now it's 2007, and with the Metroid Prime trilogy complete, Retro will most likely take a well-deserved rest from the franchise. But where do they go from here? With a solid history of development experience under their belt, will they try to bring back Raven Blade? Is there another new IP that they fancy working on? Will Nintendo give them the keys to another long-dormant franchise, like Kid Icarus? What form will it take?

Whatever Retro does, I'm sure that everyone will be watching closely.