And don't forget the ****storm that Nintendo fanboys kicked up after Rare joined the Microsoft Games Studio - was that worth it in the end?
Was what worth it? MS signing Rare or the sh!tstorm we kicked up?

I still see losing Rare as a big loss. They haven't done much for MS but I think a big part of that is because is was the combination of Rare and Nintendo that was so special. I didn't think Battletoads era Rare was that great. Their output greatly improved immediately when they joined with Nintendo and then it dimished instantly when they left. That suggests to me that the collaboration is what was special. If Star Fox Adventures wasn't their last Nintendo game then you wouldn't here revisionist "Rare wasn't all that" stuff today. They unfortunately went out on a low note.
Just to add fuel to the fire Metroid Prime 2 is my favourite. It was similar to the original but didn't have annoying Chozo Ghost fights. Plus having the A Link to the Past, dual worlds formula applied to a 3D game was really cool. I can't quite explain it but that game just did it for me.
Metroid Prime 3 is pretty good but I haven't had the incentive to really go far in it. It is so blatantly tailored to the people that didn't like Metroid Prime because it wasn't a FPS. It's a compromised Metroid for non-fans. Still a fantastic game but it really bothers me that they gave in. I didn't mind that Metroid Prime was a game you either got or you didn't. I would have liked it to sell better but I've always wanted the masses to change. I want them to change and appreciate Metroid and not have Metroid change for them.