Topic: Metroid Other M

[Mop it up]

I think that's the problem with giving a voice to a character who has been silent for so long. Most people probably already have some idea in their head what the character would sound like, and the given voice probably won't match it for most people.

[Halbred]

I must admit, when Samus said "time to go, Mother," I thought of Ellen Ripley calling the computer "Mother" in the first Alien movie.

[Sundoulos]

Another nice video for discussion:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRMBerJtJjM&feature=player_embedded

It looks good.  The dialogue is in Japanese, but it's just so weird to hear Samus being so...vocal. 

I suspect that all of those redshirts Space Marines Galactic Federation soldiers will meet an untimely demise, one at a time, as the game progresses.   The fact that there going to the trouble to introduce the soldiers in the trailer convinces me of this.  Also, what are the chances that there will be a traitor among them?  This is kind of getting me pumped for the game.

[Sarail]

I posted my thoughts on Twitter about this trailer, and all I can say is I had my doubts, but now I'm sold. I mean, completely sold on this game.

THE WAVE BEAM RETURNETH! WOOT.

Cannot wait for this game.

[KDR_11k]

I might care once sequence breaking is confirmed.

I suspect that all of those redshirts Space Marines Galactic Federation soldiers will meet an untimely demise, one at a time, as the game progresses.   The fact that there going to the trouble to introduce the soldiers in the trailer convinces me of this.  Also, what are the chances that there will be a traitor among them?  This is kind of getting me pumped for the game.

I'm not sure it's a good story if you can guess all of it just from a trailer...

[Caterkiller]

Whoa! Look at all those classic upgrades! That super jump is back baby! Gotta love those bright environments as well! The sky is so blue!

[Deguello]

I'm not sure it's a good story if you can guess all of it just from a trailer...

From an intertextual standpoint, you can pretty much guess how any plot is going to go from a trailer if you've read enough fiction or seen enough movies.

[KDR_11k]

I'm not sure it's a good story if you can guess all of it just from a trailer...

From an intertextual standpoint, you can pretty much guess how any plot is going to go from a trailer if you've read enough fiction or seen enough movies.

Only if the trailer shows all the important clues, especially if there's going to be some twists that change the direction of the story and aren't standard fare.

[bustin98]

That trailer doesn't really indicate if the space marines are all doomed or not. It seems in some cases that they help Samus out with some creatures. Though it could be as you go through the levels they die off one by one till only Samus is left.

The trailer also tells me that I really dislike Japanese storytelling. All the posturing and touching by the teammembers... Its like they threw in an episode of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers into a Metroid game. I hope there is a skip button for the cutscenes.

"Ah-ha, we are all teammates but we are friends, too, ah-ha!"
"Yes! We are friends! Let me put my hand on your back to show others just how good friends we are! Ah-ha!"

[Deguello]

I'm not sure it's a good story if you can guess all of it just from a trailer...

From an intertextual standpoint, you can pretty much guess how any plot is going to go from a trailer if you've read enough fiction or seen enough movies.

Only if the trailer shows all the important clues, especially if there's going to be some twists that change the direction of the story and aren't standard fare.

I think my point is: How many plotlines are even possible with a game like this?

1. Everything goes swimmingly, bad guy defeated, see you next mission.
2. Things go poorly, everybody except Samus is dead, Samus beats Mother Ridley Prime (whoever), see you next mission.
(Comedy option) 3. #1 or #2, but it's all a dream/simulation Samus is having during her coma in Metroid Fusion, see you next mission.

That's why there are only the two masks in the happy/sad drama logo.

The trailer also tells me that I really dislike Japanese storytelling.

That's not "japanese."  It's just using blocking and actor position to emote the feel of the scene so that the meaning can be conveyed without words.  It's used in silent movies all the time.  Imagine you are deaf and playing the game, or you are a kid who doesn't fully understand English.  How do you know Link's a good guy?  Because he's all in green and has that determined look on his face.  How do you know Ganondorf's a bad guy?  Because he's wearing mostly black and is scowling an evil smile (and usually whenever he meets Link he's got him in a chokehold or he's throwing magic at him.)

[Sundoulos]

Yeah, as I said, it's only speculation on my part, but that's part of the fun...at least for me.

We don't have a lot to go on plot-wise yet.   We know from Fusion that Adam was once her CO, and, from the trailers, as well as what we know from the demo, some of the other people in the team know Samus.  "Remember me?" 

From that, I'll assume that Samus probably has some sort of connection with at least some of the team members.   Fairly late into the trailer, Samus clearly screams "Anthony", which is apparently the name of the "Remember me?" guy. 

My guess just was that this was her old squadron, or at least some of the team members left were probably from her old squad.   If that's true, then they're probably the closest thing to family that Samus has, albeit, in Samus' case, they are  probably estranged friends or family.   Since we know that the developers seem to be trying to humanize Samus with this game, and so much of the trailers so far have emphasized the loss of the "baby," I think it follows that much of the game is also going to focus on Samus' reaction to dealing with loss. 

I'd agree with Deguello.  There's not that many ways that this could go down.   It doesn't have to be unpredictable and original to be entertaining, and I can't see a Metroid game being a comedy in the traditional sense.  That's why I think the soldiers are probably going to be monster food.

The story might be executed well or it might flop; the trailer does still intrigue me, though.

[bustin98]

That's not "japanese."  It's just using blocking and actor position to emote the feel of the scene so that the meaning can be conveyed without words.  It's used in silent movies all the time.  Imagine you are deaf and playing the game, or you are a kid who doesn't fully understand English.  How do you know Link's a good guy?  Because he's all in green and has that determined look on his face.  How do you know Ganondorf's a bad guy?  Because he's wearing mostly black and is scowling an evil smile (and usually whenever he meets Link he's got him in a chokehold or he's throwing magic at him.)

The stuff you mentioned as examples has nothing to do with what I was referencing. I totally get using colors and expressions to convey a feeling or to foreshadow a character's alignment. But the movement and positioning of characters along with camera position and movement is of a particular style that I do not care for. The interaction between the characters is soo much ham and cheese, its embarrassing to watch.

[Mop it up]

I don't care if it's good or not, I just hope the story doesn't get in the way of the gameplay.

[Deguello]

I think I was referring to you talking about "posturing" and "touching."  That's what that's all about, being able to convey a scene without dialogue (of which there is some).  You know that black guy is her friend because he's all smiley.  You know that Chris Cooper looking fella is distrusting because he won't make eye contact.  it's like Noh theater, where nobody has any idea what's being said (including the Japanese audience,) but can fgure out what's going on just by the action.

[NWR_insanolord]

I don't care if it's good or not, I just hope the story doesn't get in the way of the gameplay.

[King of Twitch]

Did I watch the same trailer? I didn't get any of those vibes. All I remember is quiet, quiet arrive to the scene and... BOOM, ALIEN APPEARS AHGG SHOOT IT! Busy space marine at the console giving orders. Stern look. urrgh! tough guy. samus with dramatic music. I GOT IT! NOO! BOOOOM!! SAMUUUS!!! end trailer.

Action movie stuff, not so much Japanese. Well not all action movie stuff, there's lots of gameplay footage thrown in there too, almost like they want to convey that it's going to be a Metroid game.

[Stratos]

I got a feeling not of them all dieing, but more it was introducing the new 'squad-based-support-gameplay' in the game. You can probaby call them in at certain moments as backup and such.

[Halbred]

SAMUS DOESN'T NEED BACKUP

[Chozo Ghost]

but didn't you have to aim in Super Metroid?

It's not that the enemies are easy to defeat, it's that I don't even have to asim at them to hit them, I just have to face them and press 1111111 and it's done.

The final battle with Mother Brain was pretty challenging, unless you had the Captain Rainbow gun, in which case it was really super easy...

Of course, even after beating Mother Brain you still had to get the hell out of the whole damn place before the entire planet explodes, and that was in itself fairly challenging. Like if you missed a platform or something you fell all the way to the problem and you were done.

Sounds like some people need to invest in a Classic Controller.

That is too small too. I'm not 12 anymore, my hands cramp when using that thing for extended periods of time.
I'm hoping the CCPro works out better since it has handles to grip.

There are 3rd party thingers you can get that are shells that the wiimote snaps into and that adds grips to it and whatnot. It may be worthwhile for you to invest in one of them.


ETA: And for all of you who are complaining about the Wiimote's D-pad being too tiny, is it possible there exists a 3rd party shell that could make the D-PAD larger? Have any of you ever bothered looking? Something like that might exist. It would be pretty simply to have something the wiimote snaps into which superimposes a larger D-pad thing over the existing smaller D-pad and gives the player a larger D-pad without any lose of functionality.

Dammit, the more I see of this game, the *less* impressed I am. I just can't believe you can't use the analog stick to control Samus, it's so unnatural to use the D-Pad in a 3D environment.

I believe that was how it was for virtually all the PS1 games that were made prior to when Sony tacked the thumbsticks onto the controller. Sony insisted that all games on the PS1 be 3D no matter what, but in the first year or so of the PS1 the default standard controller did not have sticks so you had to move your characters in a 3D environment with only a crummy D-Pad (and a crummy D-pad at that).

But I don't know how that worked out because I never owned a PS1...

The latest press release on Metroid: Other M (can't find the link to where I saw it) confirmed that the entire game takes place on this enormous Galactic Federation ship, and all the other environments we've seen in the screens and trailers are simulations inside these spheres, which are scattered around the ship. For example, the jungle area is in the Biosphere, the fire area is in the Pyrosphere, the ice area is in the Cryosphere... you get the picture.


I s'pose it's too early to say whether the similarity with Metroid Fusion is a good thing. Currently, I'm more concerned about whether the controls will hold up in heavier action sequences that are bound to come later.

Neat. Sounds to me like a Star Trek kinda deal with the holodecks. So Samus is going to go on Holo adventures, eh? Well, lets just hope the safety protocols are enabled.

I think that's the problem with giving a voice to a character who has been silent for so long. Most people probably already have some idea in their head what the character would sound like, and the given voice probably won't match it for most people.

Another danger is that she will be given some shrill annoying voice, which is actually likely considering that's how things ended up for Mario with his Mickey Mouse-esque voice. That, or she'll be given some sultry Jessica Rabbit voice and then no one will be able to take her seriously anymore. I fear one of those two things are going to end up happening.

[Dasmos]

lol forget double posting, quintuple posting is where it is at, yo.

[Sarail]

http://www.gamesradar.com/wii/metroid-other-m/preview/metroid-other-m-mega-hands-on/a-2010072812244071096/g-20090602105555875007

Games Radar has some really awesome impressions of Metroid: Other M for your reading pleasure. Check it out.  Makes the game sound amazing!

[Chozo Ghost]

lol forget double posting, quintuple posting is where it is at, yo.

I didn't double (or quintiple or whatever) post, because each post was different. I hadn't viewed this thread since March so now all at once I was responding to the posts that had built up since that time.

[Dasmos]

lol forget double posting, quintuple posting is where it is at, yo.

I didn't double (or quintiple or whatever) post, because each post was different. I hadn't viewed this thread since March so now all at once I was responding to the posts that had built up since that time.

Yeah and you can do all that in one post. You don't need to space it out into five. That's basically spamming. People are going to read whether or no it's spread into 5 posts. So making more than one is unnecessary. Even if you're trying to quote more than one post, you can still do it in the same post. Clicking the quote button just places the post at the end of the quick reply. It's just stupid if you don't. Really stupid.

[Caterkiller]

Just in case it was lost due to the nonsense here it is again.

http://www.gamesradar.com/wii/metroid-other-m/preview/metroid-other-m-mega-hands-on/a-2010072812244071096/g-20090602105555875007

That was an awesome preview! Metroid is being painted in such a good light, I don't see how people can not get excited for this.

[BeautifulShy]

Well I am looking forward to this more than I originally did so that is a plus.