PLEASE READ BEFORE COMMENTING, especially if you're about to take a shot at Covarr. Covarr's section, as I originally envisioned it, was meant to be a 30-45 second gag where he, as someone who GENUINELY doesn't like Fusion, would quickly play up ALL of his grievances with it in an over-the-top manner. It was partly meant to be played for laughs, while still allowing us to address some of the criticisms that make Fusion a somewhat controversial game. His section as-written ended up being a lot longer than I'd thought, but I still thought it was really enjoyable. The problem I didn't forsee is that my audience... 1) Doesn't know Covarr, and thus wouldn't inherently appreciate his being there, and 2) Didn't have my knowledge that it was MEANT to be tongue-in-cheek. As a result, his over-the-top rant lasted WAY too long to be a joke, and aside from the relatively-small subsection of my viewers who know Covarr from my streams, almost nobody enjoyed it. Covarr also didn't want to awkwardly repeat criticisms I had already raised, so he was forced even more to exaggerate his nitpicks. Given these circumstances, we should have either cut it back down to the original 30 seconds, edited it to be more fairly critical, or just cut it entirely. I take full responsibility, and I really hate when people slag off on Covarr himself over it, because as the semi-experienced UA-cam person, I _really_ should have been better about anticipating how it would come across to you guys.
If Covarr was going for over-the-top, he didn't go far enough. This is the internet. Too many people say the stuff he says with a straight face. I think this bit could have worked significantly better if it was hinted at before, like how Fusion foreshadows everything. Sprinkle some 'edits' in moments where the plot is more liner; put the pieces together to figure out the truth; and, finally, confront Covarr when Samus confronts the SA-X (which, btw, the second form is a combination of its current form and the first creature that X copied back on SR-388). That would have been great.
i actually liked the section,it acknowledged huge flaws in a game which usually people dont mention. i think people just hated the section because its a different opinion.
I never thought about this, but... The SA-X freezes you and then hits you with a super missile. That's how you kill a metroid. Samus has metroid DNA, so the SA-X sees her as a metroid. Mind blown.
She literally has Metroid DNA, so it's just logical to freeze her with ice beam and blast the shite outta her. The SA-X is extremely calculating and cold.
The fact that Samus was injected with a vaccine earlier that gave her part Metroid DNA probably explained why SA-X was hunting her down in the first place.
@@hikkicornmori359 Exactly. That's what I got just by reading the text and fighting enemies that had to be frozen first. If the game wasn't so linear then you would never get past SA-X.
But that doesn't mean it's a good plot. It deviated from Super Metroid a bit too much. Considering how Other M turned out, Sakamoto wants Samus to be like this in the future, meaning more Metroid games like Other M. Nobody wants that.
Cedars Fusion's plot was fine in my opinion. She was still a strong, confident character but the game allowed her human side to shine through. This game was about the Federation sending in someone to handle an out of control situation while trying to keep her from learning too much. But you can't contain Samus Aran. Other M, on the other hand was just a mess. Fusion is a fun game with a solid plot. Other M took in the ideas in fusion, and vomited them back out.
Lucky Egg Metroid Fusion was my favorite Metroid game until literally two months ago. After I played Other M and watched countless reviews on every Metroid game (including The Geek Critique's reviews), I began to realize that Metroid Fusion is flawed. I played Super Metroid for the third time last month, and have since played it ten times! I'm not even joking. Speedrunning resparked my interest in Super Metroid. I now prefer Super Metroid over Metroid Fusion much more. My argument is that, if it weren't for Other M, Metroid Fusion's story would be okay. But considering it's story along with that of Other M's story, Metroid Fusion's story is poor. Some people argue that Sakamoto also wrote Super Metroid's story. But he wasn't the only one who contributed to the story for Super. In Fusion and Other M, he was the ONLY one in charge of their stories. Nintendo has reserved Metroid for Yoshio Sakamoto, and I believe this is the reason the Metroid series can't progress like other Nintendo franchises. Metroid would never have gotten a sequel if it weren't for Genpei Yokoi. Metroid was his creation, essentially. Since Yokoi created the GameBoy, he created Metroid II to show off the GameBoy's capabilities. Sakamoto had NOTHING to do with Metroid II's story. He wasn't even a part of development. All in all, Sakamoto is Metroid's curse.
xdan I've met others who've played Super Metroid really late and still love it like I do. I think it's a testament to how great Super Metroid really is!
i played this as a child and the forced "stop and go here" helped me play. And as an adult i just love the horror aspect. i feel that this game doesnt get enough love and wish i could play a sequel with the new corrupted suit still intact
Not to mention Samus' destruction of the B.S.L laboratories and extinction of the X-Parasite will label her as a criminal in the eyes of the federation seeing as a multi billion dollar station that they created with many lives onboard was destroyed as well as a new species discovered being murdered before they could be studied (Obviously it would turn against them and go wrong) as well as seeing Samus have to deal with a new suit, abilities, and her dealing with the Metroid and X Biology. So much could be elaborated on and instead they're like "MeTrOId 2 ReMaKe!!!"
Cryo Judgement I’d even say multi-trillion taking into account the scope of the operation and how much could potentially be exploited through future X and Metroid cloning/weaponization. She basically destroyed a gold mine of a planet with a planet sized man-made research facility. Yikes.
Agreed I mean I personally think the game itself is great at delivering the fear and tension cause you start off as weak then grow stronger yet still considered weak but in other metroid games it works backwards
Fusion is one of my favorites it has an incredible atmosphere and does buildups really well the bosses (I think) are unique and fun (especially Nightmare and a few others) the linear plot helps build tension in a way that makes you feel on edge and powerless need I say more
"Does the Federation want to keep Samus weak?" Covarr, there are approximately three trillion trees in the world. These trees work tirelessly to produce the oxygen we breathe. I want you to track down the specific tree that produced the oxygen you used to say that line, and *apologize* to it.
@@theinfantmetroid he's talking about covarr who missed an extremely secret Energy Tank. I dought that he knows who you are either, so why take it as an insult?
The thing is, Super Metroid also did the same thing of having an item out there in the open randomly for you to pick yet apparently It wasnt a problem in that game?
I think the linear design is brilliant. Samus in every other game is a hired bounty hunter told to complete a mission in whatever way she needs to, while in this game she's been sent to a federation ship by the federation to complete an objective. It would make sense for the game to be linear, because the federation has made the mission quick, cheap, and streamlined, like how any government would do it.
@@eidiazcas yes but they made that decision very early on we could’ve had a story which had no reason to be linear which would’ve made the game play feel Like I didn’t need to be this linear but instead they went with a story that makes perfect sense )if you ignore the fact that she download a update to a physical device missiles Through a freaking computer and also she downloads missile(
"Is the federation trying to keep samus too weak to succeed?" Uh actually yeah they were. They said in the game they had certain power ups ready and with-held them so samus wouldn't confront the sa-x. Remember how they wanted to preserve the sa-x for their own uses?
They only withheld upgrades that would allow Samus to harm the SA-X, the Plasma and Wave Beams and the Screw Attack. Other upgrades like the Ice Missile and Varia Suit that would allow her to survive the SA-X more easily while still not allowing her to harm it, they give her without a second thought.
"Yeah, a download that changes the physical properties of my ammunition. Cause that makes sense." Galactic bounty hunter that can jump infinitely, run through walls and summons her power armor by mere thought alone fights space dragons and giant brains in glass jars, but downloading information to change the fabrication unit in her arm mounted heavy artillery? That's just too far. wut?
Also complains that upgrades are just out in the open. I'm insulted that someone who has clearly never played a Metroid title before is ragging on one of them. Examples of Metroid titles with upgrades in the open: Metroid, ZM, II RoS, Super, Prime, Prime 2, Prime 3... Other M?, wait, is that most of the series? Well fuck Nintendo for doing that same thing in Fusion as most of the series...
I always said her power suit can't store over 200 missiles, so she has some way of changing them to energy for storage or something. With this it seems her suit has the ability to copy the abilities of the X when she absorbs them, so why not gain the small ability to copy data and produce missiles with the energy from green X's. makes sense to me.
Canonically, the only time she taken OFF het armour was in her original gunship. We're still not sure how she put her power suit on but I assume it's through her presumably-Chozo technical ship
Also all her upgrades are Chozo-only. Not sure how "canon" her DNA being part Chozo is, but being officially part of the Chozo clan in Zebes (when it was not "evil") allows her (or her Chozo-origined Power Suit) to take the upgrades.
Here's the thing about offence, it is a personal issue, YOU have the problem, not us. When you start your rant with "This completely unrelated thing to me is an insult to me" you have no point to your statement.
@@demonzero677 I don't completely agree with that statement. I think that "X-thing personally made me feel insulted" has its own merit in its own argument. I think that exact sentiment is kind of whiny but it's a valid emotion to feel. Adding it into this video however was a conceptual nightmare. No one comes to the Geek Critique for Covarr's thoughts, no one wants to watch a video where a person expresses their opinion calmly and rationally, and then have another a contradictory opinion by a completely separate individual screamed and ranted at us like a five year old. That shit does more harm then good, it makes a fairly decent argument, an opposite point of view, look so damn immature in comparison. It gives the impression of "if you agree with this lunatic who interrupted my video then you're every bit as childish as he is." which I *know* wasn't the intention, but golly, most viewers who don't read TGC's pinned comment are totally gonna get that vibe from this video, especially with it so close to the conclusion. Covarr's rant "corrupts a masterpiece" because it comes off as hijacking an otherwise very well informed and articulate analysis with his own vitriol.
You need a better proofreader. "Why does she have to go to different rooms for different upgrades?" Because the SA-X destroys them. Explicitly stated in the story. The fact that she can restore powers from bosses is a surprise to both of them. Making save rooms not restore health/ammo increases its difficulty and stops you from running back to the save room constantly. Forcing some trial and error in pathfinding helps make the game feel less linear than it is, and it's not like super metroid didn't have an abundance of shitty "secret paths". I've never empathized with the "it's so linear" complaint. Super Metroid isn't an open world. It absolutely has direction. It absolutely expects you to go certain places in certain orders. Maybe not one single linear line, but Reverse Boss Order was NEVER intended and is NOT representative of its GAME DESIGN. Hate the story interrupting your gameplay? Hate the story in and of itself? Fine, that's your taste. Personally, I think Fusion is a masterpiece BECAUSE it has such a compelling and thematically fitting story. Metroid was inspired by the Alien movie. Metroid Fusion is the most Alien game in the franchise by a country mile. Every core mechanic echoes the themes of that movie.
I'm okay with story but Metroid games with a complex story should give you the option to skip the cutscenes and get right into the action. Being able to skip cutscenes after you beat the game is a start but I think it'd be even better, for the sake of everyone being able to get what they want, to have you be able to skip them right from the start. It makes Fusion less fun to replay because you already know all the cutscenes and it becomes a bit of a chore. Still a good game, don't get me wrong.
In regards to the data rooms, by the end of the game only a few remain accessible: The Operations Deck, Sector 2, and Sector 4. metroid.wikia.com/wiki/Data_Room#Trivia
"In Super Metroid I had the X-Ray scope." Metroid Fusion made the power bomb serve the same purpose as the X-ray scope, only more efficient. That was the point.
I admit I haven't played super Metroid but the X-ray visor told you where things were and the you could destroy it in fusion a lot of times blocks are destroyable without any indication of them being destructible that is why it feels so random
@@dggaming7610 yeah cuz when you enter a fully empty room in a videogame or with only one single, weak enemy, your first thought is "theres nothing here, imma head out"
Personally I think it's important to have different kinds of entries in a series. The more focused gameplay of fusion suits the portable system it was made for. Plus it's more about story and atmosphere, and for me at least, it's one of the best in the series for that. And I can't forget about the bosses, very good stuff.
Yes nicely said i agree with you 100%. It’s very important to have that kind of variety especially if you have a long running beloved franchise like Metroid. And yet on the other hand you have the Resident Evil fanbase for example which are braindead idiots that if it was up to them RE would still be stuck in a fixed camera and tank controls era but look at that franchise today man. I mean holy shit. It’s amazing how much variety RE games have, it’s one of the most awesome franchises ever to grace the gaming world and it is my personal favourite.
Different entries are all well and good, provided they're done right. If it's just different for the sake of being different, you end up with games like Fed Force. I wouldn't call Fusion a bad game; but I say this as someone who started out on Fusion, and then played Prime and ultimately the rest of the games after that, I appreciated the more open-ended nature of those games over a locked facility with little freedom to sequence break. I think Fusion is an important entry in the series because did help revive interest in 2D Metroid, and it had a much-needed refined moveset. I appreciate the game for what it did, and that's making acceptible, fluid movement which was integrated in (just my opinion here guise) a much better title, Zero Mission. It even influenced later games like Samus Returns, AM2R, and Dread. For that alone, I am thankful Fusion exists. As a standalone Metroid however, I would only ever to back to it for the rad boss fights like Nightmare. Otherwise, if I want a nice fast paced Metroid that still has all of its essential franchise DNA intact, I'd go with Zero Mission. Slightly off topic, but what I enjoyed about Dread was that it took what Fusion did and made it so much better. E.M.M.Is, fast paced action, the sense of dread, tight and refined movement, decent amount of exploration, a good story, amazing boss fights, and sequence breaking available from very early on in the game. As for Resident Evil, that's a different situation than fans merely wanting a feature that's been available from the start. There's a difference between wanting a Metroid game to be heavy on exploration, and demanding that RE keeps its terribad control scheme, which, even in the late '90s seemed dated. I would agree if fans were demanding that Nintendo keep Super's more sluggish movement, or God forbid Metroid NES's. That would be silly. But wanting a Metroid game to be more open and give the player freedom to roam their environment, that should be a given. I don't see how pidgeon-holing a player into pre-determined, sequential paths is beneficial to a Metroid-like. It certainly wasn't good for Other M. It didn't do the game any favors.
I know this will probably get tossed into the sea of youtube comments like a message in a bottle but I have a take on the whole "Samus gets upgrades both by enemy and by data room? WTF is with that" argument. Back when I first played it, to me it felt like samus' suit and mobility upgrades were gotten by fighting enemies. Her suits, abilities, and even some weapon modifications are gotten this way. But the data rooms were always where she got the hard weapon upgrades. Missiles, super missiles, morph ball bomb, super bombs, ice missiles, and the like were all from the data rooms. Why? Prepare a dramatic beat because......The federation cared only about her abilities as a weapon!!! Why does she need all that crazy mobility stuff when the soldiers get along just fine with just better guns? So they, as was pointed out in the story, only let her get as powerful as they wanted her to be at a given time. The federation essentially admitted they prioritized getting her gun up and functional over everything else. Notice how in the game, they get the missile and bomb data ready quite quickly, but you have to absorb the morph ball ability from an enemy. This means the federation made an upgrade for a form they didn't even plan for you to have! But alas, this might end up lost in the comments forever....Just hope it gives you something to think about in the future. Fusion is a really, really, really damn well packed game. I think they did things like the horror elements and the distinct style as a part of the transition to a mobile platform. This way, even if you only play a short while, not only will you have gotten something done but there's a good chance you'll have something to talk about with your friends the next day like "OMG! I went to go get an upgrade and I had to fight a boss for it instead cause it downloaded the upgrade before I could!" or "Holy crap man! I had a run in with the SA-X and I wasn't prepared for it at all! That thing is spooky!". I like the original metroid prime better (it was my first metroid game I got new) and super metroid has some benefits, but fusion is definitely a welcome addition to the family.
That's quite the interesting observation you made, but there's a tiny flaw in your reasoning. The Federation had the Varia Suit data ready for Samus, it is even an objective to acquire it to enter the Ice Sector. That's when its revealed that the X can absorb digital Data and use it to form organic structures, like Varia-X.
Oh yeah....I forgot that they did prepare that suit upgrade. But that aside, I still think there is something to the fact that samus' federation upgrades being weapon focused and the boss focused upgrades being more mobility focused. It was too clean cut, varia suit aside, for it to be intentional IMO.
Hmmm, I never played the English version of the game so I am not sure if they ever state it there, but even ther AI states that getting her weapons back online is their top priority, which is supported by your observation. But even the Varia Suit Upgrade had more capabilities as a weapon in mind, because now she can enter the Ice sector, which makes her universally more useful as a weapon.
There's actually a pattern with the upgrades you get from the Data Rooms... You get: -Missiles -Bombs -Super Missiles -Varia Suit -Ice Missiles -Power Bombs -Diffusion Missiles The federation never sends you a latent ability that they can't replicate: only Missiles and Bombs (and armor)
Some of the X parasites even downloaded data from data rooms (Varia suit) or utterly destroyed them (Nightmare). The big X parasites that granted abilities could have been fragments of the SA-X, as they all had Samus' old abilities.
I personally love the inspirations Fusion took from action-platformers. The bosses are a prime example. If you ignore your nostalgia for a second, all bosses in Super were pretty meh. Crocomire stood out for the acid thing, not for an interesting fight. Ridley was just a damage sponge. Mother Brain was primarily story. The others weren't particularly interesting either. Also, the generally floaty controls made dodging a bad option so you often just tanked the damage, something you could do if you collected enough stuff. Fusion has quick bosses with varied movement and boss music making your hearth pump faster.
Yeah I totally agree on this. Fusion has my regards for having the most fun boss fights. Nightmare, Yakuza, Ridley, SA-X, Security Robot are all very intense and fun fights. And they are the reason why I replay this game so much because those crunchy Missiles feel Super good.
@@ExtremeAce Honestly I hated the seconded security robot fight, really for just one reason: that hurtbox is way to small! Also Nightmare (mostly phase 2) was just as bad as Super Metroid bosses. Again the hurtbox was a little too small (maybe), but his swoops aren't telegraphed well and he has one attack that just let's you kill him with no effort... unless he isn't aligned with the ladder... in which case you just wait until he very slowly makes his way across the arena in a straight line while shooting. I went back to beat him multiple times in row (I killed myself and savestated right before the fight) because the fight seemed to unfairly kick my butt repeatedly until he just decided to die and I wanted to analyze it. Note: I liked this game overall even tho it was very linear. However, I don't have any incentive to 100% percent it (assuming I didn't lock myself out of that anyway). Doing a 45% sweep of a Metroidvania right before the final boss doesn't seem very appealing.
Covarr: "Is the federation TRYING to keep Samus weak?!?" Yes, that is one of the plot's twists toward the end of the game, when the computer reveals that the Ice Missile upgrade had been ready for some time, and they never revealed this fact to Samus. Really great video until the rant at the end. I realize it was supposed to be a joke, but it just feels like a shame to ruin such a well written, well thought out retrospective, with a sarcastic, emotionally charged conclusion at the end... But, your video made a lot of great points that I should have made in my video on Fusion. Like the fact that since this was a handheld game, it was somewhat forced into a formula that supported short bursts of gameplay. That was something I never considered!
Fusion is the first game in the Metroid series where we get the hint that the Federation isn't as squeaky clean as the series had portrayed them previously. The creation of Metroids despite ordering their extinction previously and deliberately keeping Samus weakened until they have no other choice are evidence of that.
Metroid Fusion was always my favorite Metroid game, but thats because it was the first one I played. I went back and played all the other ones, but Fusion was still my favorite. I dont think I've ever played through a game more times than I have Fusion. That being said, I understand its flaws as a metroidvania game and it is the most Linear of all the metroids. Also some of the complaint put up towards the end of the video are answered in game, and seem to be made by someone who didnt really pay attention to the story, or were just exaggerated for comedy.
I feel the exact same way. They pointed out "plot holes" that are clearly explained in game or by the lore from other games. Fusion is probably my favorite as well because it is different than the other games and doesn't feel like the copy of Super Metroid people seem to wish it had been.
Also, he asks why you have to keep using different data rooms. The game outright tells you - and SHOWS YOU - that the X are actively destroying or blocking data rooms as the game proceeds. Because they are a coordinated predatory force trying to *kill you.*
I feel like they more uh... Know generally how to give her technology after studying her for the many years she's been around and in their service and found a way to electronically deliver her ridiculously adaptive and advanced chozo armor upgrades.
i do not think SA-X tried to save Samus. actually, I believe SA-X saw the Omega Metroid as a bigger threat than Samus, given the fact the Omega Metroid could almost killed Samus with a single slash, so it decided to kill the bigger, more menacing Metroid (remember Samus is now a Metroid since she now has Metroid DNA in her genes). so it miscalculated the outcome and was turned into a regular x parasite, which could be absorbed by Samus. but that is my opinion.
Matthew Travis no. I do not think so. SA-X's purpose was to survive, and let itself being absorbed by Samus (which is essentially another Metroid, meaning, an enemy) would defeat the purpose.
Consider this: the X could have easily killed Samus whenever they wanted to simply by coordinating. The SA-X you fight on the Main Deck was probably just the one *chosen* to fight Samus. That SA-X was probably going for backup when it ran away from Samus. However, it detected a far greater threat to it's species than Samus: the Omega Metroid. Naturally, the SA-X chose to destroy the greater threat, no matter what. Letting itself be absorbed by Samus was merely a means to an end, to give someone with more experience fighting it's foe the ability to do so
The first time that I played fusion and it told me that there were at least TEN SA-X wandering the B.S.L. station. I shut my game off instantly and didnt play it for a week. The SA-X is one of the only enemies in a video game that instilled true fear into me.
I remember trying to fight it during the very first encounter (you morph ball bomb down into the room it's in) and getting destroyed. After that, it was high tension because I didn't know where it could be. There's another beautiful touch after you get the wave beam where you can do the ghetto screw attack into it. The SA-X lets out a damaged cry before once again attacking you. It was a moment of "You're getting stronger, but you're still not where I am, Samus" that I'll never forget. Metroid Fusion is my favorite Metroid of all time not because of its gameplay or story but because it subverts the "You'll get everything back by killing baddies" mentality. You're actively hunted. You can go the linear path, sure, but unless you're careful you don't beat the game. The BSL will consume you unless you adapt outside of what ADAM is telling you to do. Samus has no one but herself to succeed, and that isolated feeling generated tension and fear in my 8 year old body. No game has done that since.
@@labraderp agreed with you dude cause if you compare the damage intakes on Fusion and other M series and even Metroid Zero Mission you received more damage in MF version than other M versions including MZM the remake of the first Metroid series which in the end forces you to not just tank hits but also tried to survive as well with any limitations, plus the sense of isolations and the soundtracks gives enough chills and fear since most of the things you are experienced are off screen and stages while you are alone with these bunch of viruses that came out with no end.
I know the Covarr bit was supposed to be over-the-top, but some of those reasons don't even work. If you want to hate ADAM, fine, it's the worst part of the plot and sometimes gets annoying when it won't shut up, but complaining about how you get upgrades? You're right, how dare they download missiles, it makes way more sense to find glass capsules containing augmentations in the middle of nowhere that happen to fit to her specific suit and automatically attach. And of course the SA-X would cause more destruction, it has no reason for discretion and just like all the bosses, it's a bastardization of the suit. I dunno, this is one of my favorite games so I'm obviously biased in it's favor and I didn't want to harp on what everyone else was commenting but it bothered me.
Yeah I was pretty skeptical of the criticism in the end. I didn’t even play the game just heard detailed explanations but I could tell his argument was unreasonable. Like the fact that he complains about SA-X when I’m pretty sure it’s stronger than what Samus was before considering that it doesn’t have any human limitations...
It's also worth mentioning that the "download missiles" thing isn't even that implausible. You don't download the physical missiles, you download the software that allows you to shoot them.
I think it's because the paths themselves aren't designed to appear linear, but there is only one real path and therefore it is linear. Personally if I can't tell the difference it doesn't bother me (like Dark Souls for example).
Well, I think that they always wanted to make a more linear game, it's just that older Metroid games (Super Metroid, for instance) were designed as a linear story-based game with various unintended (and some intended) exploits to sequence break. Let's not forget that 2D games with level-based design which were never intended to have sequence-breaks (Sonic, Mario) were filled with sequence breaks, which is why speed-runners love them so much. I imagine that creating a 2D game with so many power-ups and skills using a single large map designed with various alternate paths depending on the plot of the game would have been nearly impossible to pull off without sequence breaks. Really, what Fusion succeeds at that other games in the series failed at is making the design of the game a lot tighter. The purpose isn't to speed-run the game, the purpose is to explore the station. What I love about Fusion is that once you've explored pretty much every area you're made aware of in the start and coloured the entire map you've been given, the game flips the script by revealing exactly how much of the research base is 'hidden'. Heck, one of my favourite moments is going back to Sector 2 and just seeing how many hidden areas there are. Plus, the twist with Sector 1 (obviously, the first sector you visit) becoming the most important sector in the game, and the last sector you visit, is done very well.
@Born2Run Well, in MP3, even with the hint system deactived, it shows your next objective immediately. I played MP2 without the hint system for most of the game, and it made all the more interesting.
@@francisthompson3772 it still doesn't show you how to get there off the bat, there are still a lot of things you as a player need to do in MP3. It isn't just as simple as shoot everything to move on if you get what I mean.
“After all the other near death experiences you’d think she’d be used to it by now” Except that isn’t how trauma works, and this is something that she had zero agency over, was left significantly weakened by, and was an indirect result of her own actions in previous installments. Literally the entire point if this game’s conflict is that Samus (who owes the Baby her life twice now) now has to interact with herself from the perspective of a Metroid. Fusion is the direct sequel to Super Metroid and thematically expands on the role the Baby played during its final moments. Samus is humbled by the experience of having been being brought back from near death by her choice to spare the last member of a species she had otherwise personally hunted to extinction. The subtext of the SA-X being an unrestrained version of Samus that she's totally defenseless again after receiving the Metroid Vaccine is that she's forced to view herself from the perspective of the Metroids she unapologetically killed during Samus Returns, which she eventually reconciles by completing the task that the Metroids were designed for. It's actually a really interesting concept that fits really nicely into the way Fusion deconstructs the events of previous games. God this fucker’s rant sounds like a child who was given a gift he didn’t want for a holiday. Its a shame, this was otherwise such a great retrospective.
Yeah, Covarr had some really awful arguments. 1. He never explained why absorbing X parasites was less fun than picking up power-ups just because they explained it in the narrative. 2. He never explained why the story-first approach doesn't work with, or in his own words, "an insult to," game design (because, surprise, it has worked in countless games including fusion.) 3. He didn't pay attention to the narrative of the game that the Federation was, in fact, trying to keep Samus weak in order to hide the secrets the satellite harbored. If the core theme is removing agency, then this fact is a given. I mean, I could list every single mistake he made in his arguments, mostly because he never justified any of them. If Fusion isn't his cup of tea, I get that. There's a big debate whether Metroid Fusion or Super Metroid is the strongest game in the series, but don't make your judgement on the quality of the game because you happen to favor Super Metroid. They're both amazing for very different reasons. To me, they stand as equals of two separate peaks because they emphasize different things in their core gameplay. It's absolutely amazing that Metroid is such a versatile franchise that it can make amazing Action/Exploration, Action/Adventure, and FPS games. How many other franchises have tried doing all these things, and how many of them have actually succeeded to the critical acclaim that Metroid has? As for Other M and Federation Force, well, everyone should complain about those.
"There's a big debate whether Metroid Fusion or Super Metroid is the strongest game in the series" A debate among who? I've never seen a single "greatest games" list that has Fusion above Super Metroid. Not a single one ever. Super Metroid is always on those lists; Fusion never is. Fusion is a good game, but it's not even close to Super Metroid.
Swordmaster - Haha, I'm one of those oddballs who all but considers Echoes his favorite in the series. I really wish there were more environmental distinction in the earlier areas, but beyond that, I consider it a superior experience to Prime, which I utterly adore. Still, if I had to OBJECTIVELY determine which game was the best, I'd pick Prime. It is no hyperbole to call that game a generation ahead of its time, and everything Echoes did better was, well, built on the incredible foundation of Metroid Prime :) Of all the 2D Metroid games, I'd probably consider Zero Mission the best one; I love the CONCEPT of Super Metroid but as somebody who started the series with Fusion, I can just never fully adapt to the comparatively clunkier control scheme. Fusion's a great game and all, but as can probably be inferred, I'm in this series more for the nonlinear exploration than the raw action. To each their own!
I may be a bit biased as I started with zero mission when I was really young, but I've always enjoyed the GBA games more. Fusion for bosses and zero mission for just about everything else, as I've learned so many ways to play through it. I think super metroid is fantastic, but my top 2 will always be zero mission and fusion.
Samus' Power Suit is based off of Chozo's mixture of science and spirituality, so yes, you can download Missiles when you're downloading the ability to summon them. Also, I thought the whole point of the game was that they WERE trying to limit your options by gimping you, making it so you had to do what they say.
But it's weird to covarr, because its not like a normal metroid game, which he (I assume) is basing his criticism off, which is why he describes it as an insult to the metroid franchise. I'm guessing he doesn't recognize the supreme storytelling, buildup symbolism and more action base as what metroid is supposed to be, which is why he hates it. As for me, I recognize and love that stuff despite it not being like a normal metroid game
TheJamaicanGamer I understand where he's coming from on his other points, but I wanted to point out the ones he missed. I liked Fusion tho, it was pretty fun.
Devin Craig I must note that Covarr also misses a very CRITICAL plot point revealed in the game - all the previous data rooms get DESTROYED by the SA-X after you use them, which Adam *does* tell you at one point. This is for two reasons. The first is that while they may be tracking you they know where you have BEEN, but can't as easily predict where you are going - or at least how you're getting there. (which is likely why you find SA-X searching an area before you arrive - it knows you're headed to the area, but not where and how. How else is it consistently getting there ahead of you? Blind luck?) They then destroy the room to prevent you gaining further strength. This is why you CANNOT reuse past data rooms. But it's also heavily implied there's another reason. This is where the second point comes in - the SA-X might be soulless, but don't assume it isn't clever. The X get into area 1, the game explains, through the very visible ventilation systems in that area, but suggests that the other areas are better self-contained. So then how did they get in? Well... Adam tells you. "Releasing that security lock may have been a mistake..." In Area 1, Samus releases the level 1 locks, and this unleashes them upon the zones sealed by that lock. But it also sets a precedence - that Samus can unlock these doors, and will, to obtain the firepower she needs. And they NOTICE. From that point on, you aren't just seeking equipment, you're forced to be the catalyst by which the X spread deeper into the facility. And it's by design. The SA-X could probably EVENTUALLY find the security rooms, by why hunt for them aimlessly when they can lure Samus into doing it for them, incidentally leading to opportunities to gain access to new bio-mass and chances to ambush her? Turns out... The X aren't stupid.
Tbh, for me Covarr bashed on Fusion with unwarranted gibberish. I found the game to be excellent, giving you a perfect atmosphere of tension because you're constantly being hunted while trying to get things under control. His complaints about E Tanks and other stuff laying on the ground on your path is a bit... eh... exagerated to me, as only like a couple are there at the beginning to help you survive better, considering you take a shit load of damage in Fusion. And pretty much what you said, the X parasite destroys the Data Rooms. In fact, when the IA sends you to one of them, you see an X parasite download and blow up the Data Room in your friggin nose. Fusion had a nice pace in my opinion and threw in enough twists that made it good in my book. How they make the Federation's motive questionable as they wanted to have an underpowered Samus, since they know that anything that they would do that seemed highly questionable that Samus might oppose to them, and thus they tried to limit her powers to make her less of a thread to themselves too.
>"It's like fusion is talking down to me! It thinks i'm dumb!" >Misunderstands the plot-point that, in his own words, was spoon-fed to him. I know the whole bit is a joke, but come on man.
I don't want to speak for Covarr, but I think Samus's upgrades laying around the universe can be kind of handwaved as a result of the Chozo society crossing the stars. Of course, this being a video game, there are plenty of contrivances you just have to excuse it for. Downloading missiles only really makes sense if, as another comment suggested, the Federation outfitted Samus with some of their OWN tech when they amputated her power suit. For the record though, downloading upgrades wasn't something I ever even considered, so it never bothered me. But I don't tend to notice stuff like that in games as a rule, which is why I really enjoy when other people do.
The Geek Critique Ah, I see. I just found it odd that they brought it up. I've been really enjoying this series by the way. I wasn't aware of the "new game plus" I should check that out.
Well well well, look who I found in the comments, Zycor. Actually I wanted to weigh in heavily on Covarr's rant, because I found his nitpicks to be, well, entitled to a specific type of gamer. Almost metaphorically speaking, Covarr's rant is something I would have expected from the way you(TGC, not Zycor) described yourself prior to starting this journey - someone who has not yet adapted to multiple ways of gaming and, more specifically, approaching change. A lot of what your video says and even praises are utterly stomped upon in his rant, as if he completely ignored your findings, and wanted Metroid to stick to the past. The amusing thing is that he basically stumbled upon the best, story-given reason why Samus was able to Download her abilities - and it is that the Federation simply has a complete lockdown of her suit, a much more powerful and damning form than was present in Other M - damning in the sense that they're damning her, not her damning herself in quite possibly the stupidest reason Other M tries to do progression. Here, the Federation literally controls Samus' power, and it is when she goes off the rails does she regain the agency they sought to limit and control, but is subsequently chastised for it the second she checks in. The Federation wants to reclaim their soldier, and almost succeed. Now, Covarr hates this because it's story first, but his rant goes on way too long because he hits on this point- A valid, fair opinion to have, I'm not faulting him for having it- but then wastes my time and, honestly, lessons the overall impact of the video by whining and screaming about design decisions that are (almost) all explained by the fact the game chose story first instead of the intricate layouts of yesteryear. Honestly I enjoy both games, and need to return to both to really cement which one I like more- being a skill-based gamer, I assume Super Metroid- but I find the breakdown and story of Fusion to be one of the best I've played, simply due to the subtext of the game, that is hidden and alluded by the actual text. UA-cam comment rant over. Sorry for hijacking the comment thread.
The Geek Critique Likely the Federation IS sending her there tech. Remember, Samus' systems are modular, and the Federation has had SOME access to Chozo tech, and at least a chance to examine some of her armor's features - they had to repair what parts of her suit were left and retrofit it into the Fusion suit, after all. And as the Prime series later revealed, this isn't the first time they've had cause to do so. But more importantly, the modular nature of the suit was never stated to only use equipment specifically designed for it, or made by the Chozo. She actually steals Pirate technology on several occasions - this means that Chozo tech has the ability to adapt ANY technology for use if it can get access to the requisite data or hardware in order to replicate it. And more than one upgrade is, in fact, DESIGNED by the GF for her use - ice and diffision missiles in particular. These mechanics are really better thought out - and conveyed, to the discerning eye - than Covarr seems to observe.
Actually it's because the idea was that the Space Pirates invaded Zebes and then started to dig. In Super, they dug deeper. It's basically an excavation of the temples and structures which predated their arrival, so they naturally uncovered some of the tech and devices which were scattered about and previously lost to time. In other words, having the item pickups the way they are meant to be distributed in the first Metroid and in Super are storytelling elements. By comparison, Fusion having the missiles as a download which gets arbitrarily authorized is a narrative cop-out and lazy writing. It doesn't even really work in the circumstance of Samus having Federation tech in her suit, because it's not like Samus downloaded the missiles from a development schematic in the BSL's weapons development laboratory, or found it as the BSL trying to replicate Chozo micro-missile storage technology as SR388 was home to the Chozo weapons development facility where the Metroids were engineered. It's literally something that the Federation authorizes and sends to her WeTransfer style from off-site as a download. It's a few phrases shy of Adam not letting Samus use her equipment until he authorizes it in Other M, but surprisingly it winds up being considerably more stupid, especially when compared with either of the two alternatives I mentioned previously. I'm sure Covarr would agree.
The Federation is run by idiots. That's the main takeaway from the story I keep getting. Dunno why Samus plays ball with them at all given how they actively screw her over every single game.
MarginalSC This was the first game where the Federation actively tried to screw her over, and even after Fusion came out there was only one other game where that happened. In Metroid 1/ZM, 2, and Echoes, the GF stays out of Samus’s business while she performs her mission. In Prime, the Federation aren’t involved at all because Samus arrives at Tallon IV upon responding to a distress call from Frigate Orpheon. In Corruption, the GF’s only mistake was assuming that the PED Suit didn’t have any drawbacks, and otherwise they were very helpful. And in Super, the Federation are pretty much attacked by the Pirates, and Samus immediately responds by taking the fight back to Zebes. The only other game where the Federation fucks Samus over is, well, that OTHER game, and that’s part of why the fandom hates that game. [REDACTED] takes place before Fusion, and over the course of its events we pretty much get the same revelations that happen in Fusion: The Federation is experimenting with weaponizing Metroids, and they want to keep Samus contained so she doesn’t interfere. If that is the case, why the FUCK does she immediately go back to trusting the Galactic Federation during the BSL incident. The answer is that [REDACTED] didn’t exist when Fusion was being written, so Samus trusting the Federation makes perfect sense. In fact, if you only remove that one game from the timeline, everything else makes logical sense (save for maybe the Ridley remains, but that can be explained some other way). And that’s part of why we want that one game stricken from the canon.
@@Brawler_1337 she doesnt trust them again. She is in monetary debt after getting the new ship and probably the surgery. She Even mentions the contract at the begining.
Exactly; if you assume that the Federation is a branch of Humans stemming from Earth, it's natural to assume that the artificial gravity on the BSL Research station is that of Earth's 9.8m/s^2, and that potentially, Zebes' and SR388's gravities are less than 1g
@@ChozoSR388 yeah plus at leas you got the ledge grip from the start which in super metroid or even Metroid ZR you get it with the upgrades plus in Metroid ZR you can't do much to explore cause by time time you got the varia suit you already given a little time to experience it fully to the planet Zebes's unexplored areas
@@ChozoSR388 in fact I don't know if you noticed this but the super missile in MZR is plain OP cause even when you fight with Mother Brain one shot from the super missile it one shot killed the mother brain including the robo-ridley which makes the games bit stale
@@GrammerPancreas I think that the increased gravity was a design choice to give Zero Mission it's faster and snappier gameplay. Given that the game can be beaten in under an hour if you know where to go, the floatier jumps of Super and Fusion would have easily killed the pacing of Zero Mission.
Zero Mission's art direction was more cartoonish to my distaste. I wish there had been more gba 2d Metroid games though, they're both solid experiences.
I think ZM is a little bit overrated, just a little bit, like it is totally understandable if you pick SM over Fusion, (like I do), but Zero Mission over Fusion, OR EVEN OVER SUPER LMAO, that is just a bit weird...
Actually, after going to the ZM review video, I take back my words, ZM isn't a ''little'' bit overrated... it is really fucking overrated....jesus fucking christ I was not prepared for the comment section on that video.
Does anyone else like it when Samus monologues in an elevator. I looked forward to finishing every level in hopes that I might get to hear more from this typically silent protagonist.
Absolutely! In a game as tense as Fusion, I found them a welcome, yet temporary reprieve from the overarching fear of encountering the SA-X again and having to run in fear for my life.
SPOILER DONT KEEP READING MY COMMENT IF YOU HAVENT PLAYED IT ALREADY............ side note to ur elevator comment, i am currently playin fusion, and just found it pretty cool how the elevator broke aka shut off mid game and had to burst through side wall.... it was unexpected and cool. Kind of how it was cool to have baby metroid ride on elevator with me on samus returns lol
This kind of rant and hate is what kills franchises. The game tries to be different from previous Metroids. The linearity actually works in a plot and mechanics never seen in Metroid. I love this game, i love almost all Metroid games, and I hate that people who cannot adapt to new changes only whines. See the best of the product, don't miss everything that was in precious efforts.
I like Fusion better than Super Metroid. It's better paced and I guess I'm not a big fan of backtracking and running around for hours without a clear goal of what to do.
I just wanted to comment and agree with you. When I was a kid and had this on my GBA, it blew my fucking mind with how cool it was. I didn't bitch about the two seconds it took to go between a save room and a recharge room. The animations were so cool I didn't even notice that it was a waste of time. The only things I might have changed about this game were some of the puzzles being really obscure. But that's just a minor gripe, not a huge flaw or anything. Other than that I couldn't think of anything to really complain about at all. It's a difficult game and I died a fuck ton of times. But I still managed to eventually beat it and that definitely matters. That's the difference between a really hard game and something that is just ridiculous to the point of being to frustrating to complete.
I was pretty much okay with everything you've said, but Covarrubias' rant was a bit too nit picky to me. The comment that threw me over the edge about how the E-Tank was just lying there out in the open when A: It was the first one in the game, B: It was like that in Super Metroid too, C: Metroid Fusion's very linear design makes it so that you where to go, but not how to get there. Come across something like the clip he showed then you know theres probably some sort of wall or floor I need to break. The fact that there is so much uncharted space is good because In my opinion Super Metroid is VERY linear (though really that could be the fact that I know the game like the back of my hand). I love Metroid Fusion because more so than Super Metroid. I feel that it gave me this sense of dread and I was actually worried about dying a lot more in Fusion than in Super. In Super Metroid you're on top of the world. Tanking hits and destroying everything. You can't do that in Fusion. Enemies keep dealing more and more damage and when you think you might have the edge NOPE they quickly adapt to your new strengths. The perfect example is when the Arctic X appear. They actively chase after you as opposed to the X that just fly away. moment you get the Varia they go after you, realize its pointless and not only stop chasing after you, but no longer appear after that. That is a great way of mixing story, game mechanics, and to show the intelligence of the villain.
The Cold X parasites after getting the varia suit is one of my favorite moments in the game. You have the suit and are now immune to the freeze effect, the X parasites don't know that yet so they keep trying to get you for a few rooms before realising it's not working and from then on actively flee. Also they tell you where to go and that's about it. They tell you to go download bomb data but when you do the door is destroyed and it's all up to you to figure out how to get back. Once you get the wave beam from the security robot you are totally on your own but it's not so bad because your hand wasn't held this entire time so you can figure it out yourself. I love the story and in fact it's my favorite of the metroid games.
DarkVaati13 covarr needs to shut up, if he wants to critizice, do it in your channel. This was my 1st game entering metroid and this was the reason to love and try the next Metroids
Covarr doesn't have the right to speak after hearing his constant whiny section of his. If he was so upset and "insulted" by how different Fusion was, then why didn't you turn off the game and go play a different Metroid game. A game trying to be different and make you feel weak and careful with every encounter must have been too much for Covarr.
I know i'm late on this... but after playing this game countless times over the years i really still feel like this game is severely underrated still. The liniarity and the unskipable story aspects are massively overstated imo. The rest of the game is so masterfully crafted and especially if you go for 100% it is pure bliss to me.
Yes I’ve read the pinned comment, and I know the video is old, but I feel I can contribute something to address Covarr’s criticism that weren’t mentioned in other comments. First, missiles could be downloaded and super missiles could be an upgrade of regular missiles in a way we see today. Think of nuclear bombs. The first ones created for WWII used far more radioactive material, but were something like 50 times less destructive. The reason modern bombs are stronger when using the same material in the same quantity is because we have figured out how to better create the desired reaction on a larger scale. Second, he mentioned that it was fine to use the X for health and weapon pick up, but didn’t change anything when it came to grinding for health. My question is why are you ever grinding for health? Recharge rooms are never far away, and if you’re cut off from them to fight a boss, there’s always an easily defeated enemy to become a red X first. This is a game where trying to grind for health is just as likely to get you killed as making progress. This rolls into the final point I wanted to address, which is why didn’t they combine navigation save and recharge rooms into one. The first thought is that this would ruin the tension and pace of certain sections. Now he might respond that only those at the beginning need be that way. My counter thought would be first that it establishes in the players mind that they will always be able to do all these things at once and they’ll be annoyed by the inconsistency later on more than having them separate to begin with. Why would the station choose to make only some of the computers the same. If you don’t accept this thought, fair enough, but then I ask you to consider the menu slog that would be necessary every time you go to the navigation room. Do you want to hear your objective again? To do you want to recharge? Do you want to save? Answering these every questions every time would be annoying. Making them a single menu, asking what would you like to do, while better, is also obnoxiously cluttered (imo), especially if you accidentally hit the wrong one and need to wait. I really think it’s the possibility of an accidental click that worried the devs. I accidentally clicked hear objective again, and I couldn’t try and mash to get out fast enough. I have a few other thoughts, but I doubt anyone actually cares about them or this comment.
Argument Missiles in the Metroid series seems to work more like weapons in the Megaman series, where energy can be converted into matter, this is further supported with the crystal flash technique in Super Metroid, where you use weapon ammo to re-energize the tanks used to maintain the protective armor Not grinding is only possible it you don't suck so bad, you're constantly getting hit, take me for example, just one careless set of three minutes is enough to murder me in this game As for why the rooms are not one, I would argue the reason is more lore-based, as they could easily make it three separate platforms in one slightly larger room that you have to jump up to to reach and activate. However, would you put a port that can recharge missiles, a basically wide open glowing diary, and a computer with comms that goes to other places at the same place? As much of a bunch of idiots the federations are, they would at least separate the place
Covarr is basically being SA-X. I'm not even joking. You touched on the whole subtext/thematic thing in the video, but I would take it a step further than you did and basically see Samus' plight - at least to some degree - as the metaphor for the game itself, its development and the struggles of the development team. Maybe the game is in fact about how THEY, the devs, felt "trapped" or even "stalked" by Super Metroid. Maybe the theme of the game came about as a consequence of their early discussions around "how do we take this franchise forward". Maybe they found in those discussions that Super Metroid and fans' expectations showed up like some avenging ghost, making it impossible for them to evolve the franchise for fear of reactions like Covarr's (and far less articulate ones too). Just a thought. Might be worth considering. :)
You bet. I'm a game dev myself, impostor syndrome is kind of what we all have in common. There are other games that kind of do that same thing. I wrote a blog post about the subject, but wouldn't want to throw an unsolicited link in there. Feels rude somehow. :) Just say the word if you'd be interested in reading it, maybe it'll inspire you to look at another franchise from that same lens. Love these videos by the way!
Thanks for that. Here's the link: odiousrepeater.wordpress.com/2016/09/04/what-dark-souls-is-really-about/ Excerpt: "Dark Souls isn’t really about what it seems to be about. Instead, it’s a commentary on itself. It’s a metaphor for what it’s like being a struggling artist in a harsh market, specifically (but not exclusively) working in the games industry." Hopefully a decent read!
I mean, possibly. I submit the theory very humbly as one can never really know what the devs were really thinking. It's not impossible they'd be all like "dude, you're overthinking this, it's a robot going 'pew-pew' and chasing you around". ^^
... did neither you _nor_ Covarr do a doubletake at his section? Seriously, it's _incredible_ how whiny and butthurt he sounds, just to downright cringeworthy degrees. You should've toned that down _a lot._
Richter WLK It's like the Star Wars syndrome: some so called "fans" won't be happy with whatever comes out, no matter how good it was in some or most points they will forever point out the bad things. They consider the originals to be perfect, even though they too had their flaws.
Hey, what to say... Lets see. Okay, I've seen this with several games & it's sequels/prequels. See, I got this relative who's is the main reason for why I got into metroid in the first place. He owned a snes & Super Metroid. Obviously it was love at first sight. I only got to play tidbits of the game at first during the relatives birthdays. But one xmas I got the first game in the series and I got to see how amazing it was even on a console with older hardware. Ever since that I've experienced every metroid title I got my hands on. At the same time my relative stubbornly refuses to play the Hand held metroids or the first one. I've tried several times to convince him to play them but he's just met my effort with lukewarm response. I even showed him AM2r and he didn't bat an eye. It's unfortunate as I know if he really tried them I know he'd love them & realize that there's more games that shares the spirit of super metroid & it's awesome gameplay. what a shame
The reason the SA-X protects Samus at the end and attacks the Omega Metroid isn't because of any higher intelligence or emotion, it's because of instinct. Metroids themselves were genetically engineered by the Chozo to destroy the X-Parasite, and so they became mortal enemies, immediately attacking one another when they come face to face with each other. It's the same reason the SA-X attacks Samus on sight, because her DNA is now combined with Metroid DNA. The SA-X detects that DNA and seeks to destroy it. It's *also* the reason toward the end that we walk in on the SA-X trying to destroy the room full of Metroids and being overwhelmed. The SA-X wasn't defending itself from the Metroids attacking, the Metroids were defending themselves from the SA-X attacking. And the SA-X lost. So in the last room where Samus is being attacked by the Omega Metroid, the SA-X only sees two things, and it wants to destroy both: A powerful Metroid (Samus) and a vastly more powerful Metroid (the Omega), who is clearly capable of dispatching Samus. By attacking the Omega, the SA-X is doing only what it does by nature, not out of emotion or intelligence. It targets the bigger threat, and in doing so, is weakened to the point of not being able to retain its form. Samus sees it as an opportunity and seizes it, and with her powers and the SA-X's combined, she kills the Omega Metroid and escapes to safety.
Grimm Master of the Troupe I think that’s more of an assumption that it would have escape pods. I mean they could of already been used by people escaping the station right? They were at the hanger of the station and there were no other ships around. Althogh if I remember the aliens you freed did get a different escape pod? But I think I agree with the OP that the x parasite wanted to eliminate the Metroid to secure its own survival. It’s like ancient humans being scared of a bear attacking them, but then they make weapons like spears and bows and look to attack that predator to secure safety
@@emarythomp The creatures you save escape on the ship with you and operate it at the end which is how it doesn't get destroyed by the Omega or SA-X. But I feel the reason the SA-X attacked the Omega fist of all things was because it saw Samus was incapacitated and could easily be disposed of if it could take out the bigger more immediate threat to its survival at the time, and seeing both fighting each other to the death was a great time to capitalize.
@@freshlymemed5680 They bring a lot of aspects, and the some. Dunno if you played it but those aspects are amped up to eleven even. Just amazing and unexpected.
@@sebastianward2188 Considering they were wanting to weaponize the X-Parasites and prevent Samus from destroying them and just kept her confined until Adam broke her out, yes they were trying to keep her weak.
I'll never understand how people can't enjoy taking their time in a game to enjoy story telling, regardless of what platform. Stories are a great method for driving the player even more to accomplish their goals, and makes the metroid series even more intriguing as apposed to just "reading it in an instruction manual".
@@Raylightsen the tempo of the game s already "slow and cautious". What they say in the cutscenes is interesting. Not just " shoot that, go there and shoot that other thing." Not only thermy were addressing interesting matters, but you could know what samus thought about them too.
@@Raylightsen I understand that problem. That's why I didn't enjoy the last 4 pokemon titles, because of cutscenes with a static face who ruins the scene's atmosphere every 10-15 minutes.
@@hipnotyq Yes, gameplay is important, but things can evolve. And there have been games with compelling stories, to say that storytelling can only apply to a certain media and not be allowed to expand is, frankly, I find a bit shallow.
I actually liked Metroid Fusion. It was different than Super Metroid. In my opinion AM2R and Metroid Zero Mission were each different. All the games were different in their own special and unique way.
This is the very first Metroid game I play, finished it a couple days ago, and oh boy I liked it!!! planning playing Zero Mission and then the one on the SNES, this game is so good so detailed and polished!
I really don't see the point in people saying they "actually" liked a massively liked game. Just gives off the impression you aren't aware of reality...
man i loved it when the editor came in and cried about how bad the game is that was really cool i think every review video should have a cry baby come in at the end and completely undermine everything in the video
@@malikpierre-louis3343 eh, not really. Yeah we know it’s a joke but the fact that he genuinely dislikes Fusion and says a lot of things to back up his “points” of Fusion being a “personal attack on me” (stupidest bullshit ever) make it seem very serious
So, yeah, gonna weigh in on Covarr's segment. Just bear with me here. I get that you're trying to arrive at a more complete understanding of what exactly the game is by including his counter-perspective, and to avoid silencing potentially valuable criticism of a game that might well require it (from a friend, no less). I even appreciate having heard out a few of his points, namely the big one of how _Fusion_ tries to obfuscate its commitment to its linear design (and in doing so, ironically, undermines some of that very commitment). But when something like 80% of his criticisms aren't just unflattering to a game a lot of people like, but literally, demonstrably _incorrect_ (the mandatory routes being more hidden than optional routes, narrative-driven games being inherently lesser than mechanic-driven ones, the very definition of the word "stoicism" as applied to Samus at 24:04 and his understanding of what it was that fans and critics alike objected to about _Other M_'s characterization - I could go on and on), that's when humoring a dissenting voice loses its worth. Perhaps the bigger issue, though, is to do not so much with the counterpoint as how it was implemented. To demonstrate my point, I just so happened to see an old episode of _Kitchen Nightmares_ yesterday in which a failing restaurant was put back on the right track and proved a huge success among the locals, concluding on a note of triumph and hope.... Except that then, the show proceeded to cut to a piece of narration bluntly revealing that the restaurant's pre-standing debts forced it to go out of business a few months later within the span of a sentence or two, after which it went straight to credits. When this video ended, the way I was left feeling reminded me an awful lot of how I did upon watching those credits play. After twenty minutes of your laying out a singular and comprehensive interpretation of this game, abruptly ramming in a wholly different type of viewpoint right as your analysis is reaching its point of convergence - even when you disregard said viewpoint holding the game in lower esteem and, let's face it, being much less nuanced - just doesn't mesh right. Suppose your _Super Metroid_ analysis had been a collaboration with someone who loved the game just as much as you did but lacked your insight, and after you gave your final stirring words about the game's achievements in design that resonate to this day, your viewers were then treated to another five minutes of the other person informing us that the graphics are better than in previous games, being able to aim diagonally is nice, and Samus looks hawt if you beat the game in under three hours. Yeah, Covarr's assessment of _Fusion_ was a lot more perceptive than that even with all the objectively wrong stuff, but the point is that cutting to a completely different type of video, regardless of the specific ways in which it's different, will inevitably leave a bad taste in everyone's mouths. And unfortunately, due both to just how much it stands out from your portion of the video and its placement at the very end (with little in the way of a return to your perspective to smooth the video-watching experience back over, no less), the resulting psychological effect is that Covarr's segment is what your mind winds up going to first when you think about the video, whereas it takes a bit of concentrating to think back all that effort and critical appraisal you put into the overwhelming bulk of the video's runtime. I guarantee that your number of dislikes and especially comments voicing their dissatisfaction with the segment would have been a fraction of what they are if Covarr's points had been spread out throughout the analysis at relevant points and addressed (or, if nothing else, merely explored a little) in turn. Whether you merely insert Covarr/other people's differing perspectives (and your responses) into your scripts or actually let them directly speak in the video is obviously your call, but I think it would prove very helpful in letting you work on projects collaboratively without the participants' input outright counteracting one another. I know I enjoyed the ever-loving hell out of your videos that didn't have that problem (not to mention the first twenty minutes of this one - it may well have even surpassed your _Super Metroid_ examination as my favorite in the series), and with a content output as good as yours, I'd really regret seeing any future ones be tainted by it.
Very well said, thank you! And you hit the nail on the head as to what went wrong with Covarr's segment. Originally, he was going to deliver a scathing counterpoint in less than a minute, which would have been very obviously tongue-in-cheek. I recognized that I was being AWFULLY easy on Fusion just because I liked how difficult it was, and wanted to humorously highlight the other viewpoint. His segment as written ended up being longer, more detailed, and more level-headed than I was expecting. But it still was a bit OVERLY nitpicky and critical, which is exactly what I asked him to do. It was just level-headed enough that it didn't SEEM like a joke anymore, and even if it did, it was a joke that went on too long. Ideally, I would have spread these segments throughout the video and had more of a dialogue, but I had a self-imposed deadline to start the season and was in a time-crunch, so we didn't have time to integrate it any better. That being said, I still REALLY enjoyed his segment and thought it was well-thought-out and funny... but I had the advantage of knowing that it was SUPPOSED to be funny. The point is, don't worry --- I won't be doing that again. :P
Ha, great to hear, and thanks for hearing me out! Now I'm off to savor your _Zero Mission_ breakdown - and in the event that I wind up not having anything worth writing a comment about on that video, I just wanted to say thank you, as someone who holds _Metroid_ as their single favorite game series, for rekindling so many of my feelings of love for this series through the sheer astuteness of your analysis (to the point that I just became a patron of yours for that reason alone - cheers!).
Just Andre I concur with you so wholeheartedly, but a point I’d like to add is that not all Metroid games have to be like super Metroid they can do their own thing and expand upon what they like, Not everyone likes MF but not everyone likes SM either, heck not a lot of people don’t like Metroid so what the other guy was saying was a biased punch because Metroid Fusion was not to his liking
Fusion is one of the few games where I actually enjoyed the narration. It does wonders to build up tension and hint at what horrors lurk in the next section. Also the pixel art is the absolute best I ever seen.
enemy of my enemy is my friend.. I guess if a metroid existed then it would repopulate and once again destroy their species. Samus wants the same thing as the X parasites.. to eliminate the metroids.
SA-X: “Wow, that’s a huge metroid! Well luckily for me, I have the ice beam, so this will go down in no ti...” *omega slash* “ah s**t, I shouldn’t have done this right after that other fight. Wait! What are you doing!? Don’t come near me! DON’T ABSORB ME! NOOO...”
This was a good video until Covarr came in and ruined it all in one go with very subjective whining for no real purpose. There's pointing out flaws (yes we know Fusion has them) and then there's just crying about how you like something else and this isn't what YOU thought it should be.
I think it's reasonable and makes sense that some upgrades are obtained from X bosses while others are downloaded. The X upgrades give you direct upgrades to the suit that the Chozo designed (Beam upgrades, suit upgrades, the morph ball, etc), While everything you download from the federation are things that can be made for any machine (missiles and bombs). In fact, the downloaded upgrades include things never seen before, like the ice missiles. This is because the federation can just make shit up for Samus to use, while the X is copying what we've seen before.
Aside from Covarr's rant at the end, this was a really great review. Although I will agree that having the save, healing, and missile recharge functions all being in separate rooms is a bit silly, especially when they're usually lumped together in a row like that.
@@brgan557 yet it is not a bad game if you know how powerful samus already is in other metroid series compared to this version which makes the whole experience feels different
I am confident in saying this is the best black sheep in Nintendo's history My only problem with this is that when Adam says there's ten SA-X on board, you only see one at the end. It would've been extremely horrifying, frightening, and amazing if this was true. My first time through, when I backtracked for 100%, I expected another SA-X in every room. It could've been awesome, running away from one SA-X, only to run right into another, or if you find one and it alerts the others. That alone might've put it as my top metroid game, but for now, it sits at #3
To be fair, they did it so that you wouldn't be overwhelmed and destroyed, or possibly killed one and got the ice beam early?, from a gameplay perspective, having 10 of the penultimate boss roaming around just wouldn't be a good time :P
superHC I get what you're saying, it wouldn't be good for less experienced players, but most players could probably handled running from them. The game also doesn't give you any notice that you can harm them until you fight one near the end. But when the game flat out says "Now there's ten of the enemy you've been scared of the whole game" It's really disappointing to find out that it's just a threat with no action.
Did you ever notice that when the SA-X notices you, did you ever notice the method it chose to kill you? First, it freezes you with the ice beam, then it blasts you with missiles. Just like how you deal with larval metroids. It's a brilliant piece of programming in an otherwise very exploitable, and kinda dumb, AI. The SA-X is incredibly frightening on your first playthrough, but speed runners have leanred how to make it laughable. I think this is a testamont to Fusion's narrative - that the SA-X can have some really dumb, simplistic AI, but so few players are willing to learn of its shortcomings.
Its the ultimate predator to whom we thought was the ultimate bounty hunter. Also its because the SA-X think you're a metroid since you have metroid dna.
I love how Mwtroid Fusion comes full circle with the original Metroids english manual, describing her as being able to absorb the abilities of her foes.
You have a very good video here, with a viewpoint that most in the metroid community don't really take. The one glaring problem is the 10 minute rant by Covarr. It seemed as if Covarr didn't even play Fusion at all, and was just crying into a microphone because Nintendo didn't give him Super Metroid 2.
I'm with you. I dislike Fusion, and refused to play it when it came out originally. If you are "Personally offended" by a decision made on a corporate, global level, you're probably a megalomaniac.
Patrick Foxchild I found myself thinking the same thing… I was like dude you are “personally offended“?! Are you serious? I mean, it is just a game after all. Personally, I like fusion, objectively speaking it is a well-made game, it’s not like it’s “ride to hell: retribution” or something… It’s an entertaining, competently made video game but is being trashed because people expected a nonlinear experience… But that doesn’t make the game bad… It just makes it different.
@@yeetdiscreet1278 It was supposed to be an over exaggerated joke, although TGC admits it was a bit too long for most unfamiliar viewers to catch on to.
Fusion didnt have cracks, it had strange design choices, I agree that the save reload and nav room should have been the combined into one and yes I ended up carpet bombing everything because I coudnt tell which tiles were breakable. Still I love this game for the story and scripted secuences the SA-X encounters are COOL, Samus is still in character but more fleshed out not like in other m
Yeah the secret walls are definitely different in pretty much every other metroid game the secrets always have that sort of “metroid” touch where something about it tells you “hey I can probably blow this up!”
Another example of action versus exploration can be seen in the advertisements. Metroid Fusion's US commercial is filmed like an action movie with Samus blasting all the X duplicates and ending with a face off against the SAX while Prime's commercial is much more slow paced and methodical. It's kind of like comparing Aliens and Alien, one is more action while the other is more atmosphere.
+niespeludo It's also ironic that the Western studio made a faithful representation of the Metroid formula while the actual Japanese Metroid team created something quite a bit different.
MetroidJunkie that's because of Sakamoto, who is in charge of Metroid. He dragged the series down with Other M, because the technology was finally good enough to pull off cinematics with poor scripts. Prior to other M, Sakamoto worked on Super and Fusion. You could see from the intro in Super, and the monologues/computer exposition in Fusion that he valued story over gameplay (making the game linear)... the more technology progressed, the more he could explore those things. Retro Studios was free from his control, and learned from the series' roots.
+Brad Bailey Well, considering Nintendo's making a Metroid Prime 4, I wonder if this means they're changing their mind about the first 3 being non-canon. Then again, Nintendo also made Metroid Prime Hunters and it didn't stop Sakamoto from claiming it isn't canon.
MetroidJunkie sakamoto was interviewed just a few days ago about Samus Returns and he said that he had little to do with the Prime games because of his limited 3D experience... he didn't call it a spinoff, but he did say that Prime was like a separate branch... and he did call his games the "main," games... but it seems like he learned his lesson after other M- he said he would no longer pursue those kinds of stories with Metroid... so that's a relief lol PS- Sakamoto's great when it comes to 2D Metroid- as long as he focuses on being nonlinear and putting gameplay first
Man, uh... Covarr there being _really_ contrarian, huh? Like... You're allowed to say you didn't like it, I know people who didn't care for Fusion and that's fine even if I grew up loving the game and all, but to literally go off for minutes at a time about so many points the greater purpose of which were being explained for the past twenty entire minutes or so, and then escalate it to a point where you consider it a literally phrased 'personal attack' as if this was Nintendo calling you out by first name and threatening your family, being so unnecessarily scathing and at the same time completely detracting from the rest of a video that had so largely a different tone, is... yeah, no more flowery talk, I'll be blunt, that's being a literal baby. That's being an actual child throwing a tantrum about how your life was so totally made actively worse by people who made decisions regarding a video game. Like, dude.
7:50 In regards to sequence breaking, the internals of Fusion actually entirely fail and glitch out if you sequence break. Of course, doing this requires editing ROM data via hacks or codes. Fusion's very progression system relies on the stuff you have acquired. One prime example of this is giving yourself charge beam before you enter the boss room. The mission condition that says you need to fight a boss in that room relies on your current objective, but the actual boss's presence relies on you having the beam already. Simply put, you'll be locked in a room with boss music but no boss.
Interesting fact, the abomination the SA-X becomes during the penultimate fight appears to be a fusion (pun intended) of Samus's power suit and the hopper enemy in sector one ( the enemy the X in the intro was impersonating)
"Downloads data that changes the physical nature of the missiles" Yes, that's literally how the X works and why Samus' Fusion suit is so powerful. It can recreate weapons from data, hence why it made 10 SA-Xs from one suit
Dude. Your videos are the pinnacle of what a youtube channel should be. Exceptional. Exceptional. One of the absolute best channels PERIOD. Across politics, podcasts, documentaries, humor, independent shows and everything. Will def be donating to you, and if I was wealthy, you'd never work again.
Hmm... While I respect what Covarr says, and I realize that it was said to be an tongue-in-cheek satirical joke slapped into an otherwise good video... Yeah, maybe not executed the greatest. Though, as a voice actor and creator, I would like to state the following: 1) This is my first time viewing any of your videos. 2) I deeply appreciate your voice work, and the voice of Covarr. You both sound lovely, charming, and well balanced. HUGE UPS FOR THAT! 3) The pacing, which is so lacking in most of the stuff I watch, is positively sublime (except for the ...exception above.) Overall, I had a blast during this video, and while the section with Covarr does come off as whiney and a bit pedestrian (weh weh, I want me metroid back and all that) it was not without merit! well carried lads, carry on!
I guess, given the situation, this game was made perfectly. If you wanted a full world to explore, get Prime, if you wanted a bit of story, get this, I like both (Prime a lot more) but Fusion is still great, but Covarr actually brought up good points. Granted a bit exaggerated, with the downloading, since the Federation must have put their own technology into Samus' suit during the Fusion Suit's construction, it makes a little sense that mixing that with Samus' Chozo spirituality stuff works with downloading the data and materialising it, it's just as odd how the X can do it, so why not Samus. This game was bold, and I love it still, the SA-X is my second favourite enemy, behind Ridley (only because of his and Samus' history), the SA-X is horrifying and I love it. Sequel idea, since the Federation operated on Samus to save her, they may have extracted some X, which may replicate into her again. So, possible SA-X in the future? Or that Samus is being hunted by several bounty hunters, and Sylux is the one that is actually a challenge? Both could happen at once, who knows. Either way, great video, just subscribed and was pleasantly surprised to see a new upload soon after, keep up the great work!
Yeah, I definitely think that Fusion and Prime were meant to balance each other. Fusion is very action-heavy, and Prime was the first game to give you better endings for completion percentage instead of time. Really, Prime pretty much was that soft reboot for the franchise that Fusion deliberately avoided. And that's not a knock on Prime at all, because when a series made the jump to 3D, everything old really could be new again.
The Geek Critique Well said, it's hard to think that Prime was under backlash when it was revealed to be first person as well. It was my first Metroid and is my second favourite, with AM2R being my favourite, but that might just be because it's still a little new. Now though, I just want a sequel to Fusion. Even another Prime game would work after Fusion with Sylux becoming more of a highlight, thanks to Federation Force of all things, he and Samus could face off, since the developers seem keen on those two having more of a clash, which I'm all for.
I have, I see it as the best Metroid game ever made. It has all the best bits from the Metroid franchise, the abilities of Super Metroid, the Gameplay of Zero Mission, the world building of Metroid Prime, and is one of the harder Metroids to date. It surpasses the original and I consider AM2R canon, it's that good.
Nippy what time and level of difficulty did you beat it in? I am curious is all. The first time I played through it I beat it in over 10 hrs and collected 86% of items. My second attempt was under 6.5 hrs and I collected 100% of items. Both times I played through it on normal settings, which is nothing to sneeze at mind you. However, when I played it on hard mode I beat it in under 5 hrs and collected 100% of the items. My version is 1.1 and it is for Mac. It has little to no clinches so when I play through it I cannot bypass any levels or get into any hard to get into places if you know what I mean. Furthermore, Samus Aran does not go invisible when I get the gravity suit. I more or less play through the game as I should and I love it glitch free. And I agree with you that it is the best Metroid game thus far😃
"Was the federation trying to keep her too weak to succeed?" .....yes actually,that's the whole idea "DID I JUST DOWNLOAD MISSILES" AM I HOLDING 200 MISSILES!!!!
I personally write off the “downloading missles” thing as “Your explosive delivery system is missing drivers! Please update drivers at www.galacticfederation.fed/upgrades”
i think its neat that the sa-x most cares about hunting metroids, which is why later on it ignores you to fight all those larval metroids, because they're more metroid than you are, and on another thing, the way the sa-x hunts you for being part metroid makes this like a reflection of metroid 2, now you get to see things from the other side, you're being hunted, and you do not stand a chance
Okay, I am serious here. I have been subscribed for quite some time now and yours is the only channel that consistently makes me smile and get genuinely excited when I see a new video come out. Other than backing you on Patreon, is there any other way for me to ensure that you make more episodes, and more often? You truly are fantastic, and very gifted. I hope to hear from you soon, and to see many more videos in the futute.
Well, given what an awful job UA-cam does of promoting channels like this nowadays, there is one thing that's potentially a lot more helpful than backing the Patreon, but it's also more complicated to do. And that's just to let other people know I'm worth watching. Most of my biggest booms have come because someone posted a link that did particularly well on Reddit, which is why I try to have catchy video titles now, haha. But posting in Facebook groups, forums, and anywhere else you think people might enjoy my work could make a huge difference. Thank you!
Personally, I love Metroid Fusion to death. Maybe part of that's because I only played Metroid Prime before Fusion, so that's more what my expectations were. But I think it has some of the tightest gameplay ever, I really appreciate the story, and it seriously is one of the games that most immersed me because it never really asked me to simply accept anything that didn't make sense outside the context of real life or the universe, with the exception of a few "sci-fi, so we can" moments. Oh, and that tinge of horror. And truthfully, I never felt the game was trying to pretend it wasn't linear. A game that tries to pretend it's linear but isn't is one that says "go anywhere, except you really only have one place you can go to". Fusion is almost always direction you, with slight moments of exploration that basically make it like your average LOZ dungeon. It's not Super Metroid, and I get that Super Metroid is a beloved classic that really hasn't been replicated to this day, but Metroid Fusion is one of my all-time favorites, and handily my favorite Metroid
I don't think Covarr got the memo stating that this wasn't the Metroid: Other M review. That game truly is an insult to the franchise. (And Federation Force). btw. Don't ever let him make another cameo, please.
I absolutely love Fusion. I get that some people prefer Super Metroid, but for me, the story and learning more about Samus was great. Comparing the Samus from Fusion and the Samus from Other M are apples to oranges.
The rant at the end really hurt this critique. “WeRe tHeY TrYiNg tO KeEp sAmUs WeAk?!” Yes Covarr, they were. Had you been paying attention to the story then you would’ve realized that. Even as a kid playing this for the first time in 2002, I was paying attention and this was an interesting twist. It felt like a reference to the ALIEN series with the Federation acting like Weyland-Yutani by wanting to use the X for military purposes.
idk i think fusion is brilliant precisely bc it explores the GF-Samus relation more than any previous game, and does a great job of establishing mounting tension between them and Samus, and the clear way that they view Samus only as useful insofar as she's useful *to them*. I absolutely think GF wanted to create SA-X so that they could manufacture a version of her they could control. They've certainly proven that like the Space Pirates they want to harness these weapons for themselves (them trying to resurrect Ridley for their own use IMO makes this pretty on the nose). This game marked the transition from Samus just figuratively being a metroid (Chozo for greatest hunter or something like that iirc) to literally being one, and GF is not blind to this fact. If Metroids are supposed to be the nukes of this universe, what do you do when you have someone more powerful than a nuke? I also think this is why they kept Samus on such a tight leash for this game, in previous Metroid games GF unleashed her onto planets with the intention to just let her wipe everything out. In Fusion, they're essentially having Samus cover up a black-op that they don't even want Samus knowing anything about (for obvious reasons). Her having to follow the AI and download even basic suit powerups was brilliant to me for this reason, I think they wanted to see how much they could control her on their own, and reprimanded her explicitly whenever she powered herself up. While she's performing the coverup, she's at the same time (and this is just my personal theory) being sent on a test run after having her DNA mutated. GF has no idea how she'll perform or behave (though at the same time they have no one else who can handle a task of this caliber). Mechanically it's a departure from the previous games sure, but I think the gameplay is fun in its own right to make the limited exploration and missions fun on their own, but I can understand why that would frustrate others. The game opening up over time as Samus slowly reclaims her agency and is able to find areas outside of the downloaded maps kinda lets the game dip its toes into more classical exploration. The comparison of Fusion to Other M is extremely cheap to me, they're both just narratively driven. The main difference is one game is bad & poorly written (though for the record I personally wouldnt've minded even Other M being basically an interactive movie if it was yknow, good. There's room for more narrative in Metroid games).
See , I always interpreted the SA-X as not "coming to the rescue" but rather drawing on samus' s own memories of her many battles with metroids and The fact that The metroids are The natural enemy to The X parasite. The SA-X saw an omega metroid and had a reflexive response to fight it. At least that's how I always saw it.
I always felt that the X-Parasites were some of the most tragic characters in the Metroid series. They were just minding their own business when invaders created monsters to hunt them. An entire species now traumatized and living in fear until a savior in shining armor came to their rescue and slew the demons. I feel like the SA-X in particular had quite the personality and character arc that we don't really notic given her lack of expressiveness considering the X didn't really mimic species thay had facial expressions before humans. SA-X admired and looked up to Samus, she wanted to to BE the hero that would protect her brothers and sisters. But whe she senses the Metroid DNA after Samus was given the vaccine, she saw a righteous warrior corrupted and warped into the very monsters she destroyed. The enraging memories of her people being cossumed were conficting with her gratefullness to Samus for saving them, but as Samus absorbed more and more X-Parasites, SA-X saw more as a Metroid than she saw her as a human. The horrific memories of her ancestors fuled her rage. Eventually, this rage overwhelmed SA-X as the fight between her and Samus progressed, to the point where all human intelect was pushed to the side as her fury mutated her into a fusion of Samus herself and her favorite form to take on, a hornoad. Once her sheilding wa destroyed, SA-X's anger was replaced with fear, she was vulnerable and overwhelmed by the memories of her kind screaming as they were consumed by the monster like the one before her, so she ran in terror. But things changed when SA-X wittnessed Samus being attacked by the Omega Metroid. Rather than a merciless animal bent on consuming, SA-X saw Samus as a victum of the Metroids just like her kind. In that moment, SA-X veiwed Samus as one of her own kind, so she protected her. If Nintendo ever decides to give Metroid Fusion a remake, I hope that they take the time to add stuff like new cutscenes that showcase the X-Parasites as victums without minimizing them as a threat. I could see a cutscene where SA-X discovers files regarding the Metroid breeding program, causing her to go enraged, smash the control pad, and start basting the screen while furiously screaming.
X parasites weren't exactly minding their own business, they were a hazard upon the planet they came from, and would have wiped out all life on the planet if not for the metroids. They also wiped out ZDR for no reason, I have no sympathy for them. fun theory tho
In defense of the omega metroid boss, when youre backtracking through sector 1 at the end, you can see the metroid shells that you also see in the room where you fight the omega. So some metroids (at the very least the omega) did escape the destruction of the breeding program area.
A big part of horror is empathy. I can't help but wonder if part of the idea here is to empathize with the Metroid, completely flipping the script. The way Samus sees her SA-X clone is how the Metroid saw her. The game is her facing her demons and adding further nuance. The enemy of my enemy, is my friend.
Wow. This is my favorite vid from you in a long time. You've actually deconstructed this game and made it feel so much like an artpiece when I had been leaning more towards Covarr's opinion until now. It really changed my perspective. You probably hate being compared to other UA-camrs, but it reminds me of how Super Bunnyhop deconstructed Metal Gear Solid 2, how it being such a stark contrast to the last game that it must've been a deliberate design choice, and it all still works from a narrative perspective. But I must say, Covarr's opinions seemed...nitpicky, at best. It all boiled down to inconsistency, and there have to be better reasons than that to consider it an insult to the franchise. (Copypasted from the Patreon version as per your request)
No, dude, PLEASE FEEL FREE to compare me to SuperBunnyhop. He's one of my favorites! And yeah, wow, Fusion really is similar in some respects to MGS2, isn't it? I'm really surprised I didn't think of that, myself. So yeah, that's a FANTASTIC point. And seriously, his MGS2 deconstruction is one of the best pieces of video game analysis anyone has EVER done, in my opinion. Keep in mind that Covarr was trying to boil a TON of criticism into a fairly short runtime. I originally envisioned him coming on and just laying out problem after problem for a minute or so in a more comical way, but he REALLY hates Fusion, and wanted to be a little more analytical on the reasons why. So if his problems seem a little nitpicky, it may just be that he was only skimming the surface of each of them.
I have a some problems with a few of your criticisms. Firstly, how some powers are gained through defeating enemies and others by downloading the data. It is well established that Samus' Power Suit can adapt ANY alien tech for Samus' use, as well as absorbing abilities from ORGANIC CREATURES. If downloading missile data truly is a problem, then how does the Power Suit store well over 200 missiles, super-missiles, and power bombs? Secondly, how can the SA-X blast holes in walls and doors when you could not in Super or Fusion? The same way the Joker beats Superman in a fist fight (WITHOUT Kryptonite) in Injustice: Gods Among Us. I don't have a term for it, but it is basically limiting ones capabilities in a game for balance, despite the lore demonstrating otherwise. It is meant to prevent you from being over-powered from a game design standpoint. Finally, the most controversial issue in the franchise, Samus' character. Before Fusion, the only CONCRETE things we knew about Samus (outside of backstory) was that she has a soft spot for small, seemingly innocent creatures (Baby Metroid and the Shinespark/Wall-Jump creatures). She is a bounty hunter, so she generally does violent things for monetary gain, but WHY is that her career path of choice? WHAT brought her to become a hunter and WHAT did she do before? (after leaving Zebes, of course) The fact of the matter is, before Fusion and the Prime Trilogy, Samus HAD NO CHARACTER. She was just a person in power armor who ran around killing aliens. Just like this guy! --> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Freeman Also, there is a culture-gap in the Metroid fandom in regards to Samus' character between us, the western audience, and the eastern audience (including Nintendo of Japan/R&D 1 members). There is a really good discussion about this on the Metroid Subreddit. Although it is primarily about Yoshio Sakamoto's reputation in the franchise, it quickly leads to the East-West phenomenon. I highly recommend it. www.reddit.com/r/Metroid/comments/5ipfx9/understanding_yoshio_sakamotos_reputation_in_the/
+Thunderous Jedi Really, the way I see it, Fusion's Samus was mainly designed with a western audience in mind, but Other M's was designed with an eastern audience in mind. Fusion's Samus was really not terribly dissimilar to Ripley, which makes sense because Ripley is the character Samus is heavily based on as it is. Other M Samus was a more typical anime woman, however, which tended to grate on Metroid's fanbase since it's predominantly western.
Nintendo pretty clearly demonstrated there's a massive disconnect between how cultures view Samus when Retro wanted actual bounties in Prime 3 only for Nintendo to go "Wait, she doesn't do that!" To which I can only imagine someone at Retro legitimately stared at them and asked...at least mentally "Why the fuck do you call her a BOUNTY HUNTER?"
You know, Covarr's rant got me thinking about stuff. He brought up an interesting detail that got me geeking. Q: If the SA-X represents Samus at the height of her power, why can it destroy the space station with super missiles when you've never had that kind of power? My thoughts: Well, you're on a completely different kind of space base. Super Metroid took place on Zebes, where space pirates locked higher security doors with blast doors that required different levels of firepower to break open. This fits pretty well with how the stronger space pirates are found where the security is higher. In Fusion, you're on the Federation's station. Their *Biologic Space Laboratory* station. They have actual security locks on their doors with different levels of clearance, *and* the place is on lockdown. You never actually need to use the missiles or power bombs to open the doors (except for the ones with door monsters before the charge beam), you find the machine that undoes that tier of lockdown on the doors. They weren't designed to be blasted open with missiles that can cause *caverns to shake like an earthquake.* And of course, the federation is what's giving you your explosive ordinance, rather than random data capsules in the palms of Chozo statues. They would avoid giving Samus missiles that could wreak structural havoc on the station, considering that they wanted her to survive while gathering data but not capable of destroying the SA-X that they wanted to capture. Unlike the Chozo, who wanted their warrior prodigy child to be as powerful as possible, the federation wanted her just on that line where they could make her follow orders without losing their most powerful asset.
I always figured that canonically, Samus wouldn't shoot the doors with the super missiles anyway, always just using her regular beam to open doors. I'd imagine SA-X firing super missiles at the doors would be enough to break em.
Some of the complaints that you have such as “the game telling you where to go” “it’s always hi-lighted on your map” “it reiterates what you need to do when you load a save” is honestly really helpful, just earlier I had picked up Metroid Samus returns after a long break and had myself having no idea where I was going.
PLEASE READ BEFORE COMMENTING, especially if you're about to take a shot at Covarr.
Covarr's section, as I originally envisioned it, was meant to be a 30-45 second gag where he, as someone who GENUINELY doesn't like Fusion, would quickly play up ALL of his grievances with it in an over-the-top manner. It was partly meant to be played for laughs, while still allowing us to address some of the criticisms that make Fusion a somewhat controversial game.
His section as-written ended up being a lot longer than I'd thought, but I still thought it was really enjoyable. The problem I didn't forsee is that my audience...
1) Doesn't know Covarr, and thus wouldn't inherently appreciate his being there, and
2) Didn't have my knowledge that it was MEANT to be tongue-in-cheek.
As a result, his over-the-top rant lasted WAY too long to be a joke, and aside from the relatively-small subsection of my viewers who know Covarr from my streams, almost nobody enjoyed it. Covarr also didn't want to awkwardly repeat criticisms I had already raised, so he was forced even more to exaggerate his nitpicks. Given these circumstances, we should have either cut it back down to the original 30 seconds, edited it to be more fairly critical, or just cut it entirely. I take full responsibility, and I really hate when people slag off on Covarr himself over it, because as the semi-experienced UA-cam person, I _really_ should have been better about anticipating how it would come across to you guys.
The Geek Critique that's completely fine and thanks for clearing it up. Keep doing what your doing!
It wasn't all that bad. Maybe it was because I read this comment beforehand, but I agreed with most of the things he said.
If Covarr was going for over-the-top, he didn't go far enough. This is the internet. Too many people say the stuff he says with a straight face.
I think this bit could have worked significantly better if it was hinted at before, like how Fusion foreshadows everything. Sprinkle some 'edits' in moments where the plot is more liner; put the pieces together to figure out the truth; and, finally, confront Covarr when Samus confronts the SA-X (which, btw, the second form is a combination of its current form and the first creature that X copied back on SR-388). That would have been great.
i actually liked the section,it acknowledged huge flaws in a game which usually people dont mention.
i think people just hated the section because its a different opinion.
that was supposed to be a joke? well maybe knowing that I can finally watch this entire video without wanting to punch him in the face lol
I never thought about this, but... The SA-X freezes you and then hits you with a super missile. That's how you kill a metroid. Samus has metroid DNA, so the SA-X sees her as a metroid. Mind blown.
She literally has Metroid DNA, so it's just logical to freeze her with ice beam and blast the shite outta her. The SA-X is extremely calculating and cold.
Like what Adam said "What an impressive intelligence"
Oh my god
The fact that Samus was injected with a vaccine earlier that gave her part Metroid DNA probably explained why SA-X was hunting her down in the first place.
@@hikkicornmori359 Exactly. That's what I got just by reading the text and fighting enemies that had to be frozen first. If the game wasn't so linear then you would never get past SA-X.
"were they delebirately trying to keep Samus weak?"
yes, they were. it was part of the plot.
But that doesn't mean it's a good plot. It deviated from Super Metroid a bit too much. Considering how Other M turned out, Sakamoto wants Samus to be like this in the future, meaning more Metroid games like Other M. Nobody wants that.
Cedars Fusion's plot was fine in my opinion. She was still a strong, confident character but the game allowed her human side to shine through.
This game was about the Federation sending in someone to handle an out of control situation while trying to keep her from learning too much. But you can't contain Samus Aran.
Other M, on the other hand was just a mess. Fusion is a fun game with a solid plot. Other M took in the ideas in fusion, and vomited them back out.
Lucky Egg Metroid Fusion was my favorite Metroid game until literally two months ago. After I played Other M and watched countless reviews on every Metroid game (including The Geek Critique's reviews), I began to realize that Metroid Fusion is flawed. I played Super Metroid for the third time last month, and have since played it ten times! I'm not even joking. Speedrunning resparked my interest in Super Metroid. I now prefer Super Metroid over Metroid Fusion much more.
My argument is that, if it weren't for Other M, Metroid Fusion's story would be okay. But considering it's story along with that of Other M's story, Metroid Fusion's story is poor. Some people argue that Sakamoto also wrote Super Metroid's story. But he wasn't the only one who contributed to the story for Super. In Fusion and Other M, he was the ONLY one in charge of their stories.
Nintendo has reserved Metroid for Yoshio Sakamoto, and I believe this is the reason the Metroid series can't progress like other Nintendo franchises. Metroid would never have gotten a sequel if it weren't for Genpei Yokoi. Metroid was his creation, essentially. Since Yokoi created the GameBoy, he created Metroid II to show off the GameBoy's capabilities. Sakamoto had NOTHING to do with Metroid II's story. He wasn't even a part of development. All in all, Sakamoto is Metroid's curse.
+Cedars Wow, I didn't know nostalgia could be spread to people who didn't play the thing back on it's day.
xdan I've met others who've played Super Metroid really late and still love it like I do. I think it's a testament to how great Super Metroid really is!
Yes. The federation was trying to keep samus weak so you couldn’t kill the SA-X. It’s a plot point.
It's a canon event
Exactly. The last commentary was trash.
i played this as a child and the forced "stop and go here" helped me play. And as an adult i just love the horror aspect. i feel that this game doesnt get enough love and wish i could play a sequel with the new corrupted suit still intact
Not to mention Samus' destruction of the B.S.L laboratories and extinction of the X-Parasite will label her as a criminal in the eyes of the federation seeing as a multi billion dollar station that they created with many lives onboard was destroyed as well as a new species discovered being murdered before they could be studied (Obviously it would turn against them and go wrong) as well as seeing Samus have to deal with a new suit, abilities, and her dealing with the Metroid and X Biology. So much could be elaborated on and instead they're like "MeTrOId 2 ReMaKe!!!"
Cryo Judgement
I’d even say multi-trillion taking into account the scope of the operation and how much could potentially be exploited through future X and Metroid cloning/weaponization. She basically destroyed a gold mine of a planet with a planet sized man-made research facility. Yikes.
Agreed I mean I personally think the game itself is great at delivering the fear and tension cause you start off as weak then grow stronger yet still considered weak but in other metroid games it works backwards
Fusion is one of my favorites
it has an incredible atmosphere and does buildups really well
the bosses (I think) are unique and fun (especially Nightmare and a few others)
the linear plot helps build tension in a way that makes you feel on edge and powerless
need I say more
@@hewhomainsness9189 agreed pal!
Metroid fusion doesn't have the X-ray scope, but power bombs uncover every hidden block.
EXACTLY
Thank you!
Mah man
Yes, but I wish there was a way to see the fake blocks that you can go through
but it does not show hidden paths, like there is one in the fish tanks
"Does the Federation want to keep Samus weak?"
Covarr, there are approximately three trillion trees in the world. These trees work tirelessly to produce the oxygen we breathe. I want you to track down the specific tree that produced the oxygen you used to say that line, and *apologize* to it.
I don't know why but that is the funniest comment I've ever read.
i immediately went looking for a comment like this when he said that, and you sir, have surpassed every expectation
god like comment
Yeah this is explained in the game for fucks sake
@rexsupreme1840 it can be any of the two so who knows
Video ends at 21:36
@Leonardo Di Kennedy it starts again at 25:52
Actually. Go roughly one second later and read the true end of the script.
Thank me later
@Leonardo Di Kennedy Theme video also ends at 27:50.
:)
@@o_sagui6583 not reliable
Pretty much! That other voice showed up and started a nonsensical rant that crushes everything previously talked.
23:39 "So-called secrets are stored away in the most obvious places."
*_I know somebody who didn't find the second energy tank...in the same room._*
I dont know you or the person you're talking about but I feel personally insulted
@@theinfantmetroid he's talking about covarr who missed an extremely secret Energy Tank. I dought that he knows who you are either, so why take it as an insult?
That damn second energy tank.
And what's better is that if you miss it in the start of the game, you can only recover it after you acquire the screw-attack
The thing is, Super Metroid also did the same thing of having an item out there in the open randomly for you to pick yet apparently It wasnt a problem in that game?
I think the linear design is brilliant. Samus in every other game is a hired bounty hunter told to complete a mission in whatever way she needs to, while in this game she's been sent to a federation ship by the federation to complete an objective. It would make sense for the game to be linear, because the federation has made the mission quick, cheap, and streamlined, like how any government would do it.
and, like any government, fuck it up so badly because they think they are the smartest...
@Shin Shaman wdym
really? brilliant? linear design is the easiest design choice ever, I'm not saying is bad per se. but brilliant? no way
@@eidiazcas yes but they made that decision very early on we could’ve had a story which had no reason to be linear which would’ve made the game play feel Like I didn’t need to be this linear but instead they went with a story that makes perfect sense )if you ignore the fact that she download a update to a physical device missiles Through a freaking computer and also she downloads missile(
@@eidiazcas It's less brilliant to me by itself, but more-so in its relation to the story.
"Is the federation trying to keep samus too weak to succeed?" Uh actually yeah they were. They said in the game they had certain power ups ready and with-held them so samus wouldn't confront the sa-x. Remember how they wanted to preserve the sa-x for their own uses?
Oops
Uh oh.
im a rebel
Fuck you I won't do what you tell me
They only withheld upgrades that would allow Samus to harm the SA-X, the Plasma and Wave Beams and the Screw Attack. Other upgrades like the Ice Missile and Varia Suit that would allow her to survive the SA-X more easily while still not allowing her to harm it, they give her without a second thought.
"Yeah, a download that changes the physical properties of my ammunition. Cause that makes sense." Galactic bounty hunter that can jump infinitely, run through walls and summons her power armor by mere thought alone fights space dragons and giant brains in glass jars, but downloading information to change the fabrication unit in her arm mounted heavy artillery? That's just too far.
wut?
Also complains that upgrades are just out in the open. I'm insulted that someone who has clearly never played a Metroid title before is ragging on one of them. Examples of Metroid titles with upgrades in the open:
Metroid, ZM, II RoS, Super, Prime, Prime 2, Prime 3... Other M?, wait, is that most of the series? Well fuck Nintendo for doing that same thing in Fusion as most of the series...
I always said her power suit can't store over 200 missiles, so she has some way of changing them to energy for storage or something. With this it seems her suit has the ability to copy the abilities of the X when she absorbs them, so why not gain the small ability to copy data and produce missiles with the energy from green X's. makes sense to me.
@@GryphB and the only Time a upgrade was out in the open was to Foreshadow the first boss fight and to remind you that samus is at her weakest
Canonically, the only time she taken OFF het armour was in her original gunship. We're still not sure how she put her power suit on but I assume it's through her presumably-Chozo technical ship
Also all her upgrades are Chozo-only. Not sure how "canon" her DNA being part Chozo is, but being officially part of the Chozo clan in Zebes (when it was not "evil") allows her (or her Chozo-origined Power Suit) to take the upgrades.
Ironically enough "Corrupting a Masterpiece" is precisely how I would describe Covarr's rant.
lol, fusion is great
Here's the thing about offence, it is a personal issue, YOU have the problem, not us. When you start your rant with "This completely unrelated thing to me is an insult to me" you have no point to your statement.
@@demonzero677 I don't completely agree with that statement. I think that "X-thing personally made me feel insulted" has its own merit in its own argument. I think that exact sentiment is kind of whiny but it's a valid emotion to feel.
Adding it into this video however was a conceptual nightmare. No one comes to the Geek Critique for Covarr's thoughts, no one wants to watch a video where a person expresses their opinion calmly and rationally, and then have another a contradictory opinion by a completely separate individual screamed and ranted at us like a five year old. That shit does more harm then good, it makes a fairly decent argument, an opposite point of view, look so damn immature in comparison. It gives the impression of "if you agree with this lunatic who interrupted my video then you're every bit as childish as he is." which I *know* wasn't the intention, but golly, most viewers who don't read TGC's pinned comment are totally gonna get that vibe from this video, especially with it so close to the conclusion.
Covarr's rant "corrupts a masterpiece" because it comes off as hijacking an otherwise very well informed and articulate analysis with his own vitriol.
@@Axarch No no no, I meant with regard to Covarr, not you're statement. I actually agree with you. I shoulda phrased it better.
@@demonzero677 I know you were talking about Covarr when I made my reply.
You need a better proofreader.
"Why does she have to go to different rooms for different upgrades?" Because the SA-X destroys them. Explicitly stated in the story. The fact that she can restore powers from bosses is a surprise to both of them. Making save rooms not restore health/ammo increases its difficulty and stops you from running back to the save room constantly. Forcing some trial and error in pathfinding helps make the game feel less linear than it is, and it's not like super metroid didn't have an abundance of shitty "secret paths".
I've never empathized with the "it's so linear" complaint. Super Metroid isn't an open world. It absolutely has direction. It absolutely expects you to go certain places in certain orders. Maybe not one single linear line, but Reverse Boss Order was NEVER intended and is NOT representative of its GAME DESIGN.
Hate the story interrupting your gameplay? Hate the story in and of itself? Fine, that's your taste. Personally, I think Fusion is a masterpiece BECAUSE it has such a compelling and thematically fitting story.
Metroid was inspired by the Alien movie. Metroid Fusion is the most Alien game in the franchise by a country mile. Every core mechanic echoes the themes of that movie.
Onin Preach. Also, what I always noticed, Dead Space reminds me of Metroid Fusion. Ofcourse both Metroid and Dead Space were inspired by Alien.
i like it how if you care to explore a bit,you find out the data-room you got the bombs in is not destroyed at all xD
I'm okay with story but Metroid games with a complex story should give you the option to skip the cutscenes and get right into the action. Being able to skip cutscenes after you beat the game is a start but I think it'd be even better, for the sake of everyone being able to get what they want, to have you be able to skip them right from the start. It makes Fusion less fun to replay because you already know all the cutscenes and it becomes a bit of a chore. Still a good game, don't get me wrong.
In regards to the data rooms, by the end of the game only a few remain accessible: The Operations Deck, Sector 2, and Sector 4. metroid.wikia.com/wiki/Data_Room#Trivia
Some of the sequence breaks were intentional maybe those were
"In Super Metroid I had the X-Ray scope."
Metroid Fusion made the power bomb serve the same purpose as the X-ray scope, only more efficient. That was the point.
Gerald Weir good thing the SA-X didn’t have the X-Ray Scope in that one chase sequence.
I admit I haven't played super Metroid but the X-ray visor told you where things were and the you could destroy it in fusion a lot of times blocks are destroyable without any indication of them being destructible that is why it feels so random
@@dggaming7610 yeah cuz when you enter a fully empty room in a videogame or with only one single, weak enemy, your first thought is "theres nothing here, imma head out"
@@dggaming7610 that is why you need to shoot anything that looks suspicious
@@dggaming7610 it is normal for metroid style gameplay duh
Personally I think it's important to have different kinds of entries in a series. The more focused gameplay of fusion suits the portable system it was made for. Plus it's more about story and atmosphere, and for me at least, it's one of the best in the series for that. And I can't forget about the bosses, very good stuff.
Yes nicely said i agree with you 100%. It’s very important to have that kind of variety especially if you have a long running beloved franchise like Metroid. And yet on the other hand you have the Resident Evil fanbase for example which are braindead idiots that if it was up to them RE would still be stuck in a fixed camera and tank controls era but look at that franchise today man. I mean holy shit. It’s amazing how much variety RE games have, it’s one of the most awesome franchises ever to grace the gaming world and it is my personal favourite.
Different entries are all well and good, provided they're done right. If it's just different for the sake of being different, you end up with games like Fed Force. I wouldn't call Fusion a bad game; but I say this as someone who started out on Fusion, and then played Prime and ultimately the rest of the games after that, I appreciated the more open-ended nature of those games over a locked facility with little freedom to sequence break.
I think Fusion is an important entry in the series because did help revive interest in 2D Metroid, and it had a much-needed refined moveset. I appreciate the game for what it did, and that's making acceptible, fluid movement which was integrated in (just my opinion here guise) a much better title, Zero Mission. It even influenced later games like Samus Returns, AM2R, and Dread.
For that alone, I am thankful Fusion exists. As a standalone Metroid however, I would only ever to back to it for the rad boss fights like Nightmare. Otherwise, if I want a nice fast paced Metroid that still has all of its essential franchise DNA intact, I'd go with Zero Mission.
Slightly off topic, but what I enjoyed about Dread was that it took what Fusion did and made it so much better. E.M.M.Is, fast paced action, the sense of dread, tight and refined movement, decent amount of exploration, a good story, amazing boss fights, and sequence breaking available from very early on in the game.
As for Resident Evil, that's a different situation than fans merely wanting a feature that's been available from the start. There's a difference between wanting a Metroid game to be heavy on exploration, and demanding that RE keeps its terribad control scheme, which, even in the late '90s seemed dated. I would agree if fans were demanding that Nintendo keep Super's more sluggish movement, or God forbid Metroid NES's. That would be silly. But wanting a Metroid game to be more open and give the player freedom to roam their environment, that should be a given. I don't see how pidgeon-holing a player into pre-determined, sequential paths is beneficial to a Metroid-like. It certainly wasn't good for Other M. It didn't do the game any favors.
I know this will probably get tossed into the sea of youtube comments like a message in a bottle but I have a take on the whole "Samus gets upgrades both by enemy and by data room? WTF is with that" argument. Back when I first played it, to me it felt like samus' suit and mobility upgrades were gotten by fighting enemies. Her suits, abilities, and even some weapon modifications are gotten this way. But the data rooms were always where she got the hard weapon upgrades. Missiles, super missiles, morph ball bomb, super bombs, ice missiles, and the like were all from the data rooms. Why?
Prepare a dramatic beat because......The federation cared only about her abilities as a weapon!!! Why does she need all that crazy mobility stuff when the soldiers get along just fine with just better guns? So they, as was pointed out in the story, only let her get as powerful as they wanted her to be at a given time. The federation essentially admitted they prioritized getting her gun up and functional over everything else. Notice how in the game, they get the missile and bomb data ready quite quickly, but you have to absorb the morph ball ability from an enemy. This means the federation made an upgrade for a form they didn't even plan for you to have!
But alas, this might end up lost in the comments forever....Just hope it gives you something to think about in the future. Fusion is a really, really, really damn well packed game. I think they did things like the horror elements and the distinct style as a part of the transition to a mobile platform. This way, even if you only play a short while, not only will you have gotten something done but there's a good chance you'll have something to talk about with your friends the next day like "OMG! I went to go get an upgrade and I had to fight a boss for it instead cause it downloaded the upgrade before I could!" or "Holy crap man! I had a run in with the SA-X and I wasn't prepared for it at all! That thing is spooky!". I like the original metroid prime better (it was my first metroid game I got new) and super metroid has some benefits, but fusion is definitely a welcome addition to the family.
That's quite the interesting observation you made, but there's a tiny flaw in your reasoning.
The Federation had the Varia Suit data ready for Samus, it is even an objective to acquire it to enter the Ice Sector. That's when its revealed that the X can absorb digital Data and use it to form organic structures, like Varia-X.
Oh yeah....I forgot that they did prepare that suit upgrade. But that aside, I still think there is something to the fact that samus' federation upgrades being weapon focused and the boss focused upgrades being more mobility focused. It was too clean cut, varia suit aside, for it to be intentional IMO.
Hmmm, I never played the English version of the game so I am not sure if they ever state it there, but even ther AI states that getting her weapons back online is their top priority, which is supported by your observation.
But even the Varia Suit Upgrade had more capabilities as a weapon in mind, because now she can enter the Ice sector, which makes her universally more useful as a weapon.
There's actually a pattern with the upgrades you get from the Data Rooms...
You get:
-Missiles
-Bombs
-Super Missiles
-Varia Suit
-Ice Missiles
-Power Bombs
-Diffusion Missiles
The federation never sends you a latent ability that they can't replicate: only Missiles and Bombs (and armor)
Some of the X parasites even downloaded data from data rooms (Varia suit) or utterly destroyed them (Nightmare). The big X parasites that granted abilities could have been fragments of the SA-X, as they all had Samus' old abilities.
"Did the federation want to keep samus too weak?" Um yes! It's stated multiple times in the game
I personally love the inspirations Fusion took from action-platformers. The bosses are a prime example. If you ignore your nostalgia for a second, all bosses in Super were pretty meh. Crocomire stood out for the acid thing, not for an interesting fight. Ridley was just a damage sponge. Mother Brain was primarily story. The others weren't particularly interesting either. Also, the generally floaty controls made dodging a bad option so you often just tanked the damage, something you could do if you collected enough stuff. Fusion has quick bosses with varied movement and boss music making your hearth pump faster.
I also love how much damage everything deals in Fusion. It's like Zero Mission on Hard!
I disagree on Ridley. Fusion's Ridley is a bullet sponge. But Super's Ridley is actually a pretty dynamic fight.
@@legrandliseurtri7495 Ridley is my favorite Boss in Super.
Yeah I totally agree on this. Fusion has my regards for having the most fun boss fights. Nightmare, Yakuza, Ridley, SA-X, Security Robot are all very intense and fun fights. And they are the reason why I replay this game so much because those crunchy Missiles feel Super good.
@@ExtremeAce Honestly I hated the seconded security robot fight, really for just one reason: that hurtbox is way to small! Also Nightmare (mostly phase 2) was just as bad as Super Metroid bosses. Again the hurtbox was a little too small (maybe), but his swoops aren't telegraphed well and he has one attack that just let's you kill him with no effort... unless he isn't aligned with the ladder... in which case you just wait until he very slowly makes his way across the arena in a straight line while shooting. I went back to beat him multiple times in row (I killed myself and savestated right before the fight) because the fight seemed to unfairly kick my butt repeatedly until he just decided to die and I wanted to analyze it.
Note: I liked this game overall even tho it was very linear. However, I don't have any incentive to 100% percent it (assuming I didn't lock myself out of that anyway). Doing a 45% sweep of a Metroidvania right before the final boss doesn't seem very appealing.
Covarr: "Is the federation TRYING to keep Samus weak?!?" Yes, that is one of the plot's twists toward the end of the game, when the computer reveals that the Ice Missile upgrade had been ready for some time, and they never revealed this fact to Samus.
Really great video until the rant at the end. I realize it was supposed to be a joke, but it just feels like a shame to ruin such a well written, well thought out retrospective, with a sarcastic, emotionally charged conclusion at the end... But, your video made a lot of great points that I should have made in my video on Fusion. Like the fact that since this was a handheld game, it was somewhat forced into a formula that supported short bursts of gameplay. That was something I never considered!
thank youu
PhobiaSoft let’s hope he never brings Covarr back.
actually, it was the Plasma Beam that was ready for some time but wasnt sent
*Diffusion missles
Fusion is the first game in the Metroid series where we get the hint that the Federation isn't as squeaky clean as the series had portrayed them previously. The creation of Metroids despite ordering their extinction previously and deliberately keeping Samus weakened until they have no other choice are evidence of that.
Metroid Fusion was always my favorite Metroid game, but thats because it was the first one I played. I went back and played all the other ones, but Fusion was still my favorite. I dont think I've ever played through a game more times than I have Fusion. That being said, I understand its flaws as a metroidvania game and it is the most Linear of all the metroids.
Also some of the complaint put up towards the end of the video are answered in game, and seem to be made by someone who didnt really pay attention to the story, or were just exaggerated for comedy.
Also also, your channels sweet and very well done. If you keep it up with this level of quality you'll get big soon
Your favorite Metroid game ? Condolences...
I feel the exact same way. They pointed out "plot holes" that are clearly explained in game or by the lore from other games. Fusion is probably my favorite as well because it is different than the other games and doesn't feel like the copy of Super Metroid people seem to wish it had been.
did you just say metroidvania? wtf
hirumaredx metroidvania?
"Is the federation TRYING to keep Samus weak?" Yeah? 9 year old me thought that was pretty damn obvious.
Also, he asks why you have to keep using different data rooms. The game outright tells you - and SHOWS YOU - that the X are actively destroying or blocking data rooms as the game proceeds. Because they are a coordinated predatory force trying to *kill you.*
"Yeah, Samus, quick question, what's your email? I gotta send you some missiles real quick."
Lol
imnotmetroid@chozomail.com.ze
@machinegun I rarely laugh at comments, but yours is gold.
My head-cannon is that she doesn’t actually download missiles, but instead she downloads the missile blueprints.
I feel like they more uh... Know generally how to give her technology after studying her for the many years she's been around and in their service and found a way to electronically deliver her ridiculously adaptive and advanced chozo armor upgrades.
i do not think SA-X tried to save Samus. actually, I believe SA-X saw the Omega Metroid as a bigger threat than Samus, given the fact the Omega Metroid could almost killed Samus with a single slash, so it decided to kill the bigger, more menacing Metroid (remember Samus is now a Metroid since she now has Metroid DNA in her genes). so it miscalculated the outcome and was turned into a regular x parasite, which could be absorbed by Samus. but that is my opinion.
Yeah, that was my read, too. "Oh shit, TWO metroids! And *THAT* one's bigger! Get it firs-arrrrgch"
In addition, the SA-X sacrificing itself was basically "You want this thing dead. I want this thing dead. Here, have my power."
Matthew Travis no. I do not think so. SA-X's purpose was to survive, and let itself being absorbed by Samus (which is essentially another Metroid, meaning, an enemy) would defeat the purpose.
Consider this: the X could have easily killed Samus whenever they wanted to simply by coordinating. The SA-X you fight on the Main Deck was probably just the one *chosen* to fight Samus. That SA-X was probably going for backup when it ran away from Samus. However, it detected a far greater threat to it's species than Samus: the Omega Metroid. Naturally, the SA-X chose to destroy the greater threat, no matter what. Letting itself be absorbed by Samus was merely a means to an end, to give someone with more experience fighting it's foe the ability to do so
Matthew Travis Experience not really a factor considering the X absorb knowledge, but with Samus being non-X, she had better resistance.
The first time that I played fusion and it told me that there were at least TEN SA-X wandering the B.S.L. station. I shut my game off instantly and didnt play it for a week.
The SA-X is one of the only enemies in a video game that instilled true fear into me.
I remember trying to fight it during the very first encounter (you morph ball bomb down into the room it's in) and getting destroyed. After that, it was high tension because I didn't know where it could be.
There's another beautiful touch after you get the wave beam where you can do the ghetto screw attack into it. The SA-X lets out a damaged cry before once again attacking you. It was a moment of "You're getting stronger, but you're still not where I am, Samus" that I'll never forget.
Metroid Fusion is my favorite Metroid of all time not because of its gameplay or story but because it subverts the "You'll get everything back by killing baddies" mentality. You're actively hunted. You can go the linear path, sure, but unless you're careful you don't beat the game. The BSL will consume you unless you adapt outside of what ADAM is telling you to do. Samus has no one but herself to succeed, and that isolated feeling generated tension and fear in my 8 year old body. No game has done that since.
I just kinda shit myself and said, well we're gonna have to fight more then one
I honestly wish the game had more SA-X wandering around after that revelation. Like at least one per sector. That would've been awesome!
@@labraderp agreed with you dude cause if you compare the damage intakes on Fusion and other M series and even Metroid Zero Mission you received more damage in MF version than other M versions including MZM the remake of the first Metroid series which in the end forces you to not just tank hits but also tried to survive as well with any limitations, plus the sense of isolations and the soundtracks gives enough chills and fear since most of the things you are experienced are off screen and stages while you are alone with these bunch of viruses that came out with no end.
@@labraderp also I agree that it is a pity that MF got so much underrated reviews despite it is actually a good game to play in gba
I know the Covarr bit was supposed to be over-the-top, but some of those reasons don't even work. If you want to hate ADAM, fine, it's the worst part of the plot and sometimes gets annoying when it won't shut up, but complaining about how you get upgrades? You're right, how dare they download missiles, it makes way more sense to find glass capsules containing augmentations in the middle of nowhere that happen to fit to her specific suit and automatically attach. And of course the SA-X would cause more destruction, it has no reason for discretion and just like all the bosses, it's a bastardization of the suit. I dunno, this is one of my favorite games so I'm obviously biased in it's favor and I didn't want to harp on what everyone else was commenting but it bothered me.
Yeah I was pretty skeptical of the criticism in the end. I didn’t even play the game just heard detailed explanations but I could tell his argument was unreasonable. Like the fact that he complains about SA-X when I’m pretty sure it’s stronger than what Samus was before considering that it doesn’t have any human limitations...
there's also the fact that the BSL station is Federation made, not chozo made
It's also worth mentioning that the "download missiles" thing isn't even that implausible.
You don't download the physical missiles, you download the software that allows you to shoot them.
@@HQ_Default Exactly. I know I'm a bit late, but do people really think that Samus can just store every one of them in her suit somewhere?
@@superwooper5210 everything possible in future or the future era in games especially when it comes on space themed games you can't argue with that
I think Fusions linearity is overstated. I mean, it is more linear, but I think it offers more freedom than most people seem to think it does.
I think it's because the paths themselves aren't designed to appear linear, but there is only one real path and therefore it is linear. Personally if I can't tell the difference it doesn't bother me (like Dark Souls for example).
Well, I think that they always wanted to make a more linear game, it's just that older Metroid games (Super Metroid, for instance) were designed as a linear story-based game with various unintended (and some intended) exploits to sequence break. Let's not forget that 2D games with level-based design which were never intended to have sequence-breaks (Sonic, Mario) were filled with sequence breaks, which is why speed-runners love them so much. I imagine that creating a 2D game with so many power-ups and skills using a single large map designed with various alternate paths depending on the plot of the game would have been nearly impossible to pull off without sequence breaks.
Really, what Fusion succeeds at that other games in the series failed at is making the design of the game a lot tighter. The purpose isn't to speed-run the game, the purpose is to explore the station. What I love about Fusion is that once you've explored pretty much every area you're made aware of in the start and coloured the entire map you've been given, the game flips the script by revealing exactly how much of the research base is 'hidden'. Heck, one of my favourite moments is going back to Sector 2 and just seeing how many hidden areas there are. Plus, the twist with Sector 1 (obviously, the first sector you visit) becoming the most important sector in the game, and the last sector you visit, is done very well.
@Born2Run Well, in MP3, even with the hint system deactived, it shows your next objective immediately. I played MP2 without the hint system for most of the game, and it made all the more interesting.
@@francisthompson3772 it still doesn't show you how to get there off the bat, there are still a lot of things you as a player need to do in MP3. It isn't just as simple as shoot everything to move on if you get what I mean.
yeah, I got lost
“After all the other near death experiences you’d think she’d be used to it by now”
Except that isn’t how trauma works, and this is something that she had zero agency over, was left significantly weakened by, and was an indirect result of her own actions in previous installments. Literally the entire point if this game’s conflict is that Samus (who owes the Baby her life twice now) now has to interact with herself from the perspective of a Metroid.
Fusion is the direct sequel to Super Metroid and thematically expands on the role the Baby played during its final moments. Samus is humbled by the experience of having been being brought back from near death by her choice to spare the last member of a species she had otherwise personally hunted to extinction. The subtext of the SA-X being an unrestrained version of Samus that she's totally defenseless again after receiving the Metroid Vaccine is that she's forced to view herself from the perspective of the Metroids she unapologetically killed during Samus Returns, which she eventually reconciles by completing the task that the Metroids were designed for. It's actually a really interesting concept that fits really nicely into the way Fusion deconstructs the events of previous games.
God this fucker’s rant sounds like a child who was given a gift he didn’t want for a holiday. Its a shame, this was otherwise such a great retrospective.
That's a lovely comment about Metroid fusion. It's like a role reversal
@domecity well you dont have to be rude about it
@@doireannlynch didn't stop Covarr, why should Domecity mince words?
it was comedic, read the pinned comment(but I like the first paragraph, and i think you're right)
Great take!
Yeah, Covarr had some really awful arguments.
1. He never explained why absorbing X parasites was less fun than picking up power-ups just because they explained it in the narrative.
2. He never explained why the story-first approach doesn't work with, or in his own words, "an insult to," game design (because, surprise, it has worked in countless games including fusion.)
3. He didn't pay attention to the narrative of the game that the Federation was, in fact, trying to keep Samus weak in order to hide the secrets the satellite harbored. If the core theme is removing agency, then this fact is a given.
I mean, I could list every single mistake he made in his arguments, mostly because he never justified any of them. If Fusion isn't his cup of tea, I get that. There's a big debate whether Metroid Fusion or Super Metroid is the strongest game in the series, but don't make your judgement on the quality of the game because you happen to favor Super Metroid. They're both amazing for very different reasons.
To me, they stand as equals of two separate peaks because they emphasize different things in their core gameplay. It's absolutely amazing that Metroid is such a versatile franchise that it can make amazing Action/Exploration, Action/Adventure, and FPS games. How many other franchises have tried doing all these things, and how many of them have actually succeeded to the critical acclaim that Metroid has?
As for Other M and Federation Force, well, everyone should complain about those.
"There's a big debate whether Metroid Fusion or Super Metroid is the strongest game in the series"
A debate among who? I've never seen a single "greatest games" list that has Fusion above Super Metroid. Not a single one ever. Super Metroid is always on those lists; Fusion never is. Fusion is a good game, but it's not even close to Super Metroid.
It's usually between super and prime
Well I personally think prime, fusion, and super are awesome! Power on personally
Swordmaster - Haha, I'm one of those oddballs who all but considers Echoes his favorite in the series. I really wish there were more environmental distinction in the earlier areas, but beyond that, I consider it a superior experience to Prime, which I utterly adore.
Still, if I had to OBJECTIVELY determine which game was the best, I'd pick Prime. It is no hyperbole to call that game a generation ahead of its time, and everything Echoes did better was, well, built on the incredible foundation of Metroid Prime :)
Of all the 2D Metroid games, I'd probably consider Zero Mission the best one; I love the CONCEPT of Super Metroid but as somebody who started the series with Fusion, I can just never fully adapt to the comparatively clunkier control scheme. Fusion's a great game and all, but as can probably be inferred, I'm in this series more for the nonlinear exploration than the raw action. To each their own!
I may be a bit biased as I started with zero mission when I was really young, but I've always enjoyed the GBA games more. Fusion for bosses and zero mission for just about everything else, as I've learned so many ways to play through it. I think super metroid is fantastic, but my top 2 will always be zero mission and fusion.
Samus' Power Suit is based off of Chozo's mixture of science and spirituality, so yes, you can download Missiles when you're downloading the ability to summon them.
Also, I thought the whole point of the game was that they WERE trying to limit your options by gimping you, making it so you had to do what they say.
But it's weird to covarr, because its not like a normal metroid game, which he (I assume) is basing his criticism off, which is why he describes it as an insult to the metroid franchise. I'm guessing he doesn't recognize the supreme storytelling, buildup symbolism and more action base as what metroid is supposed to be, which is why he hates it. As for me, I recognize and love that stuff despite it not being like a normal metroid game
TheJamaicanGamer I understand where he's coming from on his other points, but I wanted to point out the ones he missed.
I liked Fusion tho, it was pretty fun.
Devin Craig
I must note that Covarr also misses a very CRITICAL plot point revealed in the game - all the previous data rooms get DESTROYED by the SA-X after you use them, which Adam *does* tell you at one point. This is for two reasons. The first is that while they may be tracking you they know where you have BEEN, but can't as easily predict where you are going - or at least how you're getting there. (which is likely why you find SA-X searching an area before you arrive - it knows you're headed to the area, but not where and how. How else is it consistently getting there ahead of you? Blind luck?) They then destroy the room to prevent you gaining further strength. This is why you CANNOT reuse past data rooms. But it's also heavily implied there's another reason.
This is where the second point comes in - the SA-X might be soulless, but don't assume it isn't clever. The X get into area 1, the game explains, through the very visible ventilation systems in that area, but suggests that the other areas are better self-contained. So then how did they get in? Well... Adam tells you. "Releasing that security lock may have been a mistake..." In Area 1, Samus releases the level 1 locks, and this unleashes them upon the zones sealed by that lock. But it also sets a precedence - that Samus can unlock these doors, and will, to obtain the firepower she needs. And they NOTICE. From that point on, you aren't just seeking equipment, you're forced to be the catalyst by which the X spread deeper into the facility. And it's by design. The SA-X could probably EVENTUALLY find the security rooms, by why hunt for them aimlessly when they can lure Samus into doing it for them, incidentally leading to opportunities to gain access to new bio-mass and chances to ambush her?
Turns out... The X aren't stupid.
Tbh, for me Covarr bashed on Fusion with unwarranted gibberish. I found the game to be excellent, giving you a perfect atmosphere of tension because you're constantly being hunted while trying to get things under control.
His complaints about E Tanks and other stuff laying on the ground on your path is a bit... eh... exagerated to me, as only like a couple are there at the beginning to help you survive better, considering you take a shit load of damage in Fusion.
And pretty much what you said, the X parasite destroys the Data Rooms. In fact, when the IA sends you to one of them, you see an X parasite download and blow up the Data Room in your friggin nose.
Fusion had a nice pace in my opinion and threw in enough twists that made it good in my book. How they make the Federation's motive questionable as they wanted to have an underpowered Samus, since they know that anything that they would do that seemed highly questionable that Samus might oppose to them, and thus they tried to limit her powers to make her less of a thread to themselves too.
Downloading missiles? _huffs air_
*_CHOZO NANOMACHINES, SON_*
>"It's like fusion is talking down to me! It thinks i'm dumb!"
>Misunderstands the plot-point that, in his own words, was spoon-fed to him.
I know the whole bit is a joke, but come on man.
Kinda hard to take it as a joke with that tone.....
Yeah, last I checked, jokes were actually supposed to be funny.
How is downloading missiles any different from getting the Morph ball and other power ups from them laying on the ground in Brinstar?
I don't want to speak for Covarr, but I think Samus's upgrades laying around the universe can be kind of handwaved as a result of the Chozo society crossing the stars. Of course, this being a video game, there are plenty of contrivances you just have to excuse it for. Downloading missiles only really makes sense if, as another comment suggested, the Federation outfitted Samus with some of their OWN tech when they amputated her power suit.
For the record though, downloading upgrades wasn't something I ever even considered, so it never bothered me. But I don't tend to notice stuff like that in games as a rule, which is why I really enjoy when other people do.
The Geek Critique
Ah, I see. I just found it odd that they brought it up. I've been really enjoying this series by the way. I wasn't aware of the "new game plus" I should check that out.
Well well well, look who I found in the comments, Zycor. Actually I wanted to weigh in heavily on Covarr's rant, because I found his nitpicks to be, well, entitled to a specific type of gamer. Almost metaphorically speaking, Covarr's rant is something I would have expected from the way you(TGC, not Zycor) described yourself prior to starting this journey - someone who has not yet adapted to multiple ways of gaming and, more specifically, approaching change. A lot of what your video says and even praises are utterly stomped upon in his rant, as if he completely ignored your findings, and wanted Metroid to stick to the past.
The amusing thing is that he basically stumbled upon the best, story-given reason why Samus was able to Download her abilities - and it is that the Federation simply has a complete lockdown of her suit, a much more powerful and damning form than was present in Other M - damning in the sense that they're damning her, not her damning herself in quite possibly the stupidest reason Other M tries to do progression. Here, the Federation literally controls Samus' power, and it is when she goes off the rails does she regain the agency they sought to limit and control, but is subsequently chastised for it the second she checks in. The Federation wants to reclaim their soldier, and almost succeed.
Now, Covarr hates this because it's story first, but his rant goes on way too long because he hits on this point- A valid, fair opinion to have, I'm not faulting him for having it- but then wastes my time and, honestly, lessons the overall impact of the video by whining and screaming about design decisions that are (almost) all explained by the fact the game chose story first instead of the intricate layouts of yesteryear. Honestly I enjoy both games, and need to return to both to really cement which one I like more- being a skill-based gamer, I assume Super Metroid- but I find the breakdown and story of Fusion to be one of the best I've played, simply due to the subtext of the game, that is hidden and alluded by the actual text.
UA-cam comment rant over. Sorry for hijacking the comment thread.
The Geek Critique
Likely the Federation IS sending her there tech. Remember, Samus' systems are modular, and the Federation has had SOME access to Chozo tech, and at least a chance to examine some of her armor's features - they had to repair what parts of her suit were left and retrofit it into the Fusion suit, after all. And as the Prime series later revealed, this isn't the first time they've had cause to do so. But more importantly, the modular nature of the suit was never stated to only use equipment specifically designed for it, or made by the Chozo. She actually steals Pirate technology on several occasions - this means that Chozo tech has the ability to adapt ANY technology for use if it can get access to the requisite data or hardware in order to replicate it. And more than one upgrade is, in fact, DESIGNED by the GF for her use - ice and diffision missiles in particular. These mechanics are really better thought out - and conveyed, to the discerning eye - than Covarr seems to observe.
Actually it's because the idea was that the Space Pirates invaded Zebes and then started to dig. In Super, they dug deeper. It's basically an excavation of the temples and structures which predated their arrival, so they naturally uncovered some of the tech and devices which were scattered about and previously lost to time. In other words, having the item pickups the way they are meant to be distributed in the first Metroid and in Super are storytelling elements.
By comparison, Fusion having the missiles as a download which gets arbitrarily authorized is a narrative cop-out and lazy writing. It doesn't even really work in the circumstance of Samus having Federation tech in her suit, because it's not like Samus downloaded the missiles from a development schematic in the BSL's weapons development laboratory, or found it as the BSL trying to replicate Chozo micro-missile storage technology as SR388 was home to the Chozo weapons development facility where the Metroids were engineered. It's literally something that the Federation authorizes and sends to her WeTransfer style from off-site as a download. It's a few phrases shy of Adam not letting Samus use her equipment until he authorizes it in Other M, but surprisingly it winds up being considerably more stupid, especially when compared with either of the two alternatives I mentioned previously.
I'm sure Covarr would agree.
"Is the Federation TRYING to keep Samus weak?"
Uh....Adam admits this when she's locked in that one navigation room.
The Federation is run by idiots. That's the main takeaway from the story I keep getting. Dunno why Samus plays ball with them at all given how they actively screw her over every single game.
MarginalSC This was the first game where the Federation actively tried to screw her over, and even after Fusion came out there was only one other game where that happened. In Metroid 1/ZM, 2, and Echoes, the GF stays out of Samus’s business while she performs her mission. In Prime, the Federation aren’t involved at all because Samus arrives at Tallon IV upon responding to a distress call from Frigate Orpheon. In Corruption, the GF’s only mistake was assuming that the PED Suit didn’t have any drawbacks, and otherwise they were very helpful. And in Super, the Federation are pretty much attacked by the Pirates, and Samus immediately responds by taking the fight back to Zebes.
The only other game where the Federation fucks Samus over is, well, that OTHER game, and that’s part of why the fandom hates that game. [REDACTED] takes place before Fusion, and over the course of its events we pretty much get the same revelations that happen in Fusion: The Federation is experimenting with weaponizing Metroids, and they want to keep Samus contained so she doesn’t interfere. If that is the case, why the FUCK does she immediately go back to trusting the Galactic Federation during the BSL incident. The answer is that [REDACTED] didn’t exist when Fusion was being written, so Samus trusting the Federation makes perfect sense. In fact, if you only remove that one game from the timeline, everything else makes logical sense (save for maybe the Ridley remains, but that can be explained some other way). And that’s part of why we want that one game stricken from the canon.
@@Brawler_1337 "well, that OTHER game"
I see what you did there.
MSOGameShow Yeah, I refuse to mention that game by name.
@@Brawler_1337 she doesnt trust them again. She is in monetary debt after getting the new ship and probably the surgery. She Even mentions the contract at the begining.
If you think about it.... the reason of the jumps being more floaty is the gravity difference in the station
Exactly; if you assume that the Federation is a branch of Humans stemming from Earth, it's natural to assume that the artificial gravity on the BSL Research station is that of Earth's 9.8m/s^2, and that potentially, Zebes' and SR388's gravities are less than 1g
@@ChozoSR388 yeah plus at leas you got the ledge grip from the start which in super metroid or even Metroid ZR you get it with the upgrades plus in Metroid ZR you can't do much to explore cause by time time you got the varia suit you already given a little time to experience it fully to the planet Zebes's unexplored areas
@@ChozoSR388 in fact I don't know if you noticed this but the super missile in MZR is plain OP cause even when you fight with Mother Brain one shot from the super missile it one shot killed the mother brain including the robo-ridley which makes the games bit stale
Doesn't explain zero mission
@@GrammerPancreas I think that the increased gravity was a design choice to give Zero Mission it's faster and snappier gameplay. Given that the game can be beaten in under an hour if you know where to go, the floatier jumps of Super and Fusion would have easily killed the pacing of Zero Mission.
I don't know what his problem is, I never had to grind X. Seems to me that the editor couldn't play the game right. Finding the path wasn't hard too
Love fusion more than Zero Mission. but thats just me.
I only like Fusion more because Zero Mission had just a bit too much shinesparking.
Zero Mission's art direction was more cartoonish to my distaste. I wish there had been more gba 2d Metroid games though, they're both solid experiences.
I honestly can't decide.
I think ZM is a little bit overrated, just a little bit, like it is totally understandable if you pick SM over Fusion, (like I do), but Zero Mission over Fusion, OR EVEN OVER SUPER LMAO, that is just a bit weird...
Actually, after going to the ZM review video, I take back my words, ZM isn't a ''little'' bit overrated... it is really fucking overrated....jesus fucking christ I was not prepared for the comment section on that video.
Does anyone else like it when Samus monologues in an elevator. I looked forward to finishing every level in hopes that I might get to hear more from this typically silent protagonist.
Absolutely! In a game as tense as Fusion, I found them a welcome, yet temporary reprieve from the overarching fear of encountering the SA-X again and having to run in fear for my life.
SPOILER DONT KEEP READING MY COMMENT IF YOU HAVENT PLAYED IT ALREADY............
side note to ur elevator comment, i am currently playin fusion, and just found it pretty cool how the elevator broke aka shut off mid game and had to burst through side wall.... it was unexpected and cool. Kind of how it was cool to have baby metroid ride on elevator with me on samus returns lol
This kind of rant and hate is what kills franchises. The game tries to be different from previous Metroids. The linearity actually works in a plot and mechanics never seen in Metroid. I love this game, i love almost all Metroid games, and I hate that people who cannot adapt to new changes only whines.
See the best of the product, don't miss everything that was in precious efforts.
You're referring to Andrews right, the geek sung praise
I agree chenocorp, it does make it work!
I like Fusion better than Super Metroid. It's better paced and I guess I'm not a big fan of backtracking and running around for hours without a clear goal of what to do.
Chelline R. Crash Spyro and Sonic aren’t in the same league as Metroid.
Never have been. I don’t like 3D games though.
I just wanted to comment and agree with you. When I was a kid and had this on my GBA, it blew my fucking mind with how cool it was. I didn't bitch about the two seconds it took to go between a save room and a recharge room. The animations were so cool I didn't even notice that it was a waste of time. The only things I might have changed about this game were some of the puzzles being really obscure. But that's just a minor gripe, not a huge flaw or anything. Other than that I couldn't think of anything to really complain about at all. It's a difficult game and I died a fuck ton of times. But I still managed to eventually beat it and that definitely matters. That's the difference between a really hard game and something that is just ridiculous to the point of being to frustrating to complete.
I was pretty much okay with everything you've said, but Covarrubias' rant was a bit too nit picky to me. The comment that threw me over the edge about how the E-Tank was just lying there out in the open when A: It was the first one in the game, B: It was like that in Super Metroid too, C: Metroid Fusion's very linear design makes it so that you where to go, but not how to get there. Come across something like the clip he showed then you know theres probably some sort of wall or floor I need to break. The fact that there is so much uncharted space is good because In my opinion Super Metroid is VERY linear (though really that could be the fact that I know the game like the back of my hand).
I love Metroid Fusion because more so than Super Metroid. I feel that it gave me this sense of dread and I was actually worried about dying a lot more in Fusion than in Super. In Super Metroid you're on top of the world. Tanking hits and destroying everything. You can't do that in Fusion. Enemies keep dealing more and more damage and when you think you might have the edge NOPE they quickly adapt to your new strengths. The perfect example is when the Arctic X appear. They actively chase after you as opposed to the X that just fly away. moment you get the Varia they go after you, realize its pointless and not only stop chasing after you, but no longer appear after that. That is a great way of mixing story, game mechanics, and to show the intelligence of the villain.
The Cold X parasites after getting the varia suit is one of my favorite moments in the game. You have the suit and are now immune to the freeze effect, the X parasites don't know that yet so they keep trying to get you for a few rooms before realising it's not working and from then on actively flee.
Also they tell you where to go and that's about it. They tell you to go download bomb data but when you do the door is destroyed and it's all up to you to figure out how to get back. Once you get the wave beam from the security robot you are totally on your own but it's not so bad because your hand wasn't held this entire time so you can figure it out yourself. I love the story and in fact it's my favorite of the metroid games.
DarkVaati13 covarr needs to shut up, if he wants to critizice, do it in your channel. This was my 1st game entering metroid and this was the reason to love and try the next Metroids
Covarr doesn't have the right to speak after hearing his constant whiny section of his. If he was so upset and "insulted" by how different Fusion was, then why didn't you turn off the game and go play a different Metroid game. A game trying to be different and make you feel weak and careful with every encounter must have been too much for Covarr.
Also, super metroid did the same, to reach Ridley you had to to explore,there was no clear way, is obvious the manchild of covar never finished super
Which is cute, cause the developers knew previous fans would get psyched out by something like that.
I know i'm late on this... but after playing this game countless times over the years i really still feel like this game is severely underrated still.
The liniarity and the unskipable story aspects are massively overstated imo.
The rest of the game is so masterfully crafted and especially if you go for 100% it is pure bliss to me.
Yes I’ve read the pinned comment, and I know the video is old, but I feel I can contribute something to address Covarr’s criticism that weren’t mentioned in other comments.
First, missiles could be downloaded and super missiles could be an upgrade of regular missiles in a way we see today. Think of nuclear bombs. The first ones created for WWII used far more radioactive material, but were something like 50 times less destructive. The reason modern bombs are stronger when using the same material in the same quantity is because we have figured out how to better create the desired reaction on a larger scale.
Second, he mentioned that it was fine to use the X for health and weapon pick up, but didn’t change anything when it came to grinding for health. My question is why are you ever grinding for health? Recharge rooms are never far away, and if you’re cut off from them to fight a boss, there’s always an easily defeated enemy to become a red X first. This is a game where trying to grind for health is just as likely to get you killed as making progress.
This rolls into the final point I wanted to address, which is why didn’t they combine navigation save and recharge rooms into one. The first thought is that this would ruin the tension and pace of certain sections.
Now he might respond that only those at the beginning need be that way. My counter thought would be first that it establishes in the players mind that they will always be able to do all these things at once and they’ll be annoyed by the inconsistency later on more than having them separate to begin with. Why would the station choose to make only some of the computers the same.
If you don’t accept this thought, fair enough, but then I ask you to consider the menu slog that would be necessary every time you go to the navigation room. Do you want to hear your objective again? To do you want to recharge? Do you want to save? Answering these every questions every time would be annoying. Making them a single menu, asking what would you like to do, while better, is also obnoxiously cluttered (imo), especially if you accidentally hit the wrong one and need to wait. I really think it’s the possibility of an accidental click that worried the devs. I accidentally clicked hear objective again, and I couldn’t try and mash to get out fast enough. I have a few other thoughts, but I doubt anyone actually cares about them or this comment.
Just made the like button 69
Argument
Missiles in the Metroid series seems to work more like weapons in the Megaman series, where energy can be converted into matter, this is further supported with the crystal flash technique in Super Metroid, where you use weapon ammo to re-energize the tanks used to maintain the protective armor
Not grinding is only possible it you don't suck so bad, you're constantly getting hit, take me for example, just one careless set of three minutes is enough to murder me in this game
As for why the rooms are not one, I would argue the reason is more lore-based, as they could easily make it three separate platforms in one slightly larger room that you have to jump up to to reach and activate. However, would you put a port that can recharge missiles, a basically wide open glowing diary, and a computer with comms that goes to other places at the same place? As much of a bunch of idiots the federations are, they would at least separate the place
Covarr is basically being SA-X.
I'm not even joking. You touched on the whole subtext/thematic thing in the video, but I would take it a step further than you did and basically see Samus' plight - at least to some degree - as the metaphor for the game itself, its development and the struggles of the development team.
Maybe the game is in fact about how THEY, the devs, felt "trapped" or even "stalked" by Super Metroid. Maybe the theme of the game came about as a consequence of their early discussions around "how do we take this franchise forward". Maybe they found in those discussions that Super Metroid and fans' expectations showed up like some avenging ghost, making it impossible for them to evolve the franchise for fear of reactions like Covarr's (and far less articulate ones too).
Just a thought. Might be worth considering. :)
Repeater Odious That's a really fascinating way of looking at it, thank you.
You bet. I'm a game dev myself, impostor syndrome is kind of what we all have in common.
There are other games that kind of do that same thing. I wrote a blog post about the subject, but wouldn't want to throw an unsolicited link in there. Feels rude somehow. :) Just say the word if you'd be interested in reading it, maybe it'll inspire you to look at another franchise from that same lens.
Love these videos by the way!
Absolutely man, feel free to share your stuff!
Thanks for that. Here's the link: odiousrepeater.wordpress.com/2016/09/04/what-dark-souls-is-really-about/
Excerpt: "Dark Souls isn’t really about what it seems to be about. Instead, it’s a commentary on itself. It’s a metaphor for what it’s like being a struggling artist in a harsh market, specifically (but not exclusively) working in the games industry."
Hopefully a decent read!
I mean, possibly. I submit the theory very humbly as one can never really know what the devs were really thinking.
It's not impossible they'd be all like "dude, you're overthinking this, it's a robot going 'pew-pew' and chasing you around". ^^
... did neither you _nor_ Covarr do a doubletake at his section?
Seriously, it's _incredible_ how whiny and butthurt he sounds, just to downright cringeworthy degrees.
You should've toned that down _a lot._
...I'm aware. :(
@@GeekCritique Eh, it's not THAT big of a deal. The entire rest of the video is fantastic, so eh.
@@AniGaAG yes it's that big of a deal, it legit ruined the ending part of the vid :v
69 bois
He very much sound like it's not super metroid so i dont like it.
sorry to say it... but this review started to fall apart once the other guy came in
He doesn't liked Fusion for a simple reason: he wanted to play Super Metroid, but that isn't Super Metroid.
Richter WLK It's like the Star Wars syndrome: some so called "fans" won't be happy with whatever comes out, no matter how good it was in some or most points they will forever point out the bad things. They consider the originals to be perfect, even though they too had their flaws.
Bruno like people who hate the clone wars
i'm taking you to flavor town people who only watched the pilot movie *
Hey, what to say...
Lets see.
Okay, I've seen this with several games & it's sequels/prequels.
See, I got this relative who's is the main reason for why I got into metroid in the first place. He owned a snes & Super Metroid. Obviously it was love at first sight. I only got to play tidbits of the game at first during the relatives birthdays. But one xmas I got the first game in the series and I got to see how amazing it was even on a console with older hardware. Ever since that I've experienced every metroid title I got my hands on.
At the same time my relative stubbornly refuses to play the Hand held metroids or the first one. I've tried several times to convince him to play them but he's just met my effort with lukewarm response. I even showed him AM2r and he didn't bat an eye. It's unfortunate as I know if he really tried them I know he'd love them & realize that there's more games that shares the spirit of super metroid & it's awesome gameplay. what a shame
The reason the SA-X protects Samus at the end and attacks the Omega Metroid isn't because of any higher intelligence or emotion, it's because of instinct. Metroids themselves were genetically engineered by the Chozo to destroy the X-Parasite, and so they became mortal enemies, immediately attacking one another when they come face to face with each other. It's the same reason the SA-X attacks Samus on sight, because her DNA is now combined with Metroid DNA. The SA-X detects that DNA and seeks to destroy it. It's *also* the reason toward the end that we walk in on the SA-X trying to destroy the room full of Metroids and being overwhelmed. The SA-X wasn't defending itself from the Metroids attacking, the Metroids were defending themselves from the SA-X attacking. And the SA-X lost.
So in the last room where Samus is being attacked by the Omega Metroid, the SA-X only sees two things, and it wants to destroy both: A powerful Metroid (Samus) and a vastly more powerful Metroid (the Omega), who is clearly capable of dispatching Samus. By attacking the Omega, the SA-X is doing only what it does by nature, not out of emotion or intelligence. It targets the bigger threat, and in doing so, is weakened to the point of not being able to retain its form. Samus sees it as an opportunity and seizes it, and with her powers and the SA-X's combined, she kills the Omega Metroid and escapes to safety.
Grimm Master of the Troupe I think that’s more of an assumption that it would have escape pods. I mean they could of already been used by people escaping the station right? They were at the hanger of the station and there were no other ships around. Althogh if I remember the aliens you freed did get a different escape pod? But I think I agree with the OP that the x parasite wanted to eliminate the Metroid to secure its own survival. It’s like ancient humans being scared of a bear attacking them, but then they make weapons like spears and bows and look to attack that predator to secure safety
@@emarythomp The creatures you save escape on the ship with you and operate it at the end which is how it doesn't get destroyed by the Omega or SA-X. But I feel the reason the SA-X attacked the Omega fist of all things was because it saw Samus was incapacitated and could easily be disposed of if it could take out the bigger more immediate threat to its survival at the time, and seeing both fighting each other to the death was a great time to capitalize.
This game is getting a sequel after 19 years and I cannot wait for The Geek Critique to get started on it as soon as Metroid Dread releases.
I hope they actually bring back aspects from Fusion. And seeing as the trailers already show the horror aspects to it, I think they will.
@@freshlymemed5680 I hope they put it after fusion so that we can actually get a proper sequel.
@@ryanred1525 they did
@@freshlymemed5680 They bring a lot of aspects, and the some. Dunno if you played it but those aspects are amped up to eleven even. Just amazing and unexpected.
metroid dread is bussin
Hey, Covarr.
Next time you feel like saying something, please don't hesitate to keep it to yourself.
For real tho
"How did the SA-X escape containment?" It activated a powerbomb within the crate.
Yeah they explained it after the very first mission 🙄.
@@fellowkrieger457 yeah doesn't Adam or whatever the Ai robot literally says "it used one of your power bombs to escape containment" ?
"Is the Federation trying to keep Samus to weak to succeed?"
Why, yes. Yes they are.
I don't know, are they
@@sebastianward2188 Considering they were wanting to weaponize the X-Parasites and prevent Samus from destroying them and just kept her confined until Adam broke her out, yes they were trying to keep her weak.
I'll never understand how people can't enjoy taking their time in a game to enjoy story telling, regardless of what platform. Stories are a great method for driving the player even more to accomplish their goals, and makes the metroid series even more intriguing as apposed to just "reading it in an instruction manual".
Problem: Cutscenes, are too intrusive. Kills the tempo of the game and way tooooo much hand holding.
@@Raylightsen the tempo of the game s already "slow and cautious". What they say in the cutscenes is interesting. Not just " shoot that, go there and shoot that other thing." Not only thermy were addressing interesting matters, but you could know what samus thought about them too.
@@Raylightsen I understand that problem. That's why I didn't enjoy the last 4 pokemon titles, because of cutscenes with a static face who ruins the scene's atmosphere every 10-15 minutes.
@@hipnotyq Yes, gameplay is important, but things can evolve. And there have been games with compelling stories, to say that storytelling can only apply to a certain media and not be allowed to expand is, frankly, I find a bit shallow.
I actually liked Metroid Fusion. It was different than Super Metroid. In my opinion AM2R and Metroid Zero Mission were each different. All the games were different in their own special and unique way.
This is the very first Metroid game I play, finished it a couple days ago, and oh boy I liked it!!! planning playing Zero Mission and then the one on the SNES, this game is so good so detailed and polished!
I really don't see the point in people saying they "actually" liked a massively liked game.
Just gives off the impression you aren't aware of reality...
man i loved it when the editor came in and cried about how bad the game is
that was really cool i think every review video should have a cry baby come in at the end and completely undermine everything in the video
Hahahahahahaha... wait, are your serious?
@@mtb2257 i think it's obvious he is sarcastic
@@malikpierre-louis3343 eh, not really. Yeah we know it’s a joke but the fact that he genuinely dislikes Fusion and says a lot of things to back up his “points” of Fusion being a “personal attack on me” (stupidest bullshit ever) make it seem very serious
@@Nate-xi4zf pretty sure he’s referring to the original comment being a sarcastic joke
@@Peartato59 oh ya
Metroid Fusion is the first Metroid game I finished
So, yeah, gonna weigh in on Covarr's segment. Just bear with me here.
I get that you're trying to arrive at a more complete understanding of what exactly the game is by including his counter-perspective, and to avoid silencing potentially valuable criticism of a game that might well require it (from a friend, no less). I even appreciate having heard out a few of his points, namely the big one of how _Fusion_ tries to obfuscate its commitment to its linear design (and in doing so, ironically, undermines some of that very commitment). But when something like 80% of his criticisms aren't just unflattering to a game a lot of people like, but literally, demonstrably _incorrect_ (the mandatory routes being more hidden than optional routes, narrative-driven games being inherently lesser than mechanic-driven ones, the very definition of the word "stoicism" as applied to Samus at 24:04 and his understanding of what it was that fans and critics alike objected to about _Other M_'s characterization - I could go on and on), that's when humoring a dissenting voice loses its worth.
Perhaps the bigger issue, though, is to do not so much with the counterpoint as how it was implemented. To demonstrate my point, I just so happened to see an old episode of _Kitchen Nightmares_ yesterday in which a failing restaurant was put back on the right track and proved a huge success among the locals, concluding on a note of triumph and hope.... Except that then, the show proceeded to cut to a piece of narration bluntly revealing that the restaurant's pre-standing debts forced it to go out of business a few months later within the span of a sentence or two, after which it went straight to credits. When this video ended, the way I was left feeling reminded me an awful lot of how I did upon watching those credits play.
After twenty minutes of your laying out a singular and comprehensive interpretation of this game, abruptly ramming in a wholly different type of viewpoint right as your analysis is reaching its point of convergence - even when you disregard said viewpoint holding the game in lower esteem and, let's face it, being much less nuanced - just doesn't mesh right. Suppose your _Super Metroid_ analysis had been a collaboration with someone who loved the game just as much as you did but lacked your insight, and after you gave your final stirring words about the game's achievements in design that resonate to this day, your viewers were then treated to another five minutes of the other person informing us that the graphics are better than in previous games, being able to aim diagonally is nice, and Samus looks hawt if you beat the game in under three hours. Yeah, Covarr's assessment of _Fusion_ was a lot more perceptive than that even with all the objectively wrong stuff, but the point is that cutting to a completely different type of video, regardless of the specific ways in which it's different, will inevitably leave a bad taste in everyone's mouths.
And unfortunately, due both to just how much it stands out from your portion of the video and its placement at the very end (with little in the way of a return to your perspective to smooth the video-watching experience back over, no less), the resulting psychological effect is that Covarr's segment is what your mind winds up going to first when you think about the video, whereas it takes a bit of concentrating to think back all that effort and critical appraisal you put into the overwhelming bulk of the video's runtime. I guarantee that your number of dislikes and especially comments voicing their dissatisfaction with the segment would have been a fraction of what they are if Covarr's points had been spread out throughout the analysis at relevant points and addressed (or, if nothing else, merely explored a little) in turn. Whether you merely insert Covarr/other people's differing perspectives (and your responses) into your scripts or actually let them directly speak in the video is obviously your call, but I think it would prove very helpful in letting you work on projects collaboratively without the participants' input outright counteracting one another. I know I enjoyed the ever-loving hell out of your videos that didn't have that problem (not to mention the first twenty minutes of this one - it may well have even surpassed your _Super Metroid_ examination as my favorite in the series), and with a content output as good as yours, I'd really regret seeing any future ones be tainted by it.
Very well said, thank you! And you hit the nail on the head as to what went wrong with Covarr's segment. Originally, he was going to deliver a scathing counterpoint in less than a minute, which would have been very obviously tongue-in-cheek. I recognized that I was being AWFULLY easy on Fusion just because I liked how difficult it was, and wanted to humorously highlight the other viewpoint.
His segment as written ended up being longer, more detailed, and more level-headed than I was expecting. But it still was a bit OVERLY nitpicky and critical, which is exactly what I asked him to do. It was just level-headed enough that it didn't SEEM like a joke anymore, and even if it did, it was a joke that went on too long. Ideally, I would have spread these segments throughout the video and had more of a dialogue, but I had a self-imposed deadline to start the season and was in a time-crunch, so we didn't have time to integrate it any better. That being said, I still REALLY enjoyed his segment and thought it was well-thought-out and funny... but I had the advantage of knowing that it was SUPPOSED to be funny.
The point is, don't worry --- I won't be doing that again. :P
Ha, great to hear, and thanks for hearing me out! Now I'm off to savor your _Zero Mission_ breakdown - and in the event that I wind up not having anything worth writing a comment about on that video, I just wanted to say thank you, as someone who holds _Metroid_ as their single favorite game series, for rekindling so many of my feelings of love for this series through the sheer astuteness of your analysis (to the point that I just became a patron of yours for that reason alone - cheers!).
Does this mean that MF is like the Super Paper Mario of Metroid?
Just Andre I concur with you so wholeheartedly, but a point I’d like to add is that not all Metroid games have to be like super Metroid they can do their own thing and expand upon what they like,
Not everyone likes MF but not everyone likes SM either, heck not a lot of people don’t like Metroid so what the other guy was saying was a biased punch because Metroid Fusion was not to his liking
Fusion is one of the few games where I actually enjoyed the narration.
It does wonders to build up tension and hint at what horrors lurk in the next section.
Also the pixel art is the absolute best I ever seen.
I Think at the final boss, SA-X attacked the Omega Metroid because That's how much it hated Metroids: it prioritizes them
enemy of my enemy is my friend.. I guess if a metroid existed then it would repopulate and once again destroy their species. Samus wants the same thing as the X parasites.. to eliminate the metroids.
SA-X: “Wow, that’s a huge metroid! Well luckily for me, I have the ice beam, so this will go down in no ti...” *omega slash* “ah s**t, I shouldn’t have done this right after that other fight. Wait! What are you doing!? Don’t come near me! DON’T ABSORB ME! NOOO...”
Yeah, we have seen SA-X try to gun down all the Metroids in the room with Samus right next to it before
That's a good take on it. Good perspective.
Samus has Metroid DNA infused in her suit. Wouldn't that make her a priority target as well?
This was a good video until Covarr came in and ruined it all in one go with very subjective whining for no real purpose. There's pointing out flaws (yes we know Fusion has them) and then there's just crying about how you like something else and this isn't what YOU thought it should be.
I think it's reasonable and makes sense that some upgrades are obtained from X bosses while others are downloaded. The X upgrades give you direct upgrades to the suit that the Chozo designed (Beam upgrades, suit upgrades, the morph ball, etc), While everything you download from the federation are things that can be made for any machine (missiles and bombs). In fact, the downloaded upgrades include things never seen before, like the ice missiles. This is because the federation can just make shit up for Samus to use, while the X is copying what we've seen before.
Aside from Covarr's rant at the end, this was a really great review. Although I will agree that having the save, healing, and missile recharge functions all being in separate rooms is a bit silly, especially when they're usually lumped together in a row like that.
Covarr "Whine whine whine, I don't like new things, blah blah blah I like to do the same shit over and over."
That is what they were going for.
This is my favorite Metroid, sounds like your editor just wanted a super Metroid 2.
Who doesn't
@@brgan557 true...
@@brgan557 yet it is not a bad game if you know how powerful samus already is in other metroid series compared to this version which makes the whole experience feels different
I would say that the editor probably enjoys Dread, but he'd probably rant about that game somehow because it has more of a story approach.
I am confident in saying this is the best black sheep in Nintendo's history
My only problem with this is that when Adam says there's ten SA-X on board, you only see one at the end. It would've been extremely horrifying, frightening, and amazing if this was true. My first time through, when I backtracked for 100%, I expected another SA-X in every room. It could've been awesome, running away from one SA-X, only to run right into another, or if you find one and it alerts the others. That alone might've put it as my top metroid game, but for now, it sits at #3
To be fair, they did it so that you wouldn't be overwhelmed and destroyed, or possibly killed one and got the ice beam early?, from a gameplay perspective, having 10 of the penultimate boss roaming around just wouldn't be a good time :P
isnt Metroid II considered to be the black sheep of the franchise?
superHC I get what you're saying, it wouldn't be good for less experienced players, but most players could probably handled running from them. The game also doesn't give you any notice that you can harm them until you fight one near the end. But when the game flat out says "Now there's ten of the enemy you've been scared of the whole game" It's really disappointing to find out that it's just a threat with no action.
Metroid 2 and Fusion are both the black sheep.
With AM2R, not anymore.
Did you ever notice that when the SA-X notices you, did you ever notice the method it chose to kill you? First, it freezes you with the ice beam, then it blasts you with missiles. Just like how you deal with larval metroids. It's a brilliant piece of programming in an otherwise very exploitable, and kinda dumb, AI. The SA-X is incredibly frightening on your first playthrough, but speed runners have leanred how to make it laughable. I think this is a testamont to Fusion's narrative - that the SA-X can have some really dumb, simplistic AI, but so few players are willing to learn of its shortcomings.
Daniel Royer A lot of AI in games are extremely exploitable.
Its the ultimate predator to whom we thought was the ultimate bounty hunter. Also its because the SA-X think you're a metroid since you have metroid dna.
I love how Mwtroid Fusion comes full circle with the original Metroids english manual, describing her as being able to absorb the abilities of her foes.
You have a very good video here, with a viewpoint that most in the metroid community don't really take. The one glaring problem is the 10 minute rant by Covarr. It seemed as if Covarr didn't even play Fusion at all, and was just crying into a microphone because Nintendo didn't give him Super Metroid 2.
who else turned off the video when the editor started whining?
griffin fredette me
I'm with you. I dislike Fusion, and refused to play it when it came out originally. If you are "Personally offended" by a decision made on a corporate, global level, you're probably a megalomaniac.
Patrick Foxchild I found myself thinking the same thing… I was like dude you are “personally offended“?! Are you serious? I mean, it is just a game after all.
Personally, I like fusion, objectively speaking it is a well-made game, it’s not like it’s “ride to hell: retribution” or something… It’s an entertaining, competently made video game but is being trashed because people expected a nonlinear experience… But that doesn’t make the game bad… It just makes it different.
@@yeetdiscreet1278 It was supposed to be an over exaggerated joke, although TGC admits it was a bit too long for most unfamiliar viewers to catch on to.
25:53 to go back to the main video's meat
Fusion didnt have cracks, it had strange design choices, I agree that the save reload and nav room should have been the combined into one and yes I ended up carpet bombing everything because I coudnt tell which tiles were breakable. Still I love this game for the story and scripted secuences the SA-X encounters are COOL, Samus is still in character but more fleshed out not like in other m
Yeah the secret walls are definitely different in pretty much every other metroid game the secrets always have that sort of “metroid” touch where something about it tells you “hey I can probably blow this up!”
Another example of action versus exploration can be seen in the advertisements. Metroid Fusion's US commercial is filmed like an action movie with Samus blasting all the X duplicates and ending with a face off against the SAX while Prime's commercial is much more slow paced and methodical. It's kind of like comparing Aliens and Alien, one is more action while the other is more atmosphere.
That's exactly the expression I was thinking. Metroid Fusion is to Aliens as Metroid Prime is to Alien.
+niespeludo
It's also ironic that the Western studio made a faithful representation of the Metroid formula while the actual Japanese Metroid team created something quite a bit different.
MetroidJunkie that's because of Sakamoto, who is in charge of Metroid.
He dragged the series down with Other M, because the technology was finally good enough to pull off cinematics with poor scripts. Prior to other M, Sakamoto worked on Super and Fusion. You could see from the intro in Super, and the monologues/computer exposition in Fusion that he valued story over gameplay (making the game linear)... the more technology progressed, the more he could explore those things. Retro Studios was free from his control, and learned from the series' roots.
+Brad Bailey
Well, considering Nintendo's making a Metroid Prime 4, I wonder if this means they're changing their mind about the first 3 being non-canon. Then again, Nintendo also made Metroid Prime Hunters and it didn't stop Sakamoto from claiming it isn't canon.
MetroidJunkie sakamoto was interviewed just a few days ago about Samus Returns and he said that he had little to do with the Prime games because of his limited 3D experience... he didn't call it a spinoff, but he did say that Prime was like a separate branch... and he did call his games the "main," games... but it seems like he learned his lesson after other M- he said he would no longer pursue those kinds of stories with Metroid... so that's a relief lol
PS- Sakamoto's great when it comes to 2D Metroid- as long as he focuses on being nonlinear and putting gameplay first
Man, uh... Covarr there being _really_ contrarian, huh? Like... You're allowed to say you didn't like it, I know people who didn't care for Fusion and that's fine even if I grew up loving the game and all, but to literally go off for minutes at a time about so many points the greater purpose of which were being explained for the past twenty entire minutes or so, and then escalate it to a point where you consider it a literally phrased 'personal attack' as if this was Nintendo calling you out by first name and threatening your family, being so unnecessarily scathing and at the same time completely detracting from the rest of a video that had so largely a different tone, is... yeah, no more flowery talk, I'll be blunt, that's being a literal baby. That's being an actual child throwing a tantrum about how your life was so totally made actively worse by people who made decisions regarding a video game. Like, dude.
7:50 In regards to sequence breaking, the internals of Fusion actually entirely fail and glitch out if you sequence break.
Of course, doing this requires editing ROM data via hacks or codes. Fusion's very progression system relies on the stuff you have acquired. One prime example of this is giving yourself charge beam before you enter the boss room. The mission condition that says you need to fight a boss in that room relies on your current objective, but the actual boss's presence relies on you having the beam already. Simply put, you'll be locked in a room with boss music but no boss.
That rant at the end really spoiled this video.
Interesting fact, the abomination the SA-X becomes during the penultimate fight appears to be a fusion (pun intended) of Samus's power suit and the hopper enemy in sector one ( the enemy the X in the intro was impersonating)
21:58 @itscovarr
*Every party needs a pooper
That’s why they invited youuuu
Party pooper party pooperrrr*
Nice reference
NAAAAAAIL! Kick his ass!
"Downloads data that changes the physical nature of the missiles"
Yes, that's literally how the X works and why Samus' Fusion suit is so powerful. It can recreate weapons from data, hence why it made 10 SA-Xs from one suit
Dude. Your videos are the pinnacle of what a youtube channel should be. Exceptional. Exceptional. One of the absolute best channels PERIOD. Across politics, podcasts, documentaries, humor, independent shows and everything. Will def be donating to you, and if I was wealthy, you'd never work again.
Hmm... While I respect what Covarr says, and I realize that it was said to be an tongue-in-cheek satirical joke slapped into an otherwise good video... Yeah, maybe not executed the greatest.
Though, as a voice actor and creator, I would like to state the following:
1) This is my first time viewing any of your videos.
2) I deeply appreciate your voice work, and the voice of Covarr. You both sound lovely, charming, and well balanced. HUGE UPS FOR THAT!
3) The pacing, which is so lacking in most of the stuff I watch, is positively sublime (except for the ...exception above.)
Overall, I had a blast during this video, and while the section with Covarr does come off as whiney and a bit pedestrian (weh weh, I want me metroid back and all that) it was not without merit!
well carried lads, carry on!
The fact that the title of the video itself gets a plot twist is amazing
I guess, given the situation, this game was made perfectly. If you wanted a full world to explore, get Prime, if you wanted a bit of story, get this, I like both (Prime a lot more) but Fusion is still great, but Covarr actually brought up good points. Granted a bit exaggerated, with the downloading, since the Federation must have put their own technology into Samus' suit during the Fusion Suit's construction, it makes a little sense that mixing that with Samus' Chozo spirituality stuff works with downloading the data and materialising it, it's just as odd how the X can do it, so why not Samus. This game was bold, and I love it still, the SA-X is my second favourite enemy, behind Ridley (only because of his and Samus' history), the SA-X is horrifying and I love it.
Sequel idea, since the Federation operated on Samus to save her, they may have extracted some X, which may replicate into her again. So, possible SA-X in the future? Or that Samus is being hunted by several bounty hunters, and Sylux is the one that is actually a challenge? Both could happen at once, who knows.
Either way, great video, just subscribed and was pleasantly surprised to see a new upload soon after, keep up the great work!
Yeah, I definitely think that Fusion and Prime were meant to balance each other. Fusion is very action-heavy, and Prime was the first game to give you better endings for completion percentage instead of time. Really, Prime pretty much was that soft reboot for the franchise that Fusion deliberately avoided. And that's not a knock on Prime at all, because when a series made the jump to 3D, everything old really could be new again.
The Geek Critique Well said, it's hard to think that Prime was under backlash when it was revealed to be first person as well. It was my first Metroid and is my second favourite, with AM2R being my favourite, but that might just be because it's still a little new.
Now though, I just want a sequel to Fusion. Even another Prime game would work after Fusion with Sylux becoming more of a highlight, thanks to Federation Force of all things, he and Samus could face off, since the developers seem keen on those two having more of a clash, which I'm all for.
Nippy have you played AM2R? It is an excellent remake of Metroid 2 The Return of Samus that goes far and beyond the original game itself.
I have, I see it as the best Metroid game ever made. It has all the best bits from the Metroid franchise, the abilities of Super Metroid, the Gameplay of Zero Mission, the world building of Metroid Prime, and is one of the harder Metroids to date. It surpasses the original and I consider AM2R canon, it's that good.
Nippy what time and level of difficulty did you beat it in? I am curious is all. The first time I played through it I beat it in over 10 hrs and collected 86% of items. My second attempt was under 6.5 hrs and I collected 100% of items. Both times I played through it on normal settings, which is nothing to sneeze at mind you. However, when I played it on hard mode I beat it in under 5 hrs and collected 100% of the items. My version is 1.1 and it is for Mac. It has little to no clinches so when I play through it I cannot bypass any levels or get into any hard to get into places if you know what I mean. Furthermore, Samus Aran does not go invisible when I get the gravity suit. I more or less play through the game as I should and I love it glitch free. And I agree with you that it is the best Metroid game thus far😃
"Did the federation want to keep Samus weak?"
I... Uh... Yes...
"Was the federation trying to keep her too weak to succeed?" .....yes actually,that's the whole idea
"DID I JUST DOWNLOAD MISSILES"
AM I HOLDING 200 MISSILES!!!!
I personally write off the “downloading missles” thing as “Your explosive delivery system is missing drivers! Please update drivers at www.galacticfederation.fed/upgrades”
i think its neat that the sa-x most cares about hunting metroids, which is why later on it ignores you to fight all those larval metroids, because they're more metroid than you are, and on another thing, the way the sa-x hunts you for being part metroid makes this like a reflection of metroid 2, now you get to see things from the other side, you're being hunted, and you do not stand a chance
I’m glad somebody likes this game, I felt it was severely underrated
Okay, I am serious here. I have been subscribed for quite some time now and yours is the only channel that consistently makes me smile and get genuinely excited when I see a new video come out. Other than backing you on Patreon, is there any other way for me to ensure that you make more episodes, and more often? You truly are fantastic, and very gifted. I hope to hear from you soon, and to see many more videos in the futute.
Well, given what an awful job UA-cam does of promoting channels like this nowadays, there is one thing that's potentially a lot more helpful than backing the Patreon, but it's also more complicated to do. And that's just to let other people know I'm worth watching. Most of my biggest booms have come because someone posted a link that did particularly well on Reddit, which is why I try to have catchy video titles now, haha. But posting in Facebook groups, forums, and anywhere else you think people might enjoy my work could make a huge difference. Thank you!
Personally, I love Metroid Fusion to death. Maybe part of that's because I only played Metroid Prime before Fusion, so that's more what my expectations were. But I think it has some of the tightest gameplay ever, I really appreciate the story, and it seriously is one of the games that most immersed me because it never really asked me to simply accept anything that didn't make sense outside the context of real life or the universe, with the exception of a few "sci-fi, so we can" moments. Oh, and that tinge of horror. And truthfully, I never felt the game was trying to pretend it wasn't linear. A game that tries to pretend it's linear but isn't is one that says "go anywhere, except you really only have one place you can go to". Fusion is almost always direction you, with slight moments of exploration that basically make it like your average LOZ dungeon. It's not Super Metroid, and I get that Super Metroid is a beloved classic that really hasn't been replicated to this day, but Metroid Fusion is one of my all-time favorites, and handily my favorite Metroid
Covarr will now be known as Saltarr. I'll see myself out
I don't think Covarr got the memo stating that this wasn't the Metroid: Other M review. That game truly is an insult to the franchise. (And Federation Force).
btw. Don't ever let him make another cameo, please.
Shush, Federation Force is good.
I absolutely love Fusion. I get that some people prefer Super Metroid, but for me, the story and learning more about Samus was great.
Comparing the Samus from Fusion and the Samus from Other M are apples to oranges.
More like comparing apples to rotten eggs.
The rant at the end really hurt this critique. “WeRe tHeY TrYiNg tO KeEp sAmUs WeAk?!” Yes Covarr, they were. Had you been paying attention to the story then you would’ve realized that. Even as a kid playing this for the first time in 2002, I was paying attention and this was an interesting twist. It felt like a reference to the ALIEN series with the Federation acting like Weyland-Yutani by wanting to use the X for military purposes.
This review was phenomenal untill the other guy came in. I will always hold Fusion close to my heart.
Next time dont let Andrew Covarrubias on the review. That was nitpicking at it's finest. Holy cow.
idk i think fusion is brilliant precisely bc it explores the GF-Samus relation more than any previous game, and does a great job of establishing mounting tension between them and Samus, and the clear way that they view Samus only as useful insofar as she's useful *to them*. I absolutely think GF wanted to create SA-X so that they could manufacture a version of her they could control. They've certainly proven that like the Space Pirates they want to harness these weapons for themselves (them trying to resurrect Ridley for their own use IMO makes this pretty on the nose). This game marked the transition from Samus just figuratively being a metroid (Chozo for greatest hunter or something like that iirc) to literally being one, and GF is not blind to this fact. If Metroids are supposed to be the nukes of this universe, what do you do when you have someone more powerful than a nuke?
I also think this is why they kept Samus on such a tight leash for this game, in previous Metroid games GF unleashed her onto planets with the intention to just let her wipe everything out. In Fusion, they're essentially having Samus cover up a black-op that they don't even want Samus knowing anything about (for obvious reasons). Her having to follow the AI and download even basic suit powerups was brilliant to me for this reason, I think they wanted to see how much they could control her on their own, and reprimanded her explicitly whenever she powered herself up. While she's performing the coverup, she's at the same time (and this is just my personal theory) being sent on a test run after having her DNA mutated. GF has no idea how she'll perform or behave (though at the same time they have no one else who can handle a task of this caliber). Mechanically it's a departure from the previous games sure, but I think the gameplay is fun in its own right to make the limited exploration and missions fun on their own, but I can understand why that would frustrate others. The game opening up over time as Samus slowly reclaims her agency and is able to find areas outside of the downloaded maps kinda lets the game dip its toes into more classical exploration.
The comparison of Fusion to Other M is extremely cheap to me, they're both just narratively driven. The main difference is one game is bad & poorly written (though for the record I personally wouldnt've minded even Other M being basically an interactive movie if it was yknow, good. There's room for more narrative in Metroid games).
See , I always interpreted the SA-X as not "coming to the rescue" but rather drawing on samus' s own memories of her many battles with metroids and The fact that The metroids are The natural enemy to The X parasite. The SA-X saw an omega metroid and had a reflexive response to fight it.
At least that's how I always saw it.
It would have been nice if the game had cleared that up (i haven’t played Dread yet so if it’s cleared up there, then cool beans lol)
I always felt that the X-Parasites were some of the most tragic characters in the Metroid series. They were just minding their own business when invaders created monsters to hunt them. An entire species now traumatized and living in fear until a savior in shining armor came to their rescue and slew the demons. I feel like the SA-X in particular had quite the personality and character arc that we don't really notic given her lack of expressiveness considering the X didn't really mimic species thay had facial expressions before humans. SA-X admired and looked up to Samus, she wanted to to BE the hero that would protect her brothers and sisters. But whe she senses the Metroid DNA after Samus was given the vaccine, she saw a righteous warrior corrupted and warped into the very monsters she destroyed. The enraging memories of her people being cossumed were conficting with her gratefullness to Samus for saving them, but as Samus absorbed more and more X-Parasites, SA-X saw more as a Metroid than she saw her as a human. The horrific memories of her ancestors fuled her rage. Eventually, this rage overwhelmed SA-X as the fight between her and Samus progressed, to the point where all human intelect was pushed to the side as her fury mutated her into a fusion of Samus herself and her favorite form to take on, a hornoad. Once her sheilding wa destroyed, SA-X's anger was replaced with fear, she was vulnerable and overwhelmed by the memories of her kind screaming as they were consumed by the monster like the one before her, so she ran in terror. But things changed when SA-X wittnessed Samus being attacked by the Omega Metroid. Rather than a merciless animal bent on consuming, SA-X saw Samus as a victum of the Metroids just like her kind. In that moment, SA-X veiwed Samus as one of her own kind, so she protected her. If Nintendo ever decides to give Metroid Fusion a remake, I hope that they take the time to add stuff like new cutscenes that showcase the X-Parasites as victums without minimizing them as a threat. I could see a cutscene where SA-X discovers files regarding the Metroid breeding program, causing her to go enraged, smash the control pad, and start basting the screen while furiously screaming.
Intresting theory.
Very good matpat, very good.
X parasites weren't exactly minding their own business, they were a hazard upon the planet they came from, and would have wiped out all life on the planet if not for the metroids. They also wiped out ZDR for no reason, I have no sympathy for them.
fun theory tho
In defense of the omega metroid boss, when youre backtracking through sector 1 at the end, you can see the metroid shells that you also see in the room where you fight the omega. So some metroids (at the very least the omega) did escape the destruction of the breeding program area.
the worst part is when covarr started speaking
A big part of horror is empathy. I can't help but wonder if part of the idea here is to empathize with the Metroid, completely flipping the script. The way Samus sees her SA-X clone is how the Metroid saw her. The game is her facing her demons and adding further nuance.
The enemy of my enemy, is my friend.
It probably wasn’t meant to be that deep but that is an interesting thought
"It ramps the difficulty up more than any other game in this franchise."
*laughs in Dread*
Also metroid on nes with cheap gameplay
I had a lot more trouble in Fusion than in Dread
The hardest part in dread for me was the flying boss with gives you the missle upgrade. I COULD NEVER BEAT FUSION
Wow. This is my favorite vid from you in a long time. You've actually deconstructed this game and made it feel so much like an artpiece when I had been leaning more towards Covarr's opinion until now. It really changed my perspective. You probably hate being compared to other UA-camrs, but it reminds me of how Super Bunnyhop deconstructed Metal Gear Solid 2, how it being such a stark contrast to the last game that it must've been a deliberate design choice, and it all still works from a narrative perspective.
But I must say, Covarr's opinions seemed...nitpicky, at best. It all boiled down to inconsistency, and there have to be better reasons than that to consider it an insult to the franchise.
(Copypasted from the Patreon version as per your request)
No, dude, PLEASE FEEL FREE to compare me to SuperBunnyhop. He's one of my favorites! And yeah, wow, Fusion really is similar in some respects to MGS2, isn't it? I'm really surprised I didn't think of that, myself. So yeah, that's a FANTASTIC point. And seriously, his MGS2 deconstruction is one of the best pieces of video game analysis anyone has EVER done, in my opinion.
Keep in mind that Covarr was trying to boil a TON of criticism into a fairly short runtime. I originally envisioned him coming on and just laying out problem after problem for a minute or so in a more comical way, but he REALLY hates Fusion, and wanted to be a little more analytical on the reasons why. So if his problems seem a little nitpicky, it may just be that he was only skimming the surface of each of them.
I have a some problems with a few of your criticisms. Firstly, how some powers are gained through defeating enemies and others by downloading the data. It is well established that Samus' Power Suit can adapt ANY alien tech for Samus' use, as well as absorbing abilities from ORGANIC CREATURES. If downloading missile data truly is a problem, then how does the Power Suit store well over 200 missiles, super-missiles, and power bombs?
Secondly, how can the SA-X blast holes in walls and doors when you could not in Super or Fusion? The same way the Joker beats Superman in a fist fight (WITHOUT Kryptonite) in Injustice: Gods Among Us. I don't have a term for it, but it is basically limiting ones capabilities in a game for balance, despite the lore demonstrating otherwise. It is meant to prevent you from being over-powered from a game design standpoint.
Finally, the most controversial issue in the franchise, Samus' character. Before Fusion, the only CONCRETE things we knew about Samus (outside of backstory) was that she has a soft spot for small, seemingly innocent creatures (Baby Metroid and the Shinespark/Wall-Jump creatures). She is a bounty hunter, so she generally does violent things for monetary gain, but WHY is that her career path of choice? WHAT brought her to become a hunter and WHAT did she do before? (after leaving Zebes, of course) The fact of the matter is, before Fusion and the Prime Trilogy, Samus HAD NO CHARACTER. She was just a person in power armor who ran around killing aliens.
Just like this guy! --> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Freeman
Also, there is a culture-gap in the Metroid fandom in regards to Samus' character between us, the western audience, and the eastern audience (including Nintendo of Japan/R&D 1 members). There is a really good discussion about this on the Metroid Subreddit. Although it is primarily about Yoshio Sakamoto's reputation in the franchise, it quickly leads to the East-West phenomenon. I highly recommend it.
www.reddit.com/r/Metroid/comments/5ipfx9/understanding_yoshio_sakamotos_reputation_in_the/
+Thunderous Jedi
Really, the way I see it, Fusion's Samus was mainly designed with a western audience in mind, but Other M's was designed with an eastern audience in mind. Fusion's Samus was really not terribly dissimilar to Ripley, which makes sense because Ripley is the character Samus is heavily based on as it is. Other M Samus was a more typical anime woman, however, which tended to grate on Metroid's fanbase since it's predominantly western.
Nintendo pretty clearly demonstrated there's a massive disconnect between how cultures view Samus when Retro wanted actual bounties in Prime 3 only for Nintendo to go "Wait, she doesn't do that!"
To which I can only imagine someone at Retro legitimately stared at them and asked...at least mentally "Why the fuck do you call her a BOUNTY HUNTER?"
+UltimaKeyMaster
i.imgur.com/72Xlqsm.gif
Would you happen to know where I could find a source for that information? It is intriguing.
You know, Covarr's rant got me thinking about stuff. He brought up an interesting detail that got me geeking.
Q: If the SA-X represents Samus at the height of her power, why can it destroy the space station with super missiles when you've never had that kind of power?
My thoughts: Well, you're on a completely different kind of space base. Super Metroid took place on Zebes, where space pirates locked higher security doors with blast doors that required different levels of firepower to break open. This fits pretty well with how the stronger space pirates are found where the security is higher.
In Fusion, you're on the Federation's station. Their *Biologic Space Laboratory* station. They have actual security locks on their doors with different levels of clearance, *and* the place is on lockdown. You never actually need to use the missiles or power bombs to open the doors (except for the ones with door monsters before the charge beam), you find the machine that undoes that tier of lockdown on the doors. They weren't designed to be blasted open with missiles that can cause *caverns to shake like an earthquake.*
And of course, the federation is what's giving you your explosive ordinance, rather than random data capsules in the palms of Chozo statues. They would avoid giving Samus missiles that could wreak structural havoc on the station, considering that they wanted her to survive while gathering data but not capable of destroying the SA-X that they wanted to capture. Unlike the Chozo, who wanted their warrior prodigy child to be as powerful as possible, the federation wanted her just on that line where they could make her follow orders without losing their most powerful asset.
Wow that is something I thought about too. But you made it seem so obvious that thinking otherwise is kinda stupid. It just makes perfect sense.
I always figured that canonically, Samus wouldn't shoot the doors with the super missiles anyway, always just using her regular beam to open doors. I'd imagine SA-X firing super missiles at the doors would be enough to break em.
Some of the complaints that you have such as “the game telling you where to go” “it’s always hi-lighted on your map” “it reiterates what you need to do when you load a save” is honestly really helpful, just earlier I had picked up Metroid Samus returns after a long break and had myself having no idea where I was going.