Well, I finally caved and bought it Metroid Prime 4: Beyond For switch 2. I've basically been tossing and turning to see if I should get it, the critical reviews and general reception left me wondering if it was worth it in the end. As a long time Metroid Prime A fan (like from the beginning), I thought I would appreciate it Metroid Prime 4 was trying to do, realizing that it was clearly rooted for the most part in its origins. However, that hasn't happened for me yet, because nothing is clicking.
When I first booted it up, the sounds, the sights, and the “we're back” feeling hit me hard. I entered a time machine that brought me back to 2002, when the disc for the original Metroid Prime My GameCube spun in and gave me one of the most atmospheric gaming experiences of my life at the time. But with each passing hour I am passing away Metroid Prime 4I feel changed. Something about it leaves me asking, “After all this time, is it?” If you find yourself in the same boat, know that you are not alone.
Metroid Prime 4 feels like a one-way nostalgia trip
Nostalgia is one of the most treacherous emotions one can experience. It can ignite the same emotions in you as a game Metroid Prime Once given to you, and for a moment, it's almost like you're there again. But the problem is that nostalgia can never really bring back those moments, and once that reality sets in, you start to realize that they'll never happen again, leaving you with no choice but to pursue new experiences and have the same impact as them.
For the most part, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond It felt like a one-way nostalgia trip that offered occasional temporary highs that quickly settled into mundane lows. This game has every bit of it Metroid PrimeAnd in some ways, that's one of its strengths. However, I also find that there is one thing that prevents it from happening. Nostalgia offers a delicious meal, but one that goes cold and bland quickly.
Metroid Prime 4 It's been years in development, but it still feels like it hasn't gotten any better than before. It almost plays things too safe, rehashing old ideas that might make seasoned fans like me cry foul. That part, I can understand to some extent, but knowing 4s to do, it can happen Metroid Prime To reboot the series. Metroid Prime 4 Still could be the first step towards fresh concepts built on the series' most iconic design principles. Instead, it often feels like an arcade alien shooter you might play at the local pizza parlor – a beautiful, atmospheric arcade game, but a simple, distinctly familiar one.
For the most part, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond It felt like a one-way nostalgia trip that offered occasional temporary highs that quickly settled into mundane lows.
Again, I'm not alone in this, and if you feel the same way, you're not alone. A Reddit post by Affectionate_Emu_818 Appreciation Metroid Prime 4of the visuals and atmosphere, citing criticisms such as “babysitting an interesting NPC” and too much handholding. Comments in the thread below call it a game of “extreme highs and extreme lows” and say they're “not having a good time straight up. MP4“In fact, a comment by Iggy_Slayer also echoed my thoughts Metroid Prime 4The date was realized when they said, “A lot of people said it feels like a game stuck in time.”
Leaning into nostalgia isn't inherently a bad philosophy, but it needs to serve as a bridge to development rather than a wormhole into the past. An hour is usually the time for someone to decide whether a game is worth continuing to play, and it pains me to say that I was bored. Metroid Prime 4 Long before that hour was up. I put another 15 hours into it, so I've seen the game's attempts at something new. However, they also make it feel like the game is headed toward something great, only to stop at the door and never walk through it.
Metroid Prime 4Ko Sol Valley is one of those doors. I don't think the open-world formula is something every franchise should try, but I think it can serve. Metroid PrimeA series built on environmental splendor and atmospheric tension, better than most. Retro could use this area to take everything these games are known for to the next level, and instead, “The Valley” feels like it's being taken a little too seriously because there's nothing there.
Soul Valley is a desert if there ever was one. It's a barren wasteland filled with tons of collectibles and upgrades, but basically nothing between them, requiring minimal effort to get them. The puzzles aren't really all that amazing either, and the time it takes to travel between each objective is a daunting experience that I really don't want to chase. To put it bluntly, Soul Valley mostly behaves like a glorified loading screen, and the fact that I can't even use the radio in Samus' Vi-0-La unless I buy it. Metroid Prime 4 amiibo feels like a very modern alternative to a locked-back game that otherwise plays like it's a decade old.
At this point, I'm convinced Metroid Prime 4The Soul Valley desert is a metaphor, even if Retro didn't intend it to be. It's a great display of the game's effort to reach for something big but not use the ladder in front of it. It's clear that there are ideas that the series will have going forward, and every now and then, you get a glimpse of what that might look like. The problem is that those moments never really turn into anything. Soul Valley is a picture of a place for something new, and the foundation is there, but it doesn't really fill it. You walk through it thinking about what could have been instead of what is, and that may have been the most telling part of my experience so far.
I know this has been a high point Metroid Prime 4 Criticism too, but I ignore critical approaches until I've had a chance to see for myself whether they have any merit. However, I clearly find myself joining the rant train that many others have – such as Arceorenix, as explained in their post on Reddit. The post clearly calls out the desert overworld as the worst part of the game, saying that Soul Valley is possibly the game's “single biggest mistake”. I'd normally say such harsh criticism goes too far, but in this case, I'm inclined to agree. Several comments on the thread also confirmed Arceorenix's view, with some calling the desert “padding” and others, like CahuellaRhouse, saying, “The whole idea of an open world with vehicles doesn't fit with Metroid.”
I repeat that Soul Valley doesn't have to be any worse. Over time, open-world games have proven that the formula works if it's executed well, even though it seemed inherently flawed for a while. Like games The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Alden Ring They were pioneers of that idea, showing that the size of a game's map doesn't automatically disqualify it. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond May not be a true open-world game, but Soul Valley is an open-world area that could have been better executed. It's a real shame, considering how long we've waited.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Leaves Me Wanting More
At the end of the day, I don't regret playing Metroid Prime 4But I regret how many times it made me realize that I was waiting for the real version to show up. I wanted the nostalgia of the classics Metroid PrimeBut I also wanted something that proved how inventive the series still is. Instead, I keep running into ideas that stop me from becoming anything memorable. That has been the hardest part to live with. me, Metroid Prime 4 Sounds like a reminder that going back to the past can only take you so far before you accept that you're no longer there, and it's time to move on.
- issued
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December 4, 2025
- ESRB
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Juvenile/animated blood, violence
- publisher(s)
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Nintendo
