N+

The point of the game is that Samus is answering a distress call on a gigantic floating ship, only to meet up with some old teammates from her time in the Galactic Federation. She joins their squad temporarily, having once served under their commanding officer, Adam Malkovich. The mission quickly turns mystery when evidence is discovered that the "floating ship" is owned by the Federation, and was a secret base for carrying out illegal bioweapon experiments.

I like the new, emotive Samus Aran. Losing that baby Metroid during the fight with Mother Brain affected her more than even she knows, and this new mission keeps bringing up more feelings about the event. In this new adventure, Samus plays the role of heroine, detective, "daughter", and tortured soul.

Metroid: Other M tells you right off the bat that it is a plot driven title. However, even though I anticipated it, I was still slightly caught off-guard with the amount of story this game hinges on. I have literally never seen more cutscenes in a game in my entire life. This is by no means a downside, as every cutscene is wonderfully done and done in such a way that it is nearly enthralling, however, the introduction movie is a bit lengthy. Or perhaps I'm just too impatient to be trusted with a blaster?

Graphics wise, Other M blew me out of the water. I haven't seen anything that looks this good on the Wii in a long time, at least to the best of my knowledge. Aside from the breathtaking quality of the cutscenes, the actual gameplay has excellent graphics. I haven't seen any comparisons, but from my own experience and memory, it has a very Metroid Prime 3: Corruption element to the looks of the game. However, if possible, it seems that the graphics were in fact enhanced since that previous Wii title, and the game definitely looks great.

The big thing about this game, however, is the new control system. Other M is now set up as a 3rd person shooter, but not in the way you'd think. Somehow Nintendo managed to create a new gaming formula, by perfectly combining 3rd person shooters with 2d adventures, and throwing a slight on-rails feel that doesn't actually exist. The On-rails feel comes from the fact that you use the D-Pad on the Wiimote, which is turned sideways. I personally was overjoyed about this control scheme, as a problem I had with Corruption was the WiiMote/Nunchuck combination. With Other M, you just shoot and jump and run. It's so much like Super Metroid and Fusion that sometimes I forget that I'm playing on the Wii system. It's as if my older consoles got amazing hardware! Samus locks on in a subtlety automatic way that works great with the feel of the game and doesn't feel completely forced.

In Other M, you don't collect new suit powerups like in previous games. There are no Ice beams laying around the ship. Instead, General Malkovich will authorize the use of a suit upgrade, depending on the course that the mission takes.

The only controls that were inherited from Corruption were the first person shots, which don't seem all that important, but you will use more often than you think. Other M's first person content is the only way that you can use missiles. You must point the remote at the screen, and boom - first person. You can't walk, but you can hold the B button and look around. Hold B to automatically lock on to an enemy or an object, and click A to fire a missile. It is as easy as 3.14159.

All in all, this is an amazing game to get for anyone - especially yourself.

N+ Summary

Game: Metroid: Other M
Developed by: Nintendo
Genre: Action-Adventure
Players: 1
Release Date: Aug. 31, 2010 (USA) / Sept. 2nd, 2010 (JAP/AUS) / Sept. 3rd, 2010 (EU)
Rating: CERO: B / ESRB: T / OFLC: M / PEGI: 16
Supports WFC: No
Video available: TV Commercial

N+ Points

N+ Great new control and camera style
N+ The graphics rock so hard
N+ The story is actually one that you could care about
N+ Engaging action
N+ Unique item progression

N- Points

N- Still no multiplayer mode, at all
N- Absolutely no online support, not even to trade run-times
N- The camera and controls have a bit of a learning curve
N- No customization (Different suits, anyone?)

JudgmeN+: 9.5

-Geoff out.