The wait is over. Eighteen years after the last iteration, the 3D sub-series of Metroid returns with Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, a title that immediately presents itself with a magnetic and familiar atmosphere. The title screen, with its hypnotic eye motifs and purple hues, accompanied by a soundtrack worthy of the series, arouses an immediate sensation of goosebumps, confirming that the franchise is back in style.
Beyond holds its own against its illustrious predecessors. This new chapter recovers the dark and detailed atmospheres of the original Prime. Classic biomes — jungle, arid desert, abandoned mines, etc. — are all present, but developed with a wealth of detail and alien cues that give each area a deep story that precedes the arrival of bounty hunter Samus Aran.
The graphic quality is undeniable, especially in the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition which supports 4K resolution. The developers at Retro Studios have clearly invested significant effort into the environmental design, making most areas a real visual delight. However, the game doesn’t reach the excellence of the GameCube masterpieces of two decades ago. The vast desert expanse of Sol Valley proves to be a huge bare area that serves mostly as boring filler and needlessly lengthens an otherwise rather short experience.
The variety of enemies is worrying, with few types representing a real threat and bosses who often share similar attack patterns, without adequately exploiting the various upgrades acquired. There’s a clear sign of “rust” after eighteen years, but in the moments when Metroid Prime 4: Beyond shifts into gear, it offers a deeply satisfying and rewarding first-person adventure.
The narrative, as per tradition, is discreet and mainly discoverable through data logs and environmental details through Samus’ scanning visor, exploring the tragic fate of the alien civilization of the Lamorn. A disruptive element is given by the presence of the Galactic Federation troopers: their “chatty” nature was feared by fans for a potential contrast with the typical isolation of the series.
The progression is in line with the saga: Samus loses most of her abilities at the beginning of the game, which are gradually recovered, along with the new psychic powers of the Lamorn race that allow her to open special doors and use a controllable psychic ray. Despite the “psychic” label, classic power-ups like Morph Ball bombs and the Grapple Beam remain largely unchanged.
The most obvious weakness remains the boss fights, few in number and generally unambitious, with the exception of the excellent final battle. The level design in general is also on a more linear level than in past chapters, although the atmosphere fully makes up for it, with environments that offer a unique flavor. Backtracking for item collection is made less tedious by the presence of an activateable droid in each biome that reveals item locations on the map, making reaching 100% less punishing.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a visually and aurally splendid work, with improved 3D controls and the option of gyroscopic or mouse aiming (on Joy-Con 2), which proves to be a robust plus that celebrates the strengths of the series. Although not at the same level of quality as the first two chapters due to the disappointing Sol Valley and the lack of variety in the bosses, this is nevertheless a welcome and technically impressive three-dimensional return for Samus Aran, hopefully not the last.
Format: Switch, Switch 2 (versione testata) Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Retro Studios Vote: 8