Overall score on pook's 100-point system (TM): 74 or 79 (see below). Hot on the heels of the first 2d Metroid game in years is this very cool remake of the original, more than just a graphical upgrade. Consider this a solid 8 if you haven't played the NES version of the game, and note it only scores as it does because I couldn't give this game credit for a lot of originality, since it is afterall a remake. In many ways I thought this was better than Fusion.
-the breakdown-
Graphics (23/30, judged by era)- A large world, upgraded visually but reminiscent of the original, with new backgrounds and flourishes. The score doesn't go higher because the game doesn't push the gba much in terms of special effects and such, and is a little lower than what I gave Metroid Fusion simply because a lot of the design was adapted from the original Metroid.
Sound- FX/Voice (8/10) pretty nice and functional sound fx.
Sound- Music (7/10) Good music, but not a ton of tracks. Though it seemed to have less music than Fusion, it had more classic Metroid tunes, remixed, which I feel are better overall.
Gameplay- Length/Lastability/Replay (7[12**]/15) A pretty short game--I finished it in about 7 hours having found ~65% of the secrets, and I did look for hidden passages frequently, and backtracked to get things I couldn't reach before. That said, after completing the game you can go back in and search freely if you want to find more secrets, so there is certainly some replay here, but it wasn't enough to get me to actually do it for very long, so it's a 7 alone, a 12 if you haven't played the original Metroid and want to, since it's unlocked upon completion.
Gameplay- Story: (2/5) there is actually very little story in this game, since it pulls its background from the nearly story-less original. An added portion helps to explain a part of the original better-namely, why upon finishing the game you could play in Samus' "bathing suit."
Gameplay- Game Design (27/30)- As stated, this is a short game, but it moves *really* fast and this is an improvement over past Metroids which often were slow and 'quiet' games. While the original is one such slow and quiet game, and was quite fantastic, I can't help feeling it was immensely improved by the modern gameplay additions. Controls are tight, if sometimes a little hard to do button combos that are needed (problem with the GBA, not the game). The pacing of the game is great and the puzzles, which basically involve how the world unfolds in terms of accessibility, is fairly well thought out, with only one real head-scratcher for me. Secret areas are plentiful, but rather than being 'bonus areas' are often required exploring to proceed. Save locations are plentiful, and the game features a sleep mode for on-the-go playing. The map works wonders in keeping this game from getting you lost as the original had a habit of doing, and an added chapter helps to make the overall experience more fulfilling.
**Final Thoughts- despite the short play I'd recommend this game if you dig the Metroid world or like action games.
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