Was Metroid Other M the right direction? (NO FLAME WARS PLEASE)

@Mario: That was in response to this.

Now, I'll just go back to the sidelines. It's better there.

edited 1st Oct '10 9:57:45 AM by Komodin

Oh got it.

Seriously, just because you don't like one thing one person did, that doesn't mean you have to compare him to who is disliked by almost everyone.(I don't really get George Lucas hate though, but thats because I haven't seen those movies)

If you listen to the developer interviews, Sakamoto acts a LOT like George Lucas did with regards to the Prequel Trilogy. As in, it was all "His vision" and the like.

In a way that he totally doesn't, sure.

...Okay, what would be the point of giving Metroid to Retro to do 2D games? I mean, the whoever did them in past in 2D did those well enough, so that would seem rather redundant to me =P

He has gone George Lucas. I mean he made a big point that he knows where that mole on Samus is to prove why he shouldn't care about the Metroid Prime games. Assuming it's that mole on her face in Other M, that did not appear in even Metroid Fusion and Metroid Zero Mission, games that he himself has directed. Hell, since Super Metroid, he really only made Metroid Fusion and Metroid Other M, since Metroid Zero Mission was a remake. Both of those were not the most well-received Metroid games.

^...What the heck o-o; Firstly, Sakamoto has never fricking called Prime uncanon because of the fricking mole. Secondly, OF COURSE HE HASN'T DONE METROID GAMES BETWEEN SUPER METROID AND METROID FUSION, THERE WEREN'T METROID GAMES BETWEEN THOSE. Thirdly, Zero Mission is so much different from original one that it counts =P

So things are declared uncanon because of an asthetic change?

To Sakamoto, yes. He actually did declare the Metroid Prime games not canon and used as an example being that he knew where Samus' mole was.

This might've been acceptable, if Other M was as good as Metroid Prime. Metroid Prime had arguments over it before its release, but it was such a good game compared to Fusion that the complaints died down... That's why Metroid Prime has two sequels and two spinoffs and all that followed Metroid Fusion was a remake of Metroid 1. I bet if Retro didn't want to do something different from Metroid, they'd be working on a new Metroid instead of Sakamoto.

edited 1st Oct '10 12:16:06 PM by GameGuruGG

lol, the "NO FLAME WARS PLEASE" line in the title is so useless.

Other M is a Love It or Hate It game. What did you expect?

edited 1st Oct '10 12:17:11 PM by GameGuruGG

^^Eh, sorry, I was kinda surprised of hearing that coming from GGGG...

^^^Actually, only reason they haven't done other games before Donkey Kong is because Nintendo has requested them to do the Metroid Prime games... In case you guys forgot, Retro Studios are pretty much owned by the Nintendo ^^; And I need citation that Sakamoto said that they aren't canon because of the mole, I have seen reviews where he said that they are side story not related to the main plot.(which they are)

^^^FLAME WAR IMMENINT!

To Sakamoto, yes. He actually did declare the Metroid Prime games not canon and used as an example being that he knew where Samus' mole was.

edited 1st Oct '10 12:28:31 PM by Marioguy128

I don't think Sakamato himself declared Prime was non-canon, but Nintendo seems to consider them alternate-universe, notice how Prime has its own timeline.

edited 1st Oct '10 12:30:32 PM by Glowsquid

"lol, the "NO FLAME WARS PLEASE" line in the title is so useless."

You call this a flame war? Try some of the really bad sites and then call this a flame war.

I did some checking and my info was wrong. Apparently Sakamoto had the mole planned back in Super Metroid and the Metroid Prime people knew about it, but didn't put it in nor was it put in Metroid Fusion and Metroid Zero Mission.

And to be fair, much of the crappyness of the English script comes from bad English voices and having to explain English terms to the Japanese and thus direct translation makes the exposition sound redundant.

edited 1st Oct '10 1:33:27 PM by GameGuruGG

^Oh yeah, I forgot the mole on the Samus concept art of Prime... Anyway, sorry for caps ^^;

To Sakamoto, yes. He actually did declare the Metroid Prime games not canon and used as an example being that he knew where Samus' mole was.

...no. Just no.

Is there some reason so many Sakamoto bashers invent reasons to hate him out of whole cloth? Poor bastard.

http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=134762

There is nothing in there that says Metroid Prime is an alternate timeline. It explicitly states that it is a series with a different game design, which is completely true.

It's okay. I do however have to address

Western. Studios. Are. Not. Inherently. Better. At. Japanese. Games. Regardless. Of. Where. They. Sell.

The Japanese make games that appeal to Japan while the West makes games that appeal to the West. The problem here is that what appeals to people in Japan and what appeals to people in the West are completely different and by trying to appeal to the Japanese market with series that did better in the West like Castlevania, Metroid, and Sonic, you end up alienating the Western fans in the process. Mario and Pokemon succeed because they are games that appeal to everyone, not just Japan or the West.

edited 1st Oct '10 1:46:07 PM by GameGuruGG

Though, Metroid before the Prime were created by Japanese developers... Or I am wrong and it became big in USA after the Prime, I don't know anymore...

Metroid was always bigger in the West than in Japan, but Other M feels like the first game in the series to be trying to appeal to a Japanese audience.

It explicitly states that it is a series with a different game design, which is true

Fusion and Other M also have different game design compared to the first three games, yet they're not explicitely secluded in another timeline.

Here's another myth about Other M that the Sakamoto bashers keep pushing - the game was altered to be "more Japanese" and those backwards Japanese people that invented the series need to be stripped of it so the righteous Americans at Retro can do it "right".

There is no evidence of this. The closest smoking guns are always general statements such as "We hope more people start playing here". As much fun as media narratives are, they're just that - a narrative that flies in the face of reality. Just like how many times I've debunked "Sakamoto declared Prime non-canon in (interview where he explicitly does not)".

Fusion and Other M also have different game design compared to the first three games, yet they're not explicitely secluded in another timeline.

They're part of the same timeline. Word for word:

Metroid Prime Series (in order of in-game timeline): The Metroid Prime series is a separate collection of games featuring Samus Aran which has a different concept and game design to Metroid games.

Nothing suggests an alternate timeline, simply that Nintendo chose, in that press release, to group the Prime series separately since that series comprised a multi-game story arc and the presentation and gameplay mechanics were different from the traditional series.

Is there any reason Sakamoto-haters want him to declare Retro's work non-canon when he never has?

I just want to add that those who think I'm hating on this game because Malstrom told me to, you Did Not Do The Research, because a lot of the things I brought up about this game (here and in other threads) are not what he has brought up. I even made comments about the concept working (just the execution didn't work) that disagree with Malstrom's notions.

Heck, he's barely discussed Final Fantasy XIII (an email mentioned it, but not his own words), but I got turned off for very similar reasons as Other M (save for me not finding Samus that hot even in other games, and Vanille being a personal Fetish Fuel Station Attendant for me).

Sure he was last brought up several posts ago (#20), but I just forgot to address it then.

edited 1st Oct '10 7:26:41 PM by DragonQuestZ

^^^ Yeah, that Me Too!.