Metroid Review

Me want's! It was the first (besides the budled Ice Climber) i got with my NES and i still think it's one of the best. Clearly the best in it's genre at the time. Although i maybe miss the automap feature every Metroid game got since Super Metroid.

I was actually pretty dissapointed when I first played this, because of the random wandering around, plus the fact I first got it with Metroid Zero Mission and played after completing it so it was basically a major downgrade!
I will consider the download but it's not highly likely.

I'm also undecided as to whether I'll get this or not. I kind of want to, but previous experiences... haven't exactly been favourable. I'm thinking what I might do to make it really fun is draw my own map while I'm playing! Could get annoying, but could also be incredibly fun.

I dreamed Metroid as a younger one. It was so fun playing at night as my parents snoozed. I used to stare at the cover and I am really looking forward to getting this one. Their is some cool music as you get further into the game. Drawing your own map is brilliant. Looking forward to that one. Laterz

This game was godly hard. It was fun, but took some time trying to get your health up to max after you die or restart.

I don't see myself downloading this one. The Metroid seires really has come a long way...

It wasn't THAT hard. This is a great game. Sure its not the best 2d metroid but it was a lot of fun. I'll be downloading this even though super metroid will also be released.

hmmm, honestly, this game still is prob THE greatest game ever made. it is absolutely amazing. it even holds up today. i've played it so many times it's almost all memorized. a must play for anyone who hasn't yet (you are missing out if you haven't. Vastly superior to Super Metroid and a billion times better than Metroid 2 for the original game boy. I'm told that only the gba metroids can come close to this one in terms of fun factor)

Dated ... yes ... fun factor ... high!

While all the Leone family was sleeping, I too was playing this game as a kid. Now you may be thinking, " Dominick " why would you want to down load this game if there are better -- read newer -- Metroid games available on GC??? WELL ... like every other VC game, it's all about reliving the excitement of the past. Really ... did you download Super Mario Brothers because of the gameplay or the graphics? No ... like Dominick A. Leone, you wanted to feel the excitement all over again ... just like when you got your grubby little fingers on the package 20 years ago.

This is not a 1st person game ... and it dates back to the days when you couldn't beat a game just because you sat there long enough ... it took effort and skill.

I love this game! you're like, "boosh boosh boosh" and the enemies go "bleep bleep bleep" then you take their energy yay! easy to die though... unless you gots a map. methinks this game is super fun with a map (hurray for google) although tis easy to glitch, but glitches are fun! its not the greatest game, SM64>OoT>SMB3>every other game

*and it dates back to the days when you couldn't beat a game just because you sat there long enough ... it took effort and skill.*

So true dominick A. Leone this is a muist have for any classics fan

this game does take patience and evidentally it takes A LOT of patience to wait for it to come out!

I didn't like this game. Granted, the first time I played it was on Metroid Prime but even though I like retro games, I just couldn't get into Metroid 1. Way too difficult.

Wow, the game is too hard!? Well put Dom. You don't buy classic games for the graphics, but game play? That is what made this game a classic. You don't have maps of unvisited planets and you don't have someone telling you what to do next. That is the fun. You can get different items in different orders and you don't have the game forcing you to follow a storyline. Too difficult? Pfft! Stop playing games that spoon feed you imho!

The game is a MUST download for old school gamers. The only problem is WHEN? Typical Nintendo, wait until the hype is over and no one is playing anymore.

The game is very repetitive (you see the same areas way to much).

I'm very suprized this isn't out yet, it's out on GBA NES classics and an unlockable in Metroid Zero mission, and on Metroid prime I believe.

I might attempt this some time, will no doubt use maps or something as it looks really difficult compared to other 2D metroids. I have completed Zero mission however.

Not a bad game. It wasn't that difficult, it was time consuming. It was easy to get lost or go in circles, which made it more frustrating than anything. I don't think it is THE best game out there, but it is a fun one and I'll be downloading it when it's released.

Anyone else wish Nintendo would release more "classics" like this one instead of the games they're putting out now for the VC? Come on Nintendo, people are starting to lose interest!

Yeah, this game was neither hard nor particularly confusing. Maybe I just have an unusual sense of direction (I can zoom through the dungeons in Phantasy Star 1 without a map as well), but the sectors here are pretty short and simple to cover, the items are hidden in logical places, and the game never forces you into doing impossible manuevers to get some minor crap (hello, Zero Mission. Or, well, there is that annoying jump in Kraid's lair where you need to wander through endless hallways if/when you miss, but that's the only one).

It's a great game, one of the best for the system.

Thre stars is just downrigfht insulting to the game.

LOL.... I think it's funny that in the movie Jarhead they actually make reference to how difficult Metroid is. Best video game shout out in a movie for a while. Followed closely by Danny Dyer mentioning Donkey Kong in The Business, oh and the Mr Burns playing Pac-Man scene in The Simpsons, even though that's TV.

The beginning of Metroid. For me it was Super Metroid.
This game pales in comparison.

It has the claustrophobic feeling. The classic music. And everything that made the Metroid series popular. Big alien caves, huge bosses, upgradeable items, hidden passages and items and it's the most challenging Metroid of all.

This game came for free with Metroid Prime and Metroid Zero Mission, so I can't give it the 4 Stars, it deserves today.

Back in time it was one of the best action / adventure games.

anyone who likes a challenge in a big dark world and havn't played it before, should give it at least a chance.

While this game was absolutely amazing when it was released, it just doesn't hold up nowadays. To me, Metroid is the single most dated classic Nintendo game ever made. I can't honestly recommend it to anybody, really. Super Metroid does everything it does except 50 times better.

Could care less if Europe got this. As long as we get Super Metroid first.

Ive never really been a fan of the metroid series, on the NES i thought mega man and ikari warriors were better games. i just found the wandering around aimlessly so mind-numbingly dull.

You can get that game too with Fusion link or zero mission, they even made a nes classis.

true classic... only much better with zero mission... this one is too hard... still buying it nonetheless

this is one of the best games for NES, as for it being too hard, I guess I can't concur because I beat the whole game pretty easy without any help from online faqs... but I did play it quite a lot when I was kid... hope it comes to the US soon, I absolutely adore this game... The ambient electronic music is brilliant...

i think it deserves 4 stars (i already commented but 3 stars is low and i want to explain why it needs 4)

- You collect lots of items and make yourself stronger and stronger
- You explore a really big planet
- Music, gotta love the music
- How many 2d platforming shooter games have you played that let you play as a girl?
- Challenging, but not impossible

the reason why i dont give this 5 stars is because of how fast you can die. that's it. if you jump in lava/acid with only one energy tanks with those things flyin around and into you while in the lava/acid... you're dead

Metroid is a great game, though it's unfair to compare it to Super Metroid and the Metroid Prime series. Any game will pale in comparison to those two. Still good fun, though, challenging, but not too much so. Three stars is one too few, I think.

Metroid rules conceptually, and it's one of the only games of its kind on the NES (if not THE only) but to me it always felt like a beta test for Super Metroid. Yokoi clearly knew what he wanted to do, and it sure as hell wasn't Metroid 1 on NES hardware, it was Super Metroid on SNES.

P.S. Anyone who doesn't buy Super Metroid within a day of its release for VC is a traitor. To EVERYTHING.

Hey James, the fact that there are 8 years between Metroid and Super Metroid release dates, does it really make Metroid a beta game?
In 1986 Metroid was something never seen, and it lacking an automap system surely elevates its exploration nature to unprecedent heights in action games.

Do we need to talk about its difficulty, both in 1986 and 21 years later?
No Super Metroid would have existed without Metroid.
Hail to the Hunter.

I had never played this game before, and I find it to be a brilliant game, despite its age. I downloaded it instantly when I saw it, as a game to hold me over the wait for Super Metroid, which is pure briiliance. I don't find it too difficult, but there's definately a challenge.

The only downside is that there's a slowdown when there are a lot of enemies on screen. Particularly in the vertical rooms.

I love the meteroid series but I didn't like the first one as much as all the others. I'm not going to bother downloading it becasue I already got a copy of it through meteroid prime.

I have to agree with everyone else. You are WAY to hard on this game. Ya its hard, but its a classic that many Wii owners love. This will be the first time I am going to actually play through the entire game. I know Zero Mission was "technically" better, but for some reason, I want to play the original more. : shrugs: I am happy they are releasing it for those who love it and those who have never played it.

I will agree that Super Metroid is a better game (which I will be playing for the first time next week when it comes to VC), but Metroid is the one that started it all. Also, where else can you use the infamous Justin Balley code? Using that right out the gate just to see it, then its back the the normal Samus.

PS Here's hoping that it is the version released on GBA, which had the save feature found in the Japanese Famicom Disk version of them game. Would make life a lot easier to have a normal and Suit-less Samus save then to have to keep entering passwords.

Rating this game three stars is a crime against humanity. Sure, the game might be dated in graphics and size by today's standards, but that applies to EVERY release on the VC! Are you going to start knocking off 1-2 stars for every game that has a modern sequel? Better kick Legend of Zelda down to a 3-star rating as well, shouldn't you? It's not NEARLY as good as OOT, after all! And Super Mario Bros? Give me a break, it was outdone on its own console with SMB3! You might want to expand your rating system to at least 10 stars if you're going to be petty and start knocking off stars for every sequel that was released later.

Metroid is a true classic. When it game out it was revolutionary, not only for the ability to "play as a girl", but because it focused on exploration rather than pushing you in a set direction (the latest Metroids seem to have let this feature go by the wayside), it allowed you to customize your experience by grabbing items in whatever order you pleased, and it featured some of the best music and boss fights that had been seen at that time. The corridor leading up to Mother Brain is so unique and is one of the most recognizable areas in any video game. And the tense escape sequence after defeating her is another stand-out feature that has been forgotten in newer titles.

Super Metroid is an excellent game, don't get me wrong, but it should not diminish the quality of this title in any way. Without Metroid, there would be no sequels. All Super Metroid did was take Metroid's tried and true formula and expand on it. It was not nearly so ground-breaking as the original. You need to bump this rating up to at LEAST 4 stars.

Oh, and to everyone whining about how hard it is... Please. Super Mario Bros. 2 is about the same difficulty, and there are much, much harder games already out for the VC. (Castlevania, Ninja Gaiden...)

You really can't make a case for it deserving more stars. Yes it is a true classic and it has its moments, but what it comes down to you cannot recommend this to anyone who hasn't played it before. It is hard and without any kind of map you are gonna wonder around for two hours and quit. Even if you by chance happen to play longer once you die enough times you get really fustrated having to collect about a billion dots of energy to get it full again. Only to fall into the lava to die again.

All in all for a hard core gamer (who has played this to the death before) this might rate as 5 stars, but as a game in the current day it only deserves the three stars.

Wow, I have to agree w/ the general consensus that 3/5 stars is a particularly harsh rating.. If you can give Super Mario Bros. a 5/5 than Metroid should surely deserve one as well for all the same reasons. Flatly, that it was groundbreaking for it's era & has likewise, been outdone by it's successors.

Seriously, it's pretty pathetic that SMB isn't penalized for the fact that every successor has largely improved upon the original while Metroid isn't given the same leniency.

At the time, this game was FAAAR superior to SMB in my eyes & it's quality isn't diminished simply because it has sequels on superior hardware. Furthermore, while Super Metroid did improved upon the winning formula outlined by it's predecessor, as outlined by another comment above, Super Metroid was a walk in the park comparatively. Sure it's a great game, but the original Metroid was much more difficult.

Shame on VC-Reviews for their unfairly biased, unjustified, irrational, & inconsistent rating system.. You should know better.

Guys, guys, guys. Calm down. It's not like we punched your mum in the face or anything, is it? We just rated Metroid 3 out of 5, nothing more!

I really think you need to remove the rose-tinted specs. Metroid is a pain in the arse to play these days. It's amazingly frustrating in a way that the other NES games you mention aren't.

We have to assume that the people reading our reviews have never played Metroid before and therefore have no preconceptions about the series. I can assure you that if you take away the nostalgia element, most people would agree that Metroid has not aged very well.

Please don't accuse us of being 'biased' just because we told the truth about your favourite childhood videogame.

Well said Damo. I like a challenge, but there's no way I'd recommend this to anybody but a hardcore gamer.

Absolutely great game, one of the few NES VC releases that has kept my attention span for more than a few hours so far. Seeing as how I grew up with an NES in the 80's but never got the chance to play a lot of the big boy games due to my young age, it's refreshing to get to play these classics again on a home console. I just wish Metroid weren't so damned sluggish in spots...

This game has aged, but it is still fun.

The thing that is great about this older version is that you don't have to do ridiculous fingerbending twitch moves to get the secret items like in the Zero Mission remake. That just put me off of the remake altogether. I like to be able to finish a game without having to read a FAQ to figure out crazy 12-step button combos that begin 3 rooms over from the item in question.

And for those that lament the lack of an auto-map feature - get a pencil and paper like we did 20 years ago, and suck it up. ;D

Three cheers for the simple classics.

I just came across the site...good stuff you guys have going here. I for one don't miss the password system on any VC games at all. I always found them really cumbersome and difficult. If you mess up one 0 for an O or a B for an 8, you were screwed. If you lost your password there was no way you'd ever remember it either.

I do agree that the game has aged a bit, but I still think it holds up better than 90% of games from that era. To me, it's an easy 4 star pick. Super Metroid, however, is far more worth the price.

I have this game unlocked in Metroid Prime, and I have to say that by today's standards it's not all that great. I'm sure when it was first released it was as awesome as can be, but Super Metroid is far far superior in every possible way, and the Prime series is better as well (though I don't know if they're better than Super Metroid; indeed, I'm willing to bet giant flame wars have been fought over that very subject, so I won't press it any further). At this point the original Metroid is for hardcore fans and nostalgianauts only.

i agree that this is for hardcore fans only. seeing as how i first got into metroid with metroid fusion for the gba this game feels pretty out dated. super metroid is awesome though, that one aged quite well this i can't say the same for.

I've gotten this game already through Zero Mission and Prime, but I downloaded it anyway so its icon can sit next to Super Metroid next week. I shall be worth it.

Though this really is a great game, it's funny how the new gamers are so capable of ignoring all the lessons that a game like metroid teaches. Like sometimes you gotta go backwards before you can go forwards, that you can't always get (where) you want, but patience is a virtue grasshopper. This game is more important for what it shows in level design and game play than it's core as a game. Having said that, it really was a great game back in the day...

After watching the video, there should be a spoiler alert! They give away "Justin Bailey" as a password! And on another note, I can't believe NES sound was so much crappier than Gameboy sound! The game sounds pretty bad!

Wow... the reason this game was so beloved was because it was so absolutely original. If you try to compare it to games that came out later on a superior system then you're not really doing your job correctly. When this game out it was absolutely brilliant and there's no excuse for the 3/5

ok, this is coming from an old schooler gamer who never played the original metroid for the NES till now... I have beaten the game 3 times in the past 2 days and it was amazing! its only hard your first time through when you dont get the right upgrades in time and are vulnerable throughout most of the game. but after that hump the game is real easy imo, i didnt even die my 3rd time through.

and i did take heed to warnings of mindless wondering (which i hate in games) but i didnt have that problem with this game, you know why? I made my own maps as i played. I hate to cheat so i didnt look up for maps online but i did find it quite fun to chart my own progress as i went.

On the one hand i can see how this game gets a 3 star rating because it would be frustrating and repetitive to a casual gamer who doesn't know how to look up maps online. but on the other hand once you do have an idea of where you are throughout the game its so insanely fun _and addictive_ it just boggles the mind that it received 3 stars. tough choice indeed, i suppose the admins need to consider who their target audience is when writing reviews for games.

I also dont agree with comparing old VC games graphically to the present day. I honestly never understood the concept of claiming that an NES game has dated graphics... are they supposed to get better over time or something? Now i know not every NES game is created equal and that SMB3 compared to SMB is a huge graphical leap, but its still 8-bit graphics whichever way you look at it and that is what i expect to see for i dont download NES games for the pretty looks . If you are looking to play games with modern "non-dated" graphics then i believe old NES games arnt for you.

I'm a huge fan of the Metroid series (I regard Super Metroid as the best videogame ever made), but never owned the NES version. I did play the GBA's remake though.

I ended up downloading it, and I think it's worth the 500 points. The visuals show it's age, but aside from that, it's pure Metroid. You just have to commit on playing the game, it starts paying off in the middle levels.

I wish I had paid more attention to the review here rather than some of these comments. I had fond memories of playing Metroid on the NES as a kid so I wasn't sure how it would have dated and if it was worth bothering with in light of the GBA updates and Super Metroid.

I was bitterly dissapointed. This game really is showing it's age now, the gameplay is clunky, level design is tedious and tiresome and I don't have the time to draw my own map! (call me lazy!)

Sorry guys this just gets 2 stars from me. I wish I had saved my points for Super Metroid which will hopefully hit the EU soon.

It may be old and difficult but it deserves a better rating and respect.

You guys have to be kidding! Why on earth should Metroid be given 5 stars just out of respect for the franchise? The fact is this game has dated horribly. I downloaded it just to remininisce until Super Metroid hits the EU but I wish I hadn't bothered. It's just not much fun now.

Great franchise? YES
Great game back in 1987? YES
Great game now? Erm not really!

Lay off the VCA review, it's just an opinion. Still they are not alone in that opinion:

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/vcArt.cfm?artid=14225

Hey Daz, thanks for the well balanced review. I guess I might be in the minority here but I agree, the original NES Metroid is far too repetitive I think. I liked it as a kid but I am finding it flustrating now. I wanted to complete this then move on to Super Metroid but I have just switched off after about 4 hours after nearly tearing my hair out!

There's an interesting review of Metroid here
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=57580

2 stars is the most I could give this by todays standards. Its worth downloading just for the novelty but the game isn't so much fun any more imho.

I am a huge fan of Metroid Prime so I just HAD to download this and Super Metroid when they both arrived on the Virtual Console (I was a bit young to play either first time around)

To be honest I found it very difficult to get into the first Metroid. I downloaded a map off the internet and worked my way through to the end but it was sheer stubborness on my part to do so. Most of the time I was either bored due to uninspiring level design or flustrated due to the brutal difficulty level.

I give this 3 stars, it would have got 2 but it did spawn a fantastic set of games following this so it's got to have some credit. I really love Super Metroid, it is everything this game it not.

Gamespot only rated Metroid a measily 5.5/10....

http://uk.gamespot.com/wii/action/metroid/review.html?sid=6177706

I pretty much agree with the VC:A review and Gamespot. Yeah it's a classic but after playing Super Metroid who would want to go back to this really?

This was one of those frustrating games that I wanted because my cousins loved it, but I couldn't figure it out because I was 7. Two words if you're going to play this antique: Justin Bailey. Otherwise, spend three more dollars and get Super Metroid.

This game was great in its day, but it just doesn't deliver the same fun anymore as it used to. Super Mario Bros. is still as fun to play as it was back then, even after having played Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. Playing Metroid after having played Super Metroid is a chore.

Great game in the 80's, but lost its appeal (unlike other classics)...

Good lord! This game is great, but if anyone says kid icarus was harder, they should play this game again. I think the most annoying part of the game though was getting your health back to full. Other than that, I really enjoyed it.

Yeah sure this is a classic, but I'd much rather play through the GBA remake, or the incredible Super Metroid. It's very, very repetitve, and more frustrating than later Metroid games, and I can already play it on the Wii anyway (through an unlockable extra in Metroid Prime 1.)

If you don't already have the game unlocked on Metroid Prime or Zero Mission, it's a good buy for 500 points. The graphics are quite dated and the game mechanics feel odd compared to recent 2D Metroids, but the music still remains classic and it's still a fun game.

I've played Metroid: Zero Mission before and absolutely loved it. I don't think I'll download this one, though, because i have a remade version of it. I don't mind games being dated, though, so I would definitely download it if I didn't already have it.

Less than 5 stars is a crime!

The music in this game alone is worth 5 stars.

OI!
Leave metroid 2 alone, it is far closer to the metroid you all know today than the original. It had a far more agreeable difficulty curve and by far the most unique game mechanic of all metroid games to date.
I for one would like to see a 3D or even 16 bit 2D rework of it.
There must be somebody else out there who shares my opinion? Surely?

I still love this game with all my heart, but I take back my comments from earlier that 3 stars is insulting. Compared to the Primes, the flawless Super, and zero missions, it can only achieve 3 stars in comparison to those games. My apologies.

Yeah it's hard but it's so damn fun to play and it came loaded with secrets.

I'm not getting this super metroid is enough for me, I still haven't beaten it. Lol look how ugly samus looks in the nes one!

I own this on the NES. A fun game, but it is very tough. I blew through it in about 10 minutes with the NARPASSWORD and a clever loophole. That was not rewarding, but I have played through a lot of the beginning, and it is fun.

Great game, worth a download if you haven't already played it to pieces. 4 stars.

Really fun game! Worth 500 points! 5 stars

This is good but it could be so much better. it doesn't grip me as much as other Metroid games

Its like Super Mario and The Legend Of Zelda put together. The platforming of Mario and the non linear gamplay of Zelda.

The music keeps on repeating over and over. The music repeats in Mario but the levels end quickly. Also once you die your health goes back to 30. Thats why the game is so frustrating!

The ugly duckling of the Metroid series. It hasn't aged too well but it has it's place in gaming history. I love Super Metroid though, and managed to enjoy the less impressive Metroid II for GB as well, even though it lacked a map and the environments were even more repetititve than in the NES game.

I'll be the first to admit that Super Metroid is possibly the best game ever made, so I don't feel its fair to compare it with any Castlevania/Metroid type games. On its own, this game is good; as part of the Metroid legacy, its sort of a must play for fans. I've never played through the whole thing, so I had to download it today.

I'm actually loving this. Its much better than the translation on the Gameboy Advance (from the Classics line) or the Metroid Prime "extra" version. Reason for that is the VC's ability to save your progress mid-game. That means you don't have to keep restarting with 30 health whenever you take a break.

Its also a different enough experience from Zero Mission that it feels like its a new game. 4 stars from me.

I would give this 4 stars, 1 star off becouse the level design is repetitive.

Josh: Gunpei wasn't the producer for Super Metroid, he only "oversaw" it. Give Metroid II a chance, it's scary space action with the best sound track and level design I know, and it was the last "true" Gunpei Metroid. Super Metroid is still a great game, of course, big and bright with good controls. This NES outing is a game that I do want to try at one time or another since it was a friends favourite NES game.

This one is worth playing. The difficulty can be cruel sometimes/(all the way), even with a map to follow, but it's a NES game so I forgive it.

I like this game. Metroid 2 was better, and Super Metroid was the best, IMO. Metroid should have stayed 2D.

It crashes a lot! At least i completed the game in the best ending which is... SAMUS IN A BIKINI!!!!

This is quite possibly one of the top games ever, and anything less than 5 stars at the least is a cruel injustice and a blatantly demeaning slap in the face of anyone who actually appreciates the best that classic gaming ever had to offer.

There are thousands of reasons that this game is a masterpiece, and all of them are well documented.

I must say that giving this game a mere rating of three is wrong. Flat out wrong. on every conceivable level.

It is absolutely worth the download, and honestly, should be right up there with the first 2 titles that ALL Virtual Console shoppers simply must purchase to begin with. If not the very first title that is essential for downloading.

@Karma - Sorry, but I simply don't agree and think this is a clear-cut case of rose-tinted specs being worn!

Metroid was a decent enough game back in the day but it has aged badly both in terms of gameplay and visuals. I still have a soft spot for it but I think if someone were to download this game without having heard of the series before they would be underwhelmed.

The SNES sequel is a much better proposition all round. I like to consider this version as the foundation for that game.

Umm...3 Stars, Right....
So I'm gonna disagree on the grounds that Metroid pretty much invented in depth exploring and map roaming in the 8 bit era. Well, to better articulate what it did, Metroid introduced a new potential to the platforming genre. We could explore in an expansive variety of settings, progressing with the help of upgrades we earned along the way. In short, the shit was hella advanced at the time, it blew my mind out. I mean, there may be other titles that I'm not remembering, but I was around back then, so feel free to refresh my memory...
Yeah, so, Super Metroid may be everything here plus more, but for pure historical significance and contributions to the evolution of video games, no less than 5 stzars.

But for someone just looking for a game to play, that won't matter. Just because it's historically significant doesn't change the fact that it isn't that great by today's standards.

I totally understand this argument, but don't quite get what the use of judging these games by today's standards is...
I mean, if I wanted a game that was great by today's standards, I would buy a game that came out a little less than twenty years ago.

I'm really sad to say that I regret downloading this. Don't get me wrong, I loved Metroid back in the day, but really, like so many people said, today it just doesn't hold up well, especially when compared to Metroid Zero Mission, which makes for a much better experience. If you really really loved it on the NES, maybe give it a go, but if you just want to download it to experience the series' origins, just play Metroid Zero Mission for GBA.

I respectfully disagree with the reviewer. Metroid was an absolutely amazing open-environment action game. It really broke the mold of the standard level-based platformer. The missiles, energy tanks, bombs, freeze beam, etc. which stayed with you as you progressed through the game even added a slight RPG element. The control was outstanding for a game of this era, on par with Megaman or the Super Mario series.

One area where Metroid even managed to surpass The Legend of Zelda was atmosphere - you really do feel like you're in the belly of some hostile, backwater alien planet. You want to carry out your mission and get out!

I can understand why some might be stymied by this game. Back in the day, all my friends were playing it and knew enough to get me started. They showed me where the nearest missile power up and energy tanks were located. Another friend showed me where the entrance to Ridley's area is (one of the bosses) when I couldn't find new areas to explore. In short, there was sufficient "community buzz" about the game that no setback was for long. Contrast that to the average person picking up this game today and I see the potential frustration.

I think a good way to approach this game is with a strategy guide to prompt you along the way. Still, part of what made Metroid great was the exploration. I loved spending hours and hours trying to find all the secret rooms. Metroid really invites you to roll around and drop bombs everywhere to expose new content.

Metroid features one of the most amazing video game bugs of all time: the "hidden worlds". Something like two-thirds of the game's content is not even in the actual game! If you google for info about this you'll find plenty. The hidden worlds made an already mysterious game that much more incredible!

In summation, this is definitely a hardcore game. All the good games back then were. I sense many people playing these retro titles believe that because the game is older and "simpler", they should just be able to blow right through. This game won't have it. In fact the opposite is true: the old school games were MUCH tougher than games today. I wouldn't put the difficulty at the level of say, the original Megaman or a game such as Lifeforce (without the 30 life code, of course), but it is harder than any Metroid made in the last fifteen years, without a doubt. If you do get this for your VC, understand that this isn't a game you're going to beat in an afternoon and probably not without a little help from a strategy guide. You need to pay your respects to the old school gods if you want to hang with the original Metroid!

Yeah... i guess we're spoiled now with all of our maps, and fancy in-game hints... but I say original NES games that just let you adventure around worlds and figured out how things work while rewarding you with more HP, ammo, and weapons for being incredibly diligent in your adventuring deserve a little more credit.

Now, as far as this game goes, everyone has their own opinions. I think its fine to rate any game whatever score you want as long as you look at it not only from your own perspective, and definitely not from a fanboy perspective, but from a calculated, well thought out, chronologically-minded perspective. At the time, this game was the top dog along with Zelda, and SMB. I don't see a reason to rate this below a 4/5 accept to be different. Well, besides the annoying passwords which you stated were taken care of by the VC save feature.

I have to say I agree with the 3/5 star rating. I, too, loved playing this game once upon a time as a little one (and admittedly I never really got too far with it back then, I got about as far as defeating Kraid) and it has its fun moments now, but this game has pushed me to doing something no other game has done...I hate using cheats and walk-thru's and knowing what to do before I even try to figure things out myself, but I refuse to play this game without a walk-thru. It's too frustrating to wander about without a map. Too many of the areas look too similar, and I end up running about in circles.
In a similar way, Super Metroid was probably my favorite game when it came out, and I played it over and over and over trying to collect more stuff and finish in a shorter time, but if I were to download it today it probably wouldn't hold up to what it used to be. Which is why I'm considering not downloading it. Let it be that awesome game it was back then, I'm afraid playing it again would just ruin it.

i download it and it was great,the atmosphere was aswome it gave me the feeling i was alone all by my self,and the music is ok,also the bosses were chalenging

Unless you have fond memories of the game, or if you really want to know what the first game in the series was like, I advise you to stay away from this one. You start with almost no health each time you turn on the game and the planet is so hard to navigate with no map and a lot of the rooms are ones identical (literally) to others.

I say if you want a real, worthy Metroid game, get Super Metroid. It is way better and well worth the added 300 points.

^^Ooh it's so hard to take a piece of paper and draw your own map? Kids these days are so lazy.

I remember drawing maps and taking notes for shitloads of games during the nes/snes/genesis days..... and also for Myst (PC).

I got that game when I was young in the 80s and it was challenging but great, it's certainly on the top 10 best nes game ever. The game isn't very long once you have a map, you can beat it in one day actually, well I can do it

A must have. This is one of those classic titles for the NES.

I was suprised how much I enjoyed this game. It was a little confusing at first, but once I got my bearings, it was a lot of fun. I already have Metroid: Zero Mission, and I treated this one like it was ZM's hard mode. I've already played through ZM twice, so I don't get lost as easily as I probably would've, but even if I do get lost, I just press onwards, hope it's the right way, then turn back if it isn't. While a map would help if you want to find everything, it is otherwise playable without one. I really liked the graphics, once I got over the lack of backrounds. I personally think they added to the atmosphere of the game. Gameplay wise, I took it as a challenge I had to overcome. I've played Mega Man though, so that made trasitioning easier.The password thing is annoying, and I'm not sure if this game came out before Zelda, so I'm not sure whether it was a necessity or what.

Probably my main gripe however, is that it doesn't feel like a Metroid game to me. It's really only in my approach to a usual Metroid game that makes this one a little more problematic: before I can explore an area, I make sure I've killed every enemy, so the place feels "safe" to explore. However, this metroid game respawns enemies even if you're still in the area, so clearing a room is impossible, and it never feels safe. I then begin approaching the game like I would Doom: I'm alone in a Hellhole, and I'm trying to survive and find my way out; every weapon and expansion is simply another way to ensure my safety. That's not how I'm used to approaching a Metroid game, where I feel like I'm exploring an alien planet(a hostile alien planet, but definately no hellhole), so it takes on an entirely different flavor for me.

Edit: Now that I think about it, I had the same problem with The Legend of Zelda, but once I played it enough, and I really got into it, it began to feel like Zelda as I know it! Plus, I don't think the approach I mentioned is how I treated the 2D Metroid games anyways, so I think I'll give it another approach with a new set of eyes, and see if things get better.

I suppose if you don't feel the need to kill every enemy in order to explore a level, it will probably still feel like a Metroid game to you, just a very difficult one.

Eventhough it didn't feel as Metroidy as I'm used to, it was still pretty fun, and if you're a fan of Metroid, or Metroid-esque game, and can't get you're hands on Zero Mission, the Nes classics GBA cart, nor unlock it in Metroid Prime, and you're looking for a challenge, then downloading this is a must!

is this game worth downloading? i've heard some ups and downs, but i'm still lost. any advice?

@pikmin- its fun at first for a bit, but then it gets really boring, personally i would save 500 points for another game

@Pikmin. This game is OK, but it's really confusing and hard, since you don't get any guidance and many rooms look alike. You have to find a map on the internet or something to even tell where you're going. I say get Zero Mission, which is basically a remade version of this. Plus, the original is included as a bonus!

I originally played this game as an unlockable in Metroid Prime. Good thing 'ol NP included a Metroid walkthrough in it's MP guide, as I might've never found my way through it.

Back in the old days, we used to draw our own Metroid maps on graph paper as we went. There was no internet then, sonny boy!