not even out for a year

[FacelessGriffin]

... Uhm, people, aren't we taking this just a liiiiittle bit too seriously?

[Emperor Ing]

If Metroid fans do anything it is spend every waking moment speculating, analyzing, and worrying over the future of the franchise.

While there's no doubt in my mind there'll be another Metroid game, the incredibly disappointing sales figures* (as well as critical reception) of Other M have placed the large nagging questions of
-When will we see it?

-Who will make it (this time)?

-What type of game will it be?



*While 800,000 is actually not that bad for a game's sale numbers, it is quite obviously a lot lower than anything Nintendo had anticipated; remember Reggie saying they were going to sell at least a million or two? Ha. Especially for such a big budget game, this was quite the blow.

[Chris]

How many developers do you know put their hands up and say we dropped a bollock on this lads?

They most likely do know why the game wasn't received as well as they had hoped, I'm sure someone at Nintendo knows how to read (reviews, forums etc). Do you really expect a public apology or something?

They will address the 'issue' with the next game.

[Dryn]

It isn't bad that Metroid: Other M had a story. It's only that the story was far more emphasized. Usually, Metroid games have a storyline within the instruction manual, or in MPTs case, Chozo, Luminoth, Pirate lore. Remember Super Mario Galaxy 2? Shigeru Miyamoto said that SMG2 would focus more on the fun aspect, rather than story, and although some thought this wasn't a good idea, the game was superb! They're aiming for the same thing for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.

I have to agree though, that it was really the reviews that ruined the reputation of this game. I was playing MOM yesterday and when my friend asked, "What are you playing?" I told him, "Metroid." Then some other guy I don't even know said, "Which one?" I said, "Metroid: Other M." Then he gave a stupid sigh and said, "The game looked like it was going to be good, but when it came out, it was crap." I wondered if he had even played the game, or if he just read a review and thought it was garbage.

Anyway, this one game isn't going to kill the Metroid franchise. (I like to think that the Mario, Zelda, and Metroid series are the "Trinity" of Nintendo in that sort of DC universe idea.) Metroid II: Return of Samus was all right, and Metroid Prime Hunters was criticized as being the worst, but Metroid, like any series, isn't going to be flawless at all times. We can only hope that the next installment will be better than the previous one, regardless if the previous one was good or bad.

[Dragonheart91]

I would have to argue with you about SMG2 ignoring any aspects of story being a good thing. The first SMG had a fantastic but minimalistic story that was actually quite touching. The home area and such were all well done and the game was fantastic. SMG2 may have had equally good platforming, but dropping the storyline and the ship were detrimental to it's overall quality. IMO, SMG2 came in behind the original by a fair margin. (Although it WAS still quite fun.)

[Apothem]

Just wait, Nintendo'll blow us all out of the water by announcing a new Metroid title due to launch with their "Wii2" in 2012! I think Nintendo lost focus with M:OM, drawing away from gameplay for the sake of storyline only to fumble the latter. Hopefully they'll rectify this mistake and develop (or co-develop as the case may far more likely be) the next Metroid title's gameplay first and story second. M:OM was solid from a mechanical perspective and it's faults can mostly be attributed to plot aspects being shoehorned into gameplay. I firmly believe that a game should be a game first and anything else second. After all, if it isn't fun to play, what's the point?

[kronoridley]

If they had released it earlier maybe it would've done better.

This. If they released it in June, other than SC2 (which was PC/Mac exclusive), it would've had no competition, and would have sold a LOT more. Stop releasing Metroid games in august, d*mnit!

[KingBroly]

It would've had to compete with Galaxy 2 and S&P2.

The problem with Other M as a whole, from the story, to the marketing, and gameplay, etc. is that it was a very disingenuous product. It was sold as the story of Samus when it's actually the story of Adam at the behest of Samus. Throw in terrible dialog and the lack of context for things and you really piss people off. From a Metroid perspective, it doesn't have exploration or isolation, or at the very least, enough to be called Metroid. In addition to that, seemingly no effort was put into the English version of the script. Who wants to buy something when effort was not clearly made?

And somehow Nintendo will probably blame the fans for this when it's their fault.

[kronoridley]

SMG2 came out in May. And S&P2? Are you kidding me?

[Cosake_Solrac]

It would've had to compete with Galaxy 2 and S&P2.

The problem with Other M as a whole, from the story, to the marketing, and gameplay, etc. is that it was a very disingenuous product. It was sold as the story of Samus when it's actually the story of Adam at the behest of Samus. Throw in terrible dialog and the lack of context for things and you really piss people off. From a Metroid perspective, it doesn't have exploration or isolation, or at the very least, enough to be called Metroid. In addition to that, seemingly no effort was put into the English version of the script. Who wants to buy something when effort was not clearly made?

And somehow Nintendo will probably blame the fans for this when it's their fault.

It's not exactly that, they marketed it as if her past story and such would be revealed, which in fact did the opposite.

Although I personally never had a problem w/ that since I knew a fair bit of game advertisement tend to be REALLY off. (might explain why I have a hard time seeing the overbloated negs of the game but eh, let's just say I have a mental disease lmao.)

But for others, advertisement is important, and yeah, it is a problem.

[Labrynian Rebel]

Here's a random Project Cafe rumor I found (probably fake but whatever)

Nintendo might start making less Metroid games since every Metroid game released after Metroid Prime 1 has sold less and less with each new Metroid released. Yoshio Sakamoto would love to be involved as director, producer, and writer of future Metroid games if Nintendo will allow him. Nintendo will still make Metroid games, but it won’t be considered one of their “big 3″ priorities in comparison to Mario/Zelda like it was for the last 5 years. They feel that Metroid fans who made Metroid Prime a huge seller, aren’t really showing enough excitement and support for the franchise like they did when the first Prime game came out.

It would be really sad if this is true. Metroid not being considered a major brand by Nintendo would be really sad indeed.

[HYRUL3]

That would be sad. I don't want to see it go into limbo like F-Zero or Star Fox. (Re-releases don't count to me as coming out of limbo)

However, I also would rather the series have time to get back to quality. And having Sakamoto stay on as Writer and Director would not be the wise choice.

[Chipou]

Nintendo has shown that sales dont really affect if they continue or restart a series, fzero is a great starting point to research

[HYRUL3]

Shigeru Miyamoto commented that past F-Zero and Star Fox collaborations with outside development houses turned out to be a disappointment for Nintendo. He stated "consumers got very excited about the idea of those games, but the games themselves did not deliver"

It's been 7 years since the last F-Zero game came out, and 5 since Star Fox. Yes I am aware they are re-making Star Fox 64, which is arguably the best in the series and will definitely work as a nostalgia cash in. I'll buy it. But the fact that they're sticking with what's safe, and remaking a classic, instead of developing a new title, shows me that they'd rather stay safe than take risks and lose money on a franchise.

[Apothem]

It's been 7 years since the last F-Zero game came out, and 5 since Star Fox. Yes I am aware they are re-making Star Fox 64, which is arguably the best in the series and will definitely work as a nostalgia cash in. I'll buy it. But the fact that they're sticking with what's safe, and remaking a classic, instead of developing a new title, shows me that they'd rather stay safe than take risks and lose money on a franchise.

That's a common trend in the industry, sticking to one's guns so to speak. There's far more money to be had in rereleases, ports and marginal updates than there is in reviving years old series. Furthermore, what incentive does Nintendo have to continue a franchise they find lacking in revenue? The Big N's still a business, and where as many of us like to believe Nintendo somehow more benevolent then their competetion, money means just as much to Nintendo as it does to Sony or Microsoft, perhaps even more so as they don't have a massive multimedia or computer electronics empire to fall back on. Still, if successfull enough, these ports may prompt Nintendo to develop their respective series further. Rare as though it may be it has happened in the industry before. As for Metroid, I'm not terribly familiar with the series sales numbers, although I do know M:OM didn't meet expectations, I doubt it spells cancelation for the series. It's far more likely that Nintendo will favor a cheaper, safer 3DS title, or continue with Metroid ports to guage the marketplaces reaction to future titles before investing so heavily in another AAA title. In regards to F-Zero and Star Fox I don't see what Nintendo has to be displeased about, unless they sold poorly. F-Zero GX/AX was awesome, so too Star Fox Assult and Command.