Will Metroid Prime 4 Get A Switch 2 Release? 4
Image: Zion Grassl / Nintendo Life

It's been 84 years since Nintendo first announced that the next chapter in the Metroid Prime series was in development. Then, in 1957, an apology was issued as the platform holder took things back to the drawing board, restarting development and shifting production from partner dev Bandai Namco back to Prime series founders Retro Studios.

Okay, the exact dates are a little off there, but for fans of the series it feels like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has been in the works for an awfully long time. Back in 2017, the Switch's launch year, there was little question as to which console MP4 would arrive on, but news of the developmental reboot in 2019 gave some of us pause. Even small projects can take several years to come to fruition, and with Retro apparently starting over from scratch, would a flagship game like MP4 see the light of day before the Switch's successor landed?

As it turns out, Switch 2 and Metroid Prime 4 are sharing a launch year, and everything Nintendo has said to this point suggests that the game will launch for the original Switch. However, that doesn't preclude the possibility of an enhanced Switch 2 version, even if the OG Switch game is playable via backwards compatibility.

Recent rumours suggest that Nintendo may be seeking to position the game as Switch 2's Breath of the Wild, a cross-gen title launching across both systems. Let's check in with Team NL to get their thoughts on this particular take, starting with the team's premier Primer...

Ollie Reynolds, staff writer

Will Metroid Prime 4 Get A Switch 2 Release? 1
Image: Damien McFerran / Nintendo Life

I firmly believe that Nintendo will launch a native Switch 2 version of Prime 4.

Here's the thing... Metroid is no Pokémon. Legends Z-A will be absolutely fine launching solely on the OG Switch thanks to the power of its name alone. Prime 4 won't benefit from that and I fear it will be perceived as a lesser product if its relegated to eight-year-old hardware while fans are just getting to grips with Switch 2.

Backwards compatibility muddies the water a bit, for sure, but Sony and Microsoft have both demonstrated a willingness to release native PS5 and Series X|S versions of games also available on prior generations. I see no reason why Nintendo can't do something similar. At a push, it could opt for a similar approach to Zelda: Twilight Princess and stagger the release, even if it's only a week or two. Get the Switch 2 version out first, then follow up with the OG. Chuck in a £10/$10 upgrade option and boom, you're good to go.

In terms of what kind of benefits Prime 4 would get from a native Switch 2 release, I'm not expecting a major upgrade, but certainly a bump in resolution and maybe some cheeky ray tracing here and there. Nothing that leaves those who opt for the OG version feeling left out.

Jim Norman, staff writer

Will Metroid Prime 4 Get A Switch 2 Release? 2
Image: Damien McFerran / Nintendo Life

I would love to see Beyond land a Switch 2 version, really I would, but something about it just doesn't sit right with me. The Metroid series has never been a system seller. Those who have been waiting a lifetime for Prime 4 are going to pick it up, no matter the system, and I think Nintendo will be banking on them for a large portion of the game's sales. Why not just stick with a Switch release, where you already have 150 million users, and go ham on more bankable IPs for the Switch 2 launch instead?

There is a world in which both exists, where Nintendo releases an 'enhanced' version for its new console alongside a 'standard' edition, but I can see it ruffling some feathers. People have been waiting so very long for this, and if Nintendo hits them with a "you'll have to cough up an additional $400 to play the best version," it might not sit too well.

I will want to play the best version of Beyond I can get, but I fear that will just be playing the normal game on my Switch 2.

Alana Hagues, deputy editor

Will Metroid Prime 4 Get A Switch 2 Release? 5
Image: Damien McFerran / Nintendo Life

For a while, I've thought that Metroid Prime 4 will be cross-gen, and part of me still reckons that's the case. But I think we'll have a situation similar to games that get PS4 and PS5 releases. Both versions of the game will be available wherever you buy it.

Ollie's already said this, but if there is a native version of MP4, there's no way it'll be hugely different in the same way BOTW isn't too different on Wii U or Switch. It's also just not going to shift BOTW numbers either, so I don't think Nintendo will put all of its eggs in the Metroid basket. I wish it did! But releasing it on both consoles will ensure a much bigger pick-up rate than other Prime games.

I have no doubt that MP4 will, as the rumours say, blow everyone out of the water during the Switch 2 Direct. I also think that Direct will show Switch 1 games, but playing on Switch 2 hardware. So I don't think it's weird a potential cross-gen game will steal the show. And it won't be from the graphical side, either — Nintendo will talk about that, but the gameplay has got to stun.

Gavin Lane, editor

Will Metroid Prime 4 Get A Switch 2 Release? 3
Image: Damien McFerran / Nintendo Life

My gut says, no, a Switch 2 version of MP4 would be needlessly confusing. But with crystal clear messaging and a seamless upgrade path, perhaps. MP4 is never going to be 'Switch 2's BOTW', though.

Metroid Dread sold nicely (over three million copies) and the Metroid series is growing in popularity, but it's still a long way from Zelda (BOTW has sold nearly 33 million copies) and Mario (Odyssey = 29.04 million). Spotlighting a quality franchise that's on the up — not to mention squeezing as much value from a game with a very protracted development cycle — makes sense, but even if MP4 is a genre-defining 10/10 all-timer, it's unlikely to hit for a mainstream audience like those other games. As Ollie says, it ain't Pokémon.

Backwards compatibility also confuses the issue. "Oh, no, actually it's a Switch 2 game now lol" would lead to instant backlash, so assuming it's still launching for the OG Switch, what's the real benefit of a Switch 2-specific version? Higher resolution? A more stable frame rate? Nintendo has spent years distancing itself from the specs, so highlighting fairly modest improvements (in the scheme of things) goes totally against the grain. Perhaps there's some hardware-level control quirk S2 owners could enjoy à la Twilight Princess' Wiimote waggle... but I doubt it.

Nintendo has learnt the hard way the perils of mixed messaging when showcasing new hardware, and I'm not convinced potential S2 enhancements would be big enough to offset the risk of confusing Joe Switchbuyer. Bluntly, Nintendo's got bigger fish to fry and Metroid isn't enough of a tentpole series to warrant square-pegging it into a 'Switch 2's BOTW'-style round hole.

Buying MP4 once and getting the best version automatically wherever you play would solve the problem. One thing is for certain, though: If it does feature in the Switch 2 Direct and people come away with any questions whatsoever as to how playing Metroid Prime 4 on Switch 2 works, Nintendo will have stumbled out of the gate.

So there you have our thoughts. What do you think? Let us know in the poll and shoot down to the comments if you'd like to elucidate some more.

Do you think Metroid Prime 4: Beyond will get a bespoke Switch 2 release?