When you consider how beloved the Metroid series is, it's remarkable that more people don't talk about Metroid Prime Hunters.
One of the key early titles for the Nintendo DS (a demo was memorably bundled with the console at launch), Hunters was a spin-off of a spin-off; it formed part of the Prime sub-series that began on the GameCube but was intended to be a real showcase of the DS' unique talents. It was developed by Nintendo Software Technology rather than Retro Studios, with Masamichi Abe (Pikmin, Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again) acting as director.
Richard Vorodi worked as a designer on the game and has been speaking to Kiwi Talkz about his time at NST. He reveals some interesting pieces of info, such as the fact that Nintendo has a "Metroid Bible" that it hands to anyone who is working on the series and that some of the bounty hunter names had to be changed because they were found to be registered trademarks. Vorodi also explains that the hunter 'Weavel' was inspired by the painful experience of being bitten by a weevil bug as a child.
Given that Hunters is fading into memory and the fact that Nintendo has remastered many of its other classic titles, would Vorodi be open to a remake of the game on Switch?
The selfish side of me would say no – it's perfect the way it is – [but] that's the thing, it's not my game, it's the world's game. It's actually incredibly flattering; if there is an audience for that game, if there's a way to usher it into the 21st century or the post-pandemic world, that'd be great. It would be great to see those guys at full resolution, it would be great to see the ponytail swinging... there's been so many advances. FPS more than any other genre has seen the most growth... it would be unbelievable to see how that game would play today. So yeah, I'm all for it.
Is Metroid Prime Hunters a game you'd like to see remastered for Switch, or do you think it should remain on DS hardware? Let us know with a comment.
[source youtube.com]
Comments 43
I'd probably get it on Wii U if I was fancying a playthrough of the Metroid Prime series.
That being said, if it was flip grip enabled bonus game added to the rumoured Metroid Prime Trilogy Switch release then it wouldn't be unwelcome.
Yes please! Even though the game supports left-handed controls, navigating with the face-buttons is still not ideal.
Not to say that I dislike Metroid Hunters, in fact I replayed it a couple months ago, but just to put things into perspective, Federation Force is a far better game in this day and age. Hunters is very much a relic of DS limitations, it would need to be entirely remade from its core to be a viable product in the 2020s. At that point, it wouldn't even be Hunters anymore. I don't think Nintendo ever cared enough about this entry anyways.
A very impressive technical showcase for the humble DS.
Still the only Metroid game I have seen to the end credits.
I actually just played through this game for the first time about a year ago!
The good: at it's best the levels feel like mini Metroid prime worlds. The hunter designs own. The Mega Man style weapon upgrades are fun
The Bad: it is an FPS on a DS and I don't like the controls. The final boss is impossible
The Ugly: I'm pretty sure every planet has a self destruct/escape sequence... But then you go back to the planet a second time lol
This is my favourite 3D Metroid game.
(Hides)
Whether or not it gets remastered (I’m not personally expecting it), seeing some of the DNA from the multiplayer modes incorporated into future titles would be nice.
I was thinking the same thing not so long ago, I think "hunters" have much cooler designs than characters we got in like Prime 3, it's a shame they never made it into another title.
Please not, this game was so disappointing.
I'd rather see Metroid Prime 4 first please.
Remaking an early NDS game for Switch is probably more costly than just creating a brand new game from the ground up.
Either way, Metroid Prime has never been known for its first person multiplayer shooter combat. I'd prefer if Nintendo just create or fund a brand new IP from scratch if they wanted a FPS of their own.
@westman98 I know it's not always ideal, but emulation could be an option? It actually looks surprisingly great in 1080p (minus the HUD elements of course...) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae1dcvPXryM
@Troll_Decimator I mean if they can remake Metroid 2 from the Game Boy then they can remake Metroid Prime Hunters. They can keep plenty elements the same to still call it Hunters.
And even if it's too different, the remake wouldn't suddenly erase the original from existence. That seems to be a thing a lot of people think for some reason.
@Skunkfish
That actually looks quite good for emulation, but probably not good enough as a retail product that Nintendo sells for $50-60.
I'd love the online multiplayer of Hunters remade for the Switch.
I was actually considering getting this but still on the fence. Looks good for a ds game but FPS don't handle to well on the system.
Best part of MPH was the cinematics.
I hesitated a long time before getting this on Wii U since I had the DS version already (and since the multiplayer isn't much use on the Wii U), but I'm glad I did. Nothing on the Wii U really used the touchscreen FPS aiming like this game did, despite the gamepad being great for it, so I wanted to own at least one title which did!
And while I'd normally steer clear of automatic smoothing features (which the Wii U seems to do for all DS games... I had no idea!), it really does improve the visuals in this case.
I played the hell out of this game and it was a glorious glitchy mess.
Shoot a rocket at your feet while moving backward into a wall - bam you pass through the wall and can shoot through it to hit players who can’t see or hit you.
Charge Noxus’ ice gun. Be far away from an enemy, but be on the same height and face them. Aim down, release. Noxus’ short range ice gun will freeze them from a distance - known as ‘shadow freeze’ back in the day.
And finally, trace and silus were the only good hunters, maybe spire because he had a small head. You could pull off some nice tricks with silus’ alt form to catch people in its 3 point triangle Insta kill trap thing.
Damn this game was sick. Shame about all the cheaters.
I just played the demo back in the day. I found it a neat "proof of concept" but I don't think the DS was a great platform for it. A remake would be fun. But I doubt Nintendo has any plans to revisit Hunters.
Now, let's talk about Metroid Prime Pinball! AKA the Metroid game that's still in my 3DS... that game was PERFECT for the DS.
Yeah, those Prime Trilogy rumors that give me hope and evaporate one week later are not enough, please add a Hunters remake similar to Samus Returns to the list. That would be dope!
I liked playing Weevil online. Leave leg turret, hide in corner, get to slashin
I tried so hard to like this game back in the day but I could never stick with it for long.
The multi-player was pretty cool though.
The controls were awful.
I actually loved this for the online multi-player. I felt like I would keep playing the same people since there wasn't a large community playing at the time I played it on the DS. But given the success of Dread, I have no doubt people would embrace this. Lots of potential.
It would be nice to have the whole Metroid Federation Trilogy (Prime Hunters, Prime: Federation Force, Other M) HD remastered on the Switch too.
This is one of the few Metroid titles I haven't played (along with Federation Force and Dread, though I own the latter) and is one I've considered buying on the Wii U. However, due to what I've read about the touch controls, I've kinda been on the fence. I have played the entire Metroid Prime Trilogy however, and I don't feel like I'm missing much?
@The_BAAD_Man As a fellow southpaw, how awkward are the controls?
@Tyranexx It's playable, but definitely not ideal, as it's not natural using the right hand for movement. I'm cross-dominant but still found it a little easier. It's a good game but it can be cramp-inducing.
@The_BAAD_Man I wondered; I've found some earlier DS games haven't aged well in the control department, partially due to how touch-dominant some were. I appreciate the response.
@Tyranexx No problem! Another game which comes to mind is the excellent Castlevania - Dawn of Sorrow. You need to draw magic glyphs in battle, which is a bit risky as someone who prefers using the stylus with the left hand!
@Donutsavant I totally agree about the bad and ugly! Also, the bosses were pretty much the same, except they get a little harder. I was disappointed. I also didn't like the fact that you had to backtrack and revisit worlds to get upgrades, and it was a pain. I recently played this game I last month and I wanted to slam my head against the the hitting you too hard, or dying from falling into space??? WTF lol
At first it was a cool game, but then my hands started cramping and I was getting annoyed at the stylus aiming.
I wouldn't mind some sort of return of this game in whatever form they choose. It was one of my first DS games when I purchased a DS Lite and played the HELL out of it Loved it and the multiplayer. As some have already said the multiplayer was ahead of its time especially for a DS game.
I would rather see Metroid Prime remade with modern controls.
@Yosher That's a good point, although Metroid 2 on Gameboy is an important part of the main series/lore and Hunters is kinda irrelevant, but you never know with Nintendo.
"[…] if there's a way to usher it into the 21st century […]"
Got good news for ya Richard, it came out in 2006 so your wishes have already been fulfilled 😉
Metroid Prime collection > Metroid Prime trilogy.
I also hope Metroid Prime has multiplayer.
People forget about this game all too easily. Back when the DS first came out and you had a demo with it, it was a technical marvel to play something like Metroid Prime on the go. The online was great fun too. My fave bit actually. Even if it was too easy to just hide at the top of the map and scope people out with the sniper character for tons of kills.
I absolutely hated this game but it was pretty much entirely due to the controls. It's pretty much the only Metroid game I've never completed. So, a remake with traditional controls would be very welcome!!
Awkward cobtrols aside, MP Hunters wasn't such a bad game.
I can’t believe so many people hated the controls. Teenage me thought they were perfect - the stylus gave so much precision
@The_BAAD_Man Reminds me of my experience with Okamiden, though I don't recall that being TOO awkward lol. I could be misremembering; it has been awhile!
@Tyranexx A game I really want to add to my collection!
@The_BAAD_Man It's a decent DS title, arguably not as good as the original Okami but certainly worth playing if one enjoys that game or anything like The Legend of Zelda!
@Tyranexx I recently played Okami HD to 100% completion, so I definitely enjoyed it!
@The_BAAD_Man Then you should like Okamiden. It's kind of a sequel, but sort of a spinoff too.
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