Life > January 12, 2005

By Dave Chace

Life Editor

Samus Aran, one of Nintendo’s most classic characters dating back to 1986, once again highlighted the Gamecube’s sale charts in the latest installment of the Metroid series, “Metroid Prime 2: Echoes.”  The transition from the old-school side scrolling Metroid to a modern first-person shooter was made in 2002 in the release of the original Metroid Prime. “Echoes” succeeds its predecessor with twice as many lands to explore, several new abilities and an impressive multi-player mode.

The heart of this game lies in its beauty. With every move you make and every room you enter, you will continue to be impressed by the stunning attention to detail on the part of designer Retro Studios.

Everything that you look at will be distinct and flawless. The worlds around you take on a life of their own, where every corner hides a secret and every enemy moves with precise grace.

The worlds of “Echoes” are created with spectacular graphics, but just as impressive is the size of each world. This is by no means a game that one can run through quickly as a single player. To do so would be a disservice to the intended experience. 

Every other door is one that you won’t be able to open until more equipment is acquired later in the game.  Backtracking is a natural and essential element to the game — I found myself going over particular areas up to a dozen times throughout the game until all the puzzles were finally solved. 

Not only are there four legitimately massive worlds to explore on the alien planet setting, but each land is complemented by an identical, “dark” dimension full of additional puzzles, enemies and equipment.  Jumping back and forth between the “light” and “dark” dimensions is an integral aspect of the gameplay — enemies from each dimension are hurt by weapons from the other.  The additional dark dimension essentially doubles the size of the game.

“Echoes” becomes an epic project that will take weeks, maybe months, before it is completely finished.  Because of the length of “Echoes,” I feel I have to warn college students about the time that this game consumes.

The nature of its “Save Stations,” which are consistently missing when they would be most convenient, makes this a game that cannot be played for an hour at a time between classes.  If you are frustrated easily, this will not serve as a healthy escape from the irritations of Work Forest. 

The new multi-player mode is a welcome addition to the Metroid franchise. The weapons are integrated into an environment where they can be picked up throughout the levels and used for a limited amount of time.

The morph ball technique, where Samus can roll around as a bomb-laying sphere of death, adds an interesting twist to the redundancy of first-person shooter. Multi-player battle mode is a fast-paced alternative for those who are fed up with the intensity of Halo 2.

If you own a Gamecube and enjoy a challenge with your video games, this game needs to be on your checklist if it is not there already. 

“Echoes” will take a lot of time to play through, but that does not take away from its worth.  Even in small increments, this game will be one of the most captivating and satisfying video games you ever play.

“Echoes” is absolutely worth its price, and you will find that it will also be worth the time you put into it.