Nintendo scrap Metroid Prime 4 development

[cathou]

Nintendo put out a video today, basically announcing that they are not happy with the development of metroid prime 4, and that they decided to give the project to Retro studio, and start over again. so dont expect a new metroid game until end of 2020 at least.

is it because of that that the direct rumoured to be held in january haven't been announced yet ?

https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1088784096061317120

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

The Twitter responses don't seem to understand. Everyone is all 'Good boy Nintendo, being honest and taking time to improve the game'
They're not improving the game, they're scraping it and telling someone else to do it. That is not the same as improving, that's starting over, where there is a chance it'll end up as bad as the original.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Fucking jeez, that title tho.

Anyway ... as a Metroid fan I'd say this news kind of sucks. A decade is a pretty long time for a proper new entry in the series, but I'd rather have a great game tomorrow than a mediocre one today. Perhaps this'll be a case of 'good things come to those who wait'.

Most of the key people who did the original Prime trilogy left Retro to found Armature Studios in 2008 tho. Doesn't seem cause for concern tho. Retro's output since has been small but solid, while Armature has done nothing but ports, that shitty 3DS Batman Arkham title and ReCore, a game apparently so resoundingly meh I never even heard of it before today. Wait and see.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Ughhhh, it hurts....It huuuuuuuuuuts! ;_;

*sigh* Oh well. Was probably for the best. I'd rather they start over and be honest about it than just crap out something bad to cash in on the brand name (*looks balefully at Fallout 76*).

Also, glad to see Retro is on it. They continue to put out good stuff.

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

So at this point its gonna be a 2022-24 release.

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

THANK GOODNESS they restarted development, this time with Retro Studios.

I said it was bad call that they were gonna have Namco Bandai making Metroid Prime 4 because for all I know it was probably gonna be Metroid: Other M Electric Boogalo in terms of gameplay and presentation.

And so far the fact they delayed and restarted development, this time with Retro Studios helming it kinda confirms my fears that Namco did not do it right.

It probably was a third person game with none of the aesthetics and atmosphere and gameplay of the Retro games, or heck even Super Metroid.

 

[cathou]

Fucking jeez, that title tho.

if it's because on the way development was written, sorry, i basically put the french form of the word, thinking it was the same in english, i corrected it.

So at this point its gonna be a 2022-24 release.

i dont think it will be that far. i mean how bad the game must be, they will probably at least reuse some of the assets to cut development time.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Fucking jeez, that title tho.

if it's because on the way development was written, sorry, i basically put the french form of the word, thinking it was the same in english, i corrected it.

Nah, I'm not a grammar nazi and I know English is not your first language. It's just that before I read the part about Retro restarting development from scratch, the title Nintendo scrap Metroid Prime 4 development gave me the impression that Nintendo had stopped development altogether. In other words, shelved the game, or even cancelled it.

 

[Yoshi178]

YOU HAD ONE JOB NINTENDO!

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

YOU HAD ONE JOB NINTENDO!

Luckily, they're taking that job seriously and trying to make it right, even it if means starting over.

 

[Yoshi178]

YOU HAD ONE JOB NINTENDO!

Luckily, they're taking that job seriously and trying to make it right, even it if means starting over.

tfw.

 

[CaitSeith]

THANK GOODNESS they restarted development, this time with Retro Studios.

I said it was bad call that they were gonna have Namco Bandai making Metroid Prime 4 because for all I know it was probably gonna be Metroid: Other M Electric Boogalo in terms of gameplay and presentation.

And so far the fact they delayed and restarted development, this time with Retro Studios helming it kinda confirms my fears that Namco did not do it right.

It probably was a third person game with none of the aesthetics and atmosphere and gameplay of the Retro games, or heck even Super Metroid.

Hmm... how many of the game designers for the original Metroid Prime trilogy still are at Retro Studios? I know the original producer is still there, but the director isn't. I think there will be a difference in aesthetics comparable to Super Metroid vs. Metroid Fusion. We'll see if it's for better or for worse...

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Pretty sure the game wouldn't have been out "before 2020" with or without the do-over. Thing's practically vaporware at this point.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

The Twitter responses don't seem to understand. Everyone is all 'Good boy Nintendo, being honest and taking time to improve the game'
They're not improving the game, they're scraping it and telling someone else to do it. That is not the same as improving, that's starting over, where there is a chance it'll end up as bad as the original.

Fun fact that everyone is forgetting because of course gamers have zero understanding of or interest in gaming history: this is nothing new for Nintendo, it's not even new for Metroid. Heck, the initial builds of Metroid Prime 1 were so bad they were literally unplayable. So what did Nintendo do? They scrapped those builds and restarted from scratch. They stepped in and whipped Retro Studios into shape. Yeah, they didn't even change devs, they kept Retro but put them through the ringer to make them into hardened developers capable of pushing out not just a good game, but a GREAT game.

So this is what I say: good on Nintendo for transparency. They admitted it wasn't working and instead of letting the fandom go conspiracy theory they just went "Look, it wasn't working so we switched over to Retro to start over. CHILL THE FUCK OUT." Other developers would just leave people in the dark

 

[Specter Von Baren]

Nintendo's philosophy, do more with less, if it's not working then don't do it, and don't let good ideas go to waste.

 

[Saelune]

I mean, they could in the meantime port the old Prime's to Switch (since the Switch is mostly ports) so that those of us who never even finished 1 could catch up.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Hmm... how many of the game designers for the original Metroid Prime trilogy still are at Retro Studios? I know the original producer is still there, but the director isn't. I think there will be a difference in aesthetics comparable to Super Metroid vs. Metroid Fusion. We'll see if it's for better or for worse...

Prime director, art director, and principal technology engineer left Retro back in 2008 to found Armature Studios where they've basically done fuck all of note since then. Whatever those guys brought to the table, it hasn't hampered Retro much. They've been doing well enough.

 

[CaitSeith]

Hmm... how many of the game designers for the original Metroid Prime trilogy still are at Retro Studios? I know the original producer is still there, but the director isn't. I think there will be a difference in aesthetics comparable to Super Metroid vs. Metroid Fusion. We'll see if it's for better or for worse...

Prime director, art director, and principal technology engineer left Retro back in 2008 to found Armature Studios where they've basically done fuck all of note since then. Whatever those guys brought to the table, it hasn't hampered Retro much. They've been doing well enough.

I suppose then that the aesthetics may keep being more consistent to the Prime series than how I was anticipating.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

I mean, they could in the meantime port the old Prime's to Switch (since the Switch is mostly ports) so that those of us who never even finished 1 could catch up.

I would be ALL OVER THAT. The Trilogy being on WiiU was the thing that ALMOST made me buy one.

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

Good.
Other M basically proved that Nintendo shouldn't be the ones to write Samus to begin with.