Zero Punctuation: Metroid Other M

Mr. Shoggoth

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Jul 29, 2009
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Hubilub said:
team star pug said:
Hubilub said:
Oh my. Could this be one of the few times where people don't comment before watching the video?

IT'S A MIRACLE!

EDIT: "And it's a lot smaller and more linear than, say, Metroid Fusion"

I see what you did there
I do not. I remember metroid fusion being a 2d sidescroller for the gba but I don't get the joke.

OT moreso: He didn't review reach so I can only imagine he was dumbstruck by how good it was. (in joke). I bet his review of reach will be something I don't agree with (I like reach) but still ind hilariuos
Metroid Fusion was, at least before Other M came out, the most linear Metroid game.
The obvious difference here is that Fusion was loved by everyone.
But I doubt Yahtzee was going for a joke there. It's just a fact that Other M is the most linear entry in the series.
 

Crazy_Bird

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Oct 21, 2009
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So what will be the surprise episode on Friday? Any guesses? Any recent occasion for this treat?
 

RejjeN

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I've been a Metroid fan for a long time and I didn't have any major issues with what they did to Samus in Other M... Sure the whole Ridley scene was a biiit overblown, but considering what he had done to her in the past I really don't think it's too out of place seeing as she wasn't expecting him to show up in the least.

I believe the thing with her suit falling off is a call-back to the official E-Manga where it was explained that her mental condition directly influenced the stability/functionality(?) of the suit, though I'd have to agree that might happen a little too often in Other M as well :p

Still, hardly as bad a game as many seem to believe in my opinion.
 

Nurb

Cynical bastard
Dec 9, 2008
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Hahaha, no matter how much progress has been made, they still can't stop playing up "SHES A WO-MAN!".

I agree with yahtzee that she should be treated as any other warrior that happens to be a woman instead of having big read neon signs above her head "THIS IS A WOMAN WARRIOR! IS IT NOT AMAZING? A WOMAN OF ALL THINGS! LOOK AT HER LADY TROUBLES AS SHE ALSO TRIES TO BE A WARRIOR"
 

kaijyuu

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Sep 14, 2009
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Never try to give previously silent protagonists personalities. The whole point of a silent protagonist is to project your own personality onto the character... to let you decide who you're controlling is. Changing it is going to be jarring at best.
 

Slaingod

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Apr 22, 2009
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I think reviewing Halo is going to be like reviewing Call of Duty. It may take 5000 bleating lambs filling his mailbox with a strange goo before he caves in and says "fuck it". Then again maybe it will be on next week. Also, by the way, Halo: Reach released in Australia 14SEP2010, as it did in Europe and the US. Maybe he busy coming up with some really good reviews, having not played it yet. Maybe he's trying to figure out how to say it sucks in 10 paragraphs(I'm not saying it sucks, I've not played it YET).I'm not saying, I'm just saying.
 

Nukeforyou

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Crazy_Bird said:
So what will be the surprise episode on Friday? Any guesses? Any recent occasion for this treat?
I'm putting my money on minecraft. Its not a full game to get a full review but it sure has been blowing up lately
 

SpaceMedarotterX

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Sylocat said:
SpaceMedarotterX said:
BlueInkAlchemist said:
Snake Plissken said:
I was really hoping that the "Check out my screw attack" comment wasn't just a reference to Metroid. I was sincerely hoping there was something at screwattack. Sad day
There is. And it comes to us from none other than MovieBob.

I give you the Game OverThinker [http://gameoverthinker.blogspot.com/2010/09/episode-40-heavens-to-metroid.html].
Bob is a NINENDO WHORE! I'll be about as eager to trust his words on a nintendo game as I would be to trust the X-Box Republic's opinions on a PS3 game. And I don't give a damn if the man constantly claims he is not a fanboy, his actions and words all dictate otherwise.
Rule #1 of The Escapist: Anyone who likes anything I don't like is a fanboy.
You say to the guy who owns a Wii and is quite happy with it, nice going genius why don't you take this Rule

Rule#983 of the Internet: Responding to a comment by insulting the person behind it, rather than offering up any substantial argument, puts you in the same category as an animal when it comes to debate and intellect

Next time save me the trouble and just make a 'Your Mum' joke.

And before you think of the smart ass "Oh but you insulted Bob" any video in which a man can proclaim that Super Mario Brothers 3 is a LITERAL GIFT FROM GOD makes you a fanboy, There is no such thing as a game that good. Even if a so called 'perfect game' existed, it wouldn't be that good.
 

Cherry Cola

Your daddy, your Rock'n'Rolla
Jun 26, 2009
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BlueInkAlchemist said:
So the best way to enjoy a game that's trying not to be an FPS is to play an FPS? Huh.

When was Samus established as having a "bold, independent spirit"? I don't remember that being mentioned at all in any of the games other than the fact that you, the player, are controlling her and she's completely alone. She blindly followed our orders even if it meant smacking into a wall repeatedly when our phones rang or falling into an acid pit when we mis-judged a jump she probably could have handled were she in control of her own body.

This sounds so much like so many other arguments against Other M I'm wondering if Yahtzee either got bored with the ZP enterprise now that his novel's out or has just been too busy to form salient points that he's cribbed notes from other sources. Not that I myself would ever do such a thing [http://gameoverthinker.blogspot.com/2010/09/episode-40-heavens-to-metroid.html].

Funny? Yes. Accurate? No idea. I'm too poor to own a Wii. But I find myself kinda confused by all of the hatred. Maybe it's just me.
To be fair, in Metroid Fusion her personality was rather bold and independent. It starts with her going on a mission to inspect a space station that's gone silent, but when she realizes that the place is crawling with creatures that can kill and then clone living organisms, and that the government wants them for weapons, she abandons her mission AND defies her partner AI (which is hinted at to actually be Adam) so that she can destroy the space station.

But mostly I think that when people say her personality is bold and independent, they are only trying to give more power behind the fact that Samus was one of the first iconic female badasses in gaming, and she didn't need a personality because by that time, most badasses didn't need personalities to be badass (Like the majority of 80s action films). Giving her a personality wasn't needed, because Samus wasn't supposed to be a deep character, she was supposed to be a badass without personality, showing that the role of badass wasn't exclusive to men.

Now, I'm not saying that they shouldn't add more depth to her. On the contrary, not adding depth to her would be stupid. But you can add depth to a character without taking away the badassness. What Other M did was take away the feeling that Samus was a super-badass. She was too dependent on other characters, she froze still when facing Ridley, and all that other stuff people complain about.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that while Samus didn't have much of a personality before Other M, her character still made a statement: Women can be equally as awesome as men. And Other M took away that statement.

Metroid Fusion is still the best Metroid game in the series for me, because that game managed to add some more depth to Samus while keeping her a badass.
 

Nitrokitty

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Mar 27, 2008
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So I looked up who did Samus's voice for the Metroid Prime series, even limited as it was to grunts when she gets hit, and I found out who it was.

JENNIFER MOTHER FUCKING HALE!

Seriously, can we get a vote on this as the greatest missed opportunity of the century? If they wanted Samus to have instant badass cred, like she SHOULD, hiring Jennifer Hale to do the voice instead of the robot they got would have improved the game immensely. Then kick all the Team Ninja writers in the head and go get a real writing team, add some classic controller support, and you might have had a really good game. Nintendo, write this down. Fire Team Ninja. Bring back Retro Studios.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go play Corruption so I can see a good example of how to integrate dialog into a Metroid game unobtrusively. Peace out.
 

Zhinrak

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Mar 29, 2010
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The best part of metroid other m for me, was trading it in and buying another game with it.

The problem with this game is not necessarily the choices that were made, but instead i see it as that the choices they did make were executed BADLY. The controls are interesting and the concept of switching from 3rd to 1st person perspective could have been awesome. However 3rd person combat is frantic with a lot of jumping about and dodging, a complete contrast to being in 1st person where Samus cannot move at all, and those stupid scenes where you have to look at something 'significant' were terrible, most times it was something that should have been shown in a cut scene and often finding what the game was expecting you to find would be difficult because there was little to no indication of what you were supposed to find, and often you'd have to look exactly at the single tiny spot required.

Nothing i can say about the narrative and voice acting is something that has been unheard. I don't care that Samus was given a voice, or that she was put in a position to take orders etc etc. The issue is that the orders being given sometimes made no sense and why the hell Samus would not use the varia suit until told makes even less sense. That's like a firefighter running into a burning building without an oxygen tank and mask because his/her superiors didn't tell them to put it on. Ignoring that It made more sense why she could not use super bombs and other weapons and could have been done in a much better way.

As for the voice actor, i did some background research. I jokingly told my housemates that she sounded like "some stupid ***** they dragged off the street, jammed a microphone in her face and told her to read a script". Scarily i was not far off because the voice actor has done little in the ways of film and even less in the way of games. She was a actor in various plays and not even that many of them. Coupled with the poor voice acting, how MovieBob completely missed the poor script writing i will never know, hes supposed to be a movie critic. The numerous long drawn out monologues made by Samus were rarely needed and over descriptive. I know they are supposed to be internal monologues but even then who the hell seriously talks like she did when mumbling to herself? The biggest risk they took was giving her a voice and a personality and it feels like they put little effort into it. If this was gordon freeman with a voice i am sure it would have just as much, if not more outrage. The big difference is i know that a company like Valve would do their best not to screw it up and would do it right unlike team ninja.

Ultimately her characterization was terrible not just because, to many of us, it didn't feel like who Samus really was, but because it was genuinely a hard to believe character in general. If we treat this game like it was not a metroid game, and that it was some other female protagonist in an armored suit i am sure i would still have a hard time swallowing some of the rubbish being fed to me through that game.

I pretty much disagree with everything that MovieBob stated in his video, and his review is not all that surprising as from seeing many of his reviews he is a big big supporter of "fan service". I totally agree with everything Yahtzee has pointed out. If you want a good metroid game play through the prime trilogy. They managed to express a greater story with far less cut-scenes, less voice acting a better more visually stunning set of worlds, better music, better game play etc etc. Oh and better characterization of Samus without her even speaking a word (Seriously if bob can play through prime 3 and not get the concept that Samus is a hard as nails soldier with a "3 dimensional" personality hes a moron. From the end cut scene of prime 3 its made clear that Samus does have emotions and a personality, she just knows that there is a time and place for it all, and midway through a mission is not that time)

*EDIT*

Also throughout the entire of prime 3 Samus is technically working for a male officer, and taking orders from men etc etc. The big difference between prime 3 and other M is that Samus is shown respect in Prime 3, in other M it does not feel like Adam respects Samus and it is constantly pointed out that she is a woman. She is called Lady all the time and 'Princess' by a friend. The whole game points out the fact she is a woman, in need of support and distractions from her 'motherly instincts' every 5 seconds.
 

Cherry Cola

Your daddy, your Rock'n'Rolla
Jun 26, 2009
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Mr. Shoggoth said:
Hubilub said:
team star pug said:
Hubilub said:
Oh my. Could this be one of the few times where people don't comment before watching the video?

IT'S A MIRACLE!

EDIT: "And it's a lot smaller and more linear than, say, Metroid Fusion"

I see what you did there
I do not. I remember metroid fusion being a 2d sidescroller for the gba but I don't get the joke.

OT moreso: He didn't review reach so I can only imagine he was dumbstruck by how good it was. (in joke). I bet his review of reach will be something I don't agree with (I like reach) but still ind hilariuos
Metroid Fusion was, at least before Other M came out, the most linear Metroid game.
The obvious difference here is that Fusion was loved by everyone.
But I doubt Yahtzee was going for a joke there. It's just a fact that Other M is the most linear entry in the series.
I'm still pretty positive on it being a joke. One of those subtle ones that not everyone can catch. He's had a few of them, so this being one doesn't seem that far-fetched
 

jebara

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Nov 19, 2009
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whats with people saying fridays the last ZP?
then again that would explain the special EP...
im scared...i love watching ZP and i dont want to see it end anytime soon!
 

Green Ninja

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Aug 10, 2009
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In all the time I watch this show, this was the first time I completly agree with what Yathzee said. I can not belive how bad this game is. There is nothing good about it except the cinematic presentation.
 

C_Topher

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May 17, 2009
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At the risk of sounding like a fanboy, I must disagree with Yahtzee. He focused too much on Samus' character and not enough on anything else. The whole motherhood theme is both an extension of what was built in Super Metroid (which Other M directly proceeds) and an reference to the Alien series, which you should all know Metroid was heavily inspired by.
I will admit I have issues with Samus' relationship with Adam. Yes, it's stupid that she needs his permission to use anything, but that's really more of an issue with the game's design, not Samus herself. How else could they have implemented the upgrade system. They tried something new for a change. And on that note, why the hell are people complaining that the series hasn't changed? You ***** if something's different, but you ***** just as much if it's the same thing. You can't have it both ways, people.
I will commend Yahtzee for not bringing up his well documented hate for the Wii, but I think that may made him bias to this game before he even put in the disc. Also, as a professional, he should consider a game based on its own mertis (or lack there of) instead of comparing it to an earlier instalment of the series. Yes, Metroid Prime was awesome, but this isn't Metroid Prime. You wouldn't compare Yahtzee to his brother, would you? No, because other than sharing 50% of their DNA, they are two unique individuals, and should be evaluated as such.
Yes, this review was funny, but it fell short in all other aspects. I know you can do better than this Yahtzee, so why aren't you?
 

SFR

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Mar 26, 2009
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viking97 said:
awesomem review yahtzee, i had a feeling this would be rather crap.

it appears most of the other reviewers are being extra special nice to it for some reason..
No, you just don't realize the purpose of Yatzee: to make you laugh. He hyperbolizes everything. Also, I'm quite sure he is bad at video games, just based on some of the control porblems he's had with other games (this one included, actually. It's suppose to work quite well after a bit of getting used to). He's here for entertainment, not to review games.

For example, imagine your favorite game. Now imagine Yatzee "reviewed" it. It apparently really, REALLY sucks. Unless of course you favorite game is Psychonauts or Portal.
 

Sylocat

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Nov 13, 2007
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SpaceMedarotterX said:
You say to the guy who owns a Wii and is quite happy with it, nice going genius why don't you take this Rule

Rule#983 of the Internet: Responding to a comment by insulting the person behind it, rather than offering up any substantial argument, puts you in the same category as an animal when it comes to debate and intellect

Next time save me the trouble and just make a 'Your Mum' joke.
I was not insulting you, I was responding to your insult against Bob.
 

Mr. Shoggoth

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Jul 29, 2009
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Hubilub said:
I'm still pretty positive on it being a joke. One of those subtle ones that not everyone can catch. He's had a few of them, so this being one doesn't seem that far-fetched
Well then, can you explain the joke to me because I don't really get it.