{"id":9797,"date":"2025-11-14T14:50:59","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T14:50:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=9797"},"modified":"2025-11-14T14:51:01","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T14:51:01","slug":"metroid-prime-4-beyond-the-final-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=9797","title":{"rendered":"Metroid Prime 4: Beyond \u2013 The Final Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"


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After eight years of waiting, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is just three weeks away, and honestly, writing that still doesn\u2019t feel real. Maybe that\u2019s partly because Nintendo has kept a pretty tight lid on specifics surrounding Samus Aran\u2019s next adventure \u2013 we\u2019ve only seen a small handful of trailers, and much of Prime 4 has remained a total mystery. That\u2019s caused a lot of fans to think that they must be preserving some special surprise, right? Well, while playing over an hour of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond on Nintendo Switch 2, I discovered a seemingly major component that\u2019s been completely absent from any footage we\u2019ve seen so far: an extraordinarily talkative companion who\u2019s constantly spewing unwanted hints, quippy jokes, and cries for help, breaking the isolated, atmospheric themes Metroid is known for.<\/p>\n

His name is Myles MacKenzie, a specialist from the Galactic Federation stranded with Samus on the planet Viewros. Myles tagged along for a significant chunk of my play session, and the way Retro Studios has implemented this NPC companion is far and away my biggest concern about Prime 4 after my time with it. But we\u2019ll get to him a bit later.<\/p>\n

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Meet Myles. You’re going to be hearing a lot from him.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Because everything else was pretty encouraging: classic Metroid Prime exploration and combat, an intriguing setup, gorgeous art direction, and great technical performance on Switch 2 are coming together to create an adventure that likely won\u2019t redefine Metroid in any meaningful way \u2013 or live up to the unrealistic hype built by nearly a decade of waiting \u2013 but one that could serve as a great return for a subseries that hasn\u2019t seen a new mainline entry in 18 years, as long as annoying sidekicks don\u2019t keep getting in Samus\u2019 way.<\/p>\n

Behind the Visor<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Before we get too far, a word about spoilers. Everything I played takes place during the first 90 minutes or so of the adventure, so you really don\u2019t have to worry that you\u2019re going to see too much. It\u2019s also worth pointing out this was all on Switch 2, no one outside of Nintendo knows how Prime 4 will perform on Switch 1 just yet.<\/p>\n

But on Switch 2, it\u2019s looking fantastic so far. I started my preview in handheld mode, where I replayed the same introduction sequence we got to play at the Nintendo Switch 2 Premiere event back in April<\/u><\/a>. This was the final build of Prime 4\u2019s opening, and it\u2019s still an explosive introduction that sets the stage for the conflict between Samus and the Metroid-breeding bounty hunter, Sylux, as our hero is warped away to the mysterious planet Viewros. The biggest takeaway here is that Prime 4 looked fantastic on the Switch 2 screen, specifically at 120 fps in Performance Mode.<\/p>\n

Once I was set up on the TV \u2013 playing in Quality mode at a crisp 4K 60 fps \u2013 things got started with a very familiar, nostalgic chain of events: the camera snaps behind Samus\u2019 visor and I\u2019m left alone to explore a lush forest region, so I \u2013 almost reflexively \u2013 start scanning everything in sight to add it to my logbook. Gameplay-wise, Prime 4 doesn\u2019t seem to be reinventing the Morph Ball: this still looks and plays like Metroid Prime, and I really enjoyed falling back into its investigative flow: examining the local flora and fauna, locking onto floating gaseous spores or roots that leap out of the water and blasting them away with my arm cannon, scanning lore tablets to learn about the ancient race called the Lamorn, seeing Samus\u2019 reflection in the visor as I open the blue and orange wireframe map all Prime fans will recognize\u2026 I felt like Retro Studios was picking up right where it left off, retaining the core DNA of the series in this first major area.<\/p>\n

This still looks and plays like Metroid Prime, and I really enjoyed falling back into its investigative flow.<\/div>\n

The forest is called Fury Green, and after making my way through several linear hallways I was formally introduced to it with a sweeping wideshot that showed how great Retro\u2019s art direction still is. You can tell Prime 4 was built as a Switch 1 game in a couple ways \u2013 some background elements look a bit flat \u2013 but handing the added power of the Switch 2 to a studio with an artistic track record like Retro has resulted in what\u2019s shaping up to be a really beautiful game. <\/p>\n

At least in this self-contained area \u2013 my preview didn\u2019t cover the open desert or <\/em>Samus\u2019 motorcycle we\u2019ve seen in the last couple of trailers. It\u2019s important to note that Nintendo specifically chose not <\/em>to include that content at this preview event. Make of that what you will, but it leaves those two key components as our biggest unanswered questions that will have to wait for our final review.<\/p>\n

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Metroid: The Complete Playlist<\/h3>\n

Here’s every Metroid game, in order of release. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

But back to what I did actually see: in classic Metroid fashion, I soon ran into the first door I couldn\u2019t pass, so I morph-balled over to a new area and unlocked one of Prime 4\u2019s main new powers: the Psychic Glove. This gives Samus telekinetic control of psychic objects. I returned to the blocked door and used the glove to grab a psychic energy \u201cmote\u201d from a nearby statue and redirect it into the lock, allowing me to proceed. All examples of this were pretty simple so far, but this is the first major area, so it\u2019s probably fair to expect they\u2019ll get more complex as Samus progresses.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m hoping the same for the other uses of the Psychic Glove, which involve slowly tracing basic shapes to unlock an energy tank, or painstakingly pulling a lever to open the way to a Save Room. The animations felt sluggish and the actions were completely mindless \u2013 another thing I\u2019m expecting to ramp up as we go.<\/p>\n

Retro\u2019s art direction is still great, and Prime 4 is shaping up to be a really beautiful game.<\/div>\n

My map beeped, alerting me of a distress beacon from the Galactic Federation a few rooms away. On the way there, I passed some hardened tree resin I couldn\u2019t yet destroy, and scanning it indicated that a missile would take the wall down. I appreciate that Prime 4\u2019s blockades aren\u2019t all the same familiar doors, and that in this case, it was naturally woven into the environment. We\u2019d be back here later, but with a friend in tow….<\/p>\n

Beyond Chatty<\/strong><\/h2>\n

After tiptoeing through an eerie, condensed part of Fury Green, I came across a crash-landed Galactic Federation ship, where I was immediately taken aback by the tonal whiplash. My way here was filled with hauntingly beautiful choral melodies and isolated exploration \u2013 it was vintage Metroid Prime. But now, it\u2019s finally time to get to know specialist Myles MacKenzie, who introduced himself with this honestly cringey monologue (and if you don’t believe me, watch it in the video version of this preview at the top of the page):<\/p>\n

\u201cOh wow! Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow. What a mess. You\u2019re alone, on a planet, with no hope of survival. But, you\u2019re also not sitting next to Phil anymore in that cubicle\u2026 So\u2026 Win?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t leave a great first impression, but I was still intrigued to see where it went. Samus and Myles got swarmed by some jungle monsters, and it became my job to protect Myles from them. After a close-quarters firefight that concluded with shooting the vines holding up Myles\u2019 ship, he awarded me with the missile upgrade for being his savior. \u201cThis is fine,\u201d I thought. I prefer isolation in Metroid, but I don\u2019t mind running into a character here and there to flesh out the story with some voice acting and cutscenes. But then\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it’s OK with you, I\u2019m gonna tag along. So, where to? It might be a good idea to check the map and get our bearings.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I started to get a sinking feeling. In one turn, Samus not only gained an unwanted companion, that companion also instantly started chiming in on what I should be doing, like Atreus to Kratos in God of War, or Aloy to\u2026 Aloy in Horizon. The next 20 minutes of my demo ranged from mildly annoying to downright infuriating, as Myles constantly bombarded me with either awkward attempts at quippy humor\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about to get reeeeal nerdy in here!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Unwelcome hints that directly defy Metroid\u2019s spirit of exploration and discovery:<\/p>\n

\u201cMissiles are effective against a creature with a hard shell, you know.”<\/em><\/p>\n

He would scold me for not stopping to save my game:<\/p>\n

\u201cSamus, there’s something interesting over there. Are you sure we don\u2019t need to use that?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Comment on everything I scanned:<\/p>\n

\u201cCan you read that? Does that say anything about this place? They really don\u2019t want anyone in here. Must be a sacred space.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

State the obvious:<\/p>\n

\u201cI can see the door, Samus! Let’s get out of here.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

And he\u2019d scream whenever an enemy popped out of the ground suddenly. I promise I\u2019m not cherrypicking here \u2013 I was in complete disbelief at how Myles was constantly <\/em>talking during gameplay, to the point where I dug around the settings menu to see if I could tone it down. The only option I found was to mute voice acting entirely, but I don\u2019t see myself doing that when there are plenty of actual cutscenes I\u2019d still like to see play out normally.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t have a problem with Metroid focusing more on story or introducing important new characters. But that story and those characters still need to be good, and Myles was so annoying and overbearing that I honestly found it hard to focus on what I was doing. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption features other bounty hunters that Samus occasionally crosses paths with, but it\u2019s never <\/em>been this much of a focus. And, throw in as many cutscenes as you want, but I can\u2019t help but feel a sacred line has been crossed when I\u2019m playing Metroid and an annoying engineer tells me how to open my map, how to defeat an enemy, or reminds me to save without me asking for any of it. There are far smarter, more nuanced ways to onboard new players and push a franchise forward while still respecting the reasons people love it in the first place. And, the way Retro weaved Myles in caused a lot of dissonance that shattered the immaculate vibes the introduction set up. How am I supposed to soak in these gorgeous vistas, and this epic, serious music when this guy is asking me if that \u201cstrange smell\u201d is \u201csweet or stinky?\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019d had enough, and I tried to ditch Myles during a fight on a (very cool) bridge. I heard Myles yelling to not leave him behind, but before I knew it, he went down and my visor prompted me to use Samus\u2019 psychic powers to revive him. When I failed to do so, Myles died, and I got a game over for letting a federation trooper fall in battle. Of all the things Metroid Prime 4 could\u2019ve been, I never would\u2019ve guessed it would include outdated escort missions with a companion that never stops talking. Samus doesn\u2019t respond at all \u2013 which if you\u2019re going to pick between Samus talking a lot or not at all, silence is the right choice in a vacuum, even if I think a few words here and there would work better than awkward silence \u2013 but there are three words I really wanted to hear her say: \u201cPlease shut up.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I never would\u2019ve guessed Prime 4 would include outdated escort missions with a companion that never stops talking.<\/div>\n

Thankfully, this didn\u2019t last forever. After earning the new Control Beam ability that lets Samus direct her charge shots to hit multiple targets, (to which Myles said: \u201cYou found something for your suit, didn\u2019t you?\u201d) <\/em>we arrived in a Lamorn temple, where Myles decided to stay behind to work on fixing up some tech. Finally, some peace and quiet! I controlled a charge shot to open a blocked door from the other side, which reminded me of using Zelda: Skyward Sword\u2019s Beetle ability \u2013 both in its close-up camera angle and use of optional Wii-era motion controls \u2013 and pressed forward on my own. <\/p>\n

After enjoying the silence while working through a few more simplistic rooms, Samus was face-to-face with Carvex, Fury Green\u2019s plant-based boss. I blasted its tail, opening its belly up for a serving of missiles. It entered its next phase with two tails, and I found that by the time I destroyed the second, the first one had grown back. So, in classic Metroid fashion where your most recent upgrade is often key to beating a boss, I had to use the Control Beam to destroy both its tails with one bullet. This was neat, and really felt like more vintage Metroid Prime game design shining through.<\/p>\n