Following one of the most acclaimed trilogies in gaming, Metroid Prime 4 was going to have some big shoes to fill to say the least. Following a troublesome development cycle which saw development switch between two studios, in some ways Metroid Prime 4 reaches some of the highest points in the series. However, while long time series developer Retro did a great job overall, the game falls just short of being a masterpiece due to some unnecessary design choices.

Story

While answering a call at a galactic federation facility, Samus finds herself forced to defend the station from the space pirates who are desperate after their last defeat at Samus’ hands. She learns they’re after an artifact and while defending it, her old enemy Sylux joins the pirates in their attack. The artifact gets damaged and it teleports Samus to a planet called Viewros. The race of this planet, the Lamorn who have since gone extinct leave behind messages that reveal Samus is prophesied to preserve the memory of their race. Samus agrees to do this and she discovers that some of the federation soldiers were also teleported as well. She sets off to save them as well as find a way off Viewros with the legacy of the Lamorn in tact.

Pros

So the planet of Viewros is one of the best locales in a Metroid game to date. On top of being visually impressive, it’s one of the most fun maps I’ve had exploring in a Metroid game overall. From a lush jungle to a massive underground mine, the locales are varied in both their visuals and their level design. Although the Switch 2 isn’t as much of a powerhouse as other consoles, it shows that great looking games can be made on the platform.

On top of looking great, Viewros and its various locales were also fun to explore for the most part, Prime 4 has a great sense of immersion within its various locales. This is in part due to both Samus’ new telekinetic abilities as well as the way that the game takes new spins on her well known abilities.

The games telekinetic powers are what’s used for puzzle solving the most but they also amplify and add new twists to her old powers such as being able to turn the morph ball bombs into a hand grenade or power source. The game’s puzzles are smartly designed without being frustrating and while this is a Metroid game and you’re sure to get lost at some points, Prime 4 does a good job of telling you where to go and how to get things done through it’s level design alone to the point where I almost never used the game’s map outside of when I had to backtrack. Samus’ new abilities include things such as being able to use a telekinetic shot that slows time and acts as a guided missile which has applications in both exploration and combat or being able to create platforms or turn rails for the boost ball into a rollercoaster.

On top of the level design and exploration being great, the game in my opinion has the best combat throughout the Prime games. The game features an aiming system which allows you to lock on while also free aim at the same time to take advantage of different weak points bosses may present. While you can use the right stick for this, it’s also usable with the Switch’s gyroscope and honestly it’s one of the few cases where I actually preferred using the gyroscope as it meshes with the system well.

While Samus has her classic charge shot and missiles, she also unlocks powerful elemental attacks based on fire, ice and lightning as the game goes on. Each of these abilities can be upgraded and it makes Samus feel more devastating than she’s ever been throughout the Prime games.

This greatly extends to the games boss battles which were some of my favorite in a game in quite some time. Each boss has different tactics and they all test Samus’ various abilities in different ways such as having to use the telekinetic control shot to destroy each of a boss’s weak spots as they’ll keep respawning too fast for you to take out traditionally. Metroid as a franchise has been known for having some of the best boss fights in any franchise and Prime 4 keeps that tradition going strong.

Accompanying the boss battles, as well as the game in general is a great soundtrack. From the eerie sounds that the series is known for in it’s more isolated areas to epic chants and high energy tracks that play during the games combat encounters and boss fights. Prime 4 has one of the best soundtracks this year for sure.

I’ll speak a bit on the game’s open world aspect later but, I’ll say that your main method of getting around it, Samus’ new bike the Vi-0-la is fun to use. It plays a part in some missions and it controls well. I wouldn’t mind seeing the mechanic revisited.

Not necessarily good or bad

So I will talk about the game’s additional NPCs. I personally don’t think they’re bad or good in a sense. The characters are a bit cliched, the hardened veteran, the eager rookie in awe of a legendary warrior like Samus etc. although they’re cliched a bit, they’re not unlikeable for the most part and there is one particular mission where their characters do get to shine through a bit. One problem with the NPCs I’ll say is they do take away from Samus’ characterization a bit toward the end of the game, although nothing is as bad as Other M…. Nowhere near as bad as Other M. Overall the NPCs weren’t really necessary but they aren’t terrible either. Just kinda there… Granted I like the robot.

Cons

So unfortunately the biggest con in Prime 4 is the open world. It’s not that it doesn’t function but, rather that it feels unnecessary in a series like Metroid which is already known for being very open ended. Add in that it feels like things involving the open world kinda feels like padding a bit as you have to collect a huge number of green crystals scattered throughout. The world is also pretty empty for the most part. You just ride around smashing into crystals with your bike, occasionally fight a few enemies. There are some secrets worth finding within it but overall, it’s just a rather weak open world in a game that doesn’t need it. I know Nintendo has seen a lot of success with open world lately due to Zelda but implementing that to Metroid would have to be done in the vein of a game like metro if they really wanted to do it.

Also while I didn’t like or hate the NPC characters overall, there was one in particular that I really could’ve done without in McKenzie. I didn’t find his character annoying or anything but he’s unfortunately the main NPC that’s worked into gameplay regularly. When you’re in the open world, McKenzie will regularly chime in and tell you where to go whether you want him to or not which breaks the game’s immersion. Also, whenever you find a new elemental power you’re forced to backtrack all the way back to McKenzie to activate it. Samus has never had to do something like this in other games. When she gets a new weapon she can just use it typically so this change was unwelcome to say the least.

Lastly, there are times where you’ll have to escort some of the federation troops. Typically this isn’t a problem as they aren’t pushovers and don’t die too easily but there are a couple of missions late in the game where it does get rather annoying.

Final Thoughts

Overall, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a worthy addition to the Metroid franchise overall and does it’s best to follow up the legendary Prime trilogy. In some ways it does manage to exceed the game but although it’s very good, there are a few design choices that keep it just shy from being a masterpiece.

Reviewed on Nintendo Switch 2, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond released on 4 December 2025.