Taking a break from work for a moment, I saw that a friend of mine at Gamespot posted this there. I thought I'd relay it on to you guys. My blood is boiling as we speak in anticipation.
http://www.gamepro.com/nintendo/wii/games/previews/92688.shtml
We just got back from a marathon gaming session, and Metroid was one of the most interesting titles that we played at Nintendo's super-secret, invite-only gaming session.
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption Definitely stole the the show. The graphics looked amazing -- better than Halo 2 on the Xbox without a doubt -- and the levels showed off sparkling details, proving the Wii is far more powerful than the Gamecube. Out of all the games we played, the Wii controller seemed most at home with Metroid.
You don't fire with your index finger, but with your thumb (using the A button). This sounds a little goofy, but in practice it worked very, very well. You could press the directional pad to fire rockets or enter your scanning mode, and the trigger (aka the B button) handled jumps very nicely. Samus has a few new moves that take advantage of the motion-sensitive controller. By locking onto a target and thrusting the left nunchuku forward, Samus could launch a grappling beam. The beam is similar to Half-Life 2's Gravity Gun, but was mostly used to push rubble out of the way, open grates, or in a nice touch, yank shields from enemy hands. The other major Wii functionality was that some control panels needed to be lifted, rotated, and pushed back into slots -- these movements were all handled on the Wii controller.
Aiming with the point-and-shoot controller felt very nice, though it took a few minutes to become truly comfortable. The experience was much like playing a PC first-person shooter, especially since the nunchucku analog stick controlled movement We found that standing roughly four feet from the TV provided the best motion, and the cursor stayed smooth and steady -- no shakiness! The frame rate was also smooth and consistent, even when the screen got crowded with special effects.
Metroid was probably the best Wii game on display. Wii can't wait to play more!
http://dwb.newsobserver.com/24hour/technology/story/3464032p-12676410c.html
While it may be hard to find a gamer willing to question the greatness of the "Metroid" series, there probably aren't too many people who will defend the storylines as highlights.
Retro Studios is trying to change that with the third "Metroid Prime" title, called "Corruption," which ups the ante with a bigger and more complex plot to further draw players into its immersive world.
The game's plot is set six months after the close of GameCube hit "Metroid Prime 2." A virus suddenly corrupts the Galactic Federation's central computer, and space pirates are the prime suspects. As the Federation gathers bounty hunters (including the series star Samus) to address the problem, the space pirates strike a Galactic Federation military base and chaos ensues. Soon it becomes apparent that Dark Samus, presumed dead after the last game, is alive and directing the attack. Samus' evil alter ego begins to seed planets with the contaminated substance phazon (presumably the root of the computer problem), and our favorite armored heroine must pursue and cleanse the various infected sites.
Nintendo continues to refine the game controls to best utilize the new Wii controller. "Corruption" will allow you to adjust how fast the onscreen cursor moves in reaction to your twitching hand (something we hope other developers will incorporate into their Wii games). After finding your ideal setting, you'll aim with more precision and turn the camera at a speed that feels more natural to you. We're also excited about some of the unique hand movements incorporated into the game, like whipping out an energy beam to yank a door off its hinges.
"Corruption" takes full advantage of the first-person perspective to make you part of the action. There's also a new hyper mode in which Samus can fill up her phazon supply to a certain point to push her into a heightened period of speed and power. Push the phazon limit too far and it will overload her armor and you'll be seeing a game over screen. Finally, word is that at long last Samus' ship will be used during gameplay, an intriguing twist that should cause the saliva glands of "Metroid" fans to work overtime.
Nintendo is keeping other details, such as any information about the long-sought online multiplayer, under wraps. Originally planned as a Wii launch title, "Metroid Prime 3" currently has no hard release date, but Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime has said the game will be released sometime after March.