N-Sider Q&A Mailbag
Column by Jeff Van Camp, Travis Woodside, Cory Faller

Edition: 11-07-2005

There is no need to cut me any slack this time, haha. I am well aware that its been months since the last Q&A update. I blame life. But now the mailbag will be updating at least once every two weeks, on what we are calling a new rigid column updating schedule. So you should see a new mailbag every other Sunday night (except this one, because its Monday). In any case, be sure to send your questions, criticisms, commentary, feedback, praise, or rants to qa@n-sider.com.

In this edition we discuss, Revolution, Wi-Fi, Nintendos advertising efforts, lack of a killer flagship game this Christmas, Nintendos likeness to Apple, and more!

A Head Start?

Hey N-Sider, long time reader, first time writer here, all the way from *gasp* canada. My question is concerning the online capabilities coming up later this month, specifically Nintendo organized events. Do you think Nintendo will be organizing events such as camp hyrule, or SSBM Revolution tournaments with prizes? Really, going online offers Nintendo a much better way for Nintendo to interact with their players, what with demos, possible updates in games, etc. Part two of my question would be, do you think Nintendo will make worldwide releases a higher priority? Picture a newbie North American SSBMR player going online to play a foe in Japan, only to lose horribly because of the amount of time each player has had with the game, if Japan had received the release first. That's not exactly great for establishing a global community. Thanks for answering, from your friendly neighborhood

- Canadian Psycho


Jeff: Well its not the best situation, sure, but its not the worst either. Honestly, I didnt envision Nintendo even enabling people across regions/continents to face one another. With the DS they have. Im pumped. While its unknown whether the Revolution will feature worldwide play, it is using a more fleshed out version of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Therefore, it is likely a goal that Nintendo is striving for. Judging from Nintendos increased focus on America as of late, Im guessing that the Revolution will launch near simultaneously in North America and Japan (hopefully with Europe coming soon after). So Japan and North America should get Super Smash Bros. 3 very comparably. I wouldnt worry too much.

56k Woes

I've had the misfortune of being stuck with 56k. My parents are reluctant to enter the new millennium, as such, I won't be getting any fast speed connections. This worries me because I really want to go online with the DS and Revolution. Will I be able to use their Wi-fi service with a 56k modem?

Thanks,

- Zak


Jeff: Tell your parents to grow up. Its 2005. If you have the ability and income to afford high speed, you should have it. Theres no comparison. If they wont do it, do what I did years back and try and split the cost with them or offer to pay the difference between dialup and high speed. It means getting a job, but its worth it. To answer your question though, no there isnt any possible way to play Wi-Fi with a dialup connection. Youll probably be able to find a hotspot or two somewhere in your community, if theres a participating McDonalds around or something like that. But to play Revolution online youre going to need a high speed connection. Even if you could play on dial-up, it wouldnt be fun. So start planning. Youve got a year.

Filler

It's been too long since you guys have done a mail bag update, so i thought I'd send you an email as a filler.

Now that the revolution controller has been shown, every speculation has been debunked, and the jury on the controller is out, it is time to address Nintendo's real problems -- marketing.

I don't understand Nintendo's commercials. It'd be nice if you guys can point me to, or create an archive of Nintendo's tv ads. That way we can bash them one by one. I mean... a hamster humping a gbm? This for donkey konga in Europe? and spoiled brads playing with nintendogs? I just don't get it. The truth is, these tv ads makes me NOT want to buy the games they are trying to sell. For example, the kid who had a dwarf get him a hot dog... he was really annoying.. and he made me not want to buy pikmin 2 (I bought it anyways cuz i knew it was a good game). I will make a superficial attempt at pointing out some of the more obvious problems.

1. Obscure scene that is somewhat related to the game -- I remember first seeing the smash bros. commercial. There were some mascots beating each other up. I had no idea what that was about until I actually played the game. Another example would be the wifi commercial for Mario kart, an old man threw a banana peel somewhere and it caused some cars to spin somewhere else... Does that really tell people what wifi is? I mean as a programmer and well informed gamer, I knew what they were talking about, but there were a lot of people who were completely clueless about what that commercial was trying to say.. much like how i feel about the gbm fuzzball commercial. btw Nintendo, most people don't associate a banana peel with slipping cars.

2. no gameplay -- The commercial spends more time showing me real life scenes than real game play. The trend I've been noticing is, clip of real life people doing something, then a very short clip of the game. A good example of this would be the metroid prime commercial. They show some model (from a not so flattering angle) walking, then attracting metal plates.. then shooting, and then a little bit of game play. First of all, her suit did not look like that of samus'. Second, the metal plates had nothing to do w/ metroid prime. Third, you really can't tell what the game was. Why did they not just show more gameplay footage of such a beautiful game? The commercial was not informative at all. To someone who knows about metroid, all you can gather from that commercial was the fact that it was a fps. To someone who does not know metroid, the commercial told you pretty much nothing! Having such a short clip of the actual game makes it seem like the game was not very good, and that the advertisers needed some gimmick to sell the product. The commercial did not tell me a story, it did not make me feel like I was playing the game, it did not show off the superior graphics, it did not even have a nice catch phrase, or catchy music. What was I suppose to take out of the commercial? I'm no expert in advertisement.. but when you pay for air time.. you should show your product.

3. annoying kids -- I want to be olimar, not the kid pretending to be olimar. When I see olimar controlling pikmins, I feel like I'm olimar. "who are you?" well... you're the character you're playing. You don't have to show me some spoiled kid pretending to be that character. I mean, seeing that kid demand condiments on his hotdog made me really angry, partially because of the pikmin abuse.. and partly because the guy casted as a pikmin is actually a middle aged man! I get the same reaction from the nintendog commercials. Why do the kids all have to have attitudes and seem sooooooooo spoiled? Rather, why have these kids to begin with, are you trying to pigenhole your audience? btw.. little kids want to be like cooler older kids.. not other spoiled kids.

4. where are the advertisements -- I always hear about the psp and xbox over the radio or the news. I see the halo, fable, gta, mgs commercials. Why are nintendo commercials so rare. And when I do see them, why are they sooo short? I mean.. given the freaquency (or lack thereof), the short length, the small percentage of actual gameplay and the amount of time spent being confused about what the ad is trying to sell me... I'd say they're either not spending enough, or they're wasting their money.

I think i'm not alone here, I've seen many complaints about Nintendo commercials in Europe and Australia. Nintendo has great games.. but they don't advertise them correctly. Heck, even if you have a crappy game, if you advertise them correctly they'll sell. That's what marketing is for. I know some people would disagree with me on this one, but it'd be great if Nintendo can start making commercials like the gta ones.

I really hope the other revolution news is Nintendo finally found a clue about how to advertise. What do you think?

- Idgaf


Jeff: I agree and disagree. Nintendo hasnt done the best job advertising this generation, thats for sure. For the greater part of the last five years, it felt like the company didnt have any overall advertising plan or strategy for the Cube. This was partially true. However, I think that the company has been improving its advertising over the last two years. The DS advertising, in particular, has been very impressive at times. I enjoyed the Wi-Fi Connection commercial with the banana peel and the car. I also enjoyed last years Pikmin 2 commercial. You are right though, I think that some of the cinematic trailers (filled with all game footage) for games like Halo 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3 were much better than anything Nintendo has come up with. So yeah, there is definitely room for improvement. Its not that the commercials need to show gameplay as much as they should try and convey the feel of the game more. The Metroid Prime 2 commercial didnt do that. It reminded me of the old Perfect Dark commercials, which I never understood. The person in the commercials looks nothing like the character in the game. Just didnt make sense. Perhaps in the third Metroid game, with the addition of voices, we can have a well rounded trailer that uses all in-game footage and dialog. Those are usually my favorite trailers. Unless the narrator starts off by saying Every game has a story In that case, go with narration all the way.

Too soon for a Revolution?

This e-mail isn't meant to sound negative, it's perhaps an overall observation of the state of the industry.

The Revolution does, in my eyes (and many others) have the potential to be an absolute phenomenon. The idea of games becoming more "involved" is something many hardcore players will surely be looking forward to. And casual or first time gamers will surely be attracted by its more physical, almost 'natural' experience.

However, a main concern I have with the future of the Revolution is the software itself. Nintendo have always supported its consoles with the best, innovative software. Yet as they proceed forwards off the beaten track are they not leaving developers and therefore gamers in the shade? Is it not a case of "too much too soon?"

When I look at companys like Rockstar and EA. The pulling power these companies have on gamers in Europe and America is second to none. But as we go forward are we going to see the next Grand Theft Auto or EA 'generic action title' on the Revolution? Surely the current control setups alienate the developers from developing. Surely the "if it aint broke dont fix it" saying applies.

The current game model of GTA is enough to make millions in its next iteration. The next GTA will surely just be a bigger city looking better. And all Rockstar need to do is advertise the more realistic graphics and the same old gameplay. And gamers will probably be clamouring for it. The same applies to EA. Minor updates, same game model. Will things change? What do you think?

I feel only Nintendo and a few Japanese developers will be really using the functionaliy of this new console to its absolute best. (with western developers using the 'shell' more so). Will we see the big European and American 3rd party brands on Revolution? I guess I'm observing the industry to be stale everywhere but in Japan at the moment.

- Mark Lee


Jeff: Heres how I see it. Weve been using the same basic control scheme for 20 years (at least one directional pad and some buttons on the other side). There have been changes, of course, but most of them additions. So how long should Nintendo wait before the rest of the industry is ready? Has anyone waited up for Nintendo when the industry changed in other ways?

The only way to move forward is to try. The dominance of companies like EA and Rockstar has only really taken shape in these last five years. Every new console generation defines its own new franchises and moneymakers. Personally, I dont see GTA or Halo (unless they do something original) being as huge as they were this generation. Nothing is certain. Everything can change. There is no answer.

If Nintendo starts selling Revolutions, you will see more and more support for the machine. The Big N has put itself in a position where it has to prove its viability in the console marketplace. Either it will do what it takes, or it wont. Nintendo has the capability and know-how to sell a whole lot more Revolutions than it ever did GameCubes. Lets hope it pulls out all the stops.

No Flagship Title

If you think about it, every year the GCN has had a flagship title from Nintendo, a game that is a must-have for the Christmas, and also the game that is suppose to be the best seller for Nintendo.

In 2001 it was ultra-super-fun Smash Melee. The year 2002 saw the anticipated return from an absence of eight years with the quintessential Metroid Prime. For 2003 we had Mario Kart, and for 2004 Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (even though Paper Mario sold perhaps more).

And Twilight Princess, obviously, was going to be THE Flagship title for GCN, not only for 2005, but for it's entire lifespan. But sine now this gem will be launched in 2006, which game will be this year's flagship title?

What do you think about this? I have three candidates: Pokmon XD, Mario Strikers and Fire Emblem. From the above, I will pick Fire Emblem, because it is the most polished and is the better game overall of the three, but I think that the one that will sell more copies will be the quick, dirty and mediocre sequel of the already mediocre Pokmon Colloseum.

How many copies do you think that Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow will sell worldwide, and how many copies sold do you think will be enough to satisfy Konami, so we can see another Castlevania for DS in the future?

- Alejandro Mouras


Jeff: Yeah Paper Mario 2 has sold around 600,000 units -- about 60,000 or so more than Metroid Prime 2. It actually outsold Paper Mario for the N64 though by a good 50k at least. So Id consider it a success. But yeah, last year didnt really pan out for Nintendo very well. Metroid Prime 2 didnt really catch on, and I think the game itself was partially to fault. It didnt really appeal to anyone outside of fans of the original. It was fun, but I didnt care for it as much.

Nintendo seems to be positioning Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance as the flagship game of the year. I find myself doubting it will pay off, but if there are enough smart GameCube owners out there the game will sell. I, myself, am looking forward to Super Mario Strikers more than any Mario sports game in god knows how long. The game looks like it has actual personality. Which is much more than I can say for your average Mario sports game.

Super SD Virtual DS

Dear Jeff and Travis

Stay with me on this. Nintendo has the Play-Yan that can play mp3s and video via SD cards. It can also play downloaded minigames saved to a SD card. And Nintendo is making the Revolution a "virtual console" by making NES, SNES, and N64 games downloadable. So my question is this: Do you think Nintendo could make it possible for you to download NES and most SNES games to an SD card, and then you could play them on a GBA or DS through the Play-Yan? Nintendo would probably have to release an emulator of some sort to make this possible, but I think it could work.

If Nintendo then cut a deal with other publishers to release their past games as well (SEGA), then you very well could have Super Mario and Sonic on the same card to play on your GBA. What do you guys think?

- Pierce

P.S. I thank you for your time and consideration.


Travis: Could Nintendo do it? Absolutely. Will they? I highly doubt it. It is a fun idea, however.

3rd Party Scare

So whats up guys? You know I really should reread these letters before I send them out so I don't look so much like an idiot. Though I must admit that when writing a letter to you guys I get so excited and hot that I........... well maybe I should leave that part out for the kids. ;) So anyways on to the subject. I am writing to you fellows today because of the trend that I see going on. How Sony and Microsoft are giving out lots of money to big game companies for exclusive games. A lot of people are mad at the big N because they are losing great game development studios. Though the way I see it is because Microsoft started to give out a lot of money to development studios to have exclusive games come to there console. Now Sony is catching on and is starting to do the same thing.

The way I see it is that development studios are more willing to go to these to companies because of the market share they hold or are gaining and because if a big company is willing to lift some of the burden of financing a game today. So I really don't see it as it being Nintendos fault right now for losing some of these game companies. Sure they could have done things differently in the past but for right now we live in the present and they could go into bidding wars for development studios and invest a lot of money on a game that might not become a hit.

I know Nintendo is sitting on a lot of money right now but lets face it there money is generated from gaming. If they take a loss in it they have to pull out from the savings to keep the company a float. There not like Microsoft who everyone is saying there losing money on Xbox. So what if they are losing money there they can make that up in the software they sell. Which the company as a whole constantly makes profit. So they can afford the losses knowing that they can control the market share in the future. Same with Sony only that they are losing market share in other areas of the company that they are looking to change that in the future. Now as for Nintendo when they take a loss they can't make it up somewhere else which is why I think they want to control the handheld market so that if the console takes a loss they are still making profit somewhere. I was glad to here when they invested in a movie studio in hopes that they can keep profits up.

So what I am trying to say is that in my opinion Nintendo might be on its own this generation. Which I don't consider to be so bad. I just hope that Nintendo works with a lot of small development studios to keep us happy. So what do you guys think? Do you think Nintendo will be solo this console cycle and if so do you think it will a bad thing? Anyways this is the longest letter I ever wrote and while writing this my cat actually walked by me and passed ass( not cool). Do you think that is a sign???

Thanks as always

- Jeremy Tafoya


Travis: Pay more attention to your cat. It loves you! Cant you see that?

Without a doubt I can say that Nintendo will not be solo this upcoming generation. They may still be light on third party support, but theres no denying how much other companies will help the Big N sell their hardware. I actually foresee increased chances of third party support as I believe the Revolution is going to be something special. Best case scenario: Revolution games are unbelievable, so unbelievable that even simultaneous releases on the PS3 and XBox 360 will feel like watered down ports. It could happen.

Recieverless Wavebird

I've just got one quick question about the GameCube controller support for the Revolution.

Since Nintendo is highly pushing the "wireless" factor, would it be possible for the Revolution have an in-built support for the Wavebird controllers so that the RF receivers don't need to be plugged in?

Just thought it would be a really neat idea...

- Loc Pham


Travis: Anythings possible, my good sir. In fact, Id say it is likely unless the new wireless controllers happen to act on a different wireless signal. Due to advances in hardware it may simply be required that the old fashioned Wavebird signal be aided by the RF receivers.

Jeff: Im going to say no on this one, but Id love to be pleasantly surprised. But there are too many variables. What if you had two Wavebirds and two regular controllers? Just wouldnt make a lot of sense.

My Passion for Games

I found this letter the other day and thought I would send it in just for funIt is a copy of a document I was asked to write when I first applied for a job at Rare a long time ago (game list updated slightly). I figured some of your readers might enjoy it because I feel it clearly sums up my own passion for and commitment to video games, and I believe the ideals expressed within still hold true to this dayI wonder how many people feel the same about videogames

Since I first became interested in video games 15 years ago I have played many great examples of interactive entertainment, from games such as Super Mario World, Street Fighter 2, Pokemon and Goldeneye to newer games like Wario Ware, Eternal Darkness, Halo and yes, even the likes of Electroplankton. Each time I experience titles as enjoyable as the previous examples it reminds me why I love video games, and why I have dreamt about and worked towards a career in interactive entertainment.

As a child there is a certain magic quality about many occasions; the night before Christmas, waiting for Santa to visit and deliver your presents, the excitement, tension and anticipation that something special is going to happen. On Christmas day when you open your presents it is enchanting playing with your toys for the first time. When people grow up and as the world itself matures this excitement is lost and along with it the feelings of wonder and magic.

I want to recreate the magic I experienced as a young teenager discovering the power of video games for the first time. I would like to work on video games that are so special that when a child, teenager or adult plays them they are immediately inspired and their lives are changed. I want to help inspire the next generation of designers and enkindle the passion in people who had not previously been interested in video games to become a part of the industry.

I want to create exciting new characters, environments and experiences that allow people to escape from the real world and go to that place where they are free to play again and can just have fun, and through electronic entertainment it is possible to achieve this goal. Some people do it by making movies; others create fantastic animations, I wish to realise it in video games.

I still feel that like that about videogames, every single day.

- Kirk Johnston


Travis: Jeff and I appreciate your letter, Mr. Johnston. It reminds me of how I feel about video games and its an amazing feeling to know that someone else gets it. I hope your video game career works out for you. Then you can send me free games.

Absolutely Spot On

I am not usually wrong in what I say, although what I say is usually wrongly interpreted.

(That should be a famous quote or something)

Surely now you are at least willing to acknowledge that my reference to Apple was rather appropriate when discussing Nintendo in my last letter, now that you have seen the white Rev and controller combo and once again Nintendo has referred to Apple when talking about its own products...?

Design and aesthetics wise these companies are now both producing products that could belong to the same catalogue.

Their names and brands are both synonymous with quality and simplicity as you say.

They are both highly respected in their fields, actually both are probably the highest regarded competitors in their respective fields and yet they are not the market leaders, even though they produce the most innovative products with the highest build quality, offer the best user interfaces and provide the highest level of customer service.

They are both trying to expand their markets to broader user bases and taking some bold and risky steps in doing so.

Nintendo has also referenced to Apple countless times over the last few months, so for others to think of Apple when Nintendo is mentioned is not that far of a leap.

I really don't quite get how you never quite grasped the frequent comparisons between them.

I am going to go out on a limb here and say I was absolutely spot on in regards to my comment.

Nintendo seems to have looked at the likes of Apple as well as its own company history and taken on board what it needs to appeal to a broad spectrum of consumers yet still maintain the highest level of quality, to truly succeed in the coming years.

I actually believe the same goes for the entirety of my post, in that what I said was accurate and correct, but just like the Apple comment it is open to misinterpretation and since I am not that great at saying things exactly how I think them in my brain, I will let the rest slide.

For nowHEHE

- Kirk Johnson


Jeff: You are referencing the Letter of the Week from the 7-31-05 Mailbagaka the last one until now. While I fully agree with James response, let me reiterate a few things. In regard to your earlier comments, I believe that James was right. Yeah there were a few great games back in the 2D games, but on the whole I think there are more average or decent games on the market today than there were back then. There were certainly some truly outstanding titles, but there was also a lot of garbage. Due to the expense of making games in this day and age, there are fewer completely trash titles, but a lot of lame ones.

As for the comparison between Apple and Nintendo, there are just as many correlations as there are discrepancies. First and foremost, Nintendo routinely tries to attract an audience ranging from kids to adults and places their products at low mainstream price points. Apple, on the other hand, with products like the iPod, targets more of a tech audience with its products. They are priced very high. However, in terms of the design of Revolution, certainly Nintendo has chosen a streamlined, simplistic look like that of an iPod.

Bring on the Hype

Hello N-Sider,

Ive been thinking about the upcoming consoles, namely Revolution, and Ive realized this. No one besides gamers who keep up with gaming news have a clue about Revolution. I was talking with my friends, who are lets say casual gamers, they play games but dont follow any news except the hyped up stuff, and they knew all about 360 and ps3 and didnt even know Nintendo was coming out with a new console. So Ive come to the conclusion on how Nintendo can fix this.

Nintendo should hype the crap out of Revolution. Start advertising for it now. Revolution already has a lot of hype to begin with. When your company president describes their new system as a revolution and a paradigm shift that alone creates huge hype. When Nintendo refuses to show the controller that builds up even more hype. So why not hype it up even more? Nintendo should start running commercials about Revolution. These commercials would have Mario, Link, Samus, Fox, Kong, or others in them. The commercials would be pretty computer generated graphics. For Mario just show him jumping around on platforms or have him flying around in a huge area with a wing cap. Link could be fighting a bunch of enemies or riding Epona. Samus could be exploring or fighting. Fox could be in a massive air battle. Kong could be riding Squawk or in a huge jungle area. Just show their mascots with good graphics, I dont care that its not actual gameplay graphics. At the end of the commercials they should have just the words Revolution on a black screen. And then for the last thing you see is the phrase The way you play, is not the way you think you play or Its coming, or some other catch phrase.

Nintendo could even take it a step further and sell or give away shirts with Nintendo Revolution on the front and on the back have What charms the eye does not always win the heart, or again some other phrase. With all this hype Nintendo could sell a lot more consoles. If Revolution fails then all this extra hype doesnt matter because Revolution had so much hype to begin with. But if Revolution kicks ass then Nintendo will be off to a better start.

- David Treado


Travis: Slow down, Treado. There is such a thing as too much hype. The last thing I want is for the Revolution to give everyone a bad taste in their mouth, even if the system is the greatest thing ever, just because they started thinking it was a mini holodeck. However, I do agree that Nintendo will need to advertise for the Revolution a lot more than they did for any of their system launches. In my own feeble mind I always thought the tagline, Now youre playing would be most fantastic as a take on Now youre playing with power, but to imply that the Revolution has finally made games the way they were meant so that for the first time we can actually play. But alas, no one would get it.

Jeff: I like the tagline Feel the game.

An Outdated Letter of the Week

Hey guys, first off wonderful site. I've been coming here for a few years and really love everything you guys write about. It doesn't follow the typical gaming news format, which really helps you guys stand out.

Anyway I have a few comments, and even a few questions from the latest N-Banter.

First up, about the Metroid Prime games:

I strongly disagree with your points that the environments in Metroid Prime and Echoes aren't "lively enough" and too industrial or whatever. I think that Prime (and to a lesser extent Echoes) really did have the Super Metroid level design down. By that I mean that the environments in Prime were almost pound for pound the same as Super Metroid. Lava areas, plant areas, rocky areas (reds and browns, not blues), the underattack ship/ghost ship and the underwater sections were all in both games. They really did FEEL like they were very similar and I think that the industrial stuff fits in just as well. If you remember the original Metroid they had those sprawling metallic areas, which seem quite similar to those found in Prime and Prime 2. The desert areas in Prime even feel like Metroid II in certain respects. I think that there is a lot of life in the level designs in both titles that you guys just seem to ignore. (I'm thinking Chozo Ruins in Prime and the swamp area in Prime 2 as great examples.) Sanctuary Fortress is also a great example of how the level design is very lively and not "generic."

I also think that you guys are wrong on Echoes' multiplayer aspect. Retro said that they wanted it in Metroid Prime but couldn't get it in, which I think is one of the reasons why you guys are wrong. I don't think that they did it to follow the FPS multiplayer mantra, I think they did it because it was different. (Personally I liked it, although it is light years behind other shooters.) Just because Samus is alone doesn't mean that there can't be a side mode to it. Be glad that Retro didn't try and rationalize the mode like NST did with Hunters. (Which I wholeheartedly agree, I have no interest in Hunters...)

Enough about Prime though. I was curious why you guys don't want a Kid Icarus sequel. I heard about the game on IGN a while ago and decided, on a whim, to purchase the title. I thought it was a fun game and is still pretty good today. Its tough, sure, but its fun.

Everyone says Nintendo needs new and different titles, so why not put out a Kid Icarus sequel? In fact, Nintendo has plenty of hits that they could readily re-make for modern audiences. Why not meld Wrecking Crew and Luigi's Mansion for some Luigi fun? What about a new Hogan's Alley or Duck Hunt? Why not re-make Punch-out and Star Tropics?

It seems like you guys were asking for new games but didn't want to re-make games that could become instant classics. Am I reading too much into that, or do you just not like Kid Icarus?

Thanks for taking the time and hope to hear from you! Keep up the good work guys. :D

- Matt Chewie Barsema


Cory: Let me start off by saying that I absolutely adored both Metroid Prime 1 and 2. Couple of my favorite games this generation. Any issues I have with them is secondary to how much I enjoyed playing them.

Now then, when I say "Super Metroid environments", I'm referring to more than just the area types. Sure, the Prime games had similar areas (rocky, rainy, lava...y?), but it's the way they were presented that I took minor issue with. In Super Metroid and Zero Mission, Brinstar looked legitimately otherworldly. The rocks being blue was a LARGE part of that. Blue rocks, vibrantly colored plant life in crazy reds and greens. Sure, Metroid Prime has areas that could easily pass for something like Brinstar, but the "realistic" coloring is what nerfs the sense of being otherworldly for me. If Brinstar were brown and had normal-colored plant life, it could be any random cave found on Earth. Keeping things more "realistic" in terms of design is what removes a lot of the Super Metroid charm for me. Super Metroid and Zero Mission each presented Zebes in a relatively abstract way -- a way that simply can't be fully expressed when using the more realistic style found in the Prime games. What I'd love to see, actually, is a visual style that borrows from something like Zone of the Enders 2: The Second Runner on the Playstation 2. That game used a very interesting mix of cel-shading and realistic graphics that I think could render Zebes in 3D brilliantly.

There's also the issue of "mood". No Metroid game other than Super Metroid has managed to achieve the feeling of being creeped out and alone. Things like landing on Crateria, and the music being very slow and sparse notes, being played only as an accent to the sound of the rain. Or the tiny beeps and boops being played in the save rooms. Or other areas that have very limited (or no) music, and stage events in a creepy way that plays off that silence. Notice a trend here? I personally think one of the best parts of Super Metroid, the thing that helped the most with its atmosphere, was its music. While the Metroid Prime games have some great music at points, none of the songs really give the same creepy and moody feeling that the Super Metroid ones did. The one that came closest, I think, was the song that played in the underwater area in the Torvus Bog in Prime 2. And, as it turns out, that was a remake of a Super Metroid song.

As for the multiplayer, I'm going to strongly disagree with your comment that it was "light years behind" other shooters. Personally, I think that Prime 2 had one of the most refreshing FPS multiplayer modes I've ever played. The Metroid Prime gameplay dynamics provided for some amazingly entertaining situations -- situations that people expecting a normal FPS multiplayer would completely miss while obsessing over things like "WHAT WHERE'S MY DUAL ANALOG". As brilliant as I thought it was, though, I still think it clashes with the whole Metroid experience in general. Hunters has the right idea with its multiple characters, instead of a series of Samuses illogically fighting each other, but it's still taking the gameplay in a direction that is largely unnatural for the mood of the series. Being an isolated bounty hunter searching through the depths of an alien world doesn't translate very well to 4 bounty hunters shooting wildly at each other in my mind. And it's not entirely that I'm opposed to the idea of Metroid multiplayer, I just think that, thematically, there are much better ways to do it. Like a mode where one player is Samus, and the other three play Space Pirates defending a base. Or one Samus, and three Metroids hunting her. Not just the same old deal with four people shooting each other for no reason. I personally think that any multiplayer mode in a Metroid game should be something that would logically occur in a single-player session of the game -- like the two ideas I mentioned above.

As per the NES remakes, I just got through talking with my old college roommate about that. Just because there's an intellectual property from the NES days that hasn't had a sequel, it doesn't mean there HAS to be one. I have no interest in playing any more games that are just a company's attempt to invoke nostalgia for some quick cash. Everyone DOES say Nintnedo needs new and different titles, but I'd hate to think that they couldn't pull that off without stealing their design inspirations from 20-year-old games. Kid Icarus was on the NES and Game Boy, let it stay there. We can have new and entertaining Nintendo experiences without constantly having to drown ourselves in nostalgia at the same time. At least, I'd like to THINK we can. Hopefully Nintendo will prove me right with the Revolution, but I have the feeling I'll end up seeing the same old reliance on the tried and true.