Great lineage

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is the eleventh entry in the beloved Metroid franchise. Ever since being announced at E3 2006 to be put on the Nintendo Wii, Metroid fans everywhere have been awaiting this latest and very promising game with feverish anticipation, myself very much included.

The Metroid franchise has always been known for its perfect blend of sci-fi thriller story, action out the wazoo, and most importantly, its exploration-based gameplay. Every single Metroid game (with a few exceptions that turned out awful [see: Metroid Prime: Hunters]) has always based its gameplay around the concept of never knowing 100% what to do or where to go. Sure, the games give you some hints in the intro parts of the game, but after obtaining that first item, the games throw numerous pathways at you and multiple passages leading gods know where. Because of this, the games give you a sense of loneliness. Indeed, the only other lifeforms, besides our own Samus Aran, that you will find in a typical Metroid game are other enemies out for your blood. It's this non-linearity and eerie atmosphere that has made Metroid one of the greatest franchises in gaming history. Metroid Prime 3 is shaping up to be maybe the greatest entry in the series yet.

Wii controls

For starters, the innovative use of the Wii controller has made controlling Samus easier than ever. In Metroid Prime, there were definitely some control issues that needed ironing out. Fortunately with the Wii Remote, these issues should be a thing of the past. To control Samus' beam cannon, you simply move the Wii Remote and the targeting reticle acts accordingly. To move Samus, you merely utilize the joystick on the Nunchuk add-on. The game also has a simple lock-on feature like its predecessors that makes aiming a little more precise. What's really cool is that enemies will gain enhanced agility to counter-act the lock-on feature when you're using it! Little bits like that is part of what makes the Metroid series so amazing.

Moving more onto the subject of controls and abilities, the Wii Remote's motion-sensing capabilities have added a few new tricks to Samus' repertoire. For instance, Samus can now use her grappling beam as something to rip apart enemies' shields. Say that a Space Pirate is deflecting your beam shots with a shield. You simply use the grappling beam to latch onto the shield, and then twist and pull the Wii Remote! Voila, shields are out of the enemies' grasp! However, whether Retro Studios has added any other cool tricks using the Wii Remote is yet to be seen.