It has been eight years. Eight years since the first teaser for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (originally presented as simply Metroid Prime 4) appeared at E3 in 2017—that’s right, the annual Electronics Expo was still alive and kicking in the Los Angeles Convention Center when the game was initially revealed. What followed was a complete development reboot, and enough silence to drive the internet wild for years. But Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is finally here, landing on the Nintendo Switch in its twilight hours. While the shiny new Switch 2 version is grabbing all the headlines, there is a massive audience still clutching their original Switch consoles, wondering if Samus Aran’s latest adventure is actually playable on 2017 hardware. While Retro Studios has pulled off a solid experience on the dated system, the original Switch is definitely gasping for air.
A Beautiful Struggle
Let’s get the technical elephant out of the room first. Metroid Prime Remastered proved the Switch could do 60 frames per second, but Beyond is a different beast. The game targets 60 FPS, which is essential for the snappy, lock-on combat the series is known for. And for the most part, inside the corridors and ruins of the new planet Viewros, it holds that target.
But, the open areas are a different story. When you step out into Fury Green—a dense jungle area that feels far more expansive than anything in Prime 1—the resolution heads south. We are talking deep drops, below the desired 720p in handheld mode, resulting in a very soft, fuzzy image. The edges of enemies shimmer, and distant foliage turns into a green haze. It’s absolutely playable, but if you are coming from other modern shooters, the jagged edges are difficult to ignore.
That said, the art direction does a lot of heavy lifting. The new lighting engine, even stripped back for the older hardware, creates moody, atmospheric environments. The way Samus’s arm cannon glows in the dark interiors of the Volt Forge is eye-catching, and the visor effects add to the immersion. You stop noticing the low resolution when you are deep in the rhythm of scanning and shooting, but the hardware limitations are always lurking in the peripheral vision. It is perhaps most obvious when it comes to the load times on the Switch 1, which can more than double that of the Switch 2. Waiting more than a minute to load a level is a pain, especially by modern standards.
As for the controls, it’s a better story. I play virtually every Switch game with the Pro controller, forgoing the Wii-era motion controls whenever possible, and Metroid Prime 4 is no exception. This setup feels tight and responsive as the player performs minor adjustments to the lock-on aiming system. In fact, it’s easy to state that the newest entry is the best shooting, and combat in general, has felt in the series. Although some encounters may boil down to uninspired enemy wave encounters, the shooting at the heart of it all remains entertaining. And this enjoyment is kicked up a notch when the multi-stage bosses arrive. They can be exhilarating, but on the Switch 1, when the particle effects fly, the frame rate can dip. And that’s not a great reason for failing a dodge.
Evolution, Not Revolution
Mechanically, this is Metroid Prime through and through. You shoot, you scan, you turn into a ball. But Beyond introduces a few additions that slightly shake up the formula, such as the Psychic Visor and accompanying Psychic Crystal abilities. The Psychic Visor lets you manipulate the environment. You might scan a psychic lock and a guide a Control Beam into the sealed doorways mechanism to continue forth. Or you might leverage a Psychic Lasso to pull objects into (or out of) place. It’s all engaging, if a bit familiar, adding a layer of physics-based interaction that lightly modify the series’ standard formula.
Then there is the Vi-O-La, Samus’s motorcycle. The addition makes a notable change to the gameplay flow, and it’s immediately enjoyable after gaining access to the Tron-esque bike and traversing desert dunes of Sol Valley. It’s used mostly for getting between hubs, and while the frame rate chugs a bit when you boost at full speed on the old Switch, it adds a sense of scale that makes the world feel truly alien and vast. Or at least that’s the desired sensation, which is commonly upended by a lack of “stuff,” leaving much of these open environments empty, lifeless stretches of terrain.
Not content with just gaining a bike, Samus is also given a companion for the first chunk of the game—a Federation technician named Myles MacKenzie. He chimes in over comms, offering hints and “quippy” dialogue. Honestly, it’s grating. Having Myles tell me to continue shooting what I’m already shooting is annoying. Thankfully, the Retro was wise enough to eventually move away from this character during the campaign and return to the preferred isolation, but those opening hours can be a test of patience.
The narrative is where Beyond fumbles an opportunity. We finally get the payoff for the Sylux teases that have been haunting the series since Metroid Prime 3 and Hunters. While Sylux makes for a strong villain—ruthless, silent, and militantly anti-Federation—his inclusion feels underutilized, an all-too-common issue with marketed antagonists. After the extensive wait for this continuation, the story is without the impact long-time fans likely desired.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Review Verdict
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond: on the original Nintendo Switch is a bittersweet experience. On one hand, it offers engrossing levels and atmosphere, a game that understands what makes this series legendary (outside of Myles). The combat is the best it has ever been, enhanced by fun psychic abilities. And yet the story feels weaker than recent entries and the last-gen performance has its fare share of setbacks. There's still something to love here, blurrier textures and all, but it often feels more "adequate" than "astounding." – Joshua
[Editor’s Note: Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was reviewed on Switch, and a copy was provided to us for review purposes.]
