GameCube classic Metroid Prime remaster finally arrives on the Nintendo Switch

Nintendo has announced that the GameCube classic title Metroid Prime, will finally be getting remastered for the Switch.

Released in 2002, the first Metroid instalment for the GameCube has been waiting for an official remaster ever since it was first announced. Being the very first Metroid game to go 3D and first person, the dev team took a big risk to pivot from its iconic side-scrolling shooter. This risk paying off in a big way.

Upon its release, Metroid Prime was lauded as one of the best GameCube games to be released. Its mix of shooting, map exploration, and puzzle solving was praised for being innovations.

As well as this, its graphics were particularly groundbreaking for the time, rendering 3D environments in stunning detail. And now, we can play the classic on the Switch.

Metroid Prime remaster confirmed for the Nintendo Switch

In Nintendo’s February 9 Direct, they officially announced the remaster of Metroid Prime. This revamp now available for purchase through the Nintendo eShop. With the physical version available in stores on February 22.

The remaster brings a graphical update to the classic, bringing it up to more modern standards.

And the remaster of the game also brings changes to its controls. The remaster updates the game’s controls to a more modern standard, utilizing both control sticks to move and aim.

Now allowing the player to move and shoot at the same time. When Metroid Prime was first released, first person shooters on consoles were still in their infancy, which meant movement and aiming had not been figured out just yet.

The original game only allowed movement without aiming, and vice versa. But now with the remaster, players can use both control sticks to move while aiming, akin to modern first person shooters released on consoles. 

But they are also adding other controller options for those who want to experience Metroid Prime as it was when it was first released, among other control options.

Metroid Prime was just the first game in a trilogy of GameCube and WII games. With Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and Prime 3: Corruption proceeding it. 

There has been rumors of a remaster of the entire trilogy, and the Metroid Prime remaster may be the first of three.