Metroid Prime 4 hasn't had an easy life so far, but we're still hoping against hope to hear more from Nintendo about it soon. It's coming up to five years since the game was totally restarted mid-process, with developer Retro Studios now spearheading the project. It's good news for any classic Metroid Prime fans to see the game back in the hands of the original trilogy developer, making Metroid Prime 4 one of our most anticipated upcoming Switch games of this year and beyond. Unfortunately, though, Nintendo has been radio silent about it for years now, meaning we're none the wiser on what shape Metroid Prime 4 is in today - especially with a more recent Nintendo Direct being yet another no-show. At this rate, we'll probably see the Nintendo Switch 2 before Metroid Prime 4...but that doesn't mean we'll give up on it.
As we all collectively wait for a new, more-definitive update, read on to learn everything we know so far about Metroid Prime 4 to help dispel rumors from fact.
Recent updates
This Metroid Prime 4 hub was updated on June 6. There's unfortunately not much more to be said about the game, since Nintendo hasn't given an update in quite some time, but we will keep you posted as and when it does.
The Metroid Prime 4 release date is still up in the air
There is still no confirmed Metroid Prime 4 release date, especially since it restarted development in 2019. After the development of Metroid Prime 4 wasn’t meeting the standards Nintendo was hoping for, Shinya Takahashi confirmed it was being scrapped and restarted. In the video, Takahashi said: “it will be a long road until the next time we will be able to update you on the development progress, and the development time will be extensive.” The keyword here is “extensive”, which spelled a long wait to finally see Samus land onto the Switch.
With Nintendo going on to reveal back in May 2021 that there's still no tentative release date, Metroid Prime 4 has yet to receive an official launch window.
The first Metroid Prime Trailer was short and sweet
Yes, we did actually get a trailer, but as we mentioned above, it didn't reveal anything. It didn't even give tell us who the developers were way back when. Really, it was just a hype machine, but we can still remember the chills we got when the title emerged and it officially set us on the path towards reuniting with Samus Aran. All good things come to those who wait, as the saying goes.
Metroid Prime 4 is now being developed by Retro Studios, which is a good thing
Even though the recent update left many feeling disappointed, bringing Retro Studios on board is a very good thing, and this do-over will likely deliver us the next Metroid game we've all been waiting for in true form. Retro studio's were behind the stellar Metroid Prime trilogy on the Gamecube and Wii, so this is really Retro’s home turf. Having this studio steer the ship for the next game in the series just makes sense. If anyone will do Samus justice, it’s Retro.
Metroid Prime Story - what could happen?
It's hard to say when development is starting over and nothing has been revealed, or even hinted at so far. What we can do is speculate off of the back of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, although that still doesn't really give us much to go on. The third instalment in the trilogy had multiple endings that were determined by the percentage of items you found by the end of the game. Each ending varied slightly, but they were all quite open-ended, and whatever the end outcome, Dark Samus and the Phazon were defeated. So really, the Metroid Prime 4 story could go in any direction now. The galaxy is Samus' oyster. Well, until new baddies or corruptible entities show up to cause another ruckus.
Metroid Prime 4 gameplay
Again nothing is certain just yet, but the last Metroid Prime games we saw from Retro Studios saw us blasting cannons in first-person. Metroid Prime 4 could very well follow suit in this style and pick up on similar game-play elements in the previous trilogy. We could still have some puzzles to solve, platforms to jump across and potentially see things like Samus helmet display and radar make a comeback, too.
For now, why not check out our pick for the best upcoming Switch games arriving this year or in the very near future...
