The fan-game AM2R Remake: Definitive remake? - Thought blurb
I've talked, among my friends, that I find that the fan-game "Another Metroid 2 Remake" is anything but just another Metroid 2 Remake. It is, in fact, the only one that will be recognizable among the fan community as a proper remake of the lost-in-time "Metroid II: Return of Samus" for the Game Boy. The more I play it, however, and the more I think about it, the more I begin to wonder if this is actually the case.
What if Nintendo does choose to make a Metroid 2 Remake, in a style that is 2.5D, or done with quality spritework should they go that way? Unlike AM2R, there won't be rather visibly stock visual effects and sound effects being used for explosions, for fireballs, for the shots, etc. It is a small quip that I find with the game, but I cannot ignore it on a critical evaluation. They do stand out and they do detract from the quality slightly. Nintendo would be certain to have the capability to remake it with their own specifically created visual effects for the creatures and, thus, it would feel like more of a real game than a fan-made project. However, I do not fault the creator of AM2R for only really having the stock visual effects in place. The fact that it IS a small group of dedicated developers that put out a game that I have fun with on the level of the "real" Metroid games still speaks volumes to the level of creativity and dedication put into the game.
The music is, of course, all various remixes of the in-game songs, or remixes of other songs that are popular within the Metroid games. It's hard to say whether Nintendo could, in my mind, one-up the music with their own. It's certainly a possibility, given that I've loved the musical remixes done thus far within Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Given that Metroid: Other M was a bomb in the musical department, however...that's a hard sell for me. I would have to buy and play whatever remake is done just to listen and judge for myself.
How about the gameplay, which is the single best part about AM2R? It feels like a game that is just a joy to play, with ease of access to most all of the abilities of Samus and nothing really holding her back. Wall-jumping is a breeze, can be done with space jump too, the ice beam is just plain awesome, the speed booster feels better to use than previous titles, etc etc. A lot of work went into making the game playable and, more importantly, very enjoyable, in the spirit of recreating the game like Metroid: Zero Mission. Ironically, it outdoes the standard that Metroid: Zero Mission had established by being even more fun to come back to. If Nintendo chose to go more of a steady route of what was "established as good" in their case, I might not be impressed with the gameplay.
The "collection" spree was also done very well, with a lot of reworked level design lending to carefully guiding a player into experimenting. Every little bit of the game feels like a treat to explore, rather than feeling like a chore. A problem that I found with Metroid: Zero Mission, especially when completing it for 100%, was that it feels like a chore to get a lot of items, rather than a treat. Metroid Fusion has this issue as well, and these are issues that were not present in some others of my favorite Metroid games, like Super Metroid, Metroid Prime, and now AM2R. Even with the backtracking into old areas, AM2R manaages to keep the feeling of the pleasure of exploration, rather than it being a hassle, even when it makes puzzles similar to Metroid: Zero Mission for some of the pickups.
It's a short little thought pattern but I find it to be interesting to think about. I have said multiple times that this is the definitive Metroid 2 Remake, yet I cannot help but wonder what Nintendo would do if they chose to remake Metroid 2. They certainly seem offended that it was released at all, as is their right, as it is their IP. But if Nintendo is really that mad about it, why haven't they opted to remake Metroid 2 yet? Maybe that's a priority project now to "fix" their reputation? We'll simply have to wait and see what develops from all of this, and enjoy AM2R as the best version of Metroid II we have available.
What if Nintendo does choose to make a Metroid 2 Remake, in a style that is 2.5D, or done with quality spritework should they go that way? Unlike AM2R, there won't be rather visibly stock visual effects and sound effects being used for explosions, for fireballs, for the shots, etc. It is a small quip that I find with the game, but I cannot ignore it on a critical evaluation. They do stand out and they do detract from the quality slightly. Nintendo would be certain to have the capability to remake it with their own specifically created visual effects for the creatures and, thus, it would feel like more of a real game than a fan-made project. However, I do not fault the creator of AM2R for only really having the stock visual effects in place. The fact that it IS a small group of dedicated developers that put out a game that I have fun with on the level of the "real" Metroid games still speaks volumes to the level of creativity and dedication put into the game.
The music is, of course, all various remixes of the in-game songs, or remixes of other songs that are popular within the Metroid games. It's hard to say whether Nintendo could, in my mind, one-up the music with their own. It's certainly a possibility, given that I've loved the musical remixes done thus far within Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Given that Metroid: Other M was a bomb in the musical department, however...that's a hard sell for me. I would have to buy and play whatever remake is done just to listen and judge for myself.
How about the gameplay, which is the single best part about AM2R? It feels like a game that is just a joy to play, with ease of access to most all of the abilities of Samus and nothing really holding her back. Wall-jumping is a breeze, can be done with space jump too, the ice beam is just plain awesome, the speed booster feels better to use than previous titles, etc etc. A lot of work went into making the game playable and, more importantly, very enjoyable, in the spirit of recreating the game like Metroid: Zero Mission. Ironically, it outdoes the standard that Metroid: Zero Mission had established by being even more fun to come back to. If Nintendo chose to go more of a steady route of what was "established as good" in their case, I might not be impressed with the gameplay.
The "collection" spree was also done very well, with a lot of reworked level design lending to carefully guiding a player into experimenting. Every little bit of the game feels like a treat to explore, rather than feeling like a chore. A problem that I found with Metroid: Zero Mission, especially when completing it for 100%, was that it feels like a chore to get a lot of items, rather than a treat. Metroid Fusion has this issue as well, and these are issues that were not present in some others of my favorite Metroid games, like Super Metroid, Metroid Prime, and now AM2R. Even with the backtracking into old areas, AM2R manaages to keep the feeling of the pleasure of exploration, rather than it being a hassle, even when it makes puzzles similar to Metroid: Zero Mission for some of the pickups.
It's a short little thought pattern but I find it to be interesting to think about. I have said multiple times that this is the definitive Metroid 2 Remake, yet I cannot help but wonder what Nintendo would do if they chose to remake Metroid 2. They certainly seem offended that it was released at all, as is their right, as it is their IP. But if Nintendo is really that mad about it, why haven't they opted to remake Metroid 2 yet? Maybe that's a priority project now to "fix" their reputation? We'll simply have to wait and see what develops from all of this, and enjoy AM2R as the best version of Metroid II we have available.
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