Super Metroid Appreciation Station

[Badfinger]

I still think Brinstar from the original Metroid is the best single piece of music in the series.

 

 

 

Also as evidenced by my post, I didn't have a problem with Metroid Fusion and in fact think it's the most directly comparable to Super Metroid in terms of gameplay. I realize the story is a bit wonky, but other than the most major of story beats I'm not into Metroid, or frankly later-day Castlevania, for the plot details. The Other M stuff is off putting, to be sure.

[shammack]

I've gotten old and I can't beat Ridley anymore. Anyone got any pro tips?

 

The worst part is that the nearest save point is pretty far away from his room, so every time I die I have to go all the way back and fight those annoying ninja pirates you can only hit when they turn gold again.

 

(Also: I love this game but the whole Maridia section is kind of bullshit.)

[Henroid]

Missile spam that mofo. Or if you have the plasma beam, charge shots of it at him. Charged plasma beam shots are stronger than super missiles. Screw attack through his fire and jump away from him, never let him pick you up.

[BrnYhl]

Super Metroid was probably the first game that really clicked home with me.

The atmosphere in that game is the best.

 

I've also always hated traditional gender roles and it was probably the first game I played that had a heavily armored female protagonist.

<3

[melmer]

Someone's gone to town with the back story over on gaf

http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=649215

[SecretAsianMan]

That's an interesting, if a bit far fetched, interpretation.  Kind of reminds me of the Zelda fans who insist on trying to piece together the fragmented history of that series (and I'm aware of the "official" timeline but frankly I felt it was a cheap cop out).

[Sno]

It's really nothing more than fan fiction, that post.

[Griddlelol]

Does anyone know of a decent guide for SM? I am stuck. Like, incredibly stuck. I got stuck, went on holiday for 2 weeks and don't remember why I'm stuck, but I am...

 

Every other time I got stuck I would put the game down for a day, come back the next, and figure it out like it was super simple. Bleh! I really want to finish this game.

[eot]

There's generally two specific things that people get stuck on, which suit do you have and what areas have you explored?

 

If you have the gravity suit:

In Brinstar there is one room where you actually enter Maridia, you're inside a glass pipe. Go there and pretend it's BioShock 2.

[GavinTheAlmighty]

Does anyone know of a decent guide for SM? I am stuck. Like, incredibly stuck. I got stuck, went on holiday for 2 weeks and don't remember why I'm stuck, but I am...

 

Every other time I got stuck I would put the game down for a day, come back the next, and figure it out like it was super simple. Bleh! I really want to finish this game.

 

Whereabouts are you stuck?  Collectively, I'm sure we could all help!  

 

Failing that, this one is pretty thorough: http://metroid.retropixel.net/games/metroid3/walkthrough/

 

Gun to my head, Super Metroid is probably my most favourite game of all time.  It nailed ambiance and flow better than any other game out there.  There isn't an ounce of fat on it and it doesn't outstay its welcome.  Perhaps I've got the nostalgia-glasses on, but at the time, nothing out there been able to immerse me in a game's environment the way that Super Metroid had.  The heavy influences from Aliens certainly didn't hurt.  

 

One of my few regrets in life is that I won't be able to play Super Metroid for the first time ever again.

 

Prime was also glorious, though in my opinion, they did get progressively less enjoyable as the series went on.  Echoes suffered from excessive backtracking and through excessive bloat (finding those damn keys just wasn't fun), and Corruption had too many NPCs, eliminating the feeling of isolation that is the trademark of the Metroid series.  I will say that the music was amazing throughout the entire Prime series.  Absolutely gorgeous stuff.

[Griddlelol]

That's great, I'd really like to avoid a guide, since I've gotten pretty far without one and discovering things and feeling super smart when you do is like 70% of the game's fun.

 

I'll repost again when I get home and actually check, but I've got the gravity suit, I managed to figure the

pipe

out on my own (which I'm quite proud of). But now I feel like I'm just wandering around with no direction. 

If it helps, I've beaten

The ghost boss with one eye and the weird crocodile boss you push into lava

recently. I can see another boss on the map, but I'm left with no obvious way to get there. I've tried bombing everything (although there's always the chance I've missed something) to no avail.

[eot]

It doesn't sound like you're done with Maridia.

From the broken pipe, go straight up as far as you can. From there you'll be able to grapple your way right (along the ceiling), across the next large room. Go through the blue door and bomb the floor in the pink room.

 

 

How to know if you've beaten Maridia

You'll be able to traverse the water much more easily.

[GavinTheAlmighty]

There's still a lot left to do in Maridia.  Maridia has two pieces of music to it that don't sound anything alike, so you'll know that you still have lots left to do if you haven't heard both.

 

Here's a full-size map that should be able to help you substantially if you get lost: http://kayin.moe/fullmetroid.jpg

[Griddlelol]

Ok so..

http://imgur.com/GFZu3CL

This is my map. As you can see there's a little head in the bottom right that I assume is a boss that I can't figure out how to access.

I can traverse water as though it is air, which I thought was the gravity suit. Also I generally play on silent, since I play while my partner watches TV.

Not really sure where to go, or what I'm missing. I don't think I'm done with maridia from the map.

[SecretAsianMan]

It's been a long time since I've played Super.  I don't remember where most things are or what's needed (and watching speedruns doesn't help because they mess up the intended order so much it's hard to keep straight).  But if water doesn't impede your movement at all, you indeed have the gravity suit.  You can confirm on the Samus screen (go to the map screen and hit R).  It might be useful to take a picture of that screen as well to get an idea of what gear you have or might still need.

[Griddlelol]

Alright: http://imgur.com/iAueNT3

[eot]

You're not done with Maridia. See the unfilled (black) square in the middle/left of your map?

This one: http://i.imgur.com/flGbz9t.png

It's not empty, you need to go there and continue right. You get there from the corridor to the left, on the same horizontal plane, that you've already explored.

 

Also, you're missing out by playing with the sound off!

[Griddlelol]

Thanks!

And, I know, I know. The few times I've played with the music on, it's fantastic and incredibly atmospheric.

[Sno]

It sure is.

All of the audio in that game is great, i think it's probably one of the best examples of a cohesive, purposeful sound design in the 16-bit generation.

[Merus]

From what I remember of the Super Metroid map, Griddle might have fallen for a trick.

 

It might help if you

come at that boss from the rooms above.

[Griddlelol]

So I played some more this morning, and could not find a way to access that room eot pointed out. In my attmept, I managed to get stuck in a room I don't think I'm meant to go into yet. There's a sand-waterfall, missile upgrade and health upgrade (which I can't access). Totally trapped! 

[eot]

Haha, I guess Maridia is confusing.

If you're in the room I'm thinking of (it's cramped and the water only goes halfway up to the ceiling) you can exit through the quicksand on the floor in the left part of the room.

 

I'll try to explain where you need to go:

Grapple across the large room like you did before. Go through the door into the pink area, bomb the floor and jump down. Then continue right through the next door and power bomb the floor. Now you should be in the room above the one you were trapped in. Use the grappling hook (or learn to wall jump ) to reach the upper level, then make your way left and exit through the door in the roof. If you're in the right area you'll see a bunch of trapped metroids. Jump up to the platform on the right, shoot the breakable wall, fall down through the collapsing tiles, shoot out two more walls and drop down to the floor. You'll have another breakable wall on each side, shoot both then go as far left as you can. Run right, activate your speed booster, and smash the tiles that are in your way.

 

How to wall jump (not necessary, but fun):

Jump towards a wall (so you spin), and at the apex (or slightly before) of your jump, hold the d-pad in the direction of the wall, then quickly reverse the direction and jump a split second after. You'll need to change direction again to get back to the wall of course.

[Griddlelol]

Oh god, so I was RIGHT THERE until I got pulled into a damn sand pit?! I'm ok at wall jumping. I can't do it 100% of the time, but I can do it more often than not. I'm tempted to leave work early to go do this...

[SecretAsianMan]

Side question:

 

Do you know how to shinespark?  It's a secret move that's taught to you by an ostrich-like creature (much like wall jumping is taught to you by 3 small creatures).  It involves the speed booster.

 

Shinesparking is performed by first activating the speed booster, then crouching while you're running, and finally jumping in any direction.  Samus will then take off flying in a straight line in whichever direction you chose (left, right, up, or diagonally) until you hit a wall.  You can bust through speed booster blocks this way.  It also damages enemies (including some otherwise invincible ones).  One thing to note is that using the ability damages you as you fly so make sure you have enough energy to survive the trip.

[Griddlelol]

Um...no! That sounds weird. I didn't get taught to wall jump, I just accidentally did it a couple of times and realised it was a thing.