Super Metroid is not only the most digitally dense Super Nintendo Entertainment System cartridge ever, it is by far the most compelling - even if it did steal its premise from the Alien trilogy. But, compared with Super Metroid, the actual Alien cartridge plays like Pac Man. Packed with 24 Mbytes of solid-state, side-scrolling action, Super Metroid puts you in the role of heroine Samus Aran, space bounty hunter. Mission: infiltrate planet Zebes and wipe out the Metroids - a pack of deliciously creepy mutants holding the place hostage. The story line here is pretty well worn, but so what - it's a blast!
With five huge realms to explore, the real fun lies in hunting for personal arsenal resources like the morphing ball, which transforms Samus into a polyp-like orb that exudes a trail of exploding goop in its wake. Other helpful techno-props include a full-screen map that shows where you've been so far, plus jack-in map pods and a helmet-mounted X-ray scope for lighting up map sights previously unseen. Joypad control is ultrasmooth and responsive, with easy to master button-assignments for quick weapon changes, inventory, and map checking.
The game is brilliantly rendered in throbbing, iridescent tones and textures: given the game's eerie background score, the whole experience achieves a down-and-steamy-hunt-for-your-life feeling that's the tastiest excursion I've enjoyed in a long time.
Super Metroid for SNES: US$59.95. Nintendo of America: (800) 255 3700, +1 (206) 882 2040. Super Metroid: this Alien clone's better than the real thing.
STREET CRED
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