Plain Pony
Not a Plane pony
@Cyborg_pony
Agreed, but this is one of the main problems modern game design faces: the prioritization of making games that make sense in the context of a constructed world, over making games with good gameplay. Adam authorizing the use of upgrades is completely stupid narratively, particularly in the oft-cited Varia Suit example. However, gameplay-wise it’s pretty similar to having upgrades being held by Chozo statues, though it can alter things slightly, like having an upgrade activate during a boss fight, which is atypical of the series.
In Other M’s case, the terrible story is more egregious due to the game having a big focus on telling a story, compared to the rest of the series, if we ignore the games that had a focus on telling a story. But as long as we can get the Metroid-style gameplay, I’m happy to overlook it. I don’t think that the plot is directly responsible for the overly linear world design, especially since Metroid Fusion is similarly linear with a similar plot (Other M has a lot in common with Fusion), but does a lot better with masking the linearity, and is even a part of the plot itself!
But, in my opinion, the decision to use only the Wii-Mote for controls is the main factor for Other M’s shittiness. They could have made a control scheme that works with a Wii-Mote, but they did not do that. Limitations are fine, but you can’t pretend they don’t exist. They clearly wanted Samus to control in a certain way, but it does not fit the controller.
Agreed, but this is one of the main problems modern game design faces: the prioritization of making games that make sense in the context of a constructed world, over making games with good gameplay. Adam authorizing the use of upgrades is completely stupid narratively, particularly in the oft-cited Varia Suit example. However, gameplay-wise it’s pretty similar to having upgrades being held by Chozo statues, though it can alter things slightly, like having an upgrade activate during a boss fight, which is atypical of the series.
In Other M’s case, the terrible story is more egregious due to the game having a big focus on telling a story, compared to the rest of the series, if we ignore the games that had a focus on telling a story. But as long as we can get the Metroid-style gameplay, I’m happy to overlook it. I don’t think that the plot is directly responsible for the overly linear world design, especially since Metroid Fusion is similarly linear with a similar plot (Other M has a lot in common with Fusion), but does a lot better with masking the linearity, and is even a part of the plot itself!
But, in my opinion, the decision to use only the Wii-Mote for controls is the main factor for Other M’s shittiness. They could have made a control scheme that works with a Wii-Mote, but they did not do that. Limitations are fine, but you can’t pretend they don’t exist. They clearly wanted Samus to control in a certain way, but it does not fit the controller.