Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Reviews
After such troubled development, it would have been a mammoth task for Beyond to live up to fan expectations. While elements of the game do stay true to the series, much of the game strays away from what makes Metroid great. Linear level design, unnecessary hand-holding, and a bland hub world that rudely inserts itself into an otherwise decent game all make this the weakest entry in the series. Which, after almost 18 years of waiting, is beyond disappointing to admit.
Despite its issues and the introduction of new mechanics and systems that still need refinement, Retro Studios’ return with Metroid Prime 4: Beyond delivers an excellent sequel that could mark the beginning of something bigger.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
These grains of sand aside, Beyond is a full-fledged Metroid Prime: atmospheric, intense, and rewarding. It's not revolutionary, but it forcefully reaffirms why the saga has remained in the hearts of players for nearly forty years.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, on the Nintendo Switch, is a jaw-dropping visual feast that runs incredibly well on the hardware, even in portable play, the foundation the game is built on is anything but a Metroid game. In many ways, this feels like a mediocre Halo game starring our beloved bounty hunter, Samus Aran. What suffers the most is the very linear nature of the game, the vast open desert that feels wasted, and the lack of anything that really cements itself as the originator of a beloved genre. Extremely disappointed.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is just fine—a whiplash of an experience that has some really memorable moments and others that are just grating.
The long-awaited Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a gorgeous game, but it's clear that it's delayed development cycle got in the way of the final product. (Review in Portuguese for Entertainium Brasil)
It's a good game, but far below the level of other titles in the Prime series or the mainline games. When I think about it, I only see the problems. It's what it could have been, not what it is. A sad and bittersweet experience. In the end, I finished the campaign with absolutely no desire to play a "Metroid Prime 5" in the future.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond delivers reliably fun old-school charm in doses but its new ideas are too inconsistent to ignore, resulting in a good Prime that could've been better in some aspects.
Metroid Prime 4 isn't the worst game Nintendo has released for Nintendo Switch 2, but it is the most disappointing.
Metroid Prime 4 is an interesting experiment born with the clear objective of bringing the saga to a wider audience through a mix of new ideas that, depending on the case, either hit the mark perfectly or fail miserably, resulting in an extremely solid title that risks alienating its historic fanbase. That said, the game should be judged for what it is, not for what someone would have liked it to be. What we have here is a chapter that, while not the ideal sequel to Metroid Prime that many were expecting, proves to be an excellent overall experience with cinematic overtones, supported by a surprisingly successful cast and gameplay that continues to work great.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond disappoints by replacing the classic interconnected maps with a tedious open world, which, combined with a shallow narrative and a lack of innovation in its gameplay mechanics, turns Samus’s return to the Metroid Prime franchise into a major wasted potential.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
While there’s a nostalgic and fun, arcade-like foundation in Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, it’s buried beneath tedious flaws like a bland hub world, a lack of enemy variety, and companions that just won’t let go of your hand.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a work that manages to captivate players with the timeless charm of discovery and the atmospheric design that made the series immortal... but with various “modern” concessions that have perhaps simplified some sections of the game a little too much. The introduction of an outdated open-world hub in the desert and the repetitive collection mission associated with it are burdens that significantly weigh down the pace and flow of exploration. Beyond therefore sits halfway between a perfectly preserved tradition and a not entirely successful innovation. It's a magnificent game to look at, fun and technically stunning, but it can't shake off the nagging feeling that it tried to be something immense without quite succeeding.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a beautifully crafted return that values restraint over reinvention, leaving a strong but slightly hollow impression that loses its wonder.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond brings boasting vibrant beauty and environments worthy of the franchise. The adventure leans more towards linearity than exploration, as the environments focus on telling the story of the Lamornians' past and giving us an experimental taste of alien technology like the Vi-O-La bike, which leaves us wanting more. Its hub world is small but serves its purpose across different areas, while the bosses retain the potential that has characterized the Prime series. A fitting farewell to Samus for the original Switch console
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Make no mistake: this isn’t the triumphant return of Metroid Prime in the same way that Dread was for the 2D series. But most of Metroid Prime 4’s issues feel rooted in a lack of focus, rather than a lack of talent. In fact, the first half of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond makes it clear that Retro Studios still has everything it takes to make a spectacular Metroid Prime game, and moments of sheer brilliance occasionally shine and sparkle in its eerie corridors until the final couple of hours. But once things went south, there was no going back. Still, I’d like to see Retro take another crack now that the burden of expectation has been lifted.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a decent game, but after many years of waiting, it didn't quite live up to all my expectations. Sure, the gameplay is top-notch, and the graphics and music are excellent, but the story leaves a lot to be desired, and some design decisions could have been better thought out. However, if you're a fan of Samus' adventures, you'll definitely have fun with Beyond.
Review in Polish | Read full review
This is the best Metroid Prime I’ve ever played, and I can wholeheartedly recommend it not only to fans of the series but also to players who are experiencing the franchise for the first time.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond still retains the fun core formula of the series we know from before. However, alongside a few enjoyable new mechanics, it has also picked up some modern flaws in its attempt to keep up with current trends.
Review in Unknown | Read full review
Metroid Prime 4 is a good action game with moments of greatness and even though Metroid Prime 4 Beyond is likely not the evolution of the Prime experience worthy of a nearly two decade wait, it’s still visually stunning with impressive dungeons to explore, filled with plenty of epic moments. With the exception of a few odd design choices, and with the right expectations, Metroid Prime 4 Beyond is an impressive blend of refinement, spectacle, scale and action.