Super Mario Bros. Wonder

SUPER MARIO BROS. WONDER

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the newest 2D Mario game and the first appearance of Kevin Afghani as the new voice of Mario and Luigi since Charles Martinet's retirement from the role. The game features Mario and friends visiting the Flower Kingdom, when Bowser accidentally makes contact with a Wonder Flower, a plant with some seriously trippy reality-bending powers, and ends up fused with Prince Florian's castle.

Our playable characters in this game include Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, both the blue and yellow Toads, Toadette, four colors of Yoshi, and Nabbit. All play more or less the same, though the Yoshis and Nabbit all act as the game's easy mode. This includes running and jumping, with powerups including the Fire Flower and Super Star, and the new Elephant Fruit, Bubble Flower, and Drill Mushroom. The Elephant Fruit specifically turns the player into an elephant who can charge, butt bash, flick with their trunk, and carry and shoot water.

Also of note is our new badge mechanic, provided by Prince Florian, which gives you an added ability that you can equip from the start of any level. These include, as specific actions: the Parachute Cap, the Floating High Jump, the Boosting Spin Jump, the Wall Jump Climb, the Crouching High Jump, the Grappling Vine, the Dolphin Kick, the Timed High Jump, and the Fast Dash. Others give you some form of boost, such as a safety bounce, becoming a coin magnet, an item sensor, and just having certain items automatically, and others are expert level boosts, including invisibility, a jet run, and spring boots.

As for other allies, we have the Poplins, Florian's people, who can break up rocks and build bridges, some work as anglers, and others can teleport. It might be fair to attach things like the propeller flower to them as well. Then we have Captain Toad who pops up now and then, and the Talking Flowers, who are just great and comment on random things going on in each level.

Bowser is our main villain. He can breathe fire and flies around in his Klown Kar. After being merged with the castle, he shoots out fireballs that move like chomping piranha plants, attack with giant hands, and throw spike balls. Bowser Jr. pops up as a boss frequently, rolling around in his shell and butt bashing for most of his boss fights, but also using Wonder Flower power to grow, shrink, and alter the stage in some way. Kamek also appears, typically calling in airships to act as mid-level boss fights and such.

Our returning enemies include: Koopa Troopas, Koopa Paratroopas, Dry Bones, Goombas, Goombrats, Bone Goombas, Boos, Piranha Plants, Fire Piranha Plants, Bone Piranha Plants, Munchers, Nippers, Ninjis, Cheep Cheeps, Urchins, Bullet Bills, Bob-Ombs, Hotheads, Pokeys, Buzzy Beetles, Spinies, Lakitus, Spikes, Hammer Bros, Mechakoopas, Thwomps, and even King Boo in one level. Newcomers include: flying Anglefish, rolling Armads, Blewbirds, inflated frogs called Bloomps, charging Bulrushes, Condarts, Gnawshers, fat Hoppos, jumping Hoppycats, Thwomp-like Konks, eating Maw-Maws, Missile Megs, unwrappable Mumsies, kicking Outmaways, Pokipedes, Blaarghs that fall from the ceiling called Raarghs, Revvers, Robbirds, Bullet Bills that heat-seek, Shovas that push things, Skedaddlers that run and spit projectiles, Smackerels, Smogrins, rolling Snootles, Sproings, Tailies that hang from the ceiling, blobby Wubbas, and a bunch of guys that don't have names yet, like little green snails, mimic doors, owls, turtles, snakes in pots, walking fireworks, and a shadowy Mario that follows you around.

The whole game takes place in the Flower Kingdom, with its local Beach-themed area Petal Isles as the central hub connecting you to Pipe Rock Plateau, a grassy/mountainous region; Fluff-Puff Peaks, a sky region; Shining Falls, a strange polygonal mountainous world; Sunbaked Desert, a desert of course; Fungi Mines, a forest-y cave area filled with mushrooms; and Deep Magma Bog, a lava world. Each one of these has an access to the Special World, not unlike the one from Super Mario World.

And I think that's about it! Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Elephant Mario/etc.: charge, butt bash, trunk, shoot water

Prince Florian: Parachute Cap, Floating High Jump, Boosting Spin Jump, Wall Jump Climb, Crouching High Jump, Grappling Vine, Dolphin Kick, Timed High Jump, Fast Dash, safety bounce, coin magnet, item sensor, invisibility, jet run, spring boots

Poplins: break up rocks, build bridges, anglers, teleport, propeller flower

Spawny

Madame Bwahstrella

Kanya: Mecha King Bob-Omb

Allegra: Dorrie, tuning fork, musical blast, flip, water spit, vibrations

Rayman

Phantom: vanish, invulnerable spotlight, musical blast, sonic wave, sets

Stages: 

Tower of Doooooom!

Melodic Gardens

Phantom Show

Flower Kingdom

Petal Isles

Pipe Rock Plateau

Fluff-Puff Peaks

Shining Falls

Sunbaked Desert

Fungi Mines

Deep Magma Bog

Special World

Thanks for reading! Next up, we technically have another new game coming out this Friday, but we're not there yet, so we'll start with our newcomer characters, starting off with the hefty boy himself.

Mario + Rabbids DLC Packets

MARIO + RABBIDS: SPARKS OF HOPE DLC

So, my stance on covering new DLC whenever I revisit a series will be this: If it is just a new character or something, that I've already got on my rosters, and they play more or less the same as everyone else in said game (say it's a sports game or something), I'm not going to bother. There's nothing for me to pull out of that, I'd just be spending another day on functionally nothing. However, when it is major story DLC, with new characters and world maps and stuff, then I will take the extra time to cover it.

Such is the case with our three packs of Mario + Rabbids DLC. We start with the "Tower of Doooooom!" DLC, which is the least meaty of the three, and basically just re-introduces us to Spawny and Madame Bwahstrella, showing us what they've been up to since the first game. And of course, the titular Tower of Doooooom is a potential stage.

After that we have the "Last Spark Hunter" DLC, where we encounter a previously unknown Spark Hunter named Kanya who has gone rogue and is plotting schemes of her own, controlling a giant Mecha King Bob-Omb (color swap for sure). We also meet a new ally in Allegra, a wild Rabbid who uses a tuning fork as a spear, sets off a musical blast, can perform a flip, and creates vibrations. She is also friends with Dorrie, who can spit water. The entire thing takes place in a new area called Melodic Gardens.

Then finally, we have "Rayman in the Phantom Show," a DLC pack that teams up Rabbid Peach and Rabbid Mario with Rayman (sadly no Mario & Friends interactions here). Rayman will be dealt with in his own series, but he can punch with his detached fists, throw bombs, fire rockets, and fly with his . . . ears? The Phantom returns from his previous appearance as the big bad of this DLC, and like before, he can vanish, become invulnerable under a spotlight, and throw a musical blast. He can also let off a sonic wave, and he has sets constantly being moved around him. I think we can say for sure that he's our first third-chancer. There is also his Phantom Show Theater to consider.

Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Spawny

Madame Bwahstrella

Kanya: Mecha King Bob-Omb

Allegra: Dorrie, tuning fork, musical blast, flip, water spit, vibrations

Rayman

Phantom: vanish, invulnerable spotlight, musical blast, sonic wave, sets

Stages: 

Tower of Doooooom!

Melodic Gardens

Phantom Show

Thanks for reading! Next up, I wonder what we'll be covering?

Metroid Roster Select Screen

ROSTER SELECT SCREEN

And here's the select screen. See you next Monday, when I revisit the Mario series!

Metroid All-Stars Adventure Mode

ADVENTURE MODE

Since the combined classic modes and all-star modes would be self-explanatory, we're just going to jump straight to the adventure mode.

In both worlds, Samus and her companions get a message about a temporal rift that just opened up at the far edge of the galaxy. Being the heroes that they are, they set out together and come to the rift, where they find a huge complex that seems to be an amalgamation of worlds from both the games and the comics. The two parties work their way through it, encountering each other and facing each other in Hunters-style matches. Eventually, they come to the center of the complex, where Master Hand emerges from the void. The heroes work together to bring him down, but upon his defeat, he released a blast of dark energy, then closes his hand to cause all the heroes to be sucked into the rift and disappear.

Metroid Multimedia All-Star Mode

ALL-STAR MODE

And here's the all-star mode:

1. Metroid Mutant on Planet Zebes

2. Armstrong Houston and the Chozo Elders on Tourian

3. Kreatz and Mauk on Galactic Federation Headquarters

4. Joey, Megaroid, Diesel, Bomad, Amokmaw, U-Ton, Dangelo, Zegan Doh, Integra, and Greed on Junk Quixote

5. Papa Lightning, Bishop, and Knight on Hall of the Gods

6. Pirate Boss and GFS Tyr Crew on Final Gate

Metroid Multimedia Adventure Mode

ADVENTURE MODE

We start out with an adult Joey and Diesel, flying together in a bounty hunter ship, taking on a band of Space Pirates, led by a Pirate Boss and Joey’s old enemy Dangelo. During the battle, Joey and Diesel will receive some backup from Federation Marines Kreatz and Mauk, who will help take them down.

After the fight, the four return to Federation Headquarters with the captured villains, and bond over their discovered connection through their departed friend Samus Aran. They will also meet an adult Damara, likewise working at headquarters, who Joey will bond with.

As they are talking, four strangely pale and gaunt figures will enter the building. Damara will recognize them as four crewmen of the GFS Tyr, all of whom had been confirmed dead by Samus on the Planet Aether. Our heroes will investigate them, following them as they open fire on headquarters and break into a vault, stealing four ancient Chozo keys locked inside of it. Our heroes will engage them, but will fail to stop them from getting them back.

Chairman Keaton will question the heroes on what happened, telling them that the keys had been Chozo artifacts given to the Federation by Old Bird. Kreatz, knowing where he is, will take the party to the planet where he lives, and Old Bird will tell them the tale of his history with Samus and how the keys had been an attempt by the Chozo to control the Black Hole technology found in the ruins where Samus and Greed had both disappeared years before, but had been scrapped due to it being too unstable.

Joey, Diesel, Kreatz, Mauk, Damara, and Old Bird then set out, seeking each and every one of the keys. During each, Papa Lightning and the various other Craftsmen will appear as shop owners, upgrading tech and things like that. In each area, you’ll also come across other Bounty Hunters with connections to Samus who join your side, including Armstrong Houston, Zegan Doh, and Bomad. When you corner, each of the four, they will end up mutating into another deceased boss, Lily Thran into the Metroid Mutant, Jeff McCloud into the Megaroid, Miguel Luis Garcia into Bishop, and Klaus Schneider into Knight. Upon each one’s defeat, the spirit of the fallen soldier will thank you.

Finally, the party will reach the Hall of the Gods, using a rebuilt U-Ton provided by the Craftsmen. There they will find that Greed has been slowly reforming over the years after he was torn apart atom by atom by the black hole, and that he had used the powers of the Hall to resurrect four fallen individuals to find the keys that would help restore him fully. Our main heroes will engage in a final battle against him, while Old Bird will sneak around the battle, trying to get to the key and destroy it. His progress will be halted by a resurrected shadow of his old friend Gray Voice, and he will have to defeat him to finally shut down the black hole.

After Greed has been slain and the key destroyed, the black hole will collapse in on itself. In the singularity left behind, a new figure will emerge: our heroes’ long lost friend Samus, able to return to this plane in that moment before it closed forever. She will smile at them all and say, “I told you I’d be back someday.”

Metroid Multimedia Classic Mode

CLASSIC MODE

And here's a classic mode for Metroid EX:

1. (All with Samus, Joey, and Diesel fighting alongside you) vs. Dillon, on Wild Gunman

2. vs. Kirby, with a horde of Jigglypuffs and other round characters, on a stage with round features

3. vs. any ice character (let's go with Rundas) on any ice stage

4. vs. Bomberman on Kongo Jungle, with a Papa Lightning horde coming to help late in the battle

5. vs. Captain Falcon on Big Blue

6. vs. a Space Pirate and a giant Lanturn on any water level, with a poison effect on the stage

7. vs. Knight on Junk Quixote

8. vs. Bishop on Hall of the Gods, with Knight as an ally.

9. vs. Greed on Hall of the Gods (but only Samus backing you up).

Metroid Multimedia Assist Trophies

METROID MULTIMEDIA ASSIST TROPHIES

And here's our assist trophies coming from the Metroid comics!

1.       Golon: He will hold up Samus’s morph ball capsule and then use it to roll into a ball and bounce around the stage haphazardly.

2.       Pyonchi: Pyonchi will run around happily, picking up items and bringing them back to its summoner.

Metroid Multimedia Stage Roster

METROID MULTIMEDIA STAGE ROSTER

And here's our stages. If this were a real game, where would you pick to play on first?

Junk Quixote

JUNK QUIXOTE

In Samus & Joey, the most recurring location in the series is Junk Quixote, Diesel’s repair shop located on a derelict space station that Samus frequents. The shop has a number of ships inside it being worked on, equipment for moving around heavy objects, and a high balcony Joey once used to get the drop on Jealousy and Bomad.

This stage will take place inside the shop, using the ground floor and the balcony as platforms, while Diesel’s equipment will move around, bringing in various ships and junk from the nearby junkyard, creating new platforms for the characters to use here and there.

Possible theme: No music to work with.

Hall of the Gods

HALL OF THE GODS

For Samus & Joey’s sequel, Metroid EX, the most memorable location ended up being the location of the final battle between Samus and Greed, an ancient temple where Greed opened up an ancient door and activated a Black Hole capable of destroying and recreating the universe.

This stage will take place on ruins, directly before the door. As the fight goes on, the door will slowly crack open wider and wider, slightly pulling on the players at first and slowly building until they are sucked in entirely unless they get behind cover.

Possible theme: No music to work with.

Galactic Federation Headquarters

GALACTIC FEDERATION HEADQUARTERS

In both the Magazine Z comics where Samus’s backstory was told, as well as the Super Metroid comic that introduced Old Bird, the Galactic Federation Headquarters were shown, made up of four tall spires and a central council chamber hanging between them.

This stage will take place on top of the building, primarily on the hanging central chamber, but also using the long connector lines attaching it to the spires. Federation ships will come and go in the background.

Possible theme: No music to work with.

Final Gate

FINAL GATE

The comic Metroid Prime: Episode of Aether took the plot of echoes and ran with it, showing Samus watching over four survivors of the GFS Tyr while investigating the mystery of the game itself. The comic concludes with an epic battle at the final gate into Dark Aether, where Samus goes in to fight Dark Samus, and the four guard the gate in a final stand, sacrificing their lives in the process.

This stage will be set in that area, with a long flat stage and four large walls of cover, the portal in the background, swirling and fluctuating. Every now and then, a creature from Dark Aether will emerge and land on the stage, and the players will have to defeat it.

Possible theme: Comics don’t have music, but I at least have one joke song I can toss out, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCPCa_zEMqw

Metroid Multimedia Roster

METROID MULTIMEDIA ROSTER

And here's our roster for all characters appearing outside of the games, mainly in comics and manga. If this were a real roster from a real game, who ya mainin'?

GFS Tyr Crew

GFS TYR CREW

While in the game, the entire crew of the GFS Tyr were wiped out by the Ing, in the comic, Samus encounters four young recruits who had managed to survive the attack.

These four include Klaus Schneider, the field-promoted rookie team leader, Miguel Luis Garcia, the edgy rebel, Lily Thran, the team medic, and Jeff McCloud, the computer guy. They would accompany Samus on her journey through Aether, and would ultimately give their lives holding the Final Gate, long enough for Samus to defeat the Ing emperor.

As fighters, they will be echoes of Adam Malkovitch and the other Federation Marines, except maybe a bit less durable and well-armed, owing to their damaged armor and equipment. Their moveset will pull from the same pool as their fellows.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Pirate Boss

PIRATE BOSS

Other comics will come and go, some more creative than others. One of the more fleshed out was an adaptation of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, entitled “Episode of Aether.” The comic begins with Samus facing a band of Space Pirates, led by a powerful and ruthless leader.

This unnamed Pirate Boss is ultimately inconsequential, but provides an entertaining fight for the first couple of chapters, matching Samus in strength while utilizing cruel and ruthless tactics.

As a fighter, he will be big and strong, attacking with sheer brute force and savagery. His moveset will pull from his fight as shown in the comic.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Knight

KNIGHT

Greed’s second general is a much more noble and honorable individual, serving Greed due to a debt of gratitude he owes to him, but will help and give a fighting chance to his enemies as well.

This is Knight, a former friend of Joey’s father Rand. He serves under Greed, but ultimately turns against him and Bishop, helping Joey to unlock a new power of his gauntlets that allows him to defeat Bishop once and for all.

As a fighter, Knight will be a little slow, but heavily armored and with a lot of power behind him. His moveset will rely heavily on his sword and will pull from his moves as demonstrated in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Bishop

BISHOP

As Samus and her allies defeat each of Greed’s minions and reclaim her powers, they end up coming face to face with Greed’s two most trusted generals, one a power hungry individual who will stop at nothing to further his own standing.

This is Bishop, the final holder of Samus’s power-ups, outfitting himself with her Varia Suit. He acts as a major villain in the latter half of Metroid EX, nearly killing Samus’s team and even his own allies multiple times.

As a fighter, Bishop will be slow-moving and calculating, but powerful in his attacks. His moveset will pull from his own actions demonstrated in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Papa Lightning

PAPA LIGHTNING

After Samus’s defeat at the hands of Greed and the subsequent loss of her armor and weapons, she, Joey, and Diesel regroup and go after him in a sequel manga title Metroid EX. The trio travel from planet to planet, facing minions of Greed powered up by one or more of Samus’s powerups. On one planet, they encounter members of Diesel’s species.

These are the Craftsmen, led by their elder Papa Lightning. The Craftsmen were once the best engineers in the galaxy, but withdrew and abandoned technology altogether after their creations were used to destroy, only Diesel dissenting. After watching Samus, Joey, and Diesel struggle to fight a dangerous enemy armed with Samus’s bombs, they have a change of heart and jump into action to disassemble the bomb before it goes off.

As fighters, they will be echoes of Diesel, albeit faster and much less heavy hitting. Their moveset will pull from both their own abilities and Diesel’s.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Greed

GREED

After months and months of investigation into the Dominion, Samus will come face to face with their leader after he kidnaps Joey and holds him for ransom.

This is Greed, a member of Ridley’s species seeking revenge for Ridley and the Space Pirates’ destruction. He trades Joey’s life for Samus’s powerups, spreading them to his followers and using them to access ancient ruins on a faraway planet, where an ancient weapon rests.

As a fighter, Greed will be very similar to Ridley in terms of stats, if a bit smaller and more reliant on stealth and trickery. His moveset will pull from his demonstrated abilities in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Integra

INTEGRA

As the series goes on, Samus will start to pick up hints of a mysterious organization called the Dominion behind various events such as Jealousy’s takeover of Diesel’s shop and Zegan behind hired to kill her. Her investigation will lead her to a factory where she will find a giant robot.

This robot is called an Integra, a killing machine patterned after Samus’s suit, with many attacks and abilities designed as approximations of Samus’s own abilities. These will soon act as the frontline forces of the Dominion going forward.

As fighters, the Integra are large and powerful, with their moveset pulling from their demonstrated abilities in combat, which were likewise patterned after Samus’s abilities.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Zegan Doh

ZEGAN DOH

Another adventure will see Samus approached by a fellow bounty hunter, bent on challenging her for the position of number one bounty hunter.

This is Zegan Doh, who wields a blade capable of slicing through anything. His talents are noticed by a mysterious figure who approaches him and hires him specifically to hunt down and kill Samus.

As a fighter, Zegan will be speedy and well-armored, with devastating slash attacks that derive from his demonstrated abilities in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Dangelo

DANGELO

Another one-off adventure will feature Samus becoming wanted and feared by those living on the station after a figure looking like her will terrorize and attack multiple public locations.

This figure will turn out to be Dangelo, a dangerous criminal Samus put away years before, having escaped and returned for revenge. He uses a special invisibility tech to appear out of nowhere, and then disappear just as Samus or other authorities arrive.

As a fighter, Dangelo will be an echo fighter of Armstrong Houston, who likewise was a semi-clone of Samus and SA-X himself. Dangelo specifically will have a heavy focus on stealth.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

U-Ton

U-TON

After the first two major arcs, Samus & Joey starts to wind down a bit into little episodic chapters. One of which features Joey exploring the scrapyard around Junk Quixote and coming across a strange robot that he befriends.

This is U-Ton, a member of a line of weapons of mass destruction with a dangerous flaw that had required all of the same model to be disassembled. Unfortunately, one managed to escape and found its way to the station before Samus was assigned to track it down and destroy it.

As a fighter, U-Ton will be durable and powerful, a powerhouse tank of a fighter. Its moveset will pull from its demonstrated abilities, both during its battle at the end and its playtimes with Joey beforehand.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Amokmaw

AMOKMAW

One of the first missions Samus takes Joey on, and on which Diesel tags along, is a rescue mission for a peacekeeping ship on its way to a relief mission, which had gotten off course and crash-landed. The job was theoretically simple, until they discovered that, at night, anything alive on the surface would be swarmed by ravenous, man-eating penguins.

These are the Amokmaws, deadly animals that move in swarms and devour anything they encounter. These creatures would prove a serious threat to Samus, Joey, Diesel, and the rest of the ship’s crew, including Joey’s mother.

As fighters, the Amokmaw would be lightning fast, with moves pulling from their snapping mouths full of teeth and their voracious appetites.

Likelihood rating: Non-game

Bomad

BOMAD

Upon reaching Junk Quixote, Samus and Joey detect something is not quite right. A crime lord named Jealousy has taken over the shop, hiring as an enforcer a powerful bounty hunter.

This is Bomad, a rival to Samus in the bounty hunting business. He uses special singularity bombs to quickly dispatch of any opponents too strong for him to face.

As a fighter, Bomad will be quick and deadly, with keen, precise moves. His moveset will pull from all his shown abilities, including his singularities.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Diesel

DIESEL

After accepting Joey as her apprentice, Samus takes him to a space station she frequents for repairs, to the repair shop Junk Quixote run by her friend Diesel.

Diesel is a small furry creature with a curmudgeonly attitude and a knack for machines. He acts as Joey’s caretaker when Samus is off on missions deemed too dangerous for him to tag along. He later joins them as they take off to pursue Greed in Metroid EX.

As a fighter, Diesel will be small and quick, with moves designed for repairing and taking apart various weapons and tech. His moveset will pull from across his various appearances in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Megaroid

MEGAROID

While shaking off Joey’s enthusiastic pleas at first, Samus investigates the Space Pirate activities on the planet. She soon finds that they had been experimenting with a dead Metroid to clone a new variant, one that could be controlled via mind control.

This was the Megaroid. Thanks to Samus and Joey’s interference in the Pirates’ operations, the Megaroid ended up breaking free before the mind control was finished, killing all the pirates and nearly draining the life from the entire planet before our heroes could work together to bring it down.

As a fighter, the Megaroid will be odd and malleable, with its crystalline body that could be shattered and reformed into new bodies for itself. Its moveset will pull from its demonstrated abilities in the manga.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Joey Apronika

JOEY APRONIKA

Right around the release of Metroid Fusion, a new type of Metroid manga was published in Comic BomBom, one that told its own story, taking place somewhere around the time of Metroid Fusion and after. In this version, Samus encounters a spunky young boy living on a planet where Space Pirates had build a new base of operations.

This little boy was Joey Apronika, the son of a great fallen hero and a brilliant doctor. Left alone by his parents, he became determined to be the new guardian of his home, and later, when he met Samus, to be taken on as her apprentice. Impressed by his unyielding drive and heroic spirit, she ultimately agrees to take him on.

As a fighter, Joey will be both fast and strong, powered up by his father’s special gauntlets. His moveset will pull from the gauntlets’ powers as well as the other random items he uses his resourcefulness to turn into weapons.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Mauk

MAUK

Samus’s team will be first established on a scouting mission, with Samus and Kreatz keeping an eye on a Space Pirate base from a high vantage point, while their third member scouts ahead.

Their third member is Mauk, a member of a species only just recently considered sapient by the Federation, having just left their neanderthal era. Mauk is loyal, strong, and smart, and eventually becomes a squadron leader in his own right.

As a fighter, Mauk will be big and powerful, knocking opponents around with his immense strength. His moveset will pull from his demonstrated abilities shown in the comics.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Kreatz

KREATZ

After establishing Old Bird in the Super Metroid comic, Magazine Z ran a series of comics telling the full backstory of Samus, from the destruction of her world as a child, being raised and enhanced by the Chozo, and her people’s betrayal by Mother Brain, issuing in the events of the games. As far as anyone can tell, this comic, if no others, is considered canon to the games and various elements have been referenced in multiple games since. In this comic, we see Samus briefly join the Federation, becoming part of a team with two partners.

The first of these is Kreatz, a sneaky elven alien capable of projecting energy whips from his fingers, who is treated with mistrust by many because his people were responsible for a past war. Despite this, Kreatz proves a loyal friend and ally to Samus throughout her adventures.

As a fighter, Kreatz will be light and quick, utilizing his energy whips for most of his attacks, his moveset pulling from the various ways he uses them in the comic.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Chozo Elders

CHOZO ELDERS

When Samus is seriously wounded in battle, Armstrong will take her to a planet where an ally of hers lives. This is where we get our first glimpse of the Chozo who helped raise her: Old Bird.

Old Bird, and many other Chozo Elders such as Gray Voice and Platinum Chest, have always been implied to exist in the games, but it was through the comics that they managed to come to life. Old Bird would reappear in Magazine Z, which would tell Samus’s full backstory, with both Gray and Platinum playing major roles as well.

As fighters, they’ll be pretty low on offense, choosing more pacifistic leanings such as defense and healing, though occasionally delving into full combat as Gray Voice did to take on Mother Brain. Their moveset will pull from across the two comics.

Likelihood rating: Does this count as Non-game? Because part of me wants to give it a Could happen.

Armstrong Houston

ARMSTRONG HOUSTON

When Super Metroid came out, Nintendo Power magazine ran a series of issues of Samus working through the game’s story, accompanied in her journey by an admirer and fellow bounty hunter who wants to become her partner.

This is Armstrong Houston, who patterned his suit after her and everything. He mostly acts as an exposition sponge, learning Samus’s backstory and witnessing her abilities for the audience’s sake. As the story goes on, he grows to be a better ally and focuses on helping Samus rather than trying to convince her to take him on.

As a fighter, Armstrong will be a semi-clone based heavily on both Samus and the Federation Marines. His moveset will pull from both pulls, but he’ll be a little less strong stat-wise than both.

Likelihood rating: Non-game.

Metroid Mutant

METROID MUTANT

Alongside the games, the Metroid series has had a long history of comics and other media running alongside them, some even supplying details that made it into canon. One of the strangest of the earliest media was Metroid: Zebes Invasion Order, a “gamebook” that acted as a sort of playable choose-your-own-adventure computer game, that ran you through the plot of the first game, but in text form. This game included a bonus ending that had you going up against a secret boss.

This was the Metroid=Mutant, but I’m calling it the Metroid Mutant. The Metroid Mutant was a mutated Metroid that survived the defeat of Mother Brain, and, depending on your choices, followed Samus onto her ship as she escaped the planet's destruction.

As a fighter, the Metroid Mutant is big and powerful, with attacks based on what it was portrayed to do within the gamebook, with maybe a little creativity on the game maker’s part to portray the moves visually.

Likelihood rating: Non-game (technically).

Metroid All-Star Mode

ALL-STAR MODE

And here's the All-Star Mode:

1. Samus, Kraid, Ridley, Metroid, Mother Brain, and Zero Suit Samus on Planet Zebes

2. Autoad, Omega Metroid, and Metroid Queen on SR388

3. Kihunter, Space Pirate, Torizo, and Phantoon on Tourian

4. X-Parasite, SA-X, and Nightmare on Biologic Space Laboratories

5. Meta Ridley, Chozo Ghost, Phazon Elite, Metroid Prime, and Dark Samus on Frigate Orpheon

6. Ing, U-Mos, Quad, and Emperor Ing on Planet Aether

7. Kanden, Spire, Weavel, Sylux, Noxus, Trace, and Gorea on Celestial Archives

8. Ghor, Rundas, Gandrayda, Aurora Unit, Berserker Lord, Steambot, Labor Golem, and Liquid Phazon on Norion

9. Adam Malkovich and MB on Pyrosphere

10. Federation Mech on Blast Ball Arena

11. Raven Beak, EMMI, Robot Chozo Soldier, and Chozo Soldier on Artaria

Metroid Adventure Mode

ADVENTURE MODE

The story begins as a team of Federation Marines, armed with Mechs, and led by Anthony Higgs investigate a strange vessel that appeared in Federation space out of nowhere. You work through this prologue playing as either a marine or a mech, finding the base crawling with EMMIs and enemy types long thought extinct. Finally, Ridley appears, acting as the prologue’s final boss. Upon his defeat, the screen will go dark and you will hear the heroes’ screams.

The main story will then open on Samus arriving at a Federation base, being briefed by Castor Dane, an Aurora Unit, and the Adam Malkovitch computer on the situation with the vessel. U-Mos will also appear, having been brought in because the vessel gives off Dark Aether readings as well as intense Phazon radiation. Samus agrees to go in and investigate.

The vessel will be broken up into nine main areas that you will have to work through, each one resembling a biome that she has been to before, including Planet Zebes, SR388, Biologic Space Laboratories, Tallon IV, Aether, the Oubliette, Phaaze, the Bottle Ship, and ZDR. Each one of these locations will have its own EMMI, as well as a brainwashed Hunter that you will have to fight and defeat, who will then join your fight upon your freeing them. You will have to work through these areas, going back and forth between them, unlocking new items and areas in the process. Each area will have its own boss as well, all villains you believed long dead.

Kraid will be the boss of Zebes, and Spire will be its hunter. The Metroid Queen for SR388, with Noxus. SA-X will lurk Biologic Space Laboratories, as will Sylux. Rundas will appear on Tallon IV, with the Metroid Prime as its boss. Ghor will appear on Aether, with Emperor Ing as its boss. Kanden will haunt the Oubliette, as will Gorea. Gandrayda will appear on Phaaze, with Dark Samus acting as the boss. MB will act as the boss of the Bottle Ship, and through her you will learn that whoever is behind this is using the same cloning process that created her to create shadows from Samus’s past, constructing this vessel specifically as a gauntlet to torture and punish Samus, and that whoever is behind it obviously hates her. Adam will use the machine to create a clone of his own body and place his consciousness in it to help her. Weavel will also appear in this level. Finally, Raven Beak will function as the boss of ZDR, with Trace appearing as the hunter. Ridley will also appear in a boss fight, and then reappear for a second boss fight, upgrading himself into Meta Ridley.

After beating each villain and freeing all of her friends and fellow hunters, Samus will unlock the way to the final area, based on Tourian. There she will face off against a Torizo briefly, before finding the true mastermind behind all of this. Mother Brain did not in fact die on Zebes in Super Metroid, but backed up her consciousness in a small pod that survived the destruction, floating in space for years until a band of Space Pirates found her. She then spent years rebuilding herself, watching Samus’s adventures and plotting her revenge against her by recreating every nemesis Samus ever fought and forcing her to relive her worst assignments. Samus and her allies will fight Mother Brain and destroy her, causing the entire vessel to start collapsing.

After the end of the game, Samus will unlock a Zero Suit Samus hard mode where she can go back through the vessel. In this version, Nightmare and Phantoon will appear as bonus additional bosses.

Metroid Classic Mode

CLASSIC MODE

As always, the classic mode will be based around specific games and "recreating" them through a series of battles. Here's one for Super Metroid:

1. Vs. Ridley on Ceres Space Colony, with a time limit

2. Vs. Samus on Crateria

3. Vs. Kraid on Brinstar Depths

4. Vs. Ridley on Norfair

5. Vs. Space Pirate & Kihunter army on a water stage that matches well enough

6. Vs. Phantoon on Pyrosphere

7. Vs. Metroids on Tourian

8. Final Boss: Mother Brain on Tourian, with a giant Metroid supporting.

Metroid Assist Trophies

ASSIST TROPHIES

And here's a list of assist trophies from the Metroid series, and what they do:

1.       Crocomire: It will land on the stage and go through the motions of its boss battle, clawing and roaring until someone pushes it off the stage.

2.       Dachora & Etecoon: They will run around in the background of the stage, following the player that summoned them, miming out possible moves they can perform and picking up items.

3.       Dark Splinter: A swarm of them will flood the stage, attacking and draining everyone.

4.       Fune: A portal will appear on one end of the stage, from which a Fune will periodically barrel out and snap at players.

5.       Geemer: It will nonchalantly crawl around the stage, not actively attacking, but can do small damage when touched.

6.       Ice Titan: It will land hard on the stage, spot an enemy players, roar, and charge. It will do this a few times before disappearing.

7.       Rinka: Three rinkas will bounce around the stage, doing light damage whenever they hit a player.

8.       Sidehopper: The sidehopper will appear on stage, hopping from side to side as it does, doing damage on contact.

9.       Skree: The skree will fly to the top of the stage, hang there a moment and then spin down to strike an enemy.

Metroid Stage Roster

METROID STAGE ROSTER

And here's all of our stages. If this were a real roster for a real game, which would you pick to play on first?

Tourian

TOURIAN

And of course, we cannot forget the final boss area from both Metroid and Super Metroid, the center of the Planet Zebes where Mother Brain’s jar lives.

The stage takes place in the final room, with the giant brain version of Mother Brain in the center and a lot of the same platforms and barriers around. Mother Brain will watch the fight and occasionally shoot lasers at it, while Rinkas will bounce around here and there.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2CRLDMqeSI

SR388

SR388

Metroid II takes Samus down to the surface of the planet SR388, the homeworld of the Metroids and X-Parasites on a quest to wipe out the Metroid species once and for all.

This will be one of those old-timey black-and-white stages, setting the player within a level of the original game and having them fight inside of it. The stage will also shift to various locations throughout.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=453temu5BIg

Space Pirate Mothership

SPACE PIRATE MOTHERSHIP

Metroid: Zero Mission is functionally the same game, storywise, as the original Metroid. However, the game does add on one major additional level, stripping Samus down to her zero suit and forcing her to sneak around the Space Pirate mothership to get it back.

This stage will be one of those really big ones, with lots of areas for the players to hide, and enemies roving here and there with spotlights that the players will want to avoid, mimicking the aesthetic appearance of Zero Mission itself.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnnhXBfngs0

Pyrosphere

PYROSPHERE

Probably the most memorable scene in all of Metroid: Other M comes when the strange little creature Samus has been spotting here and there around the bottle ship reaches the final stage of its evolution and turns out to be a clone of Ridley, who then attacks Samus and her friend Anthony in the middle of Pyrosphere.

This is likely the reason why Pyrosphere was chosen as the stage for SSB4, a big large platform for battling that the Ridley clone would show up on from time to time and attack the players. I would include a bit more dynamic action than the stage did, with more of the lava and the stage being knocked around, or even the lift function that similar platforms use when mini-boss fights take place in the game.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q3j0J9P1m0

Planet Zebes

PLANET ZEBES

While Brinstar and Norfair do well to represent Planet Zebes as a whole, I do want at least one stage to represent the original NES Metroid game.

While it may be a recreation of the Smash 64 game, what matters most to me is the aesthetic, with every texture mirroring the old 8-bit designs of the first game, rather than recreating it all in 3D.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-U3sVX2G3w

Planet Aether

PLANET AETHER

As for Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, the most important gimmick to represent for this game is the two sides of the planet, the Light Aether and the Dark Aether.

As such, this stage will take place in the middle of one of the Light Sanctuaries where Samus returns light to the planet. The stage will have two forms, a Light form, where everything is peaceful and safe, and the players can just focus on battling, and a Dark Form, where dangerous mist flows everywhere, racking up damage, while Dark Splinters crawl around in the background.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLOkc9MwFHs

Phaaze

PHAAZE

Throughout the Metroid Prime franchise, one single aspect is a constant, and arguably the true main villain of the trilogy: the element Phazon. So, naturally, a stage roster wouldn’t be complete without at least one stage representing that.

This stage will be set on the planet, with jagged lopsided platforms and Phazon covering everything. Players will have to watch their steps as the stuff will be damaging to them whenever they touch it. At least one swinging Phazon tentacle will appear as well.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFOqGV-6bck

Norion

NORION

Metroid Prime 3 starts out with a memorable scene of Samus and three other bounty hunters joining the Federation in an epic final battle against the Space Pirates at their base on the planet Norion. This scene has always stuck out in my mind as the most memorable scene of the game.

This stage will take place in the middle of that battle, on the large bridge where a major part of the assault takes place. Here and there, Pirate and Federation landing vessels will appear behind the bridge, with soldiers on board shooting at the players.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1y8bq_2X2g

Norfair

NORFAIR

After Brinstar, another standard area appearing in both the first game and Super Metroid is Norfair, a much more lava-based area and the first of the “fire” worlds present in most games. It also acts as the home of Ridley in both games.

Smash mostly already represents this well, with a number of lava-based hazards pulling from not only Norfair but most of the fire worlds across the series, as well as a “safe box” to protect you from the most devastating of them. If I would change anything, it would be the layout, as the V of small platforms is just stupid to me.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olT8zrRJdYI

Metroid Pinball

METROID PINBALL

Metroid Prime Pinball was the first of the Metroid Prime spinoffs that fell in between the main games, and it pretty simple in premise. It’s a series of pinball tables using Samus’s morph ball form as the ball.

This stage will take place on said Pinball table, probably the most basic table from the game, with the flippers at the bottom, the bouncy sections here and there, and the morph ball bouncing around here and there, knocking into players.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETzvnKw_QlU

Frigate Orpheon

FRIGATE ORPHEON

Probably the most memorable part of Metroid Prime is the opening, starting Samus out with her full suit and library of power-ups, exploring an abandoned ship and ending in a boss fight against a giant alien parasite.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl pretty perfectly represented this stage, as well as standard Boss Battles in general, with the Parasite Queen raging around in the background. The stage flipping upside down is not part of the source material as far as I remember, but it’s fine.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLLE_PvJ5mY

Crateria

CRATERIA

In most Metroid games, Samus’s ship tends to act as a check point and save space, hovering off the ground in a safe open area where Samus can go to save her progress. On Planet Zebes especially, this area was called Crateria, and was largely free of threats, except for acid rain that coated the planet’s surface from time to time.

This stage will recreate exactly that. The bottom of the stage will be a long, flat plane leading off the sides, with Samus’s ship hovering in the middle that you can stand on top of or below. At random intervals, acid rain will start to pour, forcing the players to fight under the ship if they don’t want to take damage.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EJDusFDbR4

Ceres Space Colony

CERES SPACE COLONY

One of the most notable features of Metroid games is the big self-destruct sequence frequently following the defeat of a major boss, requiring players to backtrack all the way to the beginning of the game or level and escape before the whole thing explodes.

The most notable of these is the Ceres Space Colony at the beginning of Super Metroid. The stage will begin at the bottom of the final shaft, scrolling upwards as alarms blare, requiring players to climb as they fight. Once they get to the top, the players will have to take shelter in the safe area as the entire stage explodes. After it’s over, the players will start at the bottom again.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj47pXTCKmU

Celestial Archives

CELESTIAL ARCHIVES

Metroid Prime Hunters was a game that set you up in various labyrinthine maps specifically designed to give you a space to go toe-to-toe with other others, both in open combat, but also sneaking around and hunting your opponents.

Celestial Archives will be based on the first level of the game, with at least two different levels and multiple ways to get up and down, with various forms of cover. This lends players the opportunity to be slippery in their battle, using various methods to sneak around the stage and get the drop on their opponent.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErMydjOmIMs

Brinstar Depths

BRINSTAR DEPTHS

While Brinstar captures well the look and feel of the Metroid series as a whole, Smash also came up with a stage so unique in its concept that I can’t not include it here.

Brinstar Depths was a stage built on a circular floor, over a pit of lava that Kraid frequently rose out of, roaring and clawing around before slashing the stage and causing it to spin a few degrees, completely changing up the battlefield layout.

Possible theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyZjl86LSp8