Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

''"Corruption" redirects here. For information on phazon corruption, see Phazon, and Hypermode.''

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is a video game developed for the Wii by Retro Studios and published by Nintendo. It is the tenth game in the Metroid series and the third main installment in the Prime trilogy, excluding Metroid Prime Hunters and Metroid Prime Pinball. The game takes place six months after the events of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and introduces a new control system based on the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. It was released in North America on August 27, 2007, and sold in stores on August 28. It was released in Europe on October 26, 2007. Nintendo released a Metroid Prime 3 Preview channel to North American Wii owners via the Wii Shop Channel on August 10, 2007 and to European Wii Owners on 15 October, 2007.

Gameplay
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is a 3D first-person adventure. Utilizing the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, you can point Samus Aran's arm cannon with the Wii Remote pointer and use the Grappling Beam by moving the Nunchuk. You can choose whether to use the A button or B trigger for firing, with the remaining button used to jump.

In contrast to the interchangeable beams used in Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Corruption has a stackable beam system similar to Super Metroid ' s. You progressively obtain concurrent upgrades for beams, Missiles, and grapples in a system similar to that of Super Metroid. The game also features various visors, including the new Command Visor. The X-Ray Visor featured in Metroid Prime, but was removed in the second Prime game, makes a reappearance and can be used in conjunction with a new beam with the ability to fire through certain walls. The Scan Visor is also reintroduced. Visors can be switched easily by holding the minus button and flicking in a direction with the Wii Remote. The variation of the Screw Attack seen in Echoes has also been implemented.

Corruption is the second Metroid game (the first being Metroid Prime: Hunters) to involve any in-game use of Samus' gunship for anything other than saving. With the aforementioned Command Visor, Samus can call in her ship for an air strike, carry around large object with its own grapple beam, or have it land in a more convenient spot. In addition, Samus can enter her ship to travel to various areas on the planet, or even travel to entirely different planets altogether, such as Norion and Bryyo, among others.

In the game, Samus obtains a new suit to handle her Phazon corruption named the Phazon Enhancement Device (PED). A new feature that makes use of Wii Remote functionality allows you to lock on and strafe around an enemy while simultaneously firing anywhere on screen. This can be changed in the options so that players can choose the previous method of locking on targets. The Morph Ball also returns, along with the Spring Ball, which can be used by flicking the Wii Remote up. According to Retro Studios, the more intuitive control causes Corruption to be less difficult and faster-paced than Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. Scanning has also become easier to perform. Additionally, a new checkpoint system allows you to restart immediately at certain points in the game between save stations, a feature not implemented in the series previously.

Nintendo announced that there would be no online play in Corruption. The game instead introduces a system that rewards you with tokens for completing various achievements. The tokens can be used to purchase unlockable items or sent to friends via the WiiConnect24 service. You can also take screenshots within the game and send them online.

Plot synopsis
After the events of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, the Galactic Federation contacts Samus Aran to investigate a malfunctioning network computer known as the Aurora Unit. The Federation believes the Space Pirates have infected the Aurora Unit with a virus. Subsequently, the Space Pirates attack one of the Federation's bases and begin to overrun the Federation's defenses. Samus, along with Bounty Hunters Ghor, Rundas, and Gandrayda, must work together to stop the siege, repair the Aurora Unit, and defeat enemies from the past game.

Plot
Corruption takes place precisely six months after the events of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, with the player again taking the role of Samus. The story begins with a meeting between Samus Aran and the Galactic Federation, in which she meets three other bounty hunters; Ghor, Rundas and Gandrayda. Initially, they are hired to help cure the Federation Aurora Unit networks of a Space Pirate virus, but then a pirate attack suddenly occurs and they are quickly dispatched to the nearby planet Norion and ordered to activate its laser defense system to fend off the assault. During the mission, Samus encounters Ridley once again, and the two ending up plummeting down an energy shaft. After a brief fight, Samus is rescued by Rundas while Ridley plummets to his supposed death. Later, an asteroid-sized "Leviathan Seed" is sighted heading to the planet. The Hunters, having restored power to the defense system, rush to the control room, but are attacked by Dark Samus just before activating the defense systems. With the other hunters unconscious, a heavily wounded Samus manages to activate the laser just in time to destroy the Leviathan Seed.

Samus wakes up a month later and learns that she and her fellow Hunters were corrupted by Phazon from Dark Samus' attack. However, the Federation scientists discover that Samus's body was now self-producing Phazon and have even developed a Phazon Enhancement Device (P.E.D.) that allows Samus control her internal Phazon on a safe level and to enter Hypermode. Samus further learns that the other three Hunters had left two weeks before for missions to three other planets where Seeds have been observed, but the federation lost contact with them seven days earlier. Samus is ordered to destroy each Leviathan Seed and seek the whereabouts of the other Hunters.

She first travels to Bryyo, the abandoned home of the extinct Bryyonians and now home of the Reptilicus, where she finds out to her horror that the Phazon corruption initially thought to be benign can cause her body to overload with Phazon energy, which could eventually drive her insane, and she must dispel it to prevent further corruption. (If Samus stays in hypermode past an alloted time, she enters courrupted hypermode in which the phazon meter rises up. If the meter maxes out, Samus will be utterly corrupted, will transform into a new Dark Samus, and you get an automatic "Game Over.") She then learns that Rundas fell to the Phazon corruption and battles him in self-defense. Rundus, upon defeat, commits suicide and Dark Samus flys in an ghostly form and absorbs him. After acquiring Ship Missile to allow her to destroy the shield generator around the Seed, she heads inside where she fights Mogenar, a corrupted Bryyonian war golem. Upon destruction, however, the resulting explosion overloads Samus with Phazon, which expels by destroying the Leviathan core, though not before it corrupts her further.

She then heads to SkyTown, the flying city populated by sentient robots, situated on Elysia She manages to cure the Aurora Unit 217 of its virus but then the now corrupted Ghor attacks and disables the Aurora, forcing Samus to kill him, watch as Dark Samus arrives to absorb him, and acquire his Plasma Beam to repair the Aurora. The Aurora then helps her build a Theronian Bomb to let her destroy the Leviathan's shield, allowing Samus to fly in inside, where she fights Helios, the corrupted commander of the Elysian robots. Helios explodes and Samus is further corrupted.

The final impacted planet is the Space Pirate Homeworld where the corruption has spread so quickly that the planet itself is becoming Phazon. After briefly partnering with a Galactic Federation trooper to get the Hazard Suit, she trooper attempts to kill her and then reveals herself to be Gandrayda. Samus defeats her and then watches helplessly as Dark Samus absorbs her. She then helps the Federation lead an all-out attack on the Pirate Homeworld, by leading a team of Demolition Trooper to destroy the security door to the cargo line leading to Pirate's planet Seed, where she battles Omega Ridley. Ridley explodes and Samus's corruption reaches a critical point, where she is now virtually glowing with Phazon.

The Aurora Unit 217 then discovers the location of planet Phaaze, the source of all Phazon and Dark Samus's place of origin. Traveling with the Federation via a wormhole created by the Leviathan battleship, Samus arrives and descends to the planet. As soon she arrives, Samus begins absorbing dangerous amounts of Phazon energy, nearly corrupting her completely, but manages to prevent this by venting all her available energy tanks and locking herself in permanent Hypermode. After venturing to the planet's inner sanctum, she encounters Dark Samus, who fuses with the stolen Aurora Unit 313 that is linked with Phaaze's core. Samus is able to defeat Dark Samus, which destroys the Phazon in her own body and causes the planet to self-destruct. The Federation fleet escapes via another wormhole, but loses contact with Samus in the process. Eventually, though, her ship appears, and she reports that her mission is complete, then flies off into space. Should the player collect every single pickup upon completion of the game, a special ending shows a mysterious spacecraft following Samus' gunship as it flies off. (While the true identity of the craft is unknown, it most resembles a Delta-class Strike Fighter, likely representing Sylux's Delano 7.)

Development
The game, when shown at E3 2006, looked similar in appearance to Metroid Prime 2: Echoes; however, according to Retro Studios, it would have a much more finished look when the game is complete. It was also announced Corruption will have much larger environments than in Echoes and would be targeted to run at 60 frames per second in the finalized version. The developers also indicated interest in using the WiiConnect24 feature to provide additional content.

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption was the first game in the Metroid series in which the characters utilize full voice acting, though previous games in the series used limited voice acting. However, Nintendo Power confirmed that Samus does not talk at all during the game.

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime stated in a 2007 interview that the game was "not going to ship by June" and set it at a summer 2007 release date at the earliest. Later he hinted, "when we release it, it will be perfect. And if that's a little later than folks would have liked, I'm hoping they're going to be happy." Some of the first gameplay footage to be shown of the game was seen at Nintendo's Media Release at E3 2006 and it was confirmed by Retro Studios that Corruption will be the last game in the Prime trilogy. Nintendo illustrated how Corruption will take advantage of the special abilities of the Wii Remote as demonstrated by a version of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, modified for the Wii, shown at the Tokyo Game Show in 2005.

In late April, 2007, IGN editor Matt Casamassina revealed that the game would be shown in detail during May of that year. He later reported that this event would take place the week of May 20. The publication also announced that the title will be released on August 20 2007 in the United States. Nintendo of America later announced to have moved the release date to August 27, 2007. Nintendo later announced an "in stores" date of August 28. A release in Europe is planned for October 26.

At the Media Summit held by Nintendo during the week of May 21, 2007, Reggie Fils-Aime noted about Corruption compared to the rest of the franchise that players have "never played it this way before". He also noted that Nintendo employees who had seen the game in action claimed that it "will reinvent the control scheme for a first-person shooter", and that the game is the closest a console title can get to PC control, breaking through the lens of how the game is played. IGN commented on an updated version of the game being played at E3, saying that it "plays better than any first-person console game ever."

Marketing
Nintendo had initially been criticized for an apparent lack of promotion and marketing for Corruption. IGN compared the minimal hype for the title to the large amount for the original Metroid Prime, which was marketed with its own live action advertisement. The publication assumed that Nintendo's recent actions were due to the company's new focus on casual game styles on their console and relatively low sales of Echoes. When questioned on this, Nintendo of America replied, "Nintendo fans will be surprised by the quantity and quality of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption information that becomes available before the game launches on Aug. 27. Your patience will be rewarded (or Corrupted)."

Following this promise, Nintendo released the Metroid Prime 3 Preview Channel on August 10, 2007 in North America. This channel, available as a free download via the Wii Shop Channel, allows Wii owners to view preview videos of the game. These include previously unannounced details the game's plot and battle sequences from within the game. The channel also enables the user to view promotional artwork by moving the Wii Remote pointer across the screen.

Starting with the Preview channel, Nintendo launched a "month of Metroid" in North America. It included announcements of additional videos that would become available as well as a Virtual Console download of Metroid for the NES on August 13. This would be followed by Super Metroid for the SNES available for download on August 20 and the release of Corruption one week thereafter. Matt Casamassina stated that his critique of the marketing behind the game still stands, since it is only effective for the percentage of Wii owners who download the free channel.

Reception
Nintendo Power gave Corruption a perfect 10/10 rating. The game is one of the few to achieve this perfect score, following Resident Evil 4 in January 2005 and preceding Super Smash Bros. Brawl the following month. IGN awarded the game a 9.5 out of 10. The review noted that it was beautifully designed and is currently the best game for the Wii. Despite citing that the game is similar to the previous games therefore lowering its score by a small margin, IGN did conclude that it is the best game in the Prime trilogy.

Corruption scored a 9.6 out of 10 in a Gametrailers.com video review. The reviewer praised the more user-friendly and action-packed nature of the game compared to Metroid Prime and Echoes. The site also praised the superior motion-sensitive controls, stating, "After playing Metroid Prime 3 you'll never want to play a shooter with dual analog controls again, it's that good." They further added that those elements make Corruption far superior to the original Metroid Prime.

1UP.com gave the game a 9 out of 10. The review highlighted the controls and said the graphics were "some of the best visuals in gaming, period". GameSpot, who gave the game 8.5 out of 10, stated the game possessed enjoyable puzzles, boss battles, atmospheric levels and smooth gameplay. They also stated some contextual actions do not work well and that the controls took away some of the game's difficulty. Furthermore, they stated the game was not very different from the earlier installments in the series.

Metroid Prime Trilogy
Metroid Prime Trilogy was announced on May 22, 2009 for release in North America on August 24 of the same year for $49.99. The disc includes Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption with Wii controls, as well as new content, menus, and unlockable media.

Trivia

 * When an enemy is killed in this game, (save for Bosses) the body turns black and disintegrates, rather than fading away as seen in the previous Prime games. Supposedly, this is to give the game a more realistic feel and it implies that Samus' weapons deteriorate enemies instead of killing like a normal bullet would.


 * Dead bodies on the Valhalla and on some areas of Skytown will crumble to dust if shot, referencing how the Metroid left its victims at the end of Super Metroid.


 * When Rundas, Ghor, and Gandrayda are in the elevator with Samus on Norion Rundas tells Gandrayda to relax, that they were the "good guys", and that justice would prevail. This is irony in that all three of the other hunters would become corrupted by Dark Samus and would become "bad guys" whom Samus would have to kill and then unwillingly have to watch Dark Samus subsequently absorb.


 * This is notably the first Metroid game to have what could be possibly considered an obscenity uttered by any of the characters (Admiral Dane says "Damn" when he realizes that the Pirates intend to shut down the Norion defense system). This was removed in the English PAL version and instead he only says ‘no!’.


 * This is the only Metroid game so far to not have some sort of back-story in the instruction booklet.


 * Corruption is currently the only 3-D Metroid game that uses the stacking beam system each time Samus finds a new beam (except the Hyper Beam) to add to her arsenal.


 * This is the first Metroid game where, during a countdown sequence, the timer isn't actually shown.
 * The cover for the game has the same basis as the Dreamcast version of Sonic Adventure 2. Both have the main character(Sonic/Samus) with their dark sides behind them(Shadow/Dark Samus) above a planet.
 * The ending of Corruption bares several similarities to the ending of Star Fox Assault. Namely, they use a wormhole to travel to their major enemy's homeworld (Star Fox Assault = Aparoid Homeworld, Corruption = Phaaze), Both protagonists has to go down to the core of the planet in order to destroy the source of their enemy (Assault = Aparoid Queen, Corruption = Dark Samus/Aurora Unit 313), both result in the planet exploding as a result of that mission, both even utilized a winding tunnel to get to the core.