Save Station

Save Stations are a recurring feature in the Metroid series. Save Stations allow Samus to save her progress (sometimes referred to in-game as a "data backup") during missions. Save Stations first debuted in Metroid II: Return of Samus and have appeared in every Metroid game since then, making the original NES Metroid the only game without Save Stations. In the games in which it is present, Samus Aran's gunship also functions as a Save Station that also refills health and ammunition, with the exception of Metroid II, where it only serves to restore health and ammo. In the Prime Series, Save Stations also act as Recharge Stations, allowing Samus to recover all her health even if she chooses not to Save her progress. Federation Troopers refer to Save Stations as Recharge Stations too.

Design
Save Stations vary in design throughout the series. The original save station from Metroid II: Return of Samus is nothing more than an ornate pole with a glowing top. Super Metroid features a capsule-like design, but in Metroid Fusion and Metroid Zero Mission save points are touch sensitive platforms. Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes have several "claws" which descend for Saving and ascend when finished. In Metroid Prime 3: Corruption they appear revamped, with a more simplistic and sleek design which functions almost exactly the same as in Fusion. The varying designs can probably be attributed to the different planets they appear on, and the culture of the race that made them.

Trivia

 * During Echoes, Samus' shoulder pads "relax" when Saving, adopting a lower position closer to the shoulders. They do the opposite when Saving is completed, returning to their original higher position.


 * In Zero Mission, all the Save Stations aboard the Space Pirate ship and in the Chozo Ruins in Chozodia restore health and weapons, while no others (save Samus's gunship) do anything more than save the game.


 * In Metroid Prime, if Samus loads the game at a save station previously visited, Samus can skip the scene. There is a glitch that after she's done this, and exit the room quickly, the Save Station room music could be heard Save_Station_rip.png.]]throughout the entire area. (Excluding boss battles.) This however appears to have been fixed in the New Play Control! and Metroid Prime Trilogy versions of Prime''.
 * In Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Brawl Samus makes her appearance by emerging out of a Save Station.
 * In Metroid Prime Hunters, there are no save stations besides the one installed within Samus's Gunship.
 * Metroid is the only game in the series without Save Stations.
 * In Metroid Prime 3, Save Stations restore Samus's energy and ammo by suddenly releasing translucent blue energy, which is absorbed into her suit. Small blue particles can be seen floating in front of Smus at the end of the sequence, possibly inferring that the Save Staions in this game restored Samus's energy through Phazon energy via her PED Suit, but this doesn't seem possible because Samus would become further corrupted after absorbing more Phazon. Additionally, the player never sees how Samus's gunship restores her health in this game; instead green light is seen flashing through her ship's windshield while she recharges.

Logbook entry
Metroid Prime: "Save Station. Step into these holograms to save your game and fully restore your energy."

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption: "Enter these stations to save your game and fully restore your energy."