Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Reviews

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a hugely entertaining experience with a gorgeous atmospheric world, but it just doesn't quite feel enough like Metroid.

Your objective: Explore the mysterious planet Viewros and find your way home. Step back into the suit as Samus Aran, one of the greatest bounty hunters in the galaxy, and scan your surroundings for clues on how to move forward. Battle abhorrent alien creatures who inhabit the planet, use mysterious psychic abilities to clear the path forward, and traverse the environment on the technologically advanced bike, Vi-O-La. The Metroid Prime 4: Beyond – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition game is available ...

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is certainly a bit different from what I expected, but it’s largely a strong next step for the series. Though some bizarre padding and an oddly empty open world keep the game from being a stone-cold classic, Metroid Prime 4 is still a great experience that manages to mostly live up to its long wait.

Metroid Prime 4 Beyond is a worthwhile return to form for the first-person Samus Aran titles. Viewros is beautifully designed, the combat is quick and intense, and yes, the Galactic Federation soldiers absolutely add to the story. Ignore the hate posts online and enjoy the ride.

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 core exploration and combat mechanics of the Metroid Prime franchise are fun and engaging. Unfortunately, the rest of the experience is marred with bizarre story beats, awkward character moments, and forced interaction with an empty, boring open world. Metroid Prime 4 had all the elements to be a slick, cohesive experience, but the game feels like the dev team maliciously complied with a mandate to make the game open-world. It’s still a Metroid Prime game, and there’s fun to be had, b...

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond nails the fundamentals with excellent sound design, striking visuals, tight controls, a strong art style, and rock-solid technical performance, but the level design doesn’t hit the same highs, and the NPC chatter can start to grate.

Despite the fumble here, I think that an open world Metroid Prime game can work, but it can't be a half-measure like Beyond is. Beyond could have been a revolutionary step forward like Breath of the Wild was for Zelda, but instead it's a weird in-between that is only fun when it is recycling its old ideas and everything new it tries falls flat on its face. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has an identity crisis and the result is a baffling open world surrounded by solid dungeons that still fall short of what came before.

At the end of the day, a bad Metroid Prime game is still a good game and one that I'll happily play any day of the week. As frustrating as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond can be, it's still worth playing and a solid way for Nintendo to end 2025. Is it a must-own Nintendo Switch 2 game? That's something I'm honestly not sure about. On the one hand, I can see it being a great way to introduce people to the Metroid genre in a way that's more accessible than, say, Metroid Dread. On the other hand, Metroid Prime Remastered is right there. Ultimately, Metroid Prime 4 is a game that's worth playing, but it could be so much better.

To believe that two of the biggest “that will never see the light of day” games of all time, Hollow Knight: Silksong and Metroid Prime 4, are now out. To believe that, despite all odds, despite multiple delays, immense periods of radio silence, and people just getting fed up of waiting, both titles would not only come out, but also end up being bangers. So this is the first big takeaway from this review: I get that a lot of people are dunking on Metroid Prime 4 for being some kind of a di...

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond took years to arrive, and what we get is a game that remembers the series’ strengths while trying to push into new territory. It may not be the series’ best, but it’s a worthy return—and a promising glimpse of where Metroid Prime can go next.

After years of waiting and a divisive fan reception, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is finally here, and I couldn't be happier with the finished product. While there are some issues with the overabundance of dialogue and certain elements of exploration, the overall approach to gameplay and the narrative does a great job of evolving the series while staying true to what made it special in the first place. As someone whose wanted to get into the series for years, I am pleased to say that Prime 4 has f...

After a false start stretching back to E3 2017, Retro Studios returns with the first mainline 3D Metroid game since 2007’s Metroid Prime 3 Corruption. After such a long layoff, Nintendo’s clarified this is a new story that doesn’t infringe upon the completed Phazon saga of the original trilogy. That makes Metroid Prime 4 Beyond an excellent entry point for newcomers, while for those of us there on GameCube and Wii, it’s a nostalgic homecoming. Stepping back into this world after 18 ye...

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond delivers an excellent 3D Metroid experience that’s even better on Switch 2. The game’s graphics are a sight to behold throughout, but really shine in its dungeons, where the attention to detail and intricate level design keep you hooked. While the new overworld that connects them feels somewhat barren at times, traversing it via motorcycle helps break up the more slow-paced exploration of its dungeons. However, having to traverse an entire desert to install an upgrade can often feel tedious. Still, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a sight to behold that nails the core gameplay and combat of a 3D Metroid game.

A long-awaited follow-up that mixes the mood of the original Prime with big new ideas, sometimes beautifully and sometimes unevenly.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond risks missteps in its attempt to modernise a cherished formula, but for the most part it all coalesces into an entry more than worthy of the series. Even the most vocal diehard fans should be pleased by the fundamentals, and for those willing to accept them, the new wrinkles iron out nicely.

The journey to get here has been as long, challenging, and convoluted as many of Samus Aran’s own adventures. The last original release in the Metroid Prime series came out over 18 years ago, with the fourth entry in the series being announced in 2017 when the Switch was in its infancy. A complete development reboot, which saw original series creators Retro Studios taking back control of the project, followed, and numerous delays got stacked on top of that, so it’s honestly hard to believe Metroid Prime 4: Beyond launches this week. No, really. It’s happening.

After being caught in the middle of yet another Space Pirate scuffle with the Galactic Federation, this time a mishap with a strange artefact sees Samus zapped away to the planet Viewros. There, she’s enlisted by the holographic ghosts of the Lamorn to help preserve and release their dead civilisation’s knowledge into the wider galaxy. To do this, you must reach and retrieve five teleporter keys from five different biomes and regions on this planet.

In the rare moments where I could scan for fun and learn more about the game, it ruled. But for the most part, scanning feels like a chore and can give away some puzzle solutions. It's not like you can avoid it either, as Metroid Prime 4 forces you to scan a lot of consoles to progress, which stick out on your scanning HUD like a sore thumb and make some sequences and exploration trivial. Scanning is a core part of the Prime ethos, but it could have been refined here to give the player more agency.

High highs and middling lows make Metroid Prime 4's return uneven.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is enjoyable enough, and has glimpses of vintage Metroid shining through, but this game could and should have been so much more.

Video games are my favorite medium of artistic expression because they allow you to explore and exist in fully realized worlds. The Metroid franchise persists and is important to longtime game fans because it was an early touch-point for this kind of interactive experience. From its beginning, Metroid excelled at making you feel like you were in a science-fiction world that you were exploring at your own pace. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond maintains the high standard set by previous games in the se...

With Metroid Prime 4, it took me some time to get back into it. But now it's all I think about playing. My recommendation is to just go in for the experience. Go in knowing nothing, and maybe even skip everything in this review, or any other review. Mystery is Metroid's calling card. Your big adventure on the Switch is here.

The long-awaited Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is upon us and it is epic stuff with familiar and fresh elements that blend together beautifully.

Almost exactly what fans didn’t want from a new Metroid Prime but while it is widely inconsistent the majority of the game is undeniably entertaining.

Metroid Prime 4 has finally arrived after eight years of anticipation. Now subtitled “Beyond,” the latest chapter in Samus’ journey takes her to a mysterious new planet where she comes face-to-face with dangerous enemies both new and old. It’s a grand FPS experience that highlights all of the Switch 2’s enhancements while also delivering the gritty Metroid Prime experience that fans have been waiting for.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is finally here after an 18 year wait. At its best moments, it feels like no time has passed at all, as I'm awed by the melancholy and mysterious vibes of this exploration-focused FPS. But, at many other moments, it's bogged down by odd new features that detract from what's almost one of Samus' best. Being so close to greatness can sometimes be the bitterest feeling of all.

Once you strip away the needless open-world padding, there’s an excellent game underneath. The world is engrossing and beautiful, the boss fights are clever, and the new controls are seamlessly integrated into the rest of the game. There are some breathtaking sights to see, and Samus is sporting some awesome new armour. All the superior design choices make the baffling ones stand out even more, however. I can’t comprehend why this game was made open-world. The backtracking you have to do is downright offensive. Otherwise, this is a fantastic entry in the Metroid Prime series.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond can't possibly live up to years and years of anticipation, but that's not to say it's a disappointment. Drop-dead gorgeous visuals pair with stunning environments and a uniquely alien atmosphere. Its massive open desert is a slog to get through, however - even on Samus's new bike - but Beyond is nonetheless an adventure that's tough to put down, flaws and all.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is an excellent, if relatively uneven, revival that reaches heights worthy of the Metroid name in its best moments.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond might not be a total reinvention of the famed series, but it's refined and faster than ever. Despite the prolonged development period, the campaign comes together to deliver an excellent outing for Samus as she explores an expansive world with new psychic powers that imbue the core of the game in fun, innovative ways.