Summary
Although its announcement has naturally been welcomed by fans, there is one major unresolved issue with the upcoming release ofMetroid Prime 4: Beyond. Moreover, this problem is tied in large part to the long stretch of time between its initial reveal and new release date. Although the new trailer visuals suggest thatMetroid Prime 4will be worth the waitin many ways, if Nintendo does not address this issue, it could easily have a very detrimental effect onMetroid Prime 4’s overall performance.
Prime 4was originally announced at E3 2017, and with it now having an official 2025 release date, this means the game will have had at least eight years worth of development time. Of course, it should be noted that the first two of those years were effectively wasted, given that development was restarted under Retro Studios after the original developer, Bandai Namco Studios, failed to meet expectations. Regardless, this long development window has led toMetroid Dreadarriving beforePrime 4, as well as giving the long-awaited title an unfortunate reputation for being a mystery in terms of development status.
Metroid Prime 4 Must Steal One Important Element From Metroid Dread
Metroid Dread broke new ground for the franchise, and now Metroid Prime 4: Beyond would do well to copy one of its predecessor’s key elements.
Metroid Prime 4 Will Not Make Sense Without Access To All Previous Prime Games
Metroid Prime 2 & 3 Aren’t Playable On Nintendo Switch
AlthoughMetroid Prime 4has been eagerly awaited by many for close to a decade,there is also numerous people who are newer to theMetroidfranchise who may be less enthused. This is because these individuals will not have had an opportunity to play all the precedingMetroid Primegames. Although aremastered version of the firstMetroid Primewas released for the Nintendo Switch in 2023, suitably namedMetroid Prime Remastered, the subsequentPrimegames have not received any such ports.
The most recent versions of bothPrime 2andPrime 3to be released were part ofMetroid Prime: Trilogy, a compilation of the then three-part subseries.Trilogywas originally released for the Wii in 2009, and was later followed by a Nintendo eShop re-release for the Wii U in 2015. Meanwhile, the Nintendo DS’sMetroid Prime: Huntersfollowed a similar trajectory, being originally released in 2006 before becoming available on the Wii U in 2016 (or 2015 in Japan). Finally,Metroid Prime: Federation Forceis only available as a Nintendo 3DS game, and was released in 2016.
As a result of this,if one does not own a Wii or Wii U withTrilogy, then it is currently impossible to play eitherPrime 2orPrime 3. Naturally, this locks many newcomers out of experiencing the fullMetroid Primestory, which is notably problematic forPrime 4. After all, both the title and presence of Sylux show that the storyline ofPrime 4will build directly on these previous entries, making them essential for context. Therefore, without being able to play the otherPrimegames, the plot ofPrime 4will likely be confusing.
Federation Force, being one of the worst-receivedMetroidgames, would arguably benefit the most from receiving a remastered version, although the same controversial past could also bar it from such treatment.
Older Metroid Prime Games Could Receive Their Own Remasters
Bring The Whole Series To Switch
Of course, it is entirely possible to correct this issue.Metroid Prime Remasteredwas met with critical acclaim, andit is not unreasonable to assume that similar remakes of the otherMetroid Primegames could also secretly be in development. Moreover, these games could just as easily follow the very successful launch strategy ofMetroid Prime Remastered; the game was made available digitally on the same day of its announcement, August 25, 2025, with physical copies arriving on shelves just a few weeks later. Similar reveals for its sequels would undoubtedly be equally well-received.
TheMetroidfranchise as a whole is slowly becoming more and more accessibleto newcomers on the Nintendo Switch, as a result of many older titles now being available as part of the Nintendo Switch Online retro library. Moreover, as the service continues to grow, there are now rumors that the online catalog of games will eventually expand to include GameCube titles. If such anupdate to the Nintendo Switch Online librarydoes come about, thenMetroid Prime 2is an excellent candidate for rerelease, although it should also be noted thatPrime 3was originally released for the Wii.
Whether through NSO re-releases, or via new remastered versions, it is undeniable thatthe remainder of theMetroid Primegames coming to Nintendo Switch would be a beneficial developmentfor the franchise. This would even be true ofPrime 2andPrime 3alone, although this may then be detrimental to the re-introduction of Sylux, given his prominence in the DS and 3DS games. Sylux has posed an18-year-old mystery for theMetroid Series, and it would be unfair to playPrime 4without first experiencing the titles that introduced him as such.
Metroid Prime 4’s Success Will Be Affected By The Availability Of Prime 2 & 3
Newer Fans Won’t Have Experienced The Trilogy’s Full Story
Ultimately,it is difficult to judge the likelihood of the remainingMetroid Primegames becoming available on the Switch beforePrime 4’s release. Although any such releases would make sense in context, particularly to prepare people for playingPrime 4, any such titles seem increasingly likely to have a surprise release, much likeMetroid Prime Remastereddid. If this occurs as part of the anticipated September 2024 Nintendo Direct, then this would offer people plenty of time to catch up on theMetroid Primestoryline ahead ofPrime 4’s release.
On the other hand, however, none of this constitutes a guarantee that anyMetroid Primegames other thanPrime 4itself are currently planned to come to the Nintendo Switch. While it would be disappointing, the possibility remains forPrime 4to be unaccompanied by any re-releases. Of course, this may not necessarily be as large of an issue as it may first seem. Despite being titled “Metroid Prime 4,” it is also possible for the game to be disconnected enough from priorMetroid Primetitles to have a coherent plot without their added context.
Metroid Prime 4is an exciting new addition to theMetroidseries, but without knowledge of the preceding titles, it seems that it will be hard for some to fully appreciate the new game. Due to the long period of development, many newer players have come to the franchise with no easy access to most of theMetroid Primegames, which could naturally make them uninterested in playingMetroid Prime 4: Beyond. Thankfully, there is still a strong chance that Nintendo may correct this problem in the future through re-releases or fully remastered versions of these games.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
Metroid Prime 4 is the long-awaited sequel to 2007’s Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Initially developed by Bandai Namco, the original development studio, Retro Studios, returned to work on the title after Nintendo rebooted development in 2019. The game is still slated for release on the Nintendo Switch.
