The gaming world has been shaken by Nintendo‘s official announcement of the pre-orders for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, the first-person adventure series of Samus Aran—the much-anticipated sequel. The game will be out on December 4 for the Nintendo Switch and the soon-to-be-released Nintendo Switch 2, thereby giving a specific date to the players after years of waiting and no news about the project’s development. The notification was sent through a tweet by Nintendo of America, which merely said ‘Uncover what awaits you’, along with a link to pre-order and a small nature video.
While players were initially excited about the release, there were also some doubts about the logistics. The time is officially counted down with many players saying it is only ‘5 days left!’ before the release. The buzz is everywhere with comments like ‘I’m counting down the hours!!!’ and ‘Hyped for this one! 🚀’ in the reply section. One user, who calls himself NintenGOD, has put it all in a carefree way saying ‘I’m lock tf in twinn! 😤 just a few days’. Surprisingly, the gamers through their energy are showing how much the release means to them.
But the journey to the release date has not been smooth. One of the most talked-about issues that have divided opinions and made some players a little frustrated is the matter of pre-order bonuses—or the supposed lack of them. A few users noted that they were disappointed, one going as far as to say it was a ‘HUGE mistake not giving us pre-order bonuses, especially in the US!’ Another player posed the question, ‘Any preorder gifts out there? 🤔’, implying that the early supporters of the game should be rewarded for their commitment. It was even humorously suggested that the refusal of bonuses ‘might be because some people’s pre-orders go back to 2017 LoL,’ referring to the game’s prolonged and interrupted development phase.
Moreover, the issue of preloading has attracted a little bit of conversation in the replies as some players claim that they have already done the preloading while others see only ‘pre ordered – awaiting release’ on their devices. This has led to a small technical support thread in the comments, wherein users are helping each other with their mistakes. A user came up with a suggestion, ‘If you click on the home icon it should start to pre-download,’ which shows the community has come together to solve issues even before the game is out. It’s such a modern-day gaming scenario, waiting for that digital goods’ midnight unlock.
The fact that the game is to be released on both the current Switch and the next-gen Switch 2 is a very significant piece of news. It will mean that the large user base of the older console will still be served, while at the same time the new hardware will be able to display the giant title game right from the start. An Xbox 2 Switch player explicitly commented, ‘Getting this on my Switch 1!’, which must be a huge relief for all those who are not planning to upgrade right away. This strategy of simultaneous release has been adopted by Nintendo because it can thus have the largest audience for the movie.
The wild speculation about the content of the game has already begun. One player named 313 Villain came up with an interesting forecast: ‘I feel like Sylux is gonna have a playable section’. For those who might not be very well-versed with the Metroid Prime mythos, Sylux is a bounty hunter from Metroid Prime Hunters whose ship was seen pursuing Samus at the end of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, thereby implying possible significant involvement in the sequel. Similar theories are much more welcomed before a big launch as they also mean that the players are really supporting the world and the characters.
As usual, people are starting to plan their playthroughs. The debate even turned to difficulty and completionist aims. A user joked to another, ‘Going full on easy mode first?!’, to which the latter replied with a detailed plan: ‘Main story line probably. I doubt I would have the patience to 100 percent the game without a guide… I’ll probably play through twice right away to 100 percent the second playthrough’. It’s fascinating to realize that so many gamers have such different approaches to these games, they could just want to experience the story or be after that perfect 100% run.
Besides that, some users were asking about the chances of future support. One player asked Nintendo to ‘release more Metroid Prime 4 Amiibos, please,’ while another wished for ‘Nintendo Switch 2 achievements, please’. These are minor issues but the community’s expectations for the next generation of Nintendo gaming are to have them as the features are shown. So indeed the wait is about to end.
