Metroid Prime 3 will not have online multiplayer

358 Comments by Justin McElroy Jul 3rd 2007 8:15AM
Filed under: Nintendo Wii, First Person Shooters

Michael Kelbeugh, head of Retro Studios, confirmed to GamePro that no online multiplayer would be included in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, much to the relief of of lil' Timmy Eldridge, the apple-cheeked teen that Nintendo has come in on the weekend to run their online gaming strategy. "Unless you're sending pictures of metroid that you captured, I really don't know how to help you," lil' Eldridge said as he swept the Nintendo commissary (his weekday job).

For his part, Kelbeugh gave the credit for a top-notch single-player campaign for his team's inability to include newfangled multiplayer technology. "It's something we talked about early on, but we only have so many resources. We opted to devote those resources to making a better single-player experience." Oh well, we guess there's always Metroid Prime 4.

Tags: metroid, metroidprime, metroidprime3, mp3, nintendo, retro, wii

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(Page 1) Reader Comments

Moe: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:19AM

Oh dear...
I know now why Nintendon't included that wifi chip. To make you pay for emulated 15 year old games.

Aaron: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:21AM

TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE

The True Gamer: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:22AM

That's it, my Wii is up for sale. Any takers?

Konny: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:22AM

This was suppose to be a launch game.. and they still dont have online play? Lame. What the heck were they doing all that time.. fixing the broken fps controls?

x876543: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:23AM

No multiplayer?!?!? NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Martin: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:24AM

You know, I've stood up for Nintendo's lack of an online strategy through thick and thin, but this is absolute horseshit.

I won't be doing anything so radical as selling my Wii, as I do enjoy it, but Retro can suck it. Lazy bastards.

QFT, #2, "TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE"

B: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:25AM

Figures. Nintendo may end up beating this "online is teh gay" drum right into their own funeral. Thank Jeebus for Smash Bros.

shirizaki: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:28AM

And if SSB doesn't have online play I'm not buying a Wii ever.

C'mon Nintendo, it's been over 5 years or so since xbox Live AND ps2's lackluster online network debuted. Not to mention it's been a year since PSN debuted, and thay've had only a few hiccups.

Time to either get your internet on or lose the hardcore audience for the caual audience.

Chris: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:28AM

When has Smash Bros been noted as having online play?

I'll still buy Metroid cause I wasn't expecting multiplayer anyways.

DanceMoveDestro: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:29AM

Lame.

silentcoconut: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:29AM

"Lost" infers that it had it to begin with. Metroid Prime 3 was never announced to have online multiplayer, or any multiplayer at all. In fact, months ago when the fact sheet was released it stated that the game was a single player adventure game. Did you all think they were just kidding?

Justin McElroy: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:32AM

You guys and gals make a fair point. I've edited the story's title to remove the implication that it was an announced feature.

SKI: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:32AM

Metroid has never been about multiplayer (except for MPH), so I don't know why you all thought it would have multiplayer.

IslandLife: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:33AM

And Ninty fanboys will make up their usual excuses. At some point in time you just have to realize that Nintendo is going to continue doing the very least they can as long as they are still making a profit. When people stop buying into the Wii hype, then you'll begin to see some changes for the better.

Victus: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:34AM

Just goes to show that the Wii is hardly even last gen, much less next gen.

Staggs: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:34AM

Yeah guys, it never even HAD multiplayer in the first place. Stop whining and get your heads out of your asses.

JodyAnthony: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:36AM

I'm still buying it. I mean come on, its metroid.

JodyAnthony: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:37AM

also I wanted to say "lil' Timmy Eldridge" made me actually laugh out loud

AJ: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:37AM

It's not like it was going to be any good. Most of the reviews for MP2 were like "they shouldn't have made the horribly crappy multi player and focused more on the single-player" and now you're complaining that it doesn't have online multi player? It's not like it was going to be Hunters online, it was going to be like different colored samuses fighting each other woo! fun.

Karen: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:38AM

I don't play online multiplayer any way so I don't care. If the controls are smooth, and the game is as good as the first prime I'll be buying it.

Deathwing: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:40AM

Count me as someone who never wanted multiplayer in a Metroid game to begin with.

Time to either get your internet on or lose the hardcore audience for the caual audience.

Oh please. If you really thought a Metroid game (A LONE person against a whole planet) was going to have indepth multiplayer, you're deluding yourself. At best you would have gotten more lame deathmatching like Metroid Prime 2 had.

Jon: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:40AM

MPH had reasonable online multiplayer support (until the cheaters ruined it). Why couldn't Retro fitted it on a console game? I just do not understand Nintendo's online strategy.

Nintendo, online isn't really a bad place.

tcc3: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:41AM

You know its funny. Rare threw multiplayer in to Goldeneye at the last minute with little polish, and it changed the face of console multiplayer (esp FPS).

Yet they don't have time....

We're way beyond Nintendo just being cautious and entering "behind the times" territory.

jay: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:45AM

So long as it has splitscreen multiplayer I'm sorted.

Actually... This is Metroid? Out of 8 games how many have had multiplayer? 1 dedicated and 1 thrown in last minute. LOL at the fools who thought this would have some kind of super multiplayer mode.
That's what Hunters Wii will be for ;) They do best when they focus on 1 side (single or multi). I'd rather have them focus their efforts onto y'know, a killer end to the trilogy.

felixlighter: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:48AM

@Ian Charles

Defensive much? You're right. People should not be surprised that Metroid Prime 3 will not have online multiplayer. Nintendo has made online multiplayer such a low priority on the Wii that you should be more surprised if there ends up being more than a small handful of Wii titles that support online multiplayer during the life of the platform. If you don't play online multiplayer than that is perfectly acceptable but if you enjoy online multiplayer than it is a real disappointment.

acefondu: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:49AM

Um, MP4? They said it was supposed to be just a trilogy when they first began the series. I was really hoping for the Metroid beyond Prime 3 to be something totally new, or back to side scrolling. Not that I have a probelm with the Prime games or anything.

Archerboy: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:49AM

God (or Yaweh), there are a lot of stupid people here. First, Metroid Prime 2's multi sucked-so why would they invest their time in making one???

MPH was made by a different studio, so did we really expect a DS engine on Wii?

Thirdly, yeah Nintendo is stupid in it's online world-(just put every game online and people don't whine like above)-but unless Metroid is known for its multiplayer (uhhh, obviously its not)then its not the end of the world.

Its like saying a Mario game (not party) without minigames, or Mortal Kombat without Kart racing, and etc. Babies.

F.U.: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:49AM

Ian Charles whats wrong can't handle a little negative feedback on Nintendo.

Take some of your own advice and shut the fuck you piece of shit.

Curmeo: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:50AM

"Oh well, we guess there's always Metroid Prime 4."

If this was Sony or even MS, Joystiq would be all up their asses for not including online multiplayer.

This news confirms what i suspected of Wii's online service. This is just pathetic. Even the freakin' Dreamcast had an online service!

You Wii owners really should get rid of this piece of junk and go for either a PS3 or 65nm 360 or better yet both if u can afford it! 40 player Resistance and 14 player Ridge Racer 7 is a total blast, something you wont be able to experience on Wii.

Admiral_Mike: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:51AM

Meh, still gonna get it. I love metroid for the single player. I'm not too bothered about online, or multiplayer metroid in general (especially since the mp2 multiplayer sucked balls). It just wouldn't work with the lock on the metroid uses. I wouldn't get to use it anyway. And btw there will not be a metroid prime 4. It's a trilogy. But there might be another first person metroid under a different name. Though I do fully expect to see some online shooter on the wii. It would be a waste of the aiming fuction if there wasn't.

JodyAnthony: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:54AM

"You Wii owners really should get rid of this piece of junk and go for either a PS3 or 65nm 360 or better yet both if u can afford it! 40 player Resistance and 14 player Ridge Racer 7 is a total blast, something you wont be able to experience on Wii."

Or, you know, own both a wii and a 360 or ps3 (or all 3!) and not be a partisan dumbass.

Chris: Jul 3rd 2007; 8:55AM

AWESOME!!

I'm sick of these Halo nerds waiting for Metroid Prime 3. Metroid was always about single player exploration, not FPS Frag count. I hated they wasted time and man power to put it into Prime 2. Thank God they didn't listen top all the stupid fanboys this time around and kept to the integrity of the game and gameplay.

Good job Retro!!!!!!!!

Now I'm even more excited about Metroid.

Crono: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:00AM

I'm so freakin pissed, you wouldn't believe it.

CRONO SMASH!!!!!

GCNH87: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:01AM

It looks great and all but I'm much more of a multiplayer fan than the loner-single player type. So I might rent it.
I was really wanting it to have multiplayer too. Ah well. No sale here.

megaStryke: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:03AM

Remember the days when multiplayer gaming was a nice bonus and not a mandatory feature? Yeah, where did those days go?

baby sea tuna: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:04AM

This is not shocking news at all. Now, if they pulled this shit with Mario Kart, then it'd be time to break out the torches and pitchforks.

And the upside is, we won't have to learn another batch of needlessly complicated friend codes (see, anything can be positive if you spin it right!)

Flame: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:04AM

Shut the fuck up about Ninty's online. We have online except you keep bitching about friend codes, so to make you guys stop complaining, no online, and now you bitch some more.

The_Wind_Waker8: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:05AM

Yet another part of my soul dies... ;(

L: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:05AM

What they don,t want to tell you it can,t be done =)

the amount of lag would be unreal because of the control =) it has to send that much info ....

Gay A$$ Wii

Konny: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:07AM

So far, Nintendo's online strategy for the Wii consists of voting (does anyone do that anymore?), trading Miis, fighting pokemon (with Friend Codes), and a web browser that you need to BUY (who pays for a web browser in 2007?)... NINTEN-LAME!

It freakin' 2007 people.. RedSteel splitscreen multiplayer doesnt cut it as multiplayer in the real world anymore.

Wacka: Jul 20th 2007; 6:40PM

You dont to buy the web browser

Crono: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:08AM

heh, retro's website is down. I wonder if somebody hacked them after hearing the news.

Admiral_Mike: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:10AM

Too much lag eh? Strikers dissagrees with you.

Savok: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:11AM

When I think multiplayer FPS, Metroid doesn't make the top 100. Hell the game isn't even a real FPS, a fact Retro put at the top of the feature list around the launch of MP1 to reassure the masses they hadn't turned Metroid into a generic shooter.

Honestly I'm still baffled as to why MP2 had multiplayer, and you people are going on about ONLINE multiplayer.

Multiplayer is a waste of space, stick some neat extras in instead.

CD: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:12AM

Of course people expected there to be online multiplayer. It's a natural progression. MP1 - no multiplayer. MP2 - offline multiplayer, and since GCN didn't have built in online connectivity it only made sense. MPH- being the first MP on a online connective system ended up focused on online multiplayer. So naturally people assumed they'd take the next step and put online multiplayer in MP3 rather than taking two steps back. I guess we just gave Retro more credit than they deserve.

SyphonBlue: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:14AM

METROID DOES NOT NEED MULTIPLAYER. JUST BECAUSE IT IS IN FIRST PERSON DOES NOT MEAN IT HAS TO HAVE MULTIPLAYER. JESUS CHRIST PEOPLE SHUT THE HELL UP. CHRIST.

Dustin: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:19AM

I'm all for a good single player experience, but seeing as Metroid is one of the top AAA nintendo titles that is a given on a console, if there was any hope of Nintendo taking online serious at all it would be in this game. It's not a big deal that Metroid doesn't have online, it's a big deal that Nintendo as a whole doesn't and apparently has decided to never get behind it ever. STUPID.

Crono: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:20AM

The crazy popularity of MPH online disagrees with you, SyphonBlue. It was literally a NO BRAINER to put multiplayer in MP3. Its not like they had to re-engineer multiplayer games. Deathmatch, team deathmatch, capture the flag, assault/defend the base. After an engine is built, it would take literally a week to add these modes of play. Nintendo's online strategy must be close to non-existant if they didn't feel it was worth their time.

Not enough time, my ass. They delayed it almost a freaking year. This had better be the best single playing experience in an FPS EVER, otherwise I'm going to be severely disappointed.

samfish: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:21AM

"Oh and to the other commentators -
Whine whine whine.

Fucking shut your fucking mouths."

Wow, you woke up with a cactus in your cooter today, didn't you?

megaStryke: Jul 3rd 2007; 9:21AM

People here complain about the longevity of games that lack any multiplayer whatsoever. I guess that means they never, EVER buy single-player titles.

DON'T buy MGS4.
DON'T buy Super Mario Galaxy.
DON'T buy FFXIII.
DON'T buy Blue Dragon.
DON'T buy Resident Evil 5.
DON'T buy etc., etc., etc.

Those games won't have multiplayer. They aren't worth your time. They will fail. I'm not buying any of them.