Metroid Prime [GameCube]

"A triumph of game design, Metroid prime is a shining example of just how to take a 2D game concept and apply it to 3D perfectly. An absolutely stunning single player first person shooter, Metroid Prime dispenses with the obsession FPS designers have with emulating reality and instead moulds the games reality to fit in perfectly with the players ability to control Samus (the lead character). Instead of making the player perform awkward jumps and negotiate intricate platform sections, which serve to remind just how clumsy you are when trying to control a person just using a joypad or a mouse and keyboard, the platforms and pitfalls in Metroid are perfectly tailored to Samus?s abilities. With free-roaming games becoming all the rage, it is disappointing that the bulk of FPS titles are still limited to getting from point A to point B along a predetermined route. Not so Metroid Prime, which features a huge and vast map to explore across several varied and stunningly beautiful landscapes. While trawling across the huge map to a new area can on rare occasions become tiresome, the overwhelming sense of curiosity you now have to explore the next section of the game easily makes up for that. Add to the package a mixture of huge (some several screens high) and brilliantly designed boss characters, a superbly atmospheric soundtrack and it?s easy to see why Metroid Prime became one of the best selling Gamecube games of all time."