Metroid Story

wijg

wijg

Asst Reviews Editor
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Jun 23, 2005
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The Old Same Place
Ok, in case you haven't already noticed through my numerous posts on this subject, I am a huge Metroid fan. I was thinking about doing an Echoes user review, and I still might, but there were really only a few things I wanted to mention.

The aspect that pertains to this topic is obviously the story. Ms. Peterson, who did the Echoes review, mentioned the gaping plot holes like why there were spider ball tracks on a planet of winged creatures. We learned through the game that the Luminoth were friends with the Chozo, but we have no indication that their technology should be able to interface with Samus's powersuit. While such a plot issue would never stop me from playing the game, I think it brings up an interesting point. With rumors of a Metroid movie in development, I think it is pertinent to discuss the issue of the story.

Last year, when I heard that John Woo had purchased the rights to the Metroid series, I immediately worked at cranking out a movie script under the delusional impression that I could somehow get him to look at it. A family friend in the movie business, however, dashed those hopes, seeing as I don't have an agent. However, I believe some of my ideas are good. But of course, I approached the whole process with the assumption that there would be multiple movies. While I completed the script for the first movie, based around the original game, I had some rough ideas for M2, M3, and Fusion. I am still not exactly sure how to work Prime in there yet, and I haven't really thought about Echoes. Thinking about the Metroid story, however, I realized that eventually it would need to have an end. This thought led me to a particular approach to things.

Overall, the Metroid story revolves around the Chozo, not Samus. I think it was a big mistake to excise them from Echoes, as the above mentioned plot holes revealed. Samus is the vehicle through which the story plays out, but ultimately she is not the source. The space pirates and the metroids can be closely connected to everthing, but as I said, it's all about the Chozo. They are the axis around which everything spins. While they do not have to be in every game, Retro needs to clean up the plot devices of Samus and her equipment. I thought the Ing stealing her equipment was a great way to promote the idea of losing everything and getting it back without using the Chozo. However, they just need to clean things up a bit. They can't use the stealing idea every game.

Switching gears and going back to the movie, the main problem with the Metroid story is that there is little filler material. We do not know a lot about Samus and her life outside of bouty hunting. Besides a few resilient bad guys, we have very few supporting characters. These aspects make storytelling difficult, but have thus far made for a great game series. It continues to amaze me that, before Echoes came out, fully half the games in the series were basically the same story.

I would be happy to share the script with anyone who wants to read it. Until I have published something and can get an agent, it is kind of useless to me. Also, I would love hearing opinions on some of my approaches. I invented several characters, created a life for Samus, and elaborated on a few ideas that were hinted at in the instruction booklet for the first Metroid game. Plus, I don't really care about selling the script for lots of money. I am too unknown a writer to garner a big payday anyway, but I really want the Metroid movie to be successful, if it is ever made. So I am not worried about people stealing my ideas. If anyone has a way of getting my ideas to the people who would be making this movie, I couldn't be happier. If the movie is ever made, they should really have an uberfan, like myself, as some sort of technical advisor. There are certain things they have to get right. So, shoot me an email if you would like to read the script. Or post an email address I can send it to. Finally, as this is a message board, please comment on the Metroid story. Later.
 
Since most movies, and all Hollywood ones especially, depend on wall-to-wall dialogue, a Metroid movie is pretty tricky. The easy thing would be place Samus at the head of a squad, in a standard thriller situation where the Metroids or whatever other baddies pick off her squad-mates one at a time. A Metroid movie might work in this context, but I've seen this formula too many times and hope I don't ever have to see the Metroid flavour of it.

I haven't read your script, Alex, to see what approch you took, but one idea that interests me is to contrast fast, bright action sequences with the "character-building" ones of lonely exploration. I'm often wary of narration, but it would be pretty much a necessity for the latter sequences, fleshing out Samus's character and providing context for the action in the movie.

Alienation is probably the most apt aspect of the human condition that can be explored here. From what we know, Samus Aran spends much of her time exploring worlds nearly devoid of communicative life. Surely that kind of distance from humanity will bring out some unfortunate (for her, but narratively fortunate for us, the audience) aspects of her persona.
 
I like your idea of how her life of exploration affects her. I haven't really thought about that. I shall ponder such things. A rewrite of some of the script may be in order, or perhaps such things will come through in the next movies. Because there WILL be more than one. Thanks for the comments.
 
hey man. you definitely gotta see "quest for fire" if you think its not possible to have an involving story without dialogue. i mean it. go see the movie if you havent already. also, i'm pretty sure Ron Pearlman doesn't wear any kind of makeup whatsoever in that movie. :y2:
 
I have not seen the movie. I shall definitely have to check it out, as it may have some good lessons to teach about storytelling with little dialogue. I did not mean to imply that it is not possible to tell a story without dialogue. It is difficult to write a script without a whole lot of dialogue, because it would basically come down to "stuff happens here." My understanding with scriptwriting, which could be way off, is that scriptwriters really only do what the characters say. Any sort of stage directions and other stuff is up to the director. So, lack of dialogue makes it difficult for us scriptwriters.
 
We shall see. I hope to become simply a writer first. Actually, for the Metroid movie I would love to be the technical advisor so I could tell them to do things like the wall jump or the Prime missile trick. Little things that the fans would appreciate.
 
Actually, I completely redesigned the powersuit. It uses a new camoflauge technology that makes the suit itself invisible and we see Samus the entire time. I also decided that for comfort reasons Samus only wears lingerie while inside the suit. Sure it throws out the idea of Samus's identity being a secret, but I think in the end the series benefits from the changes. It would definitely gross $100mil domestic box office.
 
you know what... i was driving to work today and thinking about that post. i meant frank HERBERT. i dont know who frank miller is...

frank herbert, as in Dune. incase you havent read the book i wont waste anymore of your time and just explain that in the deserts of the planet dune, the sand people wore these suits that would recycle their sweat and body waste, recycling it into clean water that they could drink from a tube near their mouths. their respiration was even recycled through a tube on their nose to catch the moisture in their exhale.

its a neat book(s) and the old movie is not bad either
 
Ghost, I guess that in our short time together I have not earned enough of your faith for you to think that I am not familiar with the Landsraad conflict between House Harkonnen and House Atreides on the desert planet Arrakis over the spice melange. One of my goals in life is to become a mentat. I actually think that is still my headline on my myspace profile. Anyway, I hadn't thought of comparing the powersuit to a Fremen stillsuit. I guess I just assumed that girls don't produce any bodily waste other than the "glow" of perspiration.

Also, the only Frank Miller I am aware of is the comic book writer/artist and recent director.
 
Ok, I didn't even know they made Dune games. Was it about the fremen taking over the universe or did all the action take place on Arrakis?
 
No more Prime please

Feel free to answer the previous question Ghost, as it seems that you and I are the only ones in this topic, but I had a thought that I wanted to get out before I forgot it.

I heard that Metroid Prime 3 was announced for the Revolution. Now this may be a tentative title and I hope it is. The Metroid series needs to move away from the Prime label. It is the Metroid series not the Prime series. I kind of like how before Echoes almost all of the games had some sort of subtitle or special name so that they didn't seem like sequels persay just extensions of the story: Return of Samus, Fusion, Prime, Zero Mission, Echoes. Instead of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, why couldn't it have simply been Metroid Echoes. Anyway this is a random rant. They could rename the series Prime and I would continue to play it as long as the games are as they have been.
 
the story in the game of dune 2 was pretty much...you could play as one of the three great houses, i think. it all took place on arrakis. you could convince the fremen to join you, depending on who you were.

this game was made by westwood studios, the same people who brought us command and conquer. it came out prior to this game. it was a neat game...you harvested spice, had carriers to move units to and from the battlefield (or harvesters)...you had to watch out for sandworms. you could build thumpers to keep the worms at bay.

i cant really remember much else about the game, as i probably played it 10 years ago..
 
maybe just cause they were admitting that they were not enhancing the game engine at all...in a way it wasnt a new game. it was more of an add-on that happened to be a standalone game since consoles dont usually DO add-ons. hopefully its just a tentative title cause staying with an engine usually causes stagnation.
 
I don't mind as much if they don't change the graphics engine unless there is a change in console generation as will probably occur with the next Metroid game. The whole name complaint is actually a minor issue. In another topic, Kurrution called me out saying that they could revert to stickfigure graphics and I would still play it. It's true.

Back to Dune: Herbert created a detailed enough universe that such a game could be cool. Dealing with spice mining, the politics of the Landsraad and Fremen, as well as battle with the lasguns and krisknives could make for a cool game.
 
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