A great sequel to one of the best games of all time.
The story is simple, Samus has a mission to give aid to a Galactic Federation troop squad who has lost contact with the outside. Along the way to the planet Aether, her ship is damaged and unable to leave the planet. You soon find out that the team was killed by the Ing, creatures from a different dimension. Soon you will encounter the antagonist Dark Samus who makes you chase "it" into the dark world. Your body cannot take the atmosphere of the dark world and you loose most of your weaponry. . . . again. By learning about the history of the planet, you realize that Aether is in a battle between the dark and light worlds and it is up to you to destroy Dark Samus and the Ing torestore balance of the light world.
The gameplay from the first game is still present. The controls are smooth and accurate. But this game has more puzzles this time around. While the action is there, along with fantastic bosses, the puzzles are just brilliant. Sometimes your boss battle will be a puzzle. You have to do certain things to make them weak and eventually kill them. I thought that the developers took the time to create fantastic boss battles that are also puzzles was just astounding. Even the battles where you just have to shoot a certain spot are amazing. The battles with Dark Samus are fantastic. You would think by standing behind a wall would save you. Nope, the walls will come down and forces you to face Dark Samus. Even the environments where the bosses are held are fantastic. One time you will be in a boxed room, next you'll be on a rising elevator and finally stopping at the top level of the temple is just perfect. One boss in particular, "Quadraxis" is probably one of the most "puzzling" bosses in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. You might even characterize him above the final boss in the first game where puzzle elements were used. You get new weapons, the "Dark Beam" can critically wound the creatures in the light world and open up portals to the dark world. The "Light Beam" can critically wound the creatures in the dark world and open portals that lead the the light world. The "Annihilator Beam" uses both dark and light beam ammo and is the best weapon. Now I used the world "ammo". Yes the beams (except for the power beam) uses ammunition that the fanboys will not enjoy. . . I didn't. Seeker missiles allow you to shoot five missiles at once and the screw attack enables you to jump over long distances without hitting the ground. You get new visors as well. You get the dark visor allows you to see switches/enemies that are hidden in the normal visor and the echoes visor allows you to see sonar and find hidden switches in the area.
Now the gameplay is perfect yet again. The story is a little bland but it is a metroid game . . . so what is the true problem with Echoes? It has to be switching between the light world and dark world. You will find that the dark world is more of a job than an experience. I hated going into the dark world. At first your body cannot stand the atmosphere and you will loose health rapidly. You will have to stay in these hemispheres where light is shining through a crystal. You will be able to regain health and fight enemies in these areas. But I felt like I was in a small box. I couldn't go out without being wounded. You will soon find a suit that will lower the decrease in health in the dark world but I still found that this world was just bad. I couldn't wait to get out of the dark world once and for all.
Now there's multiplayer . . . . . don't bother. The multiplayer is not awful, just not needed to a game that is all about you and only you against the world you are in. It different fit right into the game. It comes with the standarized matches and maps and you can find the beams and missiles throughout the areas. It is not even worth your time.
OVERALL: Metroid Prime 2: Echoes is for the more serious gamers. It is definitely a puzzling game in the sense that there are a lot of them. There isn't a big help system in this game either that makes the gamers figure out the areas by themselves almost as if you are alone in the world like Samus. While Echoes isn't as mind blowing as the first game (especially no action packed space station at the beginning of the game) it is a fantastic experience. The gameplay is even better than the first, even though the first game was perfect anyway. The developers put their time into this game and it was a huge success. While the dark world is more of a job than an experience, it is not that bad to make you stop playing the game. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes receives my highest recommendation and a must play for all fans of the Metroid Prime series.