While I marathoned the 2D "Metroid" games prior to the release of "Metroid Dread," I decided to wait until after I beat that game to give "Metroid: Other M" a chance. In my eyes, "Other M" was a game I wasn't sure if I'd actually beat, so I was treating it as a "just give it a shot" kind of game, largely to get an idea of what the polarizing reception was all about. To my surprise, the game kept my attention long enough for me to beat it. That's gotta be worth something, right? Either way, a lot of the vitriol did prepare me going into the game, and I can say I walked away from it less disappointed than I expected. Even so, it's still my least favorite of the "Metroid" series, and while my number ratings might not show that, it's the lowest by a pretty good margin.
On the plus side, there are several things that "Metroid: Other M" does right. I think it very nicely translates the 2D style of "Metroid" into a 3D plane, which being that this is the first time doing so, it succeeds more than I expected. The graphics are also sharp for the Wii, the CGI cutscene visuals look awesome, and the worlds themselves look pretty wonderful. Also worth adding: the music remains as atmospheric and great as any "Metroid" soundtrack. From a gameplay perspective, the combat is mostly pretty strong, and searching for secret power-ups is still pretty fun. There's plenty to do and explore in the game, and once again, I didn't totally mind the game going for a more linear style. I don't think "Metroid" games are ruined by linearity, and I think the games still offer a lot of good exploring options, even in more linear games.
Now onto the negatives, because you know it and I know it, there are a good few. On a personal level, while I know others were higher on them, I didn't care for the boss fights. They often felt repetitive and aggravating, and they frustrated me more than they engaged me. I also found the control scheme, where you switch from holding the Wii Remote horizontally and vertically, to be extremely awkward, especially in the first-person sections where the remote is held vertically. The unskippable cutscenes border on being insufferably long (and also take away that "show, don't tell" storytelling that made "Super Metroid" such a winner). And beyond the fact that the character development and writing do feel weaker than other "Metroid" titles, I think that's not the only part of the game that fundamentally misunderstands "Metroid." I think the fact that arsenal items are "granted" and not "earned" feels like a huge moment that fundamentally misunderstands "Metroid." It really took me out at points and made me feel like I was just given each item as a deus ex machina. And that, in my eyes, really just isn't what "Metroid" is about.
And yet...I don't hate the game. "Metroid: Other M" does a number of things right that make it a solidly enjoyable game if you can look past its writing. Even then, though, the gameplay is certainly flawed in some big ways, and its control scheme can often feel like its biggest undoing. There are parts of the game that are likable, but it's definitely my least favorite of the main "Metroid" franchise. If you're curious, give it a try, but don't feel bad if you end up skipping out on it.
Final rating: 6 out of 10 "Decent"