When the DS was first unveiled a couple years ago, the main game that caught everyone’s attention was Metroid Prime: Hunters.  Why?  Not just because it was Metroid, but because it decided to stick with the Prime formula found in the GameCube games, and totally change the gameplay when they introduced the system’s touch screen capabilities.  Now, in an era where the DS is slowly gaining full control of the handheld market, it’s hard to believe that this game is finally out.  But is it a step in the right direction for Nintendo?

In the single player campaign, as expected, you’re put into the role of Samus Aran as you make your way through a galaxy called the Alimbic Cluster searching for an encrypted power in the form of eight separate artifacts called the Octoliths.  Of course, when it comes to power, everybody wants it.  Oftentimes throughout the game, other bounty hunters will challenge Samus, and if she loses—she loses the artifact.  That being said, you can get your revenge and find that bounty hunter again, kill him, and take the artifact.  It’s just that simple.

What aren’t simple, however, are the game’s controls.  If you were one of the lucky few to grab a DS early, you should already be familiar with the controls based on the demo that shipped with the system.  If not, then you’ll just have to get used to them.  The game’s standard mechanics are pretty simple though.  The up and down directions on the control pad allow Samus to move forward or backward, while the left and right directions on the control pad allow her to strafe either direction.  Double-tapping the touch screen makes Samus jump, and the right shoulder button allows Samus to fire whatever weapon she has turned on.  With that, you can use the bottom of the touch screen to aim Samus’ weapon anywhere.  But before thinking that might be useless, you’re better off knowing right away that unlike GameCube Metroid games, there is no lock-on aim. Without a lock-on system, Hunters has the feel of a typical first person shooter.  It’s no understatement—you have the ability to adjust the sensitivity levels of  the controls themselves and before you know it, it’ll seem like you’re playing a standard PC shooter.  While the touch screen capabilities are a blessing, they can be annoying.  The lack of buttons on the DS prevents the game from totally achieving the Metroid Prime feel, and the only way to do certain things like switching your weapon is by touching the indicated area on the touch screen.  At first we had a lot of difficulty fighting in fast-paced battles because we’d accidentally and unheedingly change weapons, ultimately leading to Samus’ doom.

As for the actual single player gameplay, it does a good job emulating the feel of the Metroid Prime series, but it doesn’t really play like a Metroid game.  As stated before, this game feels more like a first person shooter, whereas the GameCube games focused a lot more on exploration.  There are still a lot of things to see in Hunters, but the basic level layout is fairly simple and linear, and there aren’t too many “hiding places” which made prior Metroid games famous.  You’ll have your share of traditional backtracking when you find new weapons and powerups, but that’s perhaps one of the least popular facts when you talk about Metroid games.

The most disappointing thing about the single player campaign is that the combat really doesn’t have a lot of variety.  At first, they’ll be action-packed, but once you get a feel for the controls and see the enemy again and again, the combat can get old real fast.  The bosses are solid and what you’d expect from a Metroid game, but bosses repeat just as often as they did in Donkey Kong Jungle Beat.  These are perks on what things can make a good game great, but with these—Nintendo just didn’t deliver.

Surprisingly, however, the multiplayer in Hunters more than makes up for the slightly disappointing single player.  You can play with up to three friends in single-card battles, but the drawback is that you’re forced to use Samus and you can only play in Deathmatch mode.  In multicard battles, you have all sorts of modes to play through as well as the ability to play as a different bounty hunter—as long as you have that hunter unlocked by beating them in the single player mode.  The multiplayer modes include a game in which you have to find an Octolith before any of your rivals, Prime Hunter mode, last man standing, and a king of the hill mode.

Metroid Prime: Hunters also makes use of Nintendo’s free Wi-Fi service.  Finding people to play with is just as easy as turning the game on, and the process is done pretty quickly.  We didn’t experience any lag, but there was minor slowdown when all four players are within the same boundary.  The only drawback with the game’s online play is that if you’re playing with somebody who isn’t on your friend list, you won’t be able to play any mode except the standard battle mode.  However, once you actually do have people on your list, you can play any mode you want.

When you first turn the game on, you’ll be greeted by some good-looking introductory cutscenes which appear often throughout the course of Hunters.  At times it can look grainy, and the lighting can be a problem when fighting an enemy who’s a little far away from you, but the graphics are probably more than one would expect from the DS.

The audio shines as well.  The music is reminiscent to sci-fi movies a lot like the previous Prime games.  Also, some of the effects were recycled from the Prime games, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  Nothing seems to be lost in translation from the GameCube to the DS.

It certainly has been a while, but Metroid Prime: Hunters has finally shipped and the end product doesn't disappoint.  To make a long story short, this is probably the best first person shooter you’ll ever play on a handheld.  Then again that may not sit will with Metroid purists given the series roots as an adventure title.  If you’re getting this because you’re the diehard Metroid fan, do so—but at the same time, make sure you have plenty of friends.  The lack of creativity with the bosses in the single player is a letdown, but this is a game worth beating once, especially if you want to unlock all the available hunters for the multiplayer modes.  Is it worth every penny?  Believe it or not, it actually is.  Nobody will kill you if you choose to wait out, though.