Metroid Prime: Hunters is a first person shooter of which was like most games I review, highly anticipated. All in all, MPH is the third first person shooter game in the series, the second of which has multiplayer, and the first of which has online capabilities. And so of course, it is one of the six Wi-Fi titles currently available for the Nintendo DS. MPH has a reasonable ESRB rating of T for Teen, and is the first game to use VOIP, or voice chat. MPH was released on March 20 th, 06 in the U.S. , on March 22 nd, 06 in Canada , on May 5 th, 06 in Europe, on May 25 th, 06 in Australia , and our good people in Japan expect its release on June 1 st, 06.

The graphics are quite impressive, for a DS title, that is, and are not as much of an eye sore as some other games for the DS. The layouts for the different beams look pretty nice, and fit the look and ability of the beam itself. The colour scheming is quite nice. And as you can see, there isn・t much else to say about the graphics, its about the same caliber as most high quality DS games of which have been released. Hence its 7.5/10.

Graphics, 7.5/10.

The top screen displays the view from the character's visor, including ammo for the current weapon and health, of course. The bottom screen displays radar, and buttons to switch between available functions, which is of no surprise. The movement of Samus is controller by the D-Pad, and use of the stylus to turn, aswell as jump by quickly double tapping. The various different areas include the Celestial Archives, Alinos, Vesper Defense Outpost, Arcterra, Stronghold Void, and Oubliette. In addition to these areas are weapons. Those of which include the Power Beam: standard weapon, Missile Launcher: Powerful shot with homing capability, Judicator: Freezes whoever it is shot at, Magmaul: Magma grenade launcher, Volt Driver: Electrical, Imperialist: Powerful sniper beam with scope, Shock Coil: Continuous electricity, Battlehammer: Rapid fire mortar, and the Omega Cannon: Instant kill shot. Now, along with these weapons come characters and the multiplayer, off and online. But I・ll get to that later. The characters are Noxus, Spire, Kanden, Sylux, Trace, and Weavel. Each with their own unique abilities. The style of gameplay implemented in this game isn・t much different than MP and MP2: E. Just much more innovative and in-depth, in story and gameplay.

Gameplay, 9/10.

The controls are pretty easy to get used to, you move with the D-Pad, shoot with L, jump with 2 quick taps on the touch screen, and turn with the movement of the stylus on the touch screen. Unless your new to the DS, these controls won・t be any different. Just a bit less comfortable.

Controls, 7.5/10.

On the other hand, there isn・t much to say on the story. But to keep it blunt, it takes place in between Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, which takes place in between Metroid and Metroid 2: Return of Samus. The storyline mainly consists of fighting each of the separate bounty hunters, aswell as collecting all 8 octoliths. And it all begins with the Alimbics. They were highly developed society, and developed powerful weapons of war after their first showcase of offense. The Alimbics were some of the most highly appreciated and well known of most. They built massive thriving cities, even those of which included the Celestial Archives and Vesper Defense Outpost. After time, the Alimbic civilization was destroyed, aswell as their utopia. Gorea was confined in the Seal Sphere and could not be released until all 8 octoliths were assembled. Each Octolith was left in the care of a guardian, which were in turn also protected by locked portals with scattered sets of keys. Then again, the wrath of Gorea was the downfall of the Alimbic civilization, was it not..?

Story, 8/10.

The multiplayer・s great as far as the wireless play goes, but when you step unto the realm of The Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, it is simply amazing. You can select an area to search for players, or you can play against any friends or rivals you might have. Either joining or hosting a game, with various options. You start with Samus, Kanden, and Spire for Wi-Fi, aswell as the rest of the bounty hunters as unlockables. To unlock these characters, you must simply defeat one in a Wi-Fi match of any sort. There is also text messaging and voice chat in between matches. I have no choice but to give the multiplayer a 9/10.

Multiplayer, 9/10.

This is one of those games that can be repetitious at times, but is still hella fun to play. I suggest anyone with a DS to buy this game, unless of course you truly despise first person shooters, or of a fanboy that opposes anything developed by Nintendo. But that, is besides the point. Pick this game up if you get the chance. Its definetly an unforgettable multiplayer and single player experience.

Overall, 9/10.