Moving the stylus a fraction in any direction results in a slightly disproportionate motion on Samus' part, which makes precise aiming difficult, particularly against enemies that are in constant, erratic motion. Tracking them with the touch screen can be difficult, then, due to how sensitive it is to input. At any point you may run into a Guardian or one of the other Hunters, all of which will actively dart every which way whilst shooting with uncanny accuracy. It works just fine when shooting switches and slow enemies, but immediately takes a turn for the worse when quicker enemies or bosses are introduced. Tapping L fires the cannon, while double tapping the screen (or hitting a face button with your pinky) makes Samus jump. There's no lock on feature whatsoever, and Samus' cannon is controlled by the stylus.
The controls certainly aren't broken, but come across as feeling gimmicky and imprecise.
It's understandable that Samus' toolset isn't as deep on a portable experience, but you may find yourself slightly miffed at the lack of diverse items. There are no suit upgrades nor a grappling beam here, just different weapons that also allow you to open new doors. The biggest disappointment is that the items you find along the way are just different beam weapons. There are not as many clever puzzles, and most upgrades aren't too far off the beaten path, but there's still plenty to find if you're willing to look. Moments like this can get frustrating when you find yourself moving in circles, but they're thankfully not so prevalent as to ruin the game.Įxploration is still present and accounted for, but it's much more subverted due to the simpler levels. Additionally, the presence of portals essentially negates the map system in places, as you're given no cues which portal matches up with which, and this can make it easy to get lost. No doubt this was done to account for the technical limitations of the DS, but it can feel a bit claustrophobic at times.
This can make proceedings feel dangerously close to one massive fetch quest, but at least you're given the option to freely jump between the different environments in search of artifacts for another Octolith at any time.Įnvironment design is reminiscent of that of the main Prime games, but they have a tendency to be laid out in a much simpler manner. Eight Octoliths must be collected to obtain the ultimate power, with three Alimbic Artifacts required to unlock the portals to each one. Gameplay, while still focused on exploration, ultimately takes a more linear approach to things due to how the hardware limited the scope of what could be done with the campaign. The story isn't nearly as interesting or well-written as the lore of the core Prime games, but it does a good job of setting the atmosphere. The Alimbic essentially fulfill the role of the Chozo in past games, being a fallen, highly advanced race that died sealing away a great evil. While exploring the four different maps you can find bits of lore and information on certain objects, which will fill out your logbook further and reveal more about the mysterious Alimbic civilization. Thus, the race is on.Īs is typical of the Prime games, you can have as much or as little story as you like along the way via scanning. She's not alone, though, as six other bounty hunters are all after it for their own personal reasons. Samus is dispatched by the Federation to investigate, and to either acquire or destroy whatever the ultimate power is. The Galactic Federation has received a telepathic message emanating from the Alimbic Cluster in the Tetra Galaxy, which says that the key to "ultimate power" lies somewhere within the cluster. The story of Hunters is pitched as a "side-story" to the main Prime arc, something that can exist as a standalone and ultimately inconsequential experience.