Our Retrospective Overload continues unabated, and this time we’re heading back 17 years to 1994. You can find other articles in this series (and our previous Retrospectives) through this link.

The Super NES and I have an interesting history. It’s a relatively brief one too, as I’ve only owned one since college. For reasons that seem almost inexplicable more than a decade later, I was a Sega Genesis kid; I probably liked the advertisements and Sonic the Hedgehog, but these are sheer guesses as opposed to recollection of facts. Regardless, I remember ripping open a package on Christmas morning and being greeted by the Genesis and Sonic 2 and that was that.

That meant that, in its proper time period, I never had a SNES. My exposure was limited to playing at my friends’ house down the street and, being kids, there were just some things we didn’t really know. I sampled many SNES classics, like Super Mario World, Yoshi’s Island, Mario Kart, Donkey Kong Country, and more. But things slip through the cracks, and that’s why I’ve never played Super Metroid.

Imagine my surprise when I opened up Electronic Gaming Monthly‘s 2003 featuring discussing the best games of all time — and this Super Metroid game topped the list. I mean, the name was familiar — the GameCube Metroid Prime games had hit by that time, after all — but still: What the hell? How could I have never heard of what my spiritual guide, EGM, was telling me was the greatest game of all time? After that moment of bewilderment I probably went back to playing something on the Xbox and thinking about high school, but that surprise has stuck with me ever since.

The re-release of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night on Xbox Live Arcade was Doug's "Metroidvania" gateway drug.

My appreciation for Metroid began with the Xbox Live Arcade update of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Many games (including recent handheld Castlevanias and XBLA exclusive Shadow Complex) can lay claim to being in the “Metroidvania” genre, but the two high-water marks are Symphony of the Night and — of course — Super Metroid. After devouring SotN twice through, I was sold on the concept. And now I’m finally taking the time to go through its spiritual predecessor.

What really can be said to judge Super Metroid, though? It’s practically perfect. I really have nothing to add to the echo chamber. The graphics are straight out of 1994 but the execution is superb;  I honestly think 16-bit games have aged better than 8-bit games, so there are no complaints from me. The sound is amazing, both in quality and in execution, with the music hanging like a light aural fog as you unfold the game. After the initial hour or so spent flailing around and gaining my footing, I’ve come to grips with what the game wants me to do and the controls are tight enough to allow it. My only real complaint is that it handles tracking down upgrades in a more obsessive-compulsive manner than Symphony of the Night did; the map sprawled out a bit more in that PlayStation classic, whereas in Super Metroid it’s about shooting and bombing every wall imaginable.

Despite those OCD demands, I’m finding the puzzle elements of the platforming more rewarding than some of the better platformer offspring of the last few years. Games like Braid and Limbo put more emphasis on the puzzles as opposed to twitchy action and combat — it’s an interesting twist on the genre and a big difference, but the design of puzzles in Super Metroid brings it to mind. Though Nick may disagree, the final puzzles feel too punishingly hard. While Super Metroid may inspire you to bomb every room corner in a feeble attempt to figure out which way is next, the game itself doesn’t feel as smug or clever in the way those new platformers do when solving the puzzles.

If you've played Super Metroid a number of times, you'll recognize where Doug is in the game and what power-up he'd just found.

The most impressive aspect of Super Metroid has to be the way the game guides you through the process of upgrading, exploration and improvement — all the way to the end of the game. It doesn’t bring up a signpost that says “You can’t go here yet”; the most obvious way the game explains this is by the missile/super missile-coded doorways. Also impressive was when I followed my nose down to Norfair and tried to enter a room that instantly almost killed me. Time to go find the anti-heat suit! The Metroidvania trope of making you collect all your power-ups via exploration certainly is definitely a trope for a good reason, but damned if it doesn’t work. So many games can learn from the mantra “show, don’t tell” that Super Metroid makes use of so well.

I may be quite a few years behind when it comes to appreciating Super Metroid, and even then arrived after detouring to visit games that simply aped the master. But when it comes down to it, Super Metroid has not aged one iota.

Well, it was fun while it lasted.

With December and its myriad holidays out of the way, everybody’s got something to keep them busy. Doug’s back to work on his master’s program, Aaron has transformed into a job-applying machine, and I’ve thankfully found a job once again. Unfortunately, that means we all have a whole lot less time to be playing games, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to turn a blind eye to our sacred obligation to Silicon Sasquatch. Don’t worry! We’ve got a couple great articles that are almost ready for publication, and we’re anticipating a full run of content next week.

In the meantime, here’s what we’ve been keeping ourselves busy with.

Aaron wouldn't say 'I ain't afraid of no ghosts': he has much less bravado toward specters than you might think.

Aaron:

Now, the game I actually have something say about is Ghostbusters: The Video Game. Maybe it’s because I only paid a meager $12.99 at GameFly’s used game store (with free shipping), but I can’t help but like what I’ve seen. I’m perhaps halfway though the story now, and while the camera and controls are a bit rough around the edges, Ghostbusters is pure fun for fans of the movies. It’s by no means perfect, and that’s fine. The humor is there, the attention to detail in the firehouse headquarters is there, the proton packs are spot-on and the thrill of catching a ghost in a trap still makes me giggle just like my 6-year-old self used to with my toy Nerf proton pack and authentic jumpsuit. Ghostbusters is simple fun layered over a strong IP, and I truly hope Atari gives Terminal Reality another shot in future sequel. Maybe when the third movie finally (maybe) sees release next year, a tie-in game could coincide with the film’s debut.

In case you'd like some added context, here's what's happening. Man on the left: "Colonel! What have you been hiding from me!?" Man in giant robot: "Snaaaaaaaaaaake!"

Doug:

Much like Aaron, I’m just going to list out most of what I played over our holiday break because, being a degenerate graduate student, I had almost nothing productive to do between Thanksgiving and this week, when classes re-started up in earnest. Because that means a lot of time to play games, I’m just going to cut the fat and go list-happy.

I finished Brütal Legend (which seemed like it lost its storytelling steam a bit at the very end) and am close to finishing Batman: Arkham Asylum (trap-laden gargoyles are my kryptonite right now). I almost have what the gentlemen at Giant Bomb would term an “S-rank” (or 1000/1000 achievement score) on Forza Motorsport 3, which I also did a lot of online racing on during the break. I was definitely happy to hit Level 50 in that game and get the last gifted car.

The only game really worth the meagre Xbox Live sale over the holiday break was Marvel vs. Capcom 2, which was marked down to almost 60 percent off the regular list price and is worth every penny. Better than arcade-perfect, with every character unlocked from the start and online multiplayer capable? Yes, please. I also received a kind gift in the form of Shadow Complex, which scratches my Metroid-vania itch in so many ways. Definitely one of the best Xbox 360-only games of last year.

Lastly, my sports game fix has come in two forms — first, as part of multiple trips to downtown Portland old-school arcade Ground Kontrol, I’ve fulfilled my basketball jones by playing a bunch of NBA Jam. Nick and I (and friend of the site Andrew) went to GK on New Year’s Eve, and besides crushing the X-Men 6-player arcade game, the most fun had was running the two-man game with the Blazers on NBA Jam. The other sports game I picked up was, finally, Pro Evo Soccer 2010…which definitely lives up to the expectations I had for it based off my playtime with the demo. It may not be as pretty as FIFA 10, but it provides a much more challenging and fulfilling soccer experience. Crank the difficulty all the way up and enjoy smart AI in a sports game for once.

The story of a witch, her hair, and gratuitous almost-nudity. This is gonna be awkward.

Nick:

As a test to see who’s interested in the blog, I offered up a vote on our Facebook page to ask people which game they’d rather see me purchase and review first: Demon’s Souls or Bayonetta. Although there was support for both, Bayonetta got the nod and I picked up a copy last night. While I’ve only had time to play about ten minutes of the game, those ten minutes were extraordinarily promising. I just hope the game’s rampant, bizarre sexuality doesn’t weird out my friends and loved ones.

The majority of my free time has been spent on — yeah, you guessed it — Dragon Age: Origins. I keep thinking I’m getting close to the end, and then another 15-hour sequence of quests pops up. I’m absolutely enamored with the game, so I think I won’t have any complaints if it turns out the game just never ends.

This week’s podcast centers around Shadow Complex, one of the latest and most critically acclaimed games on Xbox Live Arcade. While most people will agree the game is a worthwhile trip down memory lane in the spirit of classics like Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, that isn’t the focus of our discussion. Instead, we’re taking a look at an opinion piece penned by Christian Nutt of Gamasutra, who responds to a debate that arose on popular video game forum NeoGAF over whether it’s reasonable to boycott a game for ethical reasons. From there, we discuss the reasoning behind boycotts and petitions that gamers engage in and the ramifications of their actions.

At just over 30 minutes, this is our most succint podcast — but I think it’s also safe to say it’s the most engaging episode we’ve produced so far.

Finally, I wanted to mention that this entry marks the 100th post on Silicon Sasquatch! On behalf of Aaron, Doug and myself, I just wanted to say we’re all deeply grateful to our fans (and critics) and we hope you’ve enjoyed the ride so far.

If you want to help us, just spread the word! Follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our RSS feed, or post a comment on an entry or two. We’re always grateful to hear from you.

Why hello there, future purchase

What a week it’s been. The inaugural Gamescom in Cologne, Germany opened on Wednesday and guess what: Sony kindly unveiled the new PlayStation 3 Slim. Media outlets weren’t exactly surprised by the announcement, but I think we’re all glad the rumor mill has finally ceased its incessant turning about the damn console. Looks like I finally need to go get a PS3.

Oh, and a little event in Anaheim, California called BlizzCon flung its +10 Doors of Nerd Barricading open to the (literally) unwashed masses of Blizzard fanatics today, and so far we’ve already been made privy to the next World of Warcraft expansion, a new Diablo III class and StarCraft II being confirmed for release in 2010.

You know, as a gamer I like it when these big gaming-related events run back-to-back with one another. The ESA might as well wedge E3 2010 between next year’s Gamescom and BlizzCon to mentally and physically destroy every games journalist in existence. That could be Silicon Sasquatch‘s in!

An image so good it makes the prequels look half-decent

Aaron:

For some odd reason I’ve devoted a large amount of my gaming time this week to Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga. I’m under the deluded notion that I can reach 100% completion in the game without going insane. It’s not a particularly hard title, it’s just tedious…incredibly tedious. Still, I have to hand it to Traveller’s Tales for making what’s overall a fun and goofy title. Just don’t ruin the experience by trying to do what I’m doing.

Other non-block-themed bytes I consumed this week were Fallout 3′s Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta — mostly for review purposes. Go ahead and check out each write-up for my impressions of Bethesda’s final two post-nuclear roleplaying simulator DLCs. Now, to be completely honest, I’m glad to wash my hands of the game. Hundreds of hours sunk into one title (that’s not an MMO) makes you feel way too involved. Strange, I know. I’m ready for Fallout: New Vegas, though. Get to it, Obsidian Entertainment!

Next on my gaming queue: Halo Wars, Shadow Complex, Batman: Arkham Asylum (which is getting many glowing reviews) and…more Lego Star Wars.

Doug's local sports pride is fantastic. But why are they called the Vikings anyway? Vikings usually burned and pillaged, I recall.

Doug:

This week has been busy — class Monday, finishing homework, quizzes and team projects for accounting on Wednesday, then a test in Finance on Tuesday, more class Wednesday, being social (bars, basketball and more bars) and finalizing some back-end paperwork stuff for grad school. I haven’t fired my 360 up since…maybe Monday. All I’ve done gaming-wise is play with the NCAA 10 TeamBuilder — it’s super powerful and, being the kind of person to toil over minor details regarding team jerseys, it’s right up my alley.

Above is a photo for the work-in-progress team I’ve created; the fun part will be editing the roster from head to toe. Thankfully, you can now do that through a web browser instead of on a console.

Nathan Drake/The Prince takes flight in Shadow Complex for Xbox Live Arcade

Nick:

With this scorched-earth Oregon summer winding to a pleasantly breezy conclusion, my gaming backlog is finally getting the attention it deserves. Having made my way through the wonderfully crass House of the Dead: Overkill and Namco’s doting recreation of PlayStation platforming classic Klonoa, I’ve almost finished clearing out my GameFly queue. I hope to finish Killzone 2 and Punch-Out!! this weekend.

Of course, that all depends on whether I can release my vice grip on Shadow Complex. Chair Entertainment created a game that went right for my Achilles’ Heel: side-scrolling, Metroid-style adventures. While I’m not convinced it’s the greatest game of its kind, it’s a pleasant surprise and a nice homage to some of the finest games ever made.

And hey, it’s always nice to hear Nolan North playing another character who looks an awful lot like Nathan Drake; maybe it’ll hold me over until Uncharted 2 struts in and dictates how I live my life for the next few months.