First and formost, if you have never played this game before, GO GET IT NOW. It was recently discovered that people who have never tried this game and avoid it deliberately have an I.Q. the same as their shoe size. This is game is probably the most enjoyable game I have ever played. I cannot stress this enough, go get this game if you havn't already done so. The mix of role playing elements and action elements in equal parts is made into a recipe for sucess by Nintendo. This game is incredible. The graphics are top notch, the music is eerie but perfectly fitting, the gameplay is very smooth, the controls are excellent, the learning curve is well rounded, the power-ups are absolutely incredible and the bosses are huge! Try this game for nothing more than fifteen (15) minutes and I GUARANTEE complete satisfaction, or your money back!

The first thing you notice when you first start the game is its utter creepiness of the setting. What once was a fully populated space station now lies desolate in the deepeness of space. You pass through the science lab where the once captive metroid was being held in a cage, only to find its been smashed to bits. You keep going and low and behold, your old time nemesis Kraid (above picture) is there holding the metroid. Everything is done perfectly, the sounds are so fitting for everything, the music is creepy beyond belief and this boss is your first real chance to shoot anything. Just in this first part alone, you get completely submersed into the world of Samus Aran. You battle Kraid only to have him escape with the metroid and somehow activate the Self-Destruct sequence. Now you have 3 minutes to rush back to your ship and get out of Ceres before it blows (Picture to the left). You follow Kraid through space to planet Zebes (Picture below), where you defeated Mother Brain. Now the plot unfolds even more and its up to you to decide where it goes.

One of the best things about this game is the HUGE world you have to explore. Each area is gigantique with lots of secret areas and plenty of baddies and bosses for you to destroy. Each time you leave a room though, the enemies spawn back. There are six main areas, which are each devided into rooms. I would say that theres about 50+ rooms per area on average. You go from room to room searching for key items to get to different areas. Some rooms are blocked off by different colour doors which can only be opened by a certain type of weapon (red for missiles, green for mega missiles, etc.). So you spend a good chunk of time looking for certain weapons in order to finaly find the boss room where you have a showdown one on one with any of the four main bosses. Aside from main bosses, there are also mini-bosses along the way which prevent you from getting items. Although they are more common and easier to defeat than normal bosses, they still poss a significant threat.

The power ups you aquire throughout the game play a vital role. As mentioned above, certain doors can't be opened unless they are shot with the corresponding weapon. In order to get a certain weapon, you first need to open the door with another weapon. Then once you get the new weapon you can open more doors and so on and so forth. This is the main premise of the game. When it comes to items they too play a vital role in the game also. An item such as a new suit will permit you to traverse new areas which will in turn lead to new doors which you can now open because you just got the corresponding weapon. Or and add-on will allow you to jump higher, so you can now reach that high up cliff, cross the new area and open the new door. Everything is inter-woven so tightly that as soon as you gain use of a new weapon, you have ever single previously explored area to revisit and open all those locked doors. Normally you wouldn't want to do that, but in Super Metroid its not quite as boring as one would chock it up to be.

In terms of controls, this game is far above the rest. If you are using an Emulator (which you probably are), the controls can be quite tricky to master (seeing how every button is used), but keep at it and you will get it. As you progress further in the game, certain items will enable new moves which will require you to learn them. Most of the time, the game makers throw in some animals to help you demonstrate (observe what they do and then try it). It's really quite fun running beside an austrich and then jumping really high. The use of the shoulder buttons (L and R) to help you aim while running was another good idea. Start simple (Shoot, Run, Jump) and bit by bit incorporate more advanced ones (like wall jumping). By mastering each technique, you enable yourself to access more areas and discover more items and more weapons, which has you have probably already guessed, is one of the key elements to the game.

The last point I would like to talk about is the bosses themselves. After you land on planet zebes you shortly thereafter discover a room with a statue in it. This statue represents that four bosses (each sparkling gem is one boss). Your main goal is to kill all four of these bosses throughout the planet Zebes. The bosses themselves are humonguous and you get a great sense of accomplishment from beating. The designers had a slight problem before them. They could either have alot of bosses, but then the gamer would eventual say "Oh no, not another boss." OR they could have fewer bosses and have the gamer say "Ah ha! Here's the boss I've been looking for!". So if you find yourself complaining that the bosses aren't hard enough or there aren't enough, just remember that there's always mini-bosses to pick on.

Final word: Probably the best or at leat one of the best games available on the SNES. I implore you to go get this game now, whether your a novice gamer or a hardcore gamer. Super Metroid has something to offer to everybody. If you want to pick up this game go to www.Freeroms.com.