The second period of Samus' life details her separation from the Chozo, and decision to join the Galactic Federation military. The gameplay style could go in several directions, depending on whether Samus is wearing her Power Suit in battle or not. I would prefer to see her without it, honestly. Zero Mission and Super Smash Bros. Brawl showed us a Samus Aran who was agile and stealthy, yet fully capable of handling herself in a fight. I would also expect that, in the military, she would be expected to wear a Galactic Federation military uniform. At any rate, I can see many different gameplay styles working effectively.

There could be a stealth aspect a la Metal Gear Solid. There is actually evidence for this sort of scenario! In one of the Fusion gallery scenes, Samus is walking away from a building with her fingers to her ear, just as Snake puts his hand to his ear while communicating with Col. Campbell. Heck, maybe she got her Paralyzer gun from the military! In fact, given her advanced physical prowess resulting from her training and Chozo-infused blood, Samus would be an ideal candidate for stealth missions. Besides, Samus has already been shown to be quite adept at sneaking through Pirate strongholds in the closing stages of Zero Mission.

Samus proves capable of infiltration in Zero Mission

This kind of game would be suitable for home consoles, as it would operate in a 3D world. The storylines could focus on Samus’ relationship with the Galactic Federation, and we could get to know Adam Malkovich, the commanding officer who reemerged as a digital mind in Fusion. If the Federation is keeping an eye on the Space Pirates, we may learn more about them also. Specifically, I would like to know how the Pirates corrupted Mother Brain, what their relationship with the Chozo is, and how the Pirate “caste” system works. The Pirates in Zero Mission, Super Metroid, and Fusion look nothing like their Prime counterparts, so perhaps these “military” games could shed some much-needed light on Pirate society.

The Space Pirate hierarchy remains vague

If Samus remains in her Power Suit (although I hope she doesn’t), the military games could continue the Prime tradition of first-person immersion and platforming. Given the focus on Samus’ military years, however, the overall plotline and game flow may resemble Halo more than Metroid Prime. In this environment, Samus would be a part of a squad or team, with specific objectives, and thus experience a more linear progression. It’s not like Samus would completely overpower her squadmates, either. Remember that she’s only equipped with the basic Power Suit, and Galactic Federation troopers wear surprisingly similar armor suits. In a squad-based game, Nintendo could implement robust online play, including multiplayer deathmatch games and, dare I suggest it, co-op. In a more mission-oriented Prime-type game, we could still see the beautiful environments that the Prime games were known for, but the exploration aspect would take a backseat to the military action.