The third period of Samus' life takes place after Fusion. Nintendo pulled a fast one on us in that game—even though Samus became part Metroid (Alien: Resurrection, anyone?), that parasitic DNA did nothing more than give her lots of free health and missiles, and a susceptibility to cold temperatures. But now that there are no more X Parasites, all Samus is left with is a weakness to ice? Shenanigans!

The end of the Prime trilogy left us with one nice little cliffhanger which further integrated Metroid Prime: Hunters into the Metroid universe: Samus rides off into the sunset, only to be pursued by Sylux, one of the rival bounty hunters from the DS shooter. The instruction booklet for Hunters claims that Sylux hates Samus with a passion, and that all of his technology, including his ship, has been stolen from the Galactic Federation. While this is nothing but baseless speculation, Sylux could be human. What’s more, Sylux could have also been trained by the Chozo. Maybe Samus wasn’t the only one to survive the Pirate raid that left her orphaned!

At any rate, the next game in the Metroid series as we know it could focus on Samus vs. Sylux, Samus grappling with her Metroid physiology, or both. A weakness to cold may be just the beginning—what if Samus begins to hunger for “life energy?” She could become more feral and unstable as the mindless parasite within begins to emerge. I also like the idea of multiple planets for Samus to explore, as presented in Hunters and Corruption. If Samus is trying to cure herself of her Metroid infestation, why not do some planet-hopping to look for the right ingredients?

Samus undergoing not-so-radical change in Metroid Fusion

In light of these changes in focus, I humbly submit that a change of title is needed. The “Metroid” moniker was proper when Metroids were at the center of the experience, but their importance began to wane as early as Super Metroid. Retro Studios struggled to wedge the space blobs into each Prime game, and their presence was most out-of-place in Echoes. They were completely absent from Hunters, and the Metroid threat in Fusion was relegated to the final twenty minutes of gameplay. This is actually a waste of a great plot device. Of all the Metroid games, only Metroid II: Return of Samus has fully explored the Metroid lifecycle. Remember how awesome the Omega Metroid at the end of Fusion looked? Why hasn’t more been done with the Metroid mutations? Boy, Nintendo, it’s too bad they’re all extinct now!*

At any rate, I believe that the Metroid name cannot be suitably applied to the proposed games taking place during the first and second periods outlined above. While Metroids themselves probably existed during these times, they would not show up in the plotline (Samus only learned of the existence of Metroids when she returned to Zebes during the events of the original NES Metroid/Zero Mission). I would call the series “The Chronicles of Samus Aran.” Not to bring a Riddick vibe to the franchise, but I think the title conveys a sense of depth and epoch that is fitting for one of gaming’s most kick-ass characters.

However, Nintendo has never been good about “moving on”. When Phantom Hourglass was announced, I was excited to see what direction the Zelda series would take with the Triforce threat well and truly dispatched. Well, after seeing the ending of Phantom, we discovered that Nintendo skirted the issue entirely. Will they be willing to take a new direction with the Metroid series? Along any route they choose, Nintendo will have to face up to a series without a namesake, and those are dangerous waters. They could go the easy route and create a game which takes place between Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion, or perhaps remake Return of Samus in the spirit of Zero Mission, but I would hope that Samus’ character is explored and her past illuminated. It’s a brave new world for Samus Aran, and one I look forward to following.

*Samus destroyed the Pirates’ Metroid colonies on Zebes, Tallon IV, and Aether; killed the Fusion Metroid-spawning Metroid Prime and the Phazon-producing planet Phaaze; destroyed all the Metroids on their home planet of SR-388 (except the hatchling, which sacrificed itself at the end of Super Metroid), and later annihilated that planet and the science station containing a Galactic Federation Metroid colony. There are no more Metroids.