GameSpot's entire editorial staff unanimously agrees that Metroid Prime for the GameCube is the single greatest video game of 2002. Considering how diverse our tastes are, that ought to speak volumes. But let's elaborate, shall we?
Some of us are longtime Metroid fans who were waiting for Metroid Prime with bated breath, cynically convinced that it couldn't possibly live up to the sci-fi action adventure series' high standards. Others were more optimistic--especially since seeing the game at E3 earlier this year--but nonetheless skeptical of how the game would finally turn out. Still others have had limited exposure to previous Metroid games, and thus didn't care much for the game one way or another. Yet when we finally got our hands on Metroid Prime, the first thing we knew was that we all wanted to play it for ourselves. Sure enough, each of us has gone through the game in a somewhat different fashion and taken away a unique experience from it--yet we're all in accord about the game's incredible achievements on every level, from purely technical to artistic.
Some of us are in awe of how capably the unproven group at Retro Studios managed to capture the look and feel of the Metroid series in full 3D. Others of us actually went out and bought GameCubes and copies of the game just so we could play it for ourselves. Some of us are bent on seeing literally everything there is to see in the game, while others are going through at a leisurely pace, taking in all the richly detailed and highly imaginative settings.
At the end of the day, however, we've all had an absolute blast playing the game, and we all agree that Metroid Prime is the most original, most surprisingly good, and most remarkably designed game of the year. While each of the four nominees for our Video Game of the Year award is a remarkable and outstanding game in its own right, the one-of-a-kind, thoroughly enjoyable, and unforgettable Metroid Prime surpasses them handily. It's not a stretch to say that Metroid Prime is the best game yet in the Metroid series, nor is it unreasonable to call Metroid Prime one of the greatest games ever.
