It's tough to be overly critical with Metroid Prime Hunters. On one hand, that's why I get paid the (ahem) big bucks. On the other, it's a first-person shooter on the Nintendo DS, a system that, for many good reasons, should never be home to an FPS. But if you're familiar with the Metroid Prime series, you'll know that we're not talking about some ordinary shooter. Metroid Prime Hunters continues the series' tradition with creepy, desolate settings, a peculiar sci-fi storyline, and some sweet gameplay. This is the point in the review where I say something like Samus Aran is back, and she's better than ever! and that would be true, to an extent.

The biggest worry many people may have is that the one-player game is sorely lacking in Metroid Prime Hunters. After all, this is one of those deathmatch centric games that begs to be played until the battery runs out. Thankfully, solo Hunters is a fun experience, impressive for those looking for some Metroid Prime action. While there may not be as many levels or enemies, Hunters exudes that certain quality the Prime games are known for, which is isolation.

Unlike a ton of other FPS games, Hunters plays very methodically, sometimes bordering on extremely slow, but that's what the series is about. Rather than just going in and blasting at hundreds of mindless enemies, Samus is all about taking her time in scouring each level for info and items that will aid her on her quest.
Which quest would that be? Why to beat all the other bounty hunters (seven total, including Ms. Aran) in obtaining Alimbic artifacts, of course! If all of them are put together, the artifacts will unleash more power than Reggie Fils-Aime after five cappuccinos on stage at E3. Powerful stuff, I tells ya.

The quest will take you to different worlds, each with very unique attributes. But if you've played any game since Super Mario Bros., you can guess that among those are an ice world and a fire world. Still, you can't discount the really impressive level of detail in each environment, with the Nintendo DS working mighty hard to create cool looking lava flows and transparent ice floors.

Throughout the levels, much like the previous Prime games, you can don your scan visor with a mere click on the touch screen. This will allow you to fill your Logbook with info on the history of the planets and the Alimbic people. Unfortunately, these tidbits are small and pretty scattered, but they do help create a mood that can only be described as spooky. You learn about how their race was obliterated and why, and it may beg you to go back to each world and make sure you get as much of the story as possible.

As for the action, it's not too shabby on the dual-screen. The stylus is used for aiming, while the shoulder button on your opposite hand is used for shooting. The touch-screen also houses a map, the ability to change weapons, and the ability to turn Samus into her famous morph ball form. It does take some getting used to, but the game starts off slowly and allows you to get the hang of things.

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