Metroid Prime
- Planet
- Tallon IV
- Region
- Impact Crater
The aberration known as Metroid Prime is the source of Phazon, making it immensely powerful. A genetic flaw makes it susceptible to certain weapoms for brief periods. Only its head is truly vulnerable: other attacks are a nuisance. Offensively, Metroid Prime has a number of natural and mechanical weapons at its desposal. These include Ultrafrigid Breath, Multi-Missiles, Snare Beams, and Partical Wave Projectors. Its massive strength and barbed carapace make it lethal in melee combat. Recommend maximum firepower when engaging this enemy.
Similar to the Fission Metroids, Metroid Prime will change colors on parts of its exoskeleton. This will help you determine what beam weapon you have to equip. Instead of using just your beams, however, it's best to use the Missile Combo upgrade if you have it:
Yellow = Super Missile
Purple = Wavebuster
White = Ice Spreader
Red = Flamethrower
If you run out of Missiles, just fall back on your Beams. The battle will last throughout four individual subchambers. In the first subchamber, Prime will only switch between Yellow and Purple. Subchamber 2 is Yellow, Purple, and White; Subchambers 3 and 4 are all four colors, but in Subchamber 4, it switches more quickly and less predictably.
Each chamber has grooves along the bottom. These are for you to Boost Ball through when Metroid Prime rears up to charge at you. After you make it to the other side, immediately unmorph and attack it.
Prime will also shoot glowing orbs of different colors that will home in on you. These hurt quite a bit, so try your best to avoid them. You can shoot them with a color-coded charged beam blast before they even get close, so be on the lookout for them at all times. If you destroy them, they usually drop health, so use that to your advantage. Prime will also shoot concentrated beams at you as well as a homing attack that drags you in closer to it. You can easily avoid these, but if you get caught in the homing attack, blast it in the face a few times, and it will let go.
It may take you a few tries to get the patterns down, but after you do, get ready for Prime's final, true form. Good luck!
When Metroid Prime is hanging upside-down when Samus first comes upon the creature, its folded up body resembles a menacing grimace.
The NTSC (America) and PAL (Europe) versions of the game contain a few differences, mostly stemming from the origin of the creature. In the NTSC version, a few Space Pirate log entries contain information that they discovered Metroid Prime deep inside the Phazon Mines, and describe it as a Metroid highly evolved by Phazon. The Pirates were able to ensnare the creature temporarily, after which it was eventually able to break free and assimilate their weapons. This explains how Prime's weaknesses resembles those of the Pirate Troopers, but not how Metroid Prime was able to get inside of the "impenetrable" Impact Crater without the Cipher. The PAL version removed these Pirate Log entries to avoid further confusion, and they remained in Trilogy.
The Trilogy artbook explains that Prime was born after a Metroid absorbed large amounts of Phazon energy from the Phazon Core. The Metroid was corrupted and became the Guardian of the Leviathan Seed that struck Tallon IV 50 years before the events of the game. However, it is unknown how a Metroid got inside the Impact Crater before Samus released the Cipher.
The husks of a creature similar to Metroid Prime can be found in the Genesis Chamber on Phaaze in Metroid Prime 3.