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An archive of printed guides for Super Metroid.
Super Metroid Player's Guide (1994, Nintendo)
The Nintendo Player's Guides provide the most thorough disassembly of the games they cover, and the 120-page Super Metroid volume is no exception. Complete walkthrough and in-depth looks at every little detail of the game. Also has a "shortcut" method of beating the game for the best time. An excellent book to have in your collection, although stay away from ANY of these guides if you're trying to do it yourself, because they do give away EVERYTHING.
Download here. (PDF, 33MB) Guidebook scans from Underground Gamer.
Super Metroid Unauthorized Game Secrets (1994, Prima)
A black and white guidebook that's got pretty good info in it, around 160 pages with an 8-page color insert. Not bad, but not the greatest.
Nintendo Power, Volume 59, April 1994. Pages 35-39.
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To add excitement for the up and coming Super Metroid, Nintendo Power had this 5-page preview. It showcased Samus's new moves, and the new areas she would be exploring on the more graphically-improved Zebes. It may be worth noting that what we now know as the Shinespark was called the "Speed Booster Blast," because Nintendo had not given it an official name yet. Magazine scans from Underground Gamer.
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Nintendo Power, Volume 60, May 1994. Pages 8-19.
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A really nicely laid-out examination of Crateria, Brinstar, and Norfair. Doesn't reveal too many secrets, but gets you up to the battle with the Norfair mini-boss, Crocomire. Of course, it's not as in-depth as the Super Metroid Player's Guide, but still a fair-sized magazine piece at 12 pages. It also contains a review of the game. Magazine scans from Underground Gamer.
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Nintendo Power, Volume 95, April 1997.
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Contains a complete "time trial" walkthrough of Super Metroid which, when completed quickly and successfully, earns you the best ending. Printed in April 1997 to coincide with the release of the "Player's Choice" edition of Super Metroid. Magazine scans from Underground Gamer.
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Game Players, Volume 7, Number 5, May 1994.
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Holy Ice Beams, Batman! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this little beauty in a used game store. This is an OLD, obscure magazine that has a feature of Super Metroid in it! While most old videogame magazines have little important information in them to the contemporary gamer, this has a LOT of historical information about the most beloved Metroid game ever made! In the interview with Yoshio Sakamoto, Super Metroid's director, we learn that it took six months to get approval for the game and another two years of actual programming and development! The Super Metroid team consisted of 15 people - we also find out that many of them were in their late 20s or early 30s (Minako Hamano was the exception, aged 24 at the time) and all of the team had considerable experience working on either earlier Metroid games or games directed by Gumpei Yokoi (Minako Hamano's claim to fame was working as a composer on Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening). It is thus not surprising that such a small, experienced team with a longer schedule was able to create such a masterpiece. Also, there is an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto - apparently, Pac-Man was still his favorite non-Nintendo game WAY back in 1994 - and yet reporters continue to ask him this question today. Videogame journalism sure doesn't have much of a memory...
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Super Play, Volume 19, May 1994.
Another blast from the past, this time from the UK magazine, Super Play. This is a two-page preview of what's coming out from Japan. Apparently, the kid in the pictures won a contest to be one of the rare few to take a look inside Nintendo's R&D department. Not only was he greeted by our man Gumpei Yokoi, but he also got to meet Shiggy (back when his hair wasn't all gray). Mr. Miyamoto and Mr. Yokoi certainly look happy in these pictures! What is most significant about this article though is it has a description of Mr. Miyamoto playing Super Metroid - and being very excited about it! Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
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Super Play, Volume 20, June 1994.
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Here's another amazing Super Metroid article from next month's issue of Super Play. In it, we find some excellent anime-style Samus artwork (apparently, Super Play had a resident artist who drew everything anime-style) along with a nice feature. Apparently, the editors weren't as amazed by the game as those in the States - they gave the game a 92%! Admittedly, they liked it better than Mega Man X, their previously favorite title. Lastly, we have a lovely ad of Samus after she's just kicked some serious alien parasites - she wants you to buy Super Play. How can you resist a face like that? Look a her helmet, and you can see the amazing cable connections they have in the future :P Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
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Super Metroid GamePro Pro Strategy Guide (GamePro, Volume 60, July 1994. Pages 81-96)
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Part one of a recently discovered 16-page guidebook from a back issue of GamePro. It's a pretty barebones walkthrough of the game with overviews of basic skills, items, and enemies along with a 'key point' guide that is unfortunately organized by location rather than numerical order. They also lack proper names for many items and enemies. Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
Super Metroid GamePro Pro Strategy Guide (GamePro, Volume 61, August 1994. Pages 124-126)
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Part two of GamePro's walkthrough. Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
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EGM Super Metroid Coverage (EGM, Volumes 56, 59)
EGM was a really poor magazine (and I suppose still is). Game coverage is scant at best and roughly 50% of the rag is ads. The short, low-info articles are full of errors. It's almost enough to make you sad for anyone who bought this magazine. Here are some rather meager offerings from one volume. Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
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Super Metroid Previews (EGM, GamePro, Nintendo Power)
Here are a collection of previews for Super Metroid, particularly announcements from CES. Included is a short blurb with an image of the legendary Dan Owsen (hey, I thought he was taller!). Discovered through Retro Mags via Underground Gamer.
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Super Metroid in Europe (Nintendo Megasinet, Nintendo Player)
The MDb is always looking for rare and obscure Metroid information, and some of that includes foreign coverage. Here is coverage from France and the rest of Europe. We currently don't have scans from inside Nintendo Player. Scans from Underground Gamer and Abandonware Magazines.
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Retro Gamer Magazine, Issue 65. July 2009. Pages 26-33, 58-63.
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Retro Gamer Magazine, a UK-based gaming mag focusing only on retro games of years past, featured Super Metroid as their cover story for issue 65. The shiny metallic red cover is a great collector's item for any Metroid enthusiast. The issue sports an excellent, exclusive interview with Metroid Director, Yoshio Sakamoto, as well as touches on Samus's past, present and future.
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Super Metroid Guide, May 1994. Pages 86-95.
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The Super Metroid Strategy Guide, only released in Japan, not only features a great strategy on how to survive the depths of Zebes, it features an incredible interview with the development team and a fortune teller who reads Samus's nightmares. Scans provided graciously by VGMStudios.
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