In the fall of 2004, those that were lucky enough to find the new Nintendo DS were also given the opportunity to demo Metroid Prime: Hunters. Although the game was still in development at the time, players were able to experience just how the DS's new touchscreen functionality could bring the first person shooter genre to a portable format. In addition, the demo also offered players multiplayer deathmatches, which utilised the wireless capabilities to hookup with other nearby Metroid players. Well, fast forward nearly a year and a half and the full version of Hunters has finally released for the masses to consume.

In the single player portion of Hunters, you lead Samus through obtaining eight Octoliths which, per a message sent throughout the galaxy, are the key to unlocking the ultimate power. This leads you on a journey across four different planets and outposts, in the hope of being the first to collect the crystals. When I say first, I mean that since this message went out to the entire galaxy, other bounty hunters are also hot on your trail and attempt to impede your progress every step of the way.

The first thing that should jump out at you about Hunters is the unique control setup. Initially in the First Hunt demo that was packaged with the DS, players had five different options to set up their control scheme to best fit with their playing style. In this final version of Hunters, Nintendo strips out the touch-shoot mode, leaving only the touchscreen or buttons to aim. You can decide to switch each view between left or right hands, so in actuality you have four options. Some may find that using the buttons to look around doesn't provide the accuracy of level needed, and using the touchscreen as sort of a mouse look makes the system hard to hold. After I found a position to hold the DS so that my hands didn't feel awkward, I personally loved using the stylus and feel that it makes normal console FPS titles pale in comparison to just how much control and accuracy I could obtain from this simple interface. Except for an occasional errant touch that would change my weapon or shift me into ball form, the touchscreen's input puts it right up there, or even slightly above the accuracy obtained by using a mouse on PC first person shooter titles.

Fans of the Metroid Prime series for the Gamecube should pick up on a major difference shortly after completing the first section; the game is setup for more of a level by level approach, rather than the openness and discovery players experience in either of the Gamecube iterations. So, instead of a vast world to explore, with many paths and choices as to where to go and what to complete next, players will find themselves more often than not forced into situations where there is really only one path to take. Once you begin retrieving the customary special items that allow you to open new doors, you'll have a choice to go back to any of the planets and find that area's second Octolith, but in the end the gameplay does come off as being a bit linear.

During each level, you're tasked with finding three objects that, when collected, open a portal to a showdown with that level's boss. One would think that finding each of the three objects would be a challenge in itself, however, each one is usually right along your path and the hardest part is killing all of the nearby enemies or scanning the correct objects to remove the barrier blocking you from obtaining the object. Once you've unlocked and used the portal, you'll have to confront that level's security system boss that guards the Octolith. Unlike the boss fights from previous Prime titles, these are all very structured and offer little challenge. The main disappointment with these fights is that you'll face the same two boss types four times each. Sure, their difficulty slightly increases each time, with the addition of new weapons or restrictions as to what weaponry they're susceptible to, but in the end you use the same method to defeat each boss type.

Within each of the levels you'll also have to occasionally confront one or more of the other hunters out to find the Octoliths as well. For some reason I had thought that more focus would be placed on these battles than any others, because if you lose to a hunter, you actually give up one of the Octoliths that you've collected and will need to find that hunter again in one of the four areas to retrieve it. Once you collect more than one energy tank though, the battles with the hunters become more of a waste of time, because although they do have unique weapons and combat strategies, they'll eventually fall to your hail of cannon rounds after a minute or two, with minimal energy loss on your part.

Once you've collected all eight of the Octoliths, you then unlock the final boss fight which, again, is lacklustre at best. You do need to employ new strategies to defeat it, yet the artificial intelligence of this 'most dangerous being in the galaxy' allows you to simply stand as far away from it as possible, hitting the fire button repeatedly without having to move until a third of its life is gone. For a game that takes a little over six hours to complete, I expected a bit more from a final boss fight.

Fans will also notice that many of Samus's abilities have been toned down from other Prime titles. She still has the ability to jump, charge her plasma cannon, shoot missiles and transform into ball form to fit through tight areas, while laying down bombs to destroy targets or hop to a higher level, but many of the cooler additions to the gameplay like the grappling hook or double jump are nowhere to be seen. The weapon enhancements that you do find on your journey simply amplify the damage you deal if you're able to match up the correct weapon to the enemy you're fighting, such as using an ice beam against fire enemies. The real benefit of these weapons, namely their side effects, is shown only when using them within multiplayer mode.

When you really think about it though, that seems to be the real focus of Metroid Prime: Hunters. While the single player mode is fun, its real purpose is to simply unlock new selectable hunters for multiplayer. If you first try jumping into the multiplayer before trying any of the solo play, Samus is the only selectable character. While this may be enough for some people, each new encounter with a hunter in the single player game makes that hunter available for you to choose in wireless play. Each hunter has the standard plasma cannon, missiles and can use any of the weapon enhancements scattered around the map. However, their real differences come from their alternate forms. While Samus can shift into a ball and lay bombs, other characters' alternate forms can climb walls, have more powerful weaponry, or can even navigate on just their torso while the legs turn into a stationary turret. This makes selecting the proper hunter key in developing a strategy to best players from all over the world.

Yes, that's right. Hunters is just the latest title in a growing list of those compatible with Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connect service. Not only does the game allow for single and multi-cart wireless play, but if you have access to a wireless Internet connection you can hook up with players from all over the globe. In addition, you can also hit up the Metroid Prime: Hunters section of NintendoWiFi.com to compare your stats against those of other players, along with seeing which hunters, weapons and modes are most popular. Hunters does feature several unique modes of play, from straight-up deathmatches to survival and capture the flag. The only downside to these additional options is that they can only be played against friends and rivals, so if you don't know anyone that has the game, or are just looking for a few strangers to beat on, be prepared to simply play deathmatch after deathmatch.

Another downside to the multiplayer game is that the arenas themselves are a little small and usually very open. While this does make sense considering that there is an upper limit of four people to a match, this makes for very quick games and leaves very few spaces to hide out and plan your next attack, or find the perfect sniping position. New multiplayer levels can be unlocked by playing a number of local wireless games. Also, by selecting the multi-cartridge game option you are given the choice to add bots to the action. Not only do these practice matches count towards unlocking new maps, but they can be used to familiarise yourself with each character and map, as well as developing your overall strategy for real matches.

As a whole, the graphics and sounds are standard for a Metroid Prime title. Of course, you're not going to get the level of detail that the Gamecube can output, but overall the 3D environments are rendered very nicely and the music and sound effects help to make this a truly authentic experience. Occasionally I did notice a few drops in frame rate, especially when multiple, very active critters were jumping around on the screen and firing in my direction. For the most part though, this only occurs sporadically in the later parts of the game when you have to fight off multiple hunters of guardian drones.

Make no mistake about it, Metroid Prime: Hunters is one of the best titles currently on the market for the DS. It does have its issues, but this is an excellent portable first person shooter. Not only does the DS once again innovate the whole industry by allowing players to utilise the touchscreen as a pseudo-mouse control mode, but the inclusion of online multiplayer extends this game well past the single player mode. Those looking at purchasing this game for the single player won't be disappointed either, as there are additional endings depending on how much of the game you're able to complete. In the end, what Nintendo has really done with this game is set the bar extremely high for any future portable FPS title that even wants to be considered above average.

Reviewed by Zach Lark for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).