VIDEO GAMES CSP: METROID PRIME 2

Language

Cover Analysis

How does the cover communicate the genre of the game?

• The fantastical technology, 80s colour scheme and aliens are all conventions of the sci-fi genre. 

What does the cover suggest regarding gameplay and audience pleasures?

• The screengrabs suggest a heads-up display and aspects of cathartic violence through the weaponry. Audience pleasures include competence, autonomy, diversion and personal relationships with the Metroid franchise. 

Does the cover sexualise the character of Samus Aran? Why/why not?

• The cover doesn't sexualise Samus Aran as the costume leaves her gender ambiguous with a classic cyborg costume, no discernible features and contrasting gender imagery such as the phallic symbol of the guns with the hourglass figure of the costume adding to the ambiguity of her gender and allowing her to escape over sexualisation.

Trailer analysis

What do you notice about genre?

• The setting of a space shuttle is extremely conventional to a sci-fi action adventure game as well as the sound effects and SFX being reminiscent of 80s movies such as Alien. The neon colour scheme and hyperrealism also adds to the dystopian feel of the narrative and provides an aura of heroism to Samus Aran. 

How is the character introduced? Is Samus Aran obviously female?

• Her hourglass figure, sashayed walking and obviously feminine proportions do accentuate her gender- however the robotic costume and lack of discernible facial features allow her gender to be put on the back burner during game play.

How can we apply Steve Neale’s genre theory that discusses “repetition and difference”?

• The Metroid 2 trailer utilises many sci-fi conventions such as high contrast colour schemes and extraterrestrial organisms to communicate its genre, referencing 80s classics such as Star Wars. In relation with Neale's theory of 'repetition and difference' this seemingly conventional text is diversified through the titular hero, Samus Aran's ambiguous identity. They subvert classic hypermasculine, militant stereotypes conventional to action/adventure movies by having her be ambiguous and feminine. Due to it's 2004 release, this would appeal to audiences as traditionally male lead media genres began to be fronted by powerful women and heroines such as Scream in 1999 and Lara Croft a few years earlier in 1997. 

Gameplay analysis

What does the gameplay for Metroid Prime 2: Echoes involve?

• Sound effects, advanced technology and illuminated text, portals and changing setting. Helmet scanners and extraterrestrial aliens as well as first person combat. 

Write an analysis of the media language choices in the construction of the game.

• The game has a first person perspective, as you navigate the game as if you're inside Samus Aran's helmet. There's wide shots during cutaway scenes and tracking shots during action scenes however majority of the game play is in long shot form or close ups. It has a cinematic style with intertextual references to games such as Sonic. 

Analyse the clips for audience pleasures

• Metroid offers competence, autonomy and visceral pleasures in alliance with Rigby's theory. In relation to Blumler and Katz, Metroid has explicit gratifications from diversion and personal relationships as well as nostalgic capital from fans of the franchise. 

Audience

Who might the target audience be for Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, based on your research? Discuss demographics and psychographics.

• Males aged 12-25 who enjoy technology and sci-fi films and media texts. Usually mainstreamers as well as those who indulge in fandom culture and particularly those who would've been teenagers when the original Metroid was released would be interested in this new release. 

How has Nintendo’s audience changed since the original Metroid game in 1986?

• Nintendo's audience is growing in age- with many adults bring the intended audience due to the nostalgic factor of the brand. 

What audience pleasures are offered by Metroid Prime 2: Echoes or the wider Metroid franchise?

• Competence, Autonomy, Nostalgia, Masochistic pleasures through violence, visceral pleasure as well as diversion and personal relationships. 

What effects might Metroid have on audiences?

• In relation to Gerbner's cultivation theory, the idea that prolonged consumption of media texts can influence beliefs and behaviours, the original ending where Samus Aran was revealed as a woman in various states of undress which reinforces the social concept of women as prizes. This could influence men to have a sense of entitlement when it comes to women in their lives- a 'nice guy' complex reinforced by the idea that if they are a good person they deserve to 'get the girl' 

Gamesparks feature on gaming demographics 

Who is considered to be the stereotypical gamer?

• People who play video games are conventionally 'Adolescent boys' 

What has changed this?

• The rise of the digital age, means that smartphone games have hit the market and the stereotypical gamer demographic has changed significantly. 

What role do women play in the videogames market? 

• More women own consoles than men - 42% to 37% however this could be a domestic console and therefore doesn't accurately reflect the proportion of male to female gamers. 

Why are older gamers becoming a particularly important market for videogames producers? How can you link this to the Metroid franchise?

• Older gamers were the originally intended audience for these games, allowing them to be consistently marketed towards them as gaming habits rarely change as people grow older particularly if they're fans of the original release- this is true for franchises such as Metroid as they grow up as the game evolves and can enjoy seeing the growth and development whilst still obtaining that feeling of personal relationships. 

What does the article suggest regarding audience pleasures and expectations for different generations of gamer?

• The article suggests that younger generations are more competitive whilst almost all generations seem to enjoy strategy when it comes to gameplay, and the difference of narratives as the older someone is the less time they generally have meaning easy to follow narratives and strategic gameplay are favoured. 

Industries

Destructoid blog on the Metroid franchise

Why has Metroid never quite fitted with the Nintendo brand?

• Metroid is a First Person, Sci-FI game which is different to Nintendo's usual fantasy games with quite select niche audiences 

What franchises have overtaken Metroid in the sci-fi hyper-realism genre in recent years?

• 'Halo', 'Overwatch' and 'Mass Effect' have overtaken Metroid in the sci-fi realism genre in recent years. 

Why does the writer link old boy bands from the music industry to the Metroid franchise? Do you agree with this reading of the brand?

• Although they both don't release new content, they can still make a profit through the appeal to older generations. I agree as creative content from both the Metroid franchise and boy bands has been exhausted and yet the original charm of the releases still holds an appeal to an audience. 

What is an ‘AAA’ or ‘triple-A game’ in the videogames industry?

• It is an 'Informal Classification' for a game made by a major publisher- similar to the film industry term 'Blockbuster' 

Do you think there will be further Metroid games featuring Samus Aran? Should there be?

• I feel as if the franchise has been exhausted however the need for strong female leads in video games is apparent in recent years and would perhaps be a smart investment for Nintendo within the next decade. Samus Aran has seen a stark evolution, and perhaps games that suit the hyperrealistic aesthetic of recent years would allow her character to prosper and thrive whilst the reemergence of the appeal of retro games suggests that they should cap production and focus on redistributing older games. 

Representation

BBC3 feature on Samus Aran 

What was notable about the original Metroid game in 1986?

• Metroid [1986] offered gamers the reveal of Samus Aran being a woman if they completed the game in a certain amount of time. 

What were the inspirations behind the gameplay and construction of Metroid?

• Metroid took aspects from 'Mario' and 'Zelda' as well as genre defining movie 'Alien' seen through the female lead and sci-fi elements

Why are the endings to the original Metroid considered controversial?

• The original Metroid endings are seen as controversial due to their reinforcement of the 'women as a reward' trope in which players were able to see Samus Aran in various states of undress decided by their overall competence within the game. 

What reaction do you think the reveal of Samus Aran in a bikini would have got when the game was first released in 1986? Have attitudes towards women changed?

• I think that the reveal would've been positive with tv shows like 'Gladiator' and musical artists such as 'Abba' popularising the latex look- referenced by Samus Aran's original leotard. There was also a lot of power in sexuality within the 80s and the sexualisation of females was widely accepted however in recent years objectification has come under fire with theorists such as Jean Killbourne pointing out potential dangers of sexual objectification which is perhaps why it's so widely criticised as the ending reinforces male entitlement.  

How have later versions of the Metroid franchise sexualised the character of Samus Aran?

• Later versions of Metroid have adhered to classic sexualisation techniques such as an exaggerated hourglass figure however Samus Aran's main trait is not her gender but rather her role as a hero therefore although the way she performs some of her actions and her figure, the costume and the ambiguity of her features allows her to evade objectification to some degree. 

How can we apply Liesbet van Zoonen’s work to Samus Aran and Metroid?

• Van Zoonen's comment on how women are created to appear as 'submissive beings' is subverted by Metroid particularly when Aran's gender was ambiguous but even more so when her gender was revealed. Zoonens ideas about gender as a discourse is also important as the hypermasculine stereotypes originally implemented and the contrast of the sexualised female figure performing these actions suggests that gender is negotiated. 

What did Brianna Wu suggest regarding the character of Samus Aran?

• Brianna Wu suggests that Samus Aran may be Transgender. 

Do you see Samus Aran as a feminist icon or simply another exploited female character?

• I think Samus Aran is a feminist icon- she managed to be a strong, heroic character as well as also being effortlessly feminine and the idea that you cannot be pretty and strong has heavy misogynistic undertones with the 'all or nothing' narrative carrying a huge weight on whether females should be allowed equal successes due to this I believe that Aran, despite the obvious objectification, is a feminist icon. 

Houston Press feature on Samus Aran and entitled male gamers

What does Anita Sarkeesian suggest regarding Samus Aran?

• Anita Sarkeesian suggests that whilst the original reveal doesn't 'diminish Samus' character' it does impact the games reputation due to their utilisation of sexist conventions. 

Why does Brianna Wu (and others) suggest Samus Aran may be transgender?

• Wu and others suggest that due to the original appearance being '6'3 and muscular' transforming into a far more feminine aesthetic could be evidence of the character being transgender. 

Why is Samus Aran useful for male gamers trying to argue videogames are not sexist?

• Samus Aran is a 'bad ass' heroine who doesn't need to sacrifice anything for her successes and that's something that male gamers can hold up and generalise about the community whilst ignoring the clearly sexist depictions of women in mainstream games. 

Why are Lara Croft, Zelda and Peach not ideal examples to argue for female equality in videogames?

• Lara Croft will continuously be reduced to her appearance whilst zZelda and Peach are conventional 'damsels in distress' 

What does the ‘SJW’ in ‘SJW-gender politics’ refer to?

• 'Social Justice warrior' - an individual who promotes contemporary gender politics, civil rights and multiculturalism as well as feminism. 

How can we apply Gerbner’s Cultivation theory to representations of women in videogames as discussed in the article? How might this lead to ‘entitled male gamers’? 

• Cultivation theory is relevant through the depictions of women as either objects for male voyeuristic pleasures or rewards for their heroic activities this could lead to internalised misogynistic beliefs upon women and more entitled behaviour from males who heavily consume videogames . 

Does the videogame industry have a problem with gender? Provide evidence for your argument.

• I think that the video game industry does have an issue with gender- it is easily to fall into sexist stereotypes and misogynistic tropes in order to comply with conventional male fantasy beliefs and the conventionally idealistic, hyper-realistic nature of video-games. Even in games aimed at children such as 'Super Mario' or 'Animal Crossing' the characters comply with many stereotypes or assigned gender roles. Whilst in mature games, the objectification and sexualisation of female characters for male voyeuristic pleasures or the 'reward sex' trope is utilised heavily and is arguably a gender injustice. I believe that the video game industry also struggles with presenting accurate and unblemished male characters with the hypermasculine ideologies perpetuated being a clear pioneer of toxic masculinity and adding to the gender imbalance within this media text.