A beefed-up remake of the original Metroid with extra levels, items, and bosses. Count me in.
Gameplay: Very similar to Super Metroid (SNES). Finding items, shooting alien creatures, exploring the map, rolling in to a ball through pipes and secret tunnels, blowing things up, flipping around, wall hanging, super sprinting, and super blasting through walls... The list goes on and on. This is what Metroid has always been about and Metroid Zero Mission does not fail to impress.
Graphics: I always love when they remake old Nintendo games with 16+ bit graphics. This game looks a lot like Super Metroid and the graphics are as good as you could hope for, period. The environments are varied, little creatures crawl up and down your suit, it rains on the surface of Crateria... The little things all add up to simply first rate graphics. Furthermore, this version of Metroid has multiple cut scenes with cool, bold, cartoony, anime-style graphics. They are brief but add a very nice touch to this remake.
Audio: Perfect, creepy Metroid music and very cool sound effects. The audio in Metroid Zero Mission is absolutely perfect.
Controls: Spot-on, tight, responsive controls. Exactly what you'd expect from a Nintendo trade marked game such as Metroid.
Difficulty: Long story short - the most difficult part of the game is finding the secrets and successfully navigating the map. The map can be confusing (as is expected from a futuristic alien world) and you will get lost from time to time. You will most likely need a good map or a walkthrough unless you're a very experienced Metroid gamer. The actual combat is not hard, nor were the boss battles. I DESTROYED Meta Ripley on my 2nd try, beat Kraid on the 3rd try, and Mother Brain on the 4th try...
Pros: Original Metroid story, expanded upon, with cut scenes and additional levels, items, and bosses! Excellent graphics, beautiful audio, tight controls. This is a big world that will keep you playing for a long time. And with multiple "endings" you will want to play it more than once. This game is nothing but pros.
Cons: The only frustration for me was getting lost sometimes but that is just the world of Metroid at it's best I suppose. You may have to spend some time studying maps and/or reading where to go.
Overall: I loved every minute of Metroid Zero Mission. Even getting lost sometimes made it that much more awesome to win. It's just as good as Super Metroid, and very interesting to go back in time with the expanded version. Get it, get it, get it.