Metroid Prime 4: Beyond opens upon a massive battle as Samus comes to the aid of Federation troops. The action-packed sci-fi spectacle wouldn't be out of place in a Halo game, signaling a very different take on the Metroid series. But while it accurately signals some degree of departure from traditional Metroid Prime games--particularly with a greater emphasis on interactions with Federation characters and combat--the vast majority of Prime 4 is a well-crafted sequel that delivers on what Prime does best. The result is a satisfying long-awaited return that is excellent at capturing the Prime fundamentals, but hit-or-miss when it experiments with new ideas.

The massive battle that serves as the opening tutorial is between the Federation and a loose assemblage of Space Pirates, under the leadership of Sylux--a rival of protagonist Samus Aran who has been seen before, but not featured so prominently. Sylux is controlling Metroids somehow, but for the moment, the Federation's main concern is securing an ancient artifact before it's taken by Sylux's forces. When things go extremely wrong in that mission, the artifact transports Samus to Viewros--a dying planet whose sentient beings, the Lamorn, passed away untold years ago. Samus quickly finds a Psychic Crystal that imbues her with the ability to interface with Lamorn technology. It becomes apparent that Samus isn't alone--Sylux appears to have been transported here too, along with pieces of Federation tech and personnel. You're all trapped on this dying rock together, unless you find a way out.