It often feels like Metroid fans are starved for new goodies these days; doubly so for fans of Retro Studios’ Prime series. Yet just over a month before the highly anticipated fourth mainline entry for Switch and Switch 2, you can get your hands on an absolutely stunning hardback art book from Piggyback covering the first three Metroid Prime games – plus a little extra for Prime Remastered.
Ripping the shrink wrap off the book, it’s immediately clear just how premium Metroid Prime 1-3: A Visual Retrospective really is. Clocking in at 212 pages, the minimal black fabric cover displays little more than an outline of Samus on the front, the main Metroid logo on the back, and the book’s title on the spine. These elements shine red when angled in the light and it looks very elegant in person.
My only concern with the cover is that it does pick up minor marks and smudges when handled for longer periods. They rub away easily enough, but it’s something to keep in mind.
Diving into the book itself, it starts off with a relatively short foreword from series producer Kensuke Tanabe going over his introduction to Retro Studios and how the team leveraged its talent to create such incredible games. Every title is then covered in release order with an introductory write-up from Retro Studios for each (though which specific individual, exactly, is undisclosed).
Peppered throughout are further remarks from Tanabe; short anecdotes on how he and Retro Studios worked together on specific mechanics and designs. A lot of it is pretty well-known, but there are definitely a few little tidbits that came as a surprise. Did you know that Prime Remastered almost had completely brand new cutscenes, for example? Well, now you do.
In addition to Tanabe’s writing, other breakout boxes essentially replicate text from the in-game Scan Visor logs, and as someone who knows the Prime games inside out, I felt somewhat disappointed that Nintendo and Piggyback went in this direction. These kinds of write-ups work fine in the game itself, but I don’t need to read about how Sheegoth has a vulnerable underbelly (wink-wink, use the Morph Ball Bomb) in an art book. Tell me about the design process!
This is a pretty glaring issue throughout the entire book. While I certainly appreciated Tanabe’s insights, I feel a lot more could have been provided by Retro Studios itself. What was the initial approach in creating Prime 2‘s Luminoth? Why go with this design instead of that one? What kind of challenges were overcome?
As I gazed in wonder at the incredible concept art, multiple questions arose in my mind about the development process involved; unfortunately, most simply went unanswered. It’s important to acknowledge that many devs who worked on the trilogy — including art director Todd Keller — are no longer at Retro, so I can understand why they weren’t directly involved.
As for the artwork itself, well, it’s outstanding. This is an extensive dive into the Metroid Prime Trilogy and showcases almost every major aspect of the games, including Samus’ suits, her ship, enemies, bosses, environments, and more.
It’s a lot, and it’s a real treat for fans of the series. I particularly enjoyed looking at some of the alternative designs for the Space Pirate enemies, which seemingly took on a more emaciated appearance compared to the final in-game models.
Naturally, without Metroid Prime: Hunters, Pinball, and Federation Force, you could argue that this isn’t quite as ‘complete’ as some would like. Indeed, one of the most obvious omissions is Sylux, the shadowy antagonist who really only appears properly in Hunters and Federation Force. Their ship, however, does crop up at the end of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, but even this isn’t present here. It’s an odd choice given the character’s prominent presence in the marketing for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond.
Speaking of Beyond, I had hoped that there might be a small nod to the upcoming sequel in the book, and while there are hints toward it in Tanabe’s notes (“Retro and our team at Nintendo will keep working together to the best of our ability to bring new stories for fans to enjoy!”), there are no visual references. This was perhaps a bit optimistic on my part, and my hope is that there might be another book in the future dedicated to the long, storied development of Prime 4.
Despite my concerns and disappointments, Metroid Prime 1-3: A Visual Retrospective is a lovely book that Prime fans will absolutely devour – I sure did. It’s the kind of visual feast you’ll want to just dive into again and again at a moment’s notice, so you can bet it will take pride a place on my coffee table for the foreseeable future.
Thanks to Nintendo of America and Piggyback for sending the sample used in this review. The book launches on 28th October 2025 for £39.99 / $49.99.
Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.
It often feels like Metroid fans are starved for new goodies these days; doubly so for fans of Retro Studios’ Prime series. Yet just over a month before the highly anticipated fourth mainline entry for Switch and Switch 2, you can get your hands on an absolutely stunning hardback art book from Piggyback covering the first three Metroid Prime games – plus a little extra for Prime Remastered.
Ripping the shrink wrap off the book, it’s immediately clear just how premium Metroid Prime 1-3: A Visual Retrospective really is. Clocking in at 212 pages, the minimal black fabric cover displays little more than an outline of Samus on the front, the main Metroid logo on the back, and the book’s title on the spine. These elements shine red when angled in the light and it looks very elegant in person.
My only concern with the cover is that it does pick up minor marks and smudges when handled for longer periods. They rub away easily enough, but it’s something to keep in mind.
Diving into the book itself, it starts off with a relatively short foreword from series producer Kensuke Tanabe going over his introduction to Retro Studios and how the team leveraged its talent to create such incredible games. Every title is then covered in release order with an introductory write-up from Retro Studios for each (though which specific individual, exactly, is undisclosed).
Peppered throughout are further remarks from Tanabe; short anecdotes on how he and Retro Studios worked together on specific mechanics and designs. A lot of it is pretty well-known, but there are definitely a few little tidbits that came as a surprise. Did you know that Prime Remastered almost had completely brand new cutscenes, for example? Well, now you do.
In addition to Tanabe’s writing, other breakout boxes essentially replicate text from the in-game Scan Visor logs, and as someone who knows the Prime games inside out, I felt somewhat disappointed that Nintendo and Piggyback went in this direction. These kinds of write-ups work fine in the game itself, but I don’t need to read about how Sheegoth has a vulnerable underbelly (wink-wink, use the Morph Ball Bomb) in an art book. Tell me about the design process!
This is a pretty glaring issue throughout the entire book. While I certainly appreciated Tanabe’s insights, I feel a lot more could have been provided by Retro Studios itself. What was the initial approach in creating Prime 2‘s Luminoth? Why go with this design instead of that one? What kind of challenges were overcome?
As I gazed in wonder at the incredible concept art, multiple questions arose in my mind about the development process involved; unfortunately, most simply went unanswered. It’s important to acknowledge that many devs who worked on the trilogy — including art director Todd Keller — are no longer at Retro, so I can understand why they weren’t directly involved.
As for the artwork itself, well, it’s outstanding. This is an extensive dive into the Metroid Prime Trilogy and showcases almost every major aspect of the games, including Samus’ suits, her ship, enemies, bosses, environments, and more.
It’s a lot, and it’s a real treat for fans of the series. I particularly enjoyed looking at some of the alternative designs for the Space Pirate enemies, which seemingly took on a more emaciated appearance compared to the final in-game models.
Naturally, without Metroid Prime: Hunters, Pinball, and Federation Force, you could argue that this isn’t quite as ‘complete’ as some would like. Indeed, one of the most obvious omissions is Sylux, the shadowy antagonist who really only appears properly in Hunters and Federation Force. Their ship, however, does crop up at the end of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, but even this isn’t present here. It’s an odd choice given the character’s prominent presence in the marketing for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond.
Speaking of Beyond, I had hoped that there might be a small nod to the upcoming sequel in the book, and while there are hints toward it in Tanabe’s notes (“Retro and our team at Nintendo will keep working together to the best of our ability to bring new stories for fans to enjoy!”), there are no visual references. This was perhaps a bit optimistic on my part, and my hope is that there might be another book in the future dedicated to the long, storied development of Prime 4.
Despite my concerns and disappointments, Metroid Prime 1-3: A Visual Retrospective is a lovely book that Prime fans will absolutely devour – I sure did. It’s the kind of visual feast you’ll want to just dive into again and again at a moment’s notice, so you can bet it will take pride a place on my coffee table for the foreseeable future.
Thanks to Nintendo of America and Piggyback for sending the sample used in this review. The book launches on 28th October 2025 for £39.99 / $49.99.
Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.
