We’re steadily approaching the 7-year anniversary of the Metroid Prime 4 announcement, but we’ve yet to receive any more information about the title. Is it even coming out? Read on to look through our theories for when it might come out!
When Will Metroid Prime 4 Release?
Most Likely Around Late 2024 To 2025
The most solid assumption we can make is that Metroid Prime 4 would be the main launch title of the eventual Nintendo Switch 2, which could come out by the tail-end of 2024, or around 2025. There have been constant rumors of a Switch 2 in development for years, with most being leading utterly nowhere. However, recent gossip all over the grapevine have been spreading with supposed evidence of the upcoming new console, with even Bloomberg journalist Takashi Mochizuki reporting that a Switch 2 has been in production and might see a launch later in this 2024 holiday season.
Similar to the long and mysterious stubborn silence from Nintendo regarding the Switch 2 throughout the years, Metroid Prime 4 itself also has been silent alongside it. In the background, both have been slowly making strides in development and are most likely to come out around the same time. The original Nintendo Switch came into store shelves back in 2017. What else was announced in 2017? Metroid Prime 4. It will be 7 years since both have had a proper reveal, so it would only make sense that they would be accompanied by each other upon release.
Though Metroid Prime 4 hasn’t been ENTIRELY silent, when, back in 2019, it was announced that development for the game was restarting.
Metroid Prime 4’s Development and Rumors
Five years ago on January 25, 2019, a development update was uploaded to official Nintendo channels. Shinya Takahashi, the Senior Managing Executive Officer from Nintendo, explained to viewers that the progress they have had since its reveal in 2017 has "has not reached the standards we seek in a sequel to the Metroid Prime series." He states that the company always wants to make the highest quality games, and that they strive to challenge the development team in order to produce great innovative ideas and games.
"From this perspective, we have determined that the current development status of the game is very challenged, and we had to make a difficult decision as a development team. We have decided to reexamine the development itself and change it." With it, they are completely restarting development for the game from the ground up.
This came as a shock to fans everywhere, as the highly anticipated title flew away further into the future away from their grasp. However Takahashi reassures everyone that when Metroid Prime 4 arrives, it will uphold the highest standard of quality game fit for the Metroid Prime series "that will meet our fans expectations." They have enlisted the help of Retro Studios, the studio that developed the original Metroid Prime series.
- [1] Image taken from RetroDodo’s article, where they credit SuperMetalDave64 and the full name of the LinkedIn user
Once again, it has been five years since the staggering news, and yet nothing official about the game has come out as Nintendo continues to be as tight-lipped as ever. However, though we might never catch Nintendo slipping up about anything anytime soon, Retro Studios might not be as fortified. As reported by RetroDodo, a game tester had recently listed Metroid Prime 4 and Retro Studios on their LinkedIn, implying that they are currently employed to QA test the project in development. QA, or Quality Assurance, is a subset of developers that help test programs by running test cases to "assure" that the resulting products are of good "quality."
Test phases do NOT confirm that development for the game is in its final stages, as they could be done throughout the entire lifecycle of development. However, seeing as it has been over five years since the project was restarted, and the LinkedIn profile’s listed tenure is nearly over a year starting from March 2023 until present, there is a great chance that Metroid Prime 4 is in AT LEAST the latter half of its production. If we were to be more optimistic, it could very well be in its latter quarter.
Sources:
Bloomberg | Nintendo’s Next Switch Coming This Year With LCD, Omdia Says
[1] RetroDodo | Metroid Prime 4 Reveal Hopes Lifted By LinkedIn Developer’s Interesting Resume
