Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is no longer a preview: Nintendo released it for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 on December 4, 2025. Its scanning, upgrades, puzzles, and newly acquired psychic abilities make the “Metroidvania” comparison understandable, even though Nintendo describes it as an adventure built around exploration, combat, and Samus’s equipment rather than using that genre label. Here’s how the released game’s structure fits the comparison—and what changes between its two editions.
Why the Metroidvania label fits—and where it needs qualification
The comparison comes from how progress works. Samus scans her surroundings for clues, uses familiar equipment such as beams, missiles, and the Morph Ball, and gains psychic abilities that let her manipulate objects and mechanisms. New tools open additional routes, so exploration and ability-gated access are central to the adventure.
Nintendo’s description puts it this way: “In the Metroid Prime™ 4: Beyond game, you’ll need to scan your surroundings for clues, make the most of your equipment and weapons, and use Samus’s newfound psychic abilities to manipulate her surroundings.” The statement is from Nintendo’s official game overview.
That makes “Metroidvania” a useful description of some of the game’s progression, not an official genre designation established by Nintendo. It is more precise to call it a first-person adventure or action-adventure with exploration and ability-gated progression.
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- Nintendo Switch 2 features Aim with a Joy-Con 2 controller as a mouse Experience enhanced resolution, framerate, and load times in the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of the game
- Explore a mysterious planet to find your way home Deadly sharpshooter Sylux has finally caught up with renowned bounty hunter Samus Aran! After an unexpected accident in the wake of their clash, Samus finds herself transported to Viewros—a mysterious planet once inhabited by an ancient race. Now she must explore this planet, all while battling the strange creatures that inhabit it, to find her way home.
- Scan your surroundings for clues, make the most of your equipment and weapons, and use Samus’s newfound psychic abilities—and her technologically advanced bike, the Vi-O-La—to traverse and explore the environment. Operate mechanisms, control your charge beam, and more—you’ll need every tool at your disposal to survive and escape Viewros!
- Play with mouse controls, enhanced visuals, and two different display modes—only on the Nintendo Switch 2 system Aim with a Joy-Con 2 controller as a mouse! The Metroid Prime 4: Beyond – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition game also features enhanced resolution, framerate, and load times.
- Two display modes let you choose how to experience the adventure. Enjoy more detail in Quality Mode, which runs at 60 frames per second in 4k while docked and in 1080p while in handheld, or prioritize super-smooth action with a higher frame rate in Performance Mode, which runs at 120 frames per second in 1080p while docked and 720p in while in handheld. Both choices are HDR compatible.
How scanning and psychic abilities shape exploration
Scanning turns the environment into a source of clues
The Scan Visor helps Samus examine her surroundings for information that can guide exploration. Nintendo UK says scanning statues and ruins provides progression clues; learning about the Lamorn, Viewros’s ancient alien people, also unlocks more psychic abilities. That ties discovery to both understanding the world and gaining ways to interact with it (Nintendo UK’s game overview).
Psychic powers add new ways to interact with the world
The Control Beam lets Samus influence a projectile’s trajectory, while the Psychic Glove manipulates energy and activates mechanisms, according to Nintendo’s overview. These are not just additions to her combat kit: the abilities also provide ways to solve puzzles and reach areas that were inaccessible before.
Rank #2
![Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Nintendo Switch 2 Edition - Nintendo Switch 2 [Digital Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/415BEE24o-L._SL160_.jpg)
- 1. Explore the mysterious planet Viewros as the renowned bounty hunter Samus Aran
- 2. Scan your surroundings for clues and make the most of your equipment and weapons to survive
- 3. Use Samus’s newfound psychic abilities—and her technologically advanced bike, the Vi-O-La—to traverse and explore the environment.
- 4. Aim with a Joy-Con 2 controller as a mouse
- 5. Experience enhanced resolution, framerate, and load times in the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of the game
Viewros connects its zones through Sol Valley
Viewros is made up of distinct zones connected by Sol Valley, a vast desert Samus crosses on the Vi-O-La vehicle. Nintendo says Vi-O-La can boost through objects and enemies, counterattack, and break rocks to collect ore. The setup gives travel a different rhythm from exploring individual areas on foot.
Some Galactic Federation troops are also present. Their distress signals can lead to assistance and occasional cooperative battles, adding encounters with allies to Samus’s exploration.
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Rank #3
- Two display modes let you choose how to experience the adventure.
- Enjoy more detail in Quality Mode, which runs at 60 frames per second in 4k while docked and in 1080p while in handheld, or prioritize super-smooth action with a higher frame rate in Performance Mode, which runs at 120 frames per second in 1080p while docked and 720p in while in handheld. Both choices are HDR compatible.
That connected layout is relevant to the genre comparison, but the scale of travel may be a matter of taste. Tom’s Guide’s post-launch review found the dungeons more intricate than the overworld and said returning across Sol Valley to Base Camp for upgrades could interrupt a dungeon’s momentum. Those are the reviewer’s impressions, not a universal account of how the pacing feels.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the Switch and Switch 2 editions offer
The game launched on both Nintendo Switch generations on December 4, 2025. Nintendo’s US overview lists these regular prices; they are observed US list prices, not a guarantee of what a retailer currently charges:
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| Option | Nintendo US listed price | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Metroid Prime 4: Beyond for Nintendo Switch | $59.99 | The original Switch version. |
| Switch 2 Edition | $69.99 | Nintendo says it improves resolution, framerate, and load times, and includes Quality and Performance modes. |
| Switch 2 Edition upgrade pack | $9.99 | An upgrade option listed by Nintendo for the Switch 2 Edition. |
Nintendo also says the Switch 2 Edition supports aiming with Joy-Con 2 as a mouse. Nintendo UK describes mouse control along with enhanced visuals and performance. These edition details and US prices are listed on Nintendo’s US product page; regional prices and live retailer offers may differ.
A Switch 2 Pro Controller is optional. Tom’s Guide’s reviewer preferred playing docked with one to appreciate the visuals, but Nintendo’s listed control options do not require it.
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Pre-release coverage is useful as a record of expectations, not a substitute for impressions of the finished game. In a November 14, 2025 roundup, Nintendo Life reported that outlets praised classic exploration and combat, art direction, performance, and psychic abilities, while some raised concerns about the opening’s tone and companion characters. Quoting Polygon’s preview, the roundup described a tonal divergence that still “plays the series’ greatest hits” (Nintendo Life’s preview roundup).
Those comments capture differing views during the final preview period. They should not be treated as a consensus about the finished release or as post-launch review findings.
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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
