Intelligent Systems is one of Nintendo’s most decorated studios, responsible for major franchises includingFire EmblemandPaper Mario. However, based on leaked information revealing a variety of details about past Nintendo projects, Intelligent Systems may very well have taken an entirely different direction. The leak reveals that Intelligent Systems may once have been actively working on aMetroidproject during Nintendo’s Wii era, though the project was obviously canceled or never went into full production.
Little information about the project was revealed as part of the leaks, unfortunately. The project was simply listed asMetroidwith no subtitle. Notes associated with the leak apparently say that the game would ultimately “release some time afterMetroid Prime,” which was re-released in Japan on the Wii in 2009. That obviously never happened, though what the plan was forMetroid, how far along its development was, and what led to its cancellation remain a mystery.
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It’s easy to look back at what Intelligent Systems was working on around the time, though. The studio was an active Wii supporter during its early years. Between 2006 and 2007, Intelligent Systems released bothFire Emblem: Radiant DawnandSuper Paper Mario, as well asWarioWare: Smooth Movesco-developed with Nintendo’s SPD Group 1. Intelligent Systems notably didn’t have another major Wii release, however, with five years passing before a newFire EmblemandPaper Mariolaunching on 3DS.
Suffice to say, Intelligent Systems could have worked on a newMetroidgame during this timeframe. It even makes sense that Intelligent Systems had more Wii projects in the works, especially after supporting the console so early. Perhaps Intelligent Systems tried to make aAAA 2D or 3DMetroid, struggled, and was ultimately shifted back to handheld game development.
Another notable detail about this window of time for Nintendo is that a newMetroidgame really was eventually released for Wii. That game wasMetroid: Other M, which launched in 2010, a year afterMetroid Primein Japan andMetroid Prime Trilogyworldwide. In other words, it’s possible thatMetroid: Other Mwas originally supposed to be Intelligent Systems' project. It’s also possible that these notes put down the wrong developer and it should say Team Ninja.
AMetroidfrom Intelligent Systems isn’t the only project included in the leak, however. It also talks about a Retro Studios action game starringSheik fromThe Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, aDynasty Warriors-type game aimed at North American audiences namedProject Hammer, and others. If only those initial plans forZeldaandMetroidhad worked out as planned, who knows what Retro and Intelligent Systems would be working on now.
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