Earlier today, Nintendo pulled back the curtain on Paper Mario: The Origami King. At the end of the game’s trailer, Mario can be seen wearing a helmet made famous by Samus Aran, the star of Nintendo’s Metroid franchise. It was an unusual way to end the trailer, particularly since the trailer opened with another quite unusual moment! Naturally, seeing Mario wear Samus’ helmet sparked a lot of discussion among Metroid fans online, and many are wondering whether or not this is Nintendo’s subtle way of teasing some upcoming news. It’s impossible to say for sure, but it’s definitely given fans of the franchise something to hope for!
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Nintendo has already announced a Metroid game for Nintendo Switch; Metroid Prime 4 is currently in-development from Retro Studios. However, very little news about the game has been revealed, as of this writing. As such, Metroid fans have been starving for new content since the release of Metroid: Samus Returns on Nintendo 3DS back in 2017. While most fans know that it’s likely too early for any Metroid Prime 4 news, many have been hoping to see a Nintendo Switch port of Metroid Prime Trilogy. The compilation was released on Wii back in 2009, and a Switch port has been long-rumored.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that the gag at the end of the Paper Mario: The Origami King trailer was simply just a fun cameo in the game. It would not be the first time the Metroid franchise has been referenced by a Mario RPG. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars featured cameos by Link and Samus when it released on Super Nintendo back in 1996. That game was a bit of a predecessor to the Paper Mario franchise, so the Samus cameo could just be a fun throwback.
Regardless of what Nintendo’s intention was, the moment certainly has Metroid fans once again champing at the bit for more information from Nintendo. It will likely be some time before Nintendo announces anything new for the franchise, but if today’s surprise reveal for Paper Mario has confirmed anything, it’s that Nintendo is entirely capable of surprising its fans!
Do you think Nintendo was teasing new Metroid news in the Paper Mario trailer? Would you like to see Metroid Prime Trilogy on Nintendo Switch? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
