Metroid Prime  Metroid Prime is an action-adventure game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the GameCube. "Metroid Prime" is the fifth main installment in the "Metroid" series, and the first "Metroid" game to use 3D computer graphics being played from the first-person perspective. Because exploration takes precedence over combat, Nintendo classifies the game as a first-person adventure rather than a first-person shooter. It was released in North America in November 2002, and in Japan and Europe the following year. On the same day as its North American release, Nintendo also released the Game Boy Advance game "Metroid Fusion", marking the return of the "Metroid" series after an eight-year hiatus following "Super Metroid" (1994). "Metroid Prime" is the first of the three-part "Prime" storyline, which takes place between the original "Metroid" and "". Like previous games in the series, "Metroid Prime" has a science fiction setting in which players control the bounty hunter Samus Aran. The story follows Samus as she battles the Space Pirates and their biological experiments on the planet Tallon IV. The game was a collaboration between Retro's staff in Austin, Texas, and Japanese Nintendo employees, including producer Shigeru Miyamoto, who suggested the project after visiting Retro's headquarters in 2000. The game garnered critical praise and commercial success, selling more than a million units in North America alone. It won a number of Game of the Year awards, and it is considered by many critics and gamers to be one of the greatest video games ever made, remaining one of the highest-rated games on Metacritic. In 2009, an enhanced version was released for the Wii as a standalone game in Japan, and as part of the "Metroid Prime Trilogy" compilation internationally. "Metroid Prime" is a 3D action-adventure game in which players control series protagonist Samus Aran from a first-person perspective, unlike previous games of the "Metroid" series, with third-person elements used for Morph Ball mode. The gameplay involves solving puzzles to reveal secrets, platform jumping, and shooting foes with the help of a "lock-on" mechanism that allows circle strafing while staying aimed at the enemy. Samus must travel through the world of Tallon IV searching for twelve Chozo Artifacts that will open the path to the Phazon meteor impact crater, while collecting power-ups that let her reach new areas. The Varia Suit, for example, protects Samus' armor against high temperatures, allowing her to enter volcanic regions.