Meta Ridley

:This article is about Ridley's cybernetic form in the Metroid Prime series. For other similar forms, see Ridley (Disambiguation).
Meta Ridley is a form of Ridley, reborn and cybernetically enhanced through Space Pirate technology. He is fought by Samus Aran in this form twice within the Metroid Prime series.
==Biography==
===Rebirth===
After Ridley's defeat in the depths of Norfair, the Space Pirate camp on Zebes presumably recovered his remains. By order of High Command, Ridley was "resuscitated" by conversion into a cyborg, including the implantation of armor plating and cybernetic weapon systems. The process was extremely painful, but early Pirate tests showed an increase in Ridley's mobility, strength, and offensive capabilities.
===Metroid Prime===
When Samus is evacuating the Space Pirate Frigate Orpheon, she sees Meta Ridley in Biotech Research Area 2. After breaking free of his restraints, he flees the frigate, flying towards the planet Tallon IV.
Samus does not encounter Ridley in any of the Space Pirate bases on the planet; in fact, her only glimpse of him is when she sees him flying across Phendrana Shorelines to an unknown destination; his flight path suggests that he may have been flying from Glacier One. However, the cyborg space dragon makes his presence known once Samus returns to the Artifact Temple after collecting all 12 Chozo Artifacts; Samus must defeat Meta Ridley in order to access the Impact Crater.
====Weapons and abilities====
After being reconstructed by the Space Pirates, Ridley's powers were augmented. As Meta Ridley, his strength and speed have been increased to new heights, and with his new wings, he even demonstrates the ability to fly through space unaided. Ridley's armor is extremely resistant, save for the chest, which has thinner plating. He also has an arsenal of powerful weapons built into his body, making him a lethal opponent in battle. These include:
*Kinetic Breath Weapon: A red plasma beam shot from his mouth.
*Meson Bomb Launcher: Meta Ridley drops bombs that are powerful enough to damage the landscape.
*Ultrathermal Flamestrike Projector: Meta Ridley can slam the ground and create a fiery shockwave to damage Samus.
*Multi-Missile System: Meta Ridley can shoot multiple missiles to hit Samus.
*Ground Stomp Shockwave (PAL, Trilogy, Remastered versions): Before landing on the surface of the Artifact Temple, Meta Ridley will charge up energy on his metallic feet and as he lands, the stomp will unleash a shockwave of energy similar to an Elite Pirate's Wave Quake Generator attack. While on the ground, sometimes Meta Ridley may perform multiple charge stomps several times in a row, each stomp sending out a fiery shockwave that must be jumped over. In the original PAL and Trilogy versions, the stored energy is a burning yellow orange with a flaming shockwave. In Metroid Prime Remastered, the stored energy is yellow, with the shockwave a simple yellow ring of energy.
According to monitors in the Biotech Research Area 2, aside from the above, Ridley also had a plasma fuel cell that acted as his power source, and that he had access to a weapon system known as "stingers" (which was presumably referring to his multi-missile system).
====Battle====
Samus arrives at the Artifact Temple with all 12 Chozo Artifacts, and prepares to open the Cipher. However, at this moment Ridley appears and destroys part of the Totems with his Bombs. Samus then engages him.
In first phase of the battle, Meta Ridley attacks from the air with powerful homing missiles (which share similarities with the Seeker Missiles seen in later games) and his "Kinetic Breath Weapon" laser. Meta Ridley may take a brief moment to pause and roar after firing off the multi-missile weapon and will occasionally make large strides around the arena to reposition himself. He stays flying above the Artifact Temple but after performing a few attacks, Meta Ridley will begin to soar through the skies, avoiding prolonged combat with Samus and returning for simultaneous bombing and laser assaults. After this he will hide beneath the edge of the Temple platform before resurfacing for his next attack. After his health has been drained to about one-half, he will decide to land on the Artifact Temple itself to engage at Samus with some close range stomps, tail sweeps and claw swipes before returning underneath the Temple. Meta Ridley will mix all these attacks periodically, and can sometimes perform the same attack multiple times in a row, until his health has been reduced sufficiently enough.
Meta Ridley's chest is his only weak point, as his armor has poor shielding there. Damaging the chest area will create electrical feedback throughout Ridley's cybernetic armour. While Meta Ridley stands idle in the air, Samus has a clear shot at firing her weapons against him. Any Beam weapon and Missiles can damage Meta Ridley, but damaging him with a Super Missile can cause him to receive knockback recoil, very briefly stunning him and possibly causing him to change attack patterns.
After being reduced to about a quarter of his health remaining, Meta Ridley's wings are burned off and he is forced into ground combat. Despite losing the advantage of flight, Ridley proves far more dangerous on the ground, as he possesses far greater speed than Samus, despite his size. This issue is compounded by the fact that the Artifact Temple is very small, forcing Samus to remain close to him.
He continues to attack with his fire breath, but his main attack is to rush at Samus and tackle her; this can be dodged if Samus moves when he rears his head back and gives off a small shriek. However if successful, Meta Ridley will always perform one large tail swipe if Samus is behind him. Not only is this to try and inflict damage on Samus but to also reposition himself facing her. Meta Ridley's attacks can be interrupted if Samus inflicts enough damage to him by shooting him in the mouth when it is open. He tends to release many roars throughout the battle, allowing for many opportunities to fire at the mouth. Any Charge Beam attack or one Missile hit will cause him to be momentarily stunned. He will try to protect his chest by staying on all fours or blocking Samus's firing sight with his arm, but sufficient damage to his mouth makes him rear up for a moment, leaving his chest open for much damage. This window of opportunity becomes more vital on higher difficulties, as even a few failures to dodge can quickly drain health, regardless of how many Energy Tanks were obtained. 
Once his health has been drained to but a small fraction left, the chest plate is blown off and his heart is now exposed. With this weakness greatly unprotected, Meta Ridley's attacks become more frequent and aggressive, allowing for less opportunities to fire at his mouth. Firing at his exposed heart with Super Missiles, the Ice Spreader, or a charged Wave or Plasma Beam attack will cause him to flinch and screech in great agony. 
 
After an intense fight, Samus wears out Meta Ridley, causing his chest to overload with electrical energy. At this point, the Chozo statues on the temple glow red and focus energy beams at his chest until he is forced off the edge of the arena, falling into the abyss before exploding spectacularly. The Chozo Lore entry "Statuary" implied that the Chozo statues glowing red and focusing beams on Meta Ridley had been done in response to his willfully destroying the various Chozo Artifacts while the Artifact Temple was about to unseal the crater for Samus.
===Metroid Prime 3: Corruption===
Some time after recovering from his ordeal on Tallon IV, Meta Ridley becomes loyal to Dark Samus due to her corruptive strain of Phazon. Interesting to note is that Meta Ridley seemingly returned with fewer cybernetic implants and a blueish tint on his entire body, the latter of which indicates his exposure to Phazon. Meta Ridley also appears to have damaged wings, suggesting that he has not fully recovered from his injuries in Prime.
He joins the Pirate invasion of Norion; after distracting the G.F.S. Olympus and its fleet of starships with a sneak attack through a wormhole, the Pirates land a sizable force on the planet's surface. Meta Ridley then heads out into the battle to take out the GF defense base personally.
At one point during the battle, Samus and a fellow Federation PED Marine watch helplessly as Meta Ridley single-handedly wipes out an entire platoon of Marines on the other side of the base. Meta Ridley also attacks Samus while she is traveling in a tunnel in Morph Ball form in Cargo Dock C, seemingly attempting to impede her from reaching the last power generator. A Friend Voucher named 'Flawless Escape' is earned should Samus not take any damage during this segment.
====Battle====
 
Samus confronts Meta Ridley once more after fixing the generator. Meta Ridley ambushes her and tries to tackle her to the ground. However, due to his immense weight, the two fall through the glass platform and into a very deep shaft under the generator.
Meta Ridley is notably weaker than in his previous encounter, but he must be defeated within a time limit due to Samus falling down a reactor shaft. If she does not defeat Meta Ridley before the meter counter reaches zero, it results in an instant Game Over.
The battle alternates between three phases. The first consists of Samus falling above Meta Ridley in the metallic parts of the shaft as the latter looks upward at her. She has to avoid the laser beams he unleashes from his mouth, as well as the debris being peeled off the shaft's walls by Ridley's clawed limbs; the latter projectiles result from his attempts to decrease his falling speed by grabbing onto the surrounding surface. If he slows himself enough to get within reach of Samus, he will lunge upward to bite her, causing tremendous damage before falling further downward and force him to grab onto the walls again. Samus can shoot into Ridley's mouth when he is preparing his laser attack or whenever it is simply open; this is usually represented by a large bright light or yellow glow, respectively.
After some time, the second phase of the battle begins in a more rocky and cavernous part of the shaft, where there is more space to maneuver around. Thus, Ridley manages to swoop up and grab Samus with his left hand, though both individuals will keep falling regardless. While holding her firmly, he attempts to strike her with the front and back of his right hand, bite her and spit fireballs at point-blank range, but she can prevent this by shooting the glowing weak spots on both sides of his free hand and mouth. If Samus manages to deal sufficient damage to Meta Ridley before the end of this phase, he will recoil his head backwards and roar in pain, exposing his vulnerable mouth for an extended period of time.
At the start of the third phase, Meta Ridley suddenly releases his grip on Samus and lets her fall. Using the wide open space of the caverns, he spreads his wings open to briefly reduce his falling momentum, putting some distance between himself and Samus before he begins to pursue her from above by diving. In this phase, he uses different variants of his fire breath: the laser beam he used in the first phase, small and large destructible homing fireballs, and an attack where he charges at Samus. She can still attack Ridley's mouth, but due to his anti-clockwise movement around the edge of the tunnel, he is somewhat difficult to aim at.
When Ridley is inflicted with enough damage, he will increase his dive towards Samus, grab her again and repeat the second phase. Whether or not she attacks him while in Ridley's grip, he will eventually and abruptly lose his air balance, letting go of Samus as he falls at a higher velocity than her while flailing and roaring. Both he and Samus will then enter another metallic shaft with restricted space and start the final phase, which is a repeat of the first one.
Afterwards, Samus is able to wear him out, giving her the opportunity to safely catch up to Ridley by throwing herself at him and land on his face. Before being rescued at the last minute by Rundas, Samus forcefully opens Ridley's mouth and shoots vengeful blasts from her Arm Cannon directly down his throat, leaving him to continue his fall alone as she is carried back to the surface.
====Omega Ridley====
thumb|250px|Omega Ridley; Meta Ridley further infused with Phazon
Later on, Meta Ridley is further corrupted by Phazon and becomes Omega Ridley in the process. Appearing on the Pirate Homeworld within its Leviathan seed, he possesses enhanced strength and defense. The fall on Norion has left the armor on his chest region loose and vulnerable.
Omega Ridley's overall physical structure and attacks are very close to his appearance as Meta Ridley in the first Metroid Prime game. The most notable dissimilarities are his sluggish movements and the sections of his armor seemingly being "uprooted" from under by his pronounced purple organic body, a likely sign that he is progressively regenerating his natural form.
=== Proteus Ridley ===
Some time passes after his defeat as Omega Ridley and the destruction of the source of all Phazon, allowing Ridley to revert his corruption and regenerate enough body mass to remove not only entire sections of his metal prosthetics, but also the need for energy-based wings.
In this new form, referred to as Proteus RidleyMetroid: Samus Returns Official Guide, he ambushes Samus on SR388. This battle is the last in which he carries any of the cybernetic implants he first received back on the Frigate Orpheon, as he disposes of them in their entirety and returns to his natural form before his next appearance in the Ceres Space Colony.
==Official data==
===Logbook entries===
====Metroid Prime====
====Metroid Prime 3: Corruption====
===Official website===
thumb|200px|Official Metroid Prime website.
Homeworld: Unknown
Civilization Type: Unknown
History: "Meta Ridley is a genetically enhanced Ridley metaform. It is a mainstay of the Space Pirate's army. After being defeated by bounty hunter Samus Aran, Meta Ridley has been reborn and evolved through Space Pirate technology. Meta Ridley is a fearsome enforcer. The Pirates have fused a number of potent weapons to the creature, including a Multi-Missile system, a kinetic breath weapon, a Meson Bomb launcher, and an Ultrathermal Flamestrike projector. Meta Ridley is also a formidable melee combatant, making any sort of engagement a risky proposition.
It is a bird-like creature with large powerful wings and a long agile tail. Meta Ridley's armored hide is extremely resilient, save for the chest, which has thinner plating."
===Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion: Prima's Official Strategy Guide===
;BOSS BATTLE: META RIDLEY
:"Meta Ridley is a huge pterodactyl-type creature that can fly and uses powerful energy weapons along with old-fashioned brute force. It has one weak spot in the center of its chest, which isn't always visible. You must use your Plasma Beam to defeat this boss.The fight begins with Meta Ridley in the air above you. It attacks in several ways. At times Meta Ridley hovers over the side of the Artifact Temple and shoots its laser and missiles at you. You can double jump the laser and outrun the missiles by strafing back and forth. While Meta Ridley hovers, its chest is exposed, so this is also your best chance to cause damage. Lock on and rip it to shreds.Meta Ridley occasionally flies off into the distance. You can't hurt it when it does this, so just prepare to dodge. As Meta Ridley flies back toward the temple, it shoots a beam and drops a spread of bombs. Use your Morph Ball and Boost Ball to dodge these attacks by zooming from one side of the arena to another.Sometimes Meta Ridley will even land in the center of the temple to take a swipe at you with its claws. Watch for its shadow to settle in the center as a sign it's about to land. Quickly strafe to the side or double jump backward to avoid the attack.Continue pounding the Plasma Beam on Meta Ridley's weak spot. Eventually, the heat will cause Meta Ridley's wings to combust and the golden membrane to burn away. Without its wings, it can no longer fly, and the battle moves to the ground.The battle heats up a bit now. Meta Ridley attacks by charging back and forth across the temple floor. You can tell when it's about to attack because it will rear back before dashing. Dodge the attack by strafing to either side.After dashing, Meta Ridley will either dash again or look over its shoulder. Should the boss peer over its shoulder, it's preparing to swipe at you with its tail. Double jump over the boss's tail, or move backward to get out of the way.While all of this is going on, you're probably beginning to wonder when you can attack. Meta Ridley sometimes shoots a laser from its mouth. You can jump the laser, but more importantly, a roar usually follows this. While Meta Ridley has its mouth open, you can shoot it in the head. This doesn't cause damage to the boss, but if you hit it in the head enough, you stun it and the boss's weak spot, the chest, is exposed.Just continue dodging attacks and waiting for your chance to counterattack. This part of the battle can take a long time, so have patience. When you have defeated Meta Ridley, the transport to the Impact Crater will appear." 
;Meta Ridley
:Found In: Tallon Overworld
:Recommended Weapon: Plasma Beam
:Weak Spot: Chest and heat
:"Meta Ridley isn't easy to catch. It has wings, which allows it to attack you from the air with its fiery breath and bombs. While it's zooming around, you won't be able to hit it. Just go into Morph Ball mode and use the Boost Ball to dash out of the way during each pass. When Meta Ridley pauses to fire at you, it will expose its one true weak spot, its chest. Use the Plasma Beam to fry its vulnerable spot. Once you've caused significant damage, Meta Ridley's wings will ignite and burn away. This will force it to fight you on the ground.Once Meta Ridley is on the ground, it will try to run over you. Watch it rear back. This is your signal to move. Strafe to the side to avoid being hit, but always be ready for another charge. Should the boss look over its shoulder after a charge, it's going to try to swipe you with its tail. Double jump to avoid the attack. Meta Ridley is vulnerable only when it's roaring at you and its mouth is open. Shoot the boss until you stun it, and Meta Ridley will rear back, giving you a clean shot at its chest. Though you can stun it by shooting it in the head, the chest is the only spot that will actually cause damage to the beast." 
===Metroid Prime: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide===
;META RIDLEY
:FLY-BY-NIGHT
:"Meta Ridley will swoop down and attack once the last Artifact is in place. Lock on to your old foe and blast it with the Plasma Beam or Super Missiles as it circles you. It's vulnerable when it launches an attack."
:ALL THINGS SERVE THE BEAM
:"Sometimes Meta Ridley will fly overhead and fire a beam of energy. Use the dash move to leap out of the way. If you can keep a lock on the beast, fire a few shots as it swoops away and comes around for another go."
:GROUND-TO-GROUND COMBAT
:"Soon Meta Ridley's wings will crumble. It will then land and attack you from ground level. When Ridley rears back and moves its head, dash out of the way--it's about to charge. Turn around by holding the R Button while you move backward on the Control Stick, then lock on to the menace again."
:IS THIS THE END OF META RIDLEY?
:"When flames appear in Meta Ridley's mouth, fire a Super Missile or Plasma Beam. Once you hurt it, it will expose its vulnerable chest--you can then hit it in the chest with a charged shot. When it's almost gone, finish the battle by attacking with the Wavebuster."
===Metroid Prime Official Strategy Guide===
;META RIDLEY
:MORPHOLOGY
:"A genetically enhanced Ridley metaform. Reborn and evolved through Pirate technology, Meta Ridley is a fearsome enforcer. Its armored hide is extremely resilient, save for the chest, which has thinner plating. The Pirates have fused a number of potent weapons to the creature, including a Multi-Missile System, a Kinetic Breath Weapon, a Meson Bomb Launcher, and an Ultrathermal Flamestrike Projector. Meta Ridley is also a formidable melee combatant, making any sort of engagement a risky proposition."
===Mike Sneath design notes===
"Ridley also took me about 20 or 25 days to model and texture. The wings chewed up a few of my days. It took a while to fiddle dickle with the shaders to make the wings appear like holographic energy."
Much as the case was with the Parasite Queen, Andrew Jones again created the concept for Meta Ridley. "…I had very little input on [the design of] Ridley. I know our first concept was rejected. The second one Nintendo liked," shared Mike.
Mike was not involved in the boss scenario that his Ridley model was used in. That process was left up to the designers and scenario planners.
===Mike Sneath interview with Shinesparkers===
===Super Smash Bros. Brawl Trophy===
"The meta form of Ridley, revived using the Space Pirates' genetic engineering and cybernetic technologies. His thin chest plate--and weak point--is protected by a highly resistant membrane. Meta Ridley is highly mobile and features a multimissile system, a bomb launcher, and powerful wings. Ice attacks are particularly effective in dealing damage to him."
===Nintendo Official Guidebook for Metroid Other M===
;Page 173:The appearance of Meta Ridley. Throughout the Prime Series, he proves to be a mighty foe attempting to thwart Samus' efforts, always in her way.
===Palutena's Guidance===
"Meta Ridley was made through genetic engineering and cybernetic enhancements."
===Metroid Prime Remastered website===
;Meta Ridley
:"Reborn and evolved through Space Pirate technology, Meta Ridley is a fearsome enforcer with several potent weapons fused to it. Meta Ridley is also a formidable melee combatant, making any sort of engagement a risky proposition."
==Other appearances==
===Nintendo Monopoly===
Meta Ridley can be seen on Nintendo Monopoly's board, representing Tennessee Avenue for $180, though the property is simply referred to as "Ridley."
===Metroid Prime Pinball===
In Metroid Prime Pinball, Meta Ridley is an obstacle that appears on the Artifact Temple table, as a retelling of his boss battle in Metroid Prime.
Unlike Metroid Prime, Meta Ridley is not destroyed when the table is completed; instead, he simply flees.
===Super Smash Bros. Brawl===
Meta Ridley appears as a boss in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He is one of the generals of the Subspace Army.
After R.O.B., Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong, Captain Falcon, Pikachu, Samus Aran, and Captain Olimar make their way out of the doomed Bomb Factory flying away in the Falcon Flyer, they are attacked from behind by the resurrected Meta Ridley.
Meta Ridley's attacks can send the Falcon Flyer reeling about, potentially knocking the heroes off if they aren't careful. In this battle, he is attacking the ship as well, and 2 minutes are given to beat him. He has completely different moves from Ridley, including wing slashes, a barrage of small fireballs, a single massive fireball, and a diving attack that knocks the ship offscreen for a second. Another move is when he grabs onto the ship and attempts to drag it down while spitting large fireballs across the stage. He is later defeated when he is burnt by the Falcon Flyer's engines and the massive amounts of Subspace Bombs explode, covering the island in Subspace, taking everything in it, including the charred remains of Meta Ridley, into the Subspace.
Tabuu, the leader of Subspace, revives both Ridley and Meta Ridley in The Great Maze to attack the heroes. They are defeated like last time, presumably leaving him out of the picture for good.
After Classic Mode and the Subspace Emissary are both completed, the Boss Battle mode is unlocked. Meta Ridley can be fought in this mode, behaving identically to his appearance in the Subspace Emissary.
The design of Meta Ridley used in Brawl is slightly different from the one used in Metroid Prime, featuring a spike on his chin similar to his Super Metroid appearance. His exposed skin is also slightly more saturated in color, making a more obvious distinction between his organic and inorganic parts.
===Super Smash Bros. for Wii U===
Ridley's clone appears in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U as a stage boss for the Pyrosphere, based on his appearance in Metroid: Other M. By absorbing energy from the generators underneath the main platform, Ridley can shift into Black Ridley. Despite this form not displaying any cybernetic features whatsoever, it is erroneously given the name "Meta Ridley" in the English translation of the Super Smash Bros. for Wii U 50-Fact Extravaganza. Note that the Japanese version calls this form 黒リドリー, which is different from the actual Japanese name of .
===Super Smash Bros. Ultimate===
Ridley, a playable character in the game, has an alternate costume that changes his appearance into Meta Ridley. Much like Ridley himself, this marks the first time that Meta Ridley makes a playable appearance in any video game.
As an alternate costume, Meta Ridley acts the same as Ridley, using the same moveset, taunts, and animations. His design is primarily based upon his original appearance in Metroid Prime, but the much more saturated purple hue of his exposed flesh also lends him a striking resemblance to Proteus Ridley. Another one of Ridley's alternate costumes uses the Meta Ridley model, but alters the color scheme to resemble Mecha Ridley.
Meta Ridley was first unveiled in A Piercing Screech, but was not playable in the game's E3 2018 demo, which instead featured a placeholder Ridley costume with gray skin and orange wings. He also appears in the reveal trailer of Dark Samus, where the two villains gang up on Samus on the Frigate Orpheon.
Meta Ridley also appears as an unlockable Fighter Spirit, using his artwork from Metroid Prime. Like all other Fighter Spirits, Meta Ridley cannot be equipped in battle and can only be viewed as artwork in the Spirit List.
==Music==
Vs. Meta Ridley plays during both of his battles in the Metroid Prime series. An alternate version is available in the Soundtrack Gallery but is not used in the game itself. For its battle with Meta Ridley, Pinball uses a shorter version that only includes the melody from the older Vs. Ridley theme.
In the Subspace Emissary, Vs. Ridley (Brawl) plays during both battles against Meta Ridley. Boss Battle plays when Meta Ridley is fought in the game's boss rush mode.
==First 4 Figures statue==
First 4 Figures has produced a Meta Ridley statue, which was first announced in December 2016 and has an estimated release date of Q2 2021. It comes in a Standard and Exclusive Edition, the latter including LED lights in its eyes and chest plate. For more information about this statue, see here.
==Development notes==
===Prime===
Hacking Prime to manipulate the camera will reveal that Meta Ridley's in-game model has the texture of a heart placed behind his thin chest plate, this can only be seen before triggering the cutscene on board the Orpheon.https://youtu.be/ai_YvQ03Sh8?t=2m39s During the Artifact Temple battle, it is possible to see the heart close-up when Meta Ridley is stunned during his grounded phase (after removing the chest-plate, though the plate's leftover lighting may somewhat obscure vision). The heart is also present in his Super Smash Bros. Brawl model, even though it cannot be seen at all in that game. 
During the Phase 1 battle in Prime, there is a crystalline texture covering Meta Ridley's chest plate. This specific texture is used elsewhere in the game to represent ice, but in this case it may represent some other form of hardened crystal. The crystalline shielding glows red when Meta Ridley activates his Multi-Missile system, suggesting this may be the multi-missile system being equipped and active during battle (as the missiles are fired from the chest area). Immediately before Phase 2 begins, this crystalline shielding is gone (suggesting the Multi-Missile system was destroyed by Samus). This texture is not present in any other interpretations of Meta Ridley and is exclusive to Metroid Prime. In Metroid Prime Remastered, a Black layer of armor appears where the multi-missile system would be at, suggesting the crystalline cover was possibly recolored to accommodate Meta Ridley's body, acting more like a layer of plating on his armor similar to the armor covering Omega Ridley's chest in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. 
The shadow Meta Ridley casts when flying over the Phendrana Shorelines was conceived by Mark Pacini. Since projected shadows were scarcely used in Prime, Jack Mathews "hacked" a shadow into the cutscene. He was not proud of the final result.Kiwi Talkz. "#144 - Jack Mathews Interview - Metroid Prime 20th Anniversary (Crunch, A.I., Fetch Quest, Bosses )". YouTube. November 18, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJkxpG5R9PI (starts at 54:12)
Meta Ridley's roar is a generic roar used by Nintendo. It can be heard for Pokémon Dialga, Gyarados and Tyranitar in the fourth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth Pokémon movies and in the seventh episode of the Diamond and Pearl series. The roar was later reused for Proteus Ridley in Metroid: Samus Returns. Due to being an alternate costume for Ridley, Meta Ridley's roar in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is slightly different, resembling a bestial roar mixed with an alien filter.
===Corruption===
Meta Ridley's first battle with Samus in Corruption was inspired by Gandalf's battle with the Balrog in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The battle's concept was conceived by Mark Pacini. It was also based on an unrealized idea of Mike Wikan's from Prime, where Samus would battle Meta Ridley while standing atop her Gunship. In this scenario, the battle would have taken place in a horizontal canyon, with Samus able to move around her ship, raise defense shields to block Ridley's attacks, and shoot down rocks overhead to damage Ridley. This concept was rejected as too ambitious.KIWI TALKZ - #105 - Mike Wikan Interview (Metroid Prime Trilogy, Game Design, Crunch, Booz Allen Hamilton etc.) September 6, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlbeRLmfCHk (starts at 40:51)
In pre-release footage of Corruption, the cutscene which plays at end of the battle against Meta Ridley is slightly different. Instead of Samus jumping off of his mouth and grabbing onto Rundas' arm, she free falls without control a few feet above Meta Ridley until she is rescued by said hunter.https://youtu.be/K98pon2NEhk?t=213 He is also identified in pre-release screenshots simply as "Ridley".
The model of Meta Ridley's blue form, encountered exclusively on Norion in the released versions of Corruption, is used in an early version of the Omega Ridley entrance cutscene (gif pictured right). Samus is also seen wearing her standard Varia Suit instead of the Corrupted PED Suit with Hazard Shield. This clip also features a different ending.
Paul Tozour programmed Meta Ridley's artificial intelligence. His notes on this are below:
==Trivia==
*During the Metroid Prime battle with Meta Ridley, there is a bug that can be exploited. When he lands, Samus can enter Morph Ball, charge the Boost Ball and dash between Ridley's legs to cut his health to the point where his wings disappear, making for a shorter battle. This only occurs in the NTSC version of the GameCube game. PAL and later Wii versions of the game do not contain this bug. Curiously, if Samus takes him to his grounded phase with this trick the cutscene may not play.
**Other circumstances can lead to Meta Ridley landing on the ground and losing his wings without locking the player into the intended cutscene. This allows the player to stay in control of Samus in regular gameplay while Meta Ridley plays out the animation.
*In Metroid Prime, if Meta Ridley is stunned repeatedly too quickly when in his ground form, his weak point may turn out invulnerable until the next time he is stunned. This was not fixed in any of the later releases of the game and may have been intentionally placed to avoid excessive use of the continuously damaging Wavebuster (the weapon which can easily trigger the aforementioned invulnerability). 
**Sometimes, this invincibility bug would activate upon normal shots as well, depending on when Meta Ridley was hit/stunned. Meta Ridley sometimes may also not become invincible consecutively at times so the exact details as to why this bug occurs is unclear.
*During battle in Prime, even if Meta Ridley loses his chest plate, the lights from it and a small silhouette of it still remain.
*In Prime, although Meta Ridley can receive damage from both charged and uncharged shots of the Plasma Beam, he is completely immune to the Flamethrower.
*Meta Ridley's appearance in Generator C resembles the way he appears in a room in Super Metroid; the eyes glow in the darkness prior to his body coming into full-view and then he emits a roar. Coincidentally, Samus also battles Ridley twice in both games.
*In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Ridley assaults Samus and Pikachu in an area highly resembling the Generator Shaft. Given how this game was released before Corruption in Japan, this was possibly intended as a sneak preview.
*Mecha Ridley may have been a prototype to the cybernetic technology implanted into Meta Ridley's body, as they share missile weaponry and a weak point in the chest.
*Meta Ridley's head in Metroid Prime 3 resembles Neo-Ridley's.
*Metroid Prime 3's depiction of a blue, seemingly organic Meta Ridley in the earlier section of the game before the character is transformed into Omega Ridley, a form which bears greater similarities to Tallon IV's Meta Ridley, has led to speculation that the two models were swapped during Prime 3's development. Omega Ridley's model would have logically been more fitting for Norion's encounter, being chronologically closer to the events of the first Metroid Prime game. Meanwhile the blue Meta Ridley model would have fit within the similarly colored, Phazon-filled Leviathan Seed of the Pirate Homeworld. Strengthening this model swap hypothesis is Sonny Santa Maria's beta animation seen in the above article under the section "Development Notes", where the blue Meta Ridley model is used for Omega Ridley's intro cutscene.
*In the Japanese version of Corruption, the Meta Ridley fought on Norion is seemingly described as a separate individual from the Meta Ridley previously fought on Tallon IV.The temporary scan reads: "" and his Logbook entry states: "". This is an addition made in the Japanese localization, since the original English version does not make any distinction between the two forms of Meta Ridley. It is unclear whether this translation implies that Corruption's Meta Ridley is a clone (like Ridley's later incarnation aboard the BOTTLE SHIP) or a separate entity altogether. Furthermore, the Japanese logbook entry for Omega Ridley states that he is the same individual as on Norion, meaning the Ridley from Tallon IV does not appear in the Japanese version.
*In Meta Ridley's debut scene in Metroid Prime Remastered, his eye is depicted as black before flickering to yellow and showing the eye itself as having yellow compounds, implying the eyes were cybernetic.
==Gallery==
===Metroid Prime and Pinball===
For concept art, see Ridley/Gallery.
Meta ridley design.jpg|Danny Richardson
Dark_Possessed_Ridley.jpg|Andrew Jones
Ridely.PNG|Andrew Jones Metroid Prime Trilogy art booklet design
Ridley concept.jpg|Concept art
Metaridley3.jpg|Concept art
Orpheon screenshot 16.png
Meta Ridley Frigate Intro Prime Remastered.png|Metroid Prime Remastered.
Meta ridley artifact temple.jpg|Meta Ridley approaches
Ridley's_mouth.png|Ridley's roar
Boss_ridley2.jpg|Ridley flies in
Meta_ridley_battle_2.jpg
Meta Ridley Thermal.png|Meta Ridley seen with the Thermal Visor.
Meta Ridley X-Ray (Prime).png|Meta Ridley seen with the X-Ray Visor.
Meta Ridley Crystal Plating (Close-Up).png|Close up of a metallic/crystal covering on his chest, shielding the chest plate area.
Meta Ridley Boot Stomp Remastered.png|Preparing to stomp the ground in Metroid Prime Remastered.
Meta ridley wings ignite.jpg|Meta Ridley's wings are set alight.
Meta_ridley_battle_ground.jpg
Meta Ridley Prime Heart (Close-Up).png|Close-up of the exposed heart during the Artifact Temple battle.
Meta Ridley Battle Exposed Heart Remastered.png|Samus aims at the exposed heart in Metroid Prime Remastered.
Ridley_struck_by_lasers.jpg|Meta Ridley is struck by the combined power of the Chozo Statues.
MetaRidleyGoesRound.gif
166page18-19.jpg|Metroid Prime comic in Nintendo Power issue 166.
166page20.jpg
Meta_Ridley.jpg|Meta Ridley in Metroid Prime Pinball.
ONM Meta Ridley magnet.jpg|Official Nintendo Magazine magnet.
003.jpg|Metroid Prime Remastered artwork
Obj battle01.png|Partial higher-resolution version from the Japanese Remastered website
Biology - Remastered 28.png|Metroid Prime Remastered artwork
Character Gallery - Meta Ridley.png|Character Gallery model in Remastered.
====Models and textures====
MetaRidleyPrime1Model.png|Meta Ridley's Metroid Prime model
OmegaRidleyModelHead.jpg|Meta Ridley's head
CyberChestplate.png|The chestpiece to the Metroid Prime model
MetaRidleyHeart.png|The heart texture
MetaRidleyTexture2.png
===Corruption===
Storyboard2.png|Metroid Prime 3: Corruption storyboard
Metaridleyp3.jpg|Metroid Prime render with changes to model, released during Corruption marketing
MetaRidley.png|Meta Ridley as he appears in Corruption
Metroidprime3corruption_japanese_wallpaper.jpg|Corruption promotional poster and Japanese box art.
Metroidposter.jpg|Metroid Prime Trilogy artwork
Metroid-prime-3-corruption-20070822001407631.jpg|Ridley tries to kill Samus before the battle.
Meta Ridley scan.png|Meta Ridley's temporary scan in Corruption.
Meta Ridley plunges.png|Ridley plunges to his doom.
Ridley_hologram.png|Space Pirate terminal depicting Ridley's image, Command Station.
Meta Ridley CMDL.jpg|Wingless Meta Ridley render
JP Other M Guide 173.jpg|Nintendo Official Guidebook for Metroid Other M, page 173
===Super Smash Bros. series===
Meta Ridley SSBB appears cutscene.png|Meta Ridley in the Subspace Emissary
Meta Ridley Brawl.jpg|Meta Ridley as a boss in Brawl
BrawlTrophy14.jpg|Meta Ridley's trophy in Brawl
A Piercing Screech Meta Ridley.png|Ridley's Meta Ridley costume in the A Piercing Screech trailer for Ultimate.
SSB Ultimate Ridley vs Samus.jpg|Official screenshot from the Ultimate website
SSBU Meta Ridley Fighter Spirit.jpg|Meta Ridley unlocked as a Fighter Spirit in Ultimate
SSBU Ridley Alt Mecha.png|Alternate Meta Ridley costume with Mecha Ridley's color scheme
Meta Ridley victory pose.png|Ridley in his Meta Ridley costume, performing his "psychopath" victory pose.
==References==
es:Meta Ridley
ru:Мета Ридли
Category:Genetically Engineered
Category:Space Pirates
Category:Bosses
Category:Ridley
Category:Tallon IV
Category:Frigate Orpheon
Category:Phendrana Drifts
Category:Tallon Overworld
Category:Artifact Temple
Category:Norion
Category:Super Smash Bros.
Category:Trophies
Category:Spirits
Category:Cyborgs
Category:Recurring Characters
Category:Mike Sneath
Category:Andrew Jones
Category:Paul Tozour
Category:Giants