Lava

:For other uses, see Lava (Disambiguation) and Magma (Disambiguation).
Lava (or magma), as depicted in the Metroid series, is a hazardous and viscous substance of molten rock that harms or kills most beings that come in contact with it. The substance is usually found in superheated rooms, but this is not without exceptions. The substance is mostly seen inside or near a volcano.
Lava appears in all games in the series except Metroid II: Return of Samus, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, though they feature other substances that have a similar role.
==Description==
In all Metroid games, Samus Aran's movement speed is diminished when she is in contact with the substance, though this hindrance can be nullified when the Gravity Suit is equipped in all games that feature it except Metroid Prime and Metroid: Other M. The Gravity Suit also gives Samus immunity to the harmful effects of magma/lava. However, Super Metroid features a second, more potent form of the substance (see below) that can still harm her through the suit's protection for unclear reasons.
In Super Metroid, Samus cannot run or use the Speed Booster in lava, even with the Gravity Suit. For unknown reasons, Samus cannot use the Phantom Cloak in lava even with the Gravity Suit in Metroid Dread. In Other M, Samus is very limited in her actions while submerged in the substance: she cannot engage Morph Ball mode and is unable to jump out of lava depending on her position. Should Samus fall inside Lava while activating first-person view, she will instantly cancel out of it and will be unable to enter first-person view mode. The Gravity Suit still activates while inside lava despite its lack of full protection against the lava, most likely to reduce the damage Samus receives.
In addition to the purple liquid seen in Metroid II: Return of Samus and Metroid: Samus Returns, the lava is also shown to exist on SR388 in the remake. Sector 1 (SRX) on the Biologic Space Laboratories research station only contains lava in areas mimicking SR388, and uses the same lava in the volcanic habitats of Sector 3 (PYR).
Some areas in the original Famicom/NES Metroid and Zero Mission feature fake lava where Samus can fall right through to reach secret areas without being harmed.
===Variation of lava===
The more powerful lava which ignores the Gravity Suit's protection is translucent and light brown in color, appearing only in Super Metroid. It is capable of melting the entire body of the Crocomire in seconds, leaving nothing but its bones. It is found in the depths of Norfair, Ridley's Hideout, Tourian, and Crateria. Lava Tides are a common hazard associated with this specific form of the substance, where it periodically rises and falls in level. The rebuilt Tourian headquarters in is filled with two variants of this same potent lava: while the substance in the lower floors is visually identical to the one seen elsewhere, the upper rooms feature it with a red and opaque appearance not found anywhere else on Zebes. When the planet is about to explode near the ending, the translucent and light brown form of the magma is seen rising up in the last room of Tourian as well as in the vertical shaft of the original Tourian.
==Lava-based organisms==
There are many organisms in the Metroid series capable of living within the hazardous substance. A select few appear to be comprised of materials associated with lava, such as the Magdollites. According to concept art for Sovas in Metroid: Other M, there are apparently microbes that are not only able to resist the extreme temperatures of lava, but thrive in it as well. Sovas can be seen "drinking" lava to feed on these microbes.Gallery Mode, as translated by Metroid Database As Sovas are native to Zebes and feed on them, it can be assumed that the microbes are native to the planet as well. The Fire Spawn is a silicon-based lifeform that lives off extreme heat and is actively hostile against other organisms, especially carbon-based ones.
The Diamont Bounty Hunter Spire is also silicon-based and has a rocky body that allows him to move freely in lava with complete immunity, as if he was wearing the Gravity Suit. His Affinity Weapon is the Magmaul, which fires magma hot enough to harm and set fire to even him.
==Official Data==
===Metroid: Samus Returns Official Guide===
;INHABITANTS & ECO SYSTEM OF SR388 - HAZARDS (p. 24)
:LAVA
:"Not many locations feature lava, but don't take it lightly when you happen across it. Even with protection from the heat it produces, entering lava directly drains your health faster than pretty much anything else on the planet."
==Other appearances==
===Super Smash Bros.===
Lava appears as the main stage hazard of Norfair, introduced in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. There are rising and falling Lava Tides that submerge the stage; lava walls that cover the left or right sides of the stage; lava jets that spray up from the background; and an enormous lava wave that can only be effectively avoided with the safety capsule.
Lava also appears on Planet Zebes: Brinstar Depths and Pyrosphere, but only as a background element that does not directly affect gameplay. On Brinstar Depths, Kraid periodically emerges from the lava to attack the stage, and then he sinks back down; therefore, Kraid's appearance is first telegraphed by large splashes of lava. However, lava has not been seen in Brinstar or Kraid's Lair in any canonical game.
==Trivia==
*Lava and Metroid were referenced in the film Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over. In one scene, the characters were discussing the constant presence of lava in video games. One character says that "In Metroid, it's actually magma.", which is only true for instances where the substance is found underground.
*In Metroid Dread, when Samus jumps or grapples out of lava, small drops of the substance drip off of her Power Suit.Looygi Bros. "20 Cool Details in Metroid Dread" YouTube. November 26, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
*During the cooldown event in Metroid Dread, all damage from lava is nullified, even if the player has not yet acquired the Gravity Suit. Since only Dairon's lava remains unfrozen during this event, this cannot be observed in-game without using glitches for Sequence Breaking and going out of bounds.Frozen... Darion? - Dread Out-of-Bounds Exploration Part 2
==Gallery==
File:Energy Tank Metroid.gif|Lava in Norfair (Metroid)
File:Lavahot.gif|Lava in Norfair (Metroid: Zero Mission)
File:NPC! MP Screen 31.png|Lava in Magmoor Caverns (Metroid Prime)
Metroid Prime Hunters SS02D.jpg|Lava on Alinos (Metroid Prime Hunters)
Cyranon shot.png|Lava on Bion (Metroid Prime: Federation Force)
File:Bubbles.gif|Lava in Norfair (Super Metroid)
Super Metroid Tourian.png|Lava in Tourian (Super Metroid)
File:Ballhot.jpg|Lava in Pyrosphere (Metroid: Other M)
File:Ladder.gif|Lava in Sector 1 (Metroid Fusion)
SSBWU Norfair Lava Tides.jpg|Lava in Norfair (Super Smash Bros. for Wii U)
Pyrosphere lava view.jpg|Lava in Pyrosphere (Super Smash Bros. for Wii U)
Kraid in SSB Ultimate.png|Lava in Brinstar Depths (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)
==See also==
*Water
*Acid
*Beta Acid
*Scalding-hot lava
==External links==
*Lava and Magma on Wikipedia
==References==
ru:Лава
Category:Obstacles
Category:Substances
Category:Zebes
Category:Norfair
Category:Ridley's Lair
Category:Tourian
Category:Chozodia
Category:Tallon IV
Category:Chozo Ruins
Category:Magmoor Caverns
Category:Alinos
Category:Bion
Category:SR388
Category:Area 1
Category:Area 2
Category:Area 3
Category:Area 4
Category:Area 5
Category:Crateria
Category:BOTTLE SHIP
Category:Pyrosphere
Category:BSL
Category:Sector 1
Category:Sector 3
Category:Artaria
Category:Cataris
Category:Dairon
Category:Food