Metroid: Planet Protector (remake)

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Metroid: Planet Protector is a game by Nintendo in collaboration with Power Paintbrush Productions. It was released on the Nintendo 3DS in late 2015.
==Story==
===Samus' Mission===
Some time between the events of Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion, Samus Aran was hired for a mission to Planet ANEMO-75, a once-natural planet that has been overtaken by the Space Pirates, who have industrialised the planet and turned it into their base. Samus' mission is to infiltrate ANEMO-75 and shut down the pirates' operation.
As Samus discovers throughout her mission, ANEMO-75 was home to a race of humans who struggled to survive on their own planet, before who were visited by the bird-like Chozo. The Chozo allowed the people of ANEMO-75 to thrive with their technology, but the humans eventually abandoned their technology as most of them crossed space to find a new home. Thus, ANEMO-75 is now only populated by animals, though its ecosystem is under threat from the robots created by the Space Pirates.
Like with most Metroid games, actual story content is minimal. Most of the story is told through the environment and from Scan Visor records, though there are some short dialogue scenes at some points.
===Exploring the Planet===
Samus first lands in Area 1 and begins to explore, discovering the first of the Space Pirate's robots. Among these robots are ones that closely resemble the now-extinct Metroids, which were genetically engineered by the Chozo. Samus also runs into a robot that resembles Ridley, the deceased ruler of the Space Pirates. In a disadvantaged position, Samus barely escapes, now being trapped in Area 2.
Arriving in a set of Chozo ruins, she meets a human named Cessile, a scientist who was born on ANEMO-75 and left it behind, and has now returned to the planet to study its nature. Samus explores the ruins, discovering the history of ANEMO-75, and destroys a generator that the Space Pirates are using to power there machines.
After she helps Cessile find a way out, Samus leads her to a safe space where the scientist can hide. Cessile then requests for Samus to find her friend Dominic, who is a bounty hunter much like Samus and was hunting the Space Pirates.
Searching through Area 3, Samus eventually finds Dominic, who is under attack from a sea serpent named Serris. After rescuing the younger bounty hunter, she is able to reach another Space Pirate generator that Serris was guarding, and shuts it down.
Samus then learns that Dominic had been on the trail of Malachos, the Space Pirate leading the industrialisation of ANEMO-75. Dominic has been able to locate the pirates' base, though it is guarded by two security locks, held by two very powerful robots.
With help from Cessile's knowledge and Dominic's insight, Samus is able to locate the two robots - Omega-Kraid in Area 4, and Alpha-Ridley in Area 5. Both of these robots had been created in the image of two deceased leaders of the Space Pirates, implying that Malachos was a fanatical follower of the two.
===Facing the Space Pirates===
With Omega-Kraid and Alpha-Ridley destroyed, the locks to Area 6 are opened, leading to the mechanised base of the Space Pirates. Samus and Dominic charge in together, destroying all of the power generators throughout the base. Once they reach the heart of the base, they cross paths with Malachos, who tries to stop them from shutting down the final generator while riding a colossal mech. After a long battle, Samus defeats Malachos and seemingly kills him, though he sets off a self-destruct alarm that forces her to escape.
Making it out of the explosion in Area 6, Samus and Dominic arrive at Area 7, close to the surface of ANEMO-75. Ahead of them is a giant mechanical tower, which according to Cessile is the true centre of the Space Pirates’ mechanisation plan. At the entrance of the tower, which seems to be built from ruins of a Chozo temple, Samus finds the path ahead locked.
In order to open the locks to the tower, the final four Space Pirate generators must be shut down. Samus explores Area 7 to target three of them, while Dominic goes alone in pursuit of the fourth. During his expedition, he has another run-in with Serris, but this time is able to defeat him.
After the generators are down, Samus returns to the Space Pirate’s tower. After receiving her final upgrade, the Chrome Suit, from a large Chozo statue in the ground floor ruins, she unlocks the door and storms the mechanical tower, climbing to the top and reaching the final generator. However, blocking her way is Malachos, now fused with Omega-Ridley and Alpha-Ridley, his own inventions, to become Ultra-Malachos.
In the end, Malachos is defeated and Samus shuts off his technology for good, though not without setting off another self-destruct that forces her to escape. After making it out of the tower, Samus finds Dominic and Cessile and takes them with her, as they make their way to Samus’ gunship to escape the planet, narrowly escaping a massive explosion that destroys Area 7.
With the Space Pirates destroyed, their technology no longer threatens the lifeforms on ANEMO-75. Cesille thanks Samus for what she's done, and hopes to return to the planet to continue her research. Dominic, meanwhile, has found a new ally and rival in Samus, and vows to someday become a bounty hunter that can live up to her legendary name.
==Gameplay==
Metroid: Planet Protector is a semi-non-linear platformer much like other 2D Metroid games. The player controls Samus on her exploration of ANEMO-75, which is laid out in a giant maze of square-shaped rooms. The game is split up into seven Areas, all of which are interconnected.
Initially, Samus’ moveset is limited to running, shooting with her arm cannon, and a jump that can turn into a spinning somersault if used while running. She can also use the Morph Ball mode to compact herself into a small rolling ball, allowing the player to enter small gaps but preventing them from fighting.
As the game goes on, however, the player acquires several Upgrades, which unlock additional weapons and moves in Samus’ arsenal. Alongside upgrades, Samus can also find tanks that contain Missiles, Super Missiles and Power Bombs, increasing her maximum ammunition for these more limited weapon types.
There are also Energy Tanks, which add an extra 100 to Samus’ Energy, which are essentially health points. Energy starts at 99, and can reach as high as 2099 with every Energy Tank collected. Many of the energy and weapon tanks are hidden in ways that require the player to make good use out of several upgrades, including some that require backtracking to an early area with lategame upgrades.
Defeating enemies causes them to drop Energy particles, which can be picked up to restore Samus’ energy, along with extra ammunition for missiles and similar weapons. If Samus reaches 0 energy, the player will have to return to the last Save Room they visited.
Once the player completes the game, they will be graded based on their completion time and the number of items they collected. The game is quite short, with the best ending requiring a completion time of three hours or less, and replaying is encouraged to see all of the possible endings.
===Controls===
If the player so chooses, they can swap the roles of the Circle Pad and D-Pad in the settings.
*Circle Pad: Move
**Left/Right: Run
**Down: Crouch
**Down x2: Morph Ball
**Up: Aim Up, leave Morph Ball
*A: Jump
*B: Shoot Beam / Bomb
*R: Shoot Missile / Power Bomb
*L: Aim diagonally / Spider Ball / Boost Ball
*X: Shoot Grapple Beam
*D-Pad: Change equipped Beam
**Down: Normal Beam
**Up: Ice Beam
**Left: Wave Beam
**Right: Plasma Beam
*Select: Equip Super Missile / Change Ball Mode
*Start: Pause
==Upgrades==
Listed in the order that the player is expected to obtain them in.
===Samus’ Upgrades===
Name 	Obtained 	Notes
Power Beam 	Start of game	Samus' basic weapon. Press B to fire a projectile, and hold L to aim diagonally. Opens blue doors.
Morph Ball 	Start of game	Press Down twice to roll into a tiny ball. In this state, Samus can move into narrow passageways, but can't use most of her abilities. Press Up to exit Morph Ball.
Scan Visor 	Start of game	The player can swap between displaying the area map and the Scan Visor on the touch screen. The Scan Visor will display information on newly-found enemies and lore once Samus sees it.Scan Visor logs can also be viewed from the pause menu, and from the Logs option in the game’s main menu.
Missile 	Area 1 	A powerful, explosive weapon with limited supply. Press R + B to fire. Opens red doors. Collecting a Missile Tank increases Missile capacity by 5.
Charge Beam 	Area 1 	Press and hold B to charge up a much more powerful beam attack. While holding a fully-charged beam, Samus can also damage enemies with her somersault.
Bomb 	Area 2 	Samus' primary attack in Morph Ball mode. Bombs explode shortly after being placed, and can break certain blocks. When Samus is in ball form, her bomb's explosions cause recoil, enabling her to jump.
Hi-Jump 	Area 2 	Increases Samus' jump height. Also allows Samus to jump normally in Morph Ball mode.
Varia Suit 	Area 2 	An upgrade to Samus’ suit. Stops damage from acid and parasites. Slightly reduces damage taken in general.
Ice Beam 	Area 3 	An icy beam weapon that extinguishes fires and freezes enemies in place. Frozen enemies can be used as temporary platforms. Switch to the Ice Beam with Up on the D-Pad.The Ice Beam’s charge shot creates a large mass of ice spikes around the area of impact. The charge shot can also be used to freeze the surface of water, turning it into safe ground to cross.
Speed Booster 	Area 3 	If Samus runs forward for long enough, she will gain a massive speed boost, along with an aura that destroys enemies and certain blocks.By crouching mid-boost, she can store the energy to perform a Shinespark, a mid-air move that lets her rush in any direction.
Boost Ball 	Area 3 	An upgrade to the Morph Ball. Press or hold L for a burst of speed.
Electro Missile	Area 1 	Adds an electric property to missiles and Super Missiles, allowing them to stun enemies and trigger electric circuits.
Super Missile 	Area 4 / 5 	A super-powerful missile with a huge explosion. Opens green doors. Press Select to swap between regular and Super missiles.
Spider Ball 	Area 4 	An upgrade to the Morph Ball. Hold L to activate, allowing the ball to climb up walls and ceilings. Press Select to switch between Boost Ball and Spider Ball compatibility.
Wave Beam 	Area 4 	An electric beam weapon that passes through walls. Switch to the Wave Beam with Left on the D-Pad.The Wave Beam’s charge shot fires a large spiral of beam projectiles that converge on a space ahead and explode.
Screw Attack 	Area 4 	Allows Samus to damage enemies while somersaulting.
Grapple Beam 	Area 5 	A whip-like beam that can be fired with the X button. Can be used on enemies to bind them in place, or to pull certain things out of the ground. Can also be used on ceiling hooks to swing across gaps.
Plasma Beam 	Area 5 	A powerful beam weapon that pierces through multiple enemies and melts ice. Switch to the Plasma Beam with Right on the D-Pad.The Plasma Beam’s charge shot fires a solid beam of plasma energy straight ahead.
Gravity Suit 	Area 5 	An upgrade to Samus’ suit. Stops damage from lava and rooms with extreme temperature. Allows normal movement in water, acid and lava. Slightly reduces damage taken in general.
Spazer Beam 	Area 6 	Triples the projectiles fired by Samus' beam, increasing its firepower.
Burst Missile 	Area 6 	Allows missiles and Super Missiles to be charged. Charged missiles create a large electric field around the explosion, dealing continuous damage to enemies inside. With Super Missiles, the electric field is even larger.The Burst Missile has two charge levels, and takes much longer to charge than the Charge Beam. The first charge level uses five missiles, while the second uses ten missiles.
Space Jump 	Area 7 	Allows Samus to continuously somersault in mid-air, making movement in vertical rooms trivial. Extremely powerful when combined with the Screw Attack.
Power Bomb 	Area 7 	A powerful, limited weapon that can only be used in Morph Ball mode. The Power Bomb’s explosion engulfs the entire screen, and opens yellow doors. Press R + B to deploy.
Grapple Spark 	Area 7 	An upgrade to the Grapple Beam that changes its colour from yellow to blue. After grabbing onto a hook, Samus can hold X to charge up power, then release to launch herself in a set direction with massive force, having the same effect as a Shinespark.
Chrome Suit 	Area 7 	Samus' final suit. Slightly reduces damage taken in general, prevents Samus from being stunned, and reduces the charge time for the Charge Beam and Burst Missile.
===Side Character Upgrades===
For a brief period of time in Area 7, the player is able to play as Dominic, a less experienced bounty hunter who teams up with Samus later in the story. Dominic has a far more limited moveset than Samus does at this point in the game, including some unique moves.
Note that Samus’ Energy Tanks, Missile Tanks and Super Missile Tanks carry over when playing as Dominic.
Name 	Obtained	Notes
Power Ray 	Start 	Dominic’s basic weapon, fired from his gun-cannon. The regular shot is similar to the Plasma Beam, while the charged shot explodes in a large area on impact.
Missile 	Start 	Functionally the same as Samus’ Missile, but flies more slowly at first before accelerating. Can be charged to fire three faster missiles at once.
Super Missile	Start 	Functionally the same as Samus’ Super Missile, with the same mechanical differences as Dominic’s normal missiles.
Rocket Jump 	Start 	By firing a fully-charged missile or Super Missile straight down while on the ground, Dominic can perform a super-high jump from the recoil of the missiles.
Rocket Pack 	Start 	By holding down A in midair, Dominic can slow his fall. He can still fire his weapons while falling, but cannot charge shots and fires more slowly.
Grapple Beam 	Area 7 	Functionally the same as Samus’ Grapple Beam.
Speed Booster	Area 7 	Functionally the same as Samus’ Speed Booster, including the Shinespark.
==Areas==
Area 	Format 	Upgrades
Area 1	The caves where Samus first lands on Planet ANEMO-75, mainly consisting of greenery-filled caverns and lakes, though it does show signs of mechanisation from the Space Pirates.Area 1 serves as the tutorial area, though after Samus is chased out by Alpha-Ridley, most of it becomes inaccessible. After completing Area 3, she can return and fully explore the north and south of Area 1.Area 1 is the central hub of the map. It connects to Area 2 on the bottom right side, Area 4 on the left side, Area 5 on the top right side, and Area 6 through a secret door. 	Missile, Charge Beam, Electro Missile
Area 2	Located to the right of Area 1, above Area 3 and below Area 5. Area 2 is filled with sand and red stone, and is home to a large ruined temple, built by the Chozo. 	Bomb, Hi-Jump, Varia Suit
Area 3	The bottommost area of the initial map, connected to Area 2 on the right and Area 4 on the left. Connected to a giant reservoir of water, the outside of Area 3 mostly consists of a rocky cove with many waterfalls. Deeper inside are crystal caves, with walls made of shining blue and purple gems.The lower levels of Area 3 are entirely submerged, and can only be fully explored with the Gravity Suit.After completing Area 3 and returning to Area 1, Samus can go to Area 4 and Area 5 in any order. 	Ice Beam, Speed Booster, Boost Ball
Area 4	Located to the left of Area 1, also connected to Area 3 at the bottom. Area 4 is a swamplike area, built around a massive underground tree, and has the most vertical structure of all the areas.Area 4 is where one of the two locks to Area 6 is located, guarded by Omega-Kraid. 	Spider Ball, Wave Beam, Screw Attack
Area 5	Located to the right of Area 1, directly above Area 2. A freezing cold area, Area 5 resembles a snowy mountain, with caverns of ice.Area 5 is where one of the two locks to Area 6 is located, guarded by Alpha-Ridley. 	Grapple Beam, Plasma Beam, Gravity Suit
Area 6	Initially not visible on the map, Area 6 is accessed through a secret door at the bottom of Area 1, which is opened with two security locks in Area 4 and Area 5.The deepest part of ANEMO-75, Area 6 is filled with magma and fiery caves. At the heart of the area is a small, heavily guarded Space Pirate base, filled with their machinery. 	Spazer Beam, Burst Missile
Area 7	Initially not visible on the map, Area 7 is the topmost part of ANEMO-75, consisting of the planet’s surface and the caves directly below. Initially only accessible from Area 6, but can later be connected to Areas 1, 4 and 5.Area 7 consists of six distinct sub-areas. First is the surface of the planet, which resembles Areas 1 and 4, but is filled with harsh winds. There are then four branches that resemble Areas 2, 3, 5 and 6, each holding one of the Space Pirates’ generators.After all of the generators are shut down, the player unlocks access to the true Space Pirate base.	Space Jump, Power Bomb, Grapple Spark, Chrome Suit
==Bosses==
Name 	Location 	Summary 	Reward
Mecha-Metroid Alpha 	Area 1 	A robot designed after an Alpha Metroid. As the first boss in the game, he follows a simple attack pattern, attacking by ramming into Samus.He will usually slowly float into the air before ramming, exposing the weak point on his underside. Once lower on health, he will mix this up with rams low to the ground. 	Charge Beam
Alpha-Ridley 	Area 1 	Alpha-Ridley is an invincible enemy in his first encounter, chasing Samus out of Area 1. At first, all she can do is run away from the robot, avoiding obstacles along the way, until they eventually stop in a battlefield.Here, Alpha-Ridley will use two attacks - an aimed stream of fiery breath, and a jumping attack where he crashes down at Samus’ position. Once his health is depleted, the chase continues, forcing Samus to escape into Area 2. 	
The Roamer 	Area 2 	A giant, scuttling crustacean who was turned into a cyborg by the Space Pirates, guarding the entrance to the Chozo Ruins.During his battle, he scurries along the walls, ceiling and floor, periodically stopping to shoot a wide wave of spikes that bounce off the surfaces of the room. When lower on health, he may drop down from the ceiling to the floor to surprise the player. 	None
Ruins Guardian 	Area 2 	The mechanical guardian of the Chozo Ruins, consisting of a large Chozo statue built into the wall.The guardian attacks Samus with four different screen-filling laser formations. After she successfully avoids a formation, the guardian becomes open to attack. Each time, Samus will have to avoid one more of the patterns before she gets to attack, having to avoid all four of them in order to land the final hit. 	Varia Suit
Mecha-Metroid Gamma 	Area 3 	A robot designed after a Gamma Metroid. This robot is able to alternate between a floating mode and a ground-crawling, spider-like mode, which can also crawl up walls.While in the air, the robot can fire a wave of electric cutters, and shoot electric beams that fly horizontally, then aim downwards once they reach Samus’ position. He can also perform an arching dive attack.When on the ground, the robot will try to ram into Samus with a burst of electricity, and will more rarely fire a wave of electric shockwaves. Notably, his weak underside is out of reach when on the ground, so he can only be attacked in the air. 	None
Serris 	Area 3 	A giant sea serpent who attacks Samus from underneath a bridge over the water. Serris mainly attacks by lunging out from under the bridge, marked by bursts of water the moment before the lunge, then diving back down to attack again from above. Only attacks to his head will connect.After taking a few hits, Serris adds a new attack where he powers up with the Speed Booster, then quickly thrashes across the entire length of the bridge, forcing Samus to jump to avoid him. He will do this several times in a row at first, and will later mix this up with his main attack pattern.Even later in the fight, Serris adds another new attack where he summons a wall of geysers that burst across the battlefield from below, usually doing this two to three times in a row. 	Speed Booster
Satellite Spider Mech	Areas 4 and 5	Two copies of this area-scanning robot are fought in different areas, both times in a long hallway. The mech scuttles left and right, periodically jumping, and has two main attacks. The first is a spike ball from its cannon, bouncing along the ground. The second is a reflective laser fired into the air, which bounces off the floor and ceiling.Both of these mechs are immune to Samus' shots, so she needs to shoot the rocks on the ceiling to make them drop down and crush the mech. When low on health, the mech can use one of their attacks twice in a row, firing in both directions.The mech in Area 4 uses spiked balls more often and is more prone to jumping, while the mech in Area 5 uses lasers more often and is fought in a shorter hallway. 	Super Missile Tank
The Assassin 	Area 4 	A giant, winged insectoid who has been turned into a cyborg by the Space Pirates. Her battlefield is very tall, with three layers of leafy platforms that Samus can jump between, and a toxic swamp at the bottom that even the Varia Suit can’t negate.The Assassin mainly attacks by making several horizontal rushes across the battlefield, usually doing this several times in a row, forcing Samus to switch between layers of platforms to avoid them. She can also shoot a wave of homing missiles from the air, and can launch a spinning corkscrew lunge in Samus’ direction from any part of the battlefield, though she is vulnerable after the lunge.When her health is lower, the Assassin will add a new attack where she rushes vertically several times in a left-to-right fashion, forcing Samus to move to the very edge of the arena to avoid it. She may also chase after Samus’ position and attack in a ring around her with a sound wave. 	Screw Attack
Mini-Kraid 	Area 4 	A smaller copy of Omega-Kraid. He simply stands in place while shooting missiles, alternating between firing them forward at three elevations, and firing arching missiles that directly target Samus from above. 	None
Omega-Kraid 	Area 4 	A giant robot in the image of Kraid, a deceased leader of the Space Pirates. The fight starts with Omega-Kraid’s arm emerging from the ground, shooting reflective lasers from his palm.After enough hits, Omega-Kraid rises from the ground, with his head and chest now visible. He now fires waves of homing missiles, and will periodically hammer his arms into the ground, causing several pillars of earth to erupt from the ground.The only way to damage Omega-Kraid once he has emerged from the ground is to shoot his eyes, causing him to open his mouth, and fire into the mouth.When his health is low enough, Omega-Kraid rises to his full height, and a stack of platforms emerges, allowing Samus to reach the top of the room and attack his head again. However, Kraid will shoot missiles along these platforms from the three holes on his stomach, making it difficult to climb up.Once Samus reaches the top, Omega-Kraid continues to shoot homing missiles, and will also hammer the wall behind him, causing stalactites to fall from the ceiling. More rarely, he will fire an aimed laser beam from his eyes, though this can be interrupted by shooting him in the eyes. 	Breaks one of the locks to Area 6
The Crusher 	Area 5 	A large, eight-legged alien that was mechanised by the Space Pirates. Once Samus reaches the end of a long hallway, the Crusher will emerge and slowly chase after her, pushing her back to the start of the room. During the chase, she will have to avoid steam geysers that erupt from spots on the floor.Once Samus reaches the end of the room, the Crusher corners her, and begins to attack. He will alternate between pounding the ground, sending a large shockwave sliding forward, followed by lobbing a ball of ice that is aimed at Samus from above. Later on in the fight, he will attack at a faster rate, and may use the same attack three times in a row to fake the player out.In order to deal damage, Samus needs to grab the Crusher’s face with the Grapple Beam, then continue dodging attacks for long enough to pull him down with the grapple beam. This will smash his head against the ground, leaving it vulnerable to attacks. This cycle must be repeated roughly four times to defeat him. 	Plasma Beam
Alpha-Ridley (2nd) 	Area 5 	A giant robot in the image of Ridley, a deceased leader of the Space Pirates. After crashing down without warning, he attacks with a stream of fiery breath, then flies into the air. He has a wide arsenal of attacks, including crashing down from above, lowering to Samus’ position and rushing straight ahead, and using his pointed tail to stab the ground several times.Alpha-Ridley can also use his fire breath for several attacks, including firing a stream of it straight ahead, shooting a wave of fireballs from above, and firing bursts that cause columns of fire to erupt from the ground.Since Alpha-Ridley is often in the air and his tail blocks shots, he can be quite hard to reach. One strategy is to use the Grapple Beam on his tail, which forces him to the ground, though using regular attacks during his low-ground attacks is also viable.Once his health is low enough, Alpha-Ridley will grab Samus, fly into the air and attempt to charge his fire breath to deal heavy damage. However, Samus can prevent this by firing enough missiles into his mouth before he can get off the attack. He will do this a second time once his health is fully depleted, being defeated after Samus shoots him enough times. 	Breaks one of the locks to Area 6
Mecha-Metroid Zeta 	Area 6 	A robot designed after a Zeta Metroid. This robot stands guard directly in front of the gate to the Space Pirate fortress, and will attack mostly by walking around, jumping, and firing shockwaves from his hands. He can also shoot a ray of electricity in mid-air, which either electrocutes the floor for some time, or summons several vertical lightning bolts along the length of the room. 	None
Malachos 	Area 6 	The captain of the Space Pirates on ANEMO-75. Malachos starts the fight by hanging out in the background, leaving the work to his Space Pirates. Samus has to fight two Space Pirates at a time, who jump around and can shoot lasers straight ahead. Later on in the fight, laser cannons will emerge on the sides of the ceiling, restricting the player’s space. 	None
Mecha-Malachos 	Area 6 	After his crew fails him, Malachos rides a massive mech to fight Samus. Looming in the background, Malachos will attack by hammering his fist on the ground, sending shockwaves sliding along the ground, but leaving the fist vulnerable to attacks. Later on in the fight, he can use several fist slams in a row, and may even attack with both fists at once.In-between the fist slams, Malachos can use one of many laser attacks. He can fire four rays that revolve around the perimeter of the room, shoot a wave of lasers into the air that bounce off the walls and ceiling, or summon floating cannons that fire solid beams, covering the room in either a vertical or horizontal wall.Once his health is lower, Malachos adds a new attack where he charges up before engulfing the entire room with laser energy. In order to avoid them, Samus needs to use the Grapple Beam points that emerge across the room to escape to the top, out of his attack’s reach.After his health is depleted, Malachos hammers the ground with both hands, attempting to destroy the ground. Samus has to jump onto one of his hands with the Morph Ball, and use the Boost Ball to rush along the arm and into the core of the mech. Once inside the core, she has to continuously use Bombs until the mech is destroyed from the inside out. 	None
Machine Core 	Area 7 	The volcanic area of Area 7 ends with a large vertical shaft, filled with a series of lasers, gears and other obstacles that Samus has to avoid on the climb up. At the top of the shaft is a giant gear that fires a ring of continuously rotating beams, requiring Samus to Space Jump around the room to stay ahead of them.In order to deal damage, Samus needs to wait for the gear’s shield to go down, then use the Spider Ball to cling to the gear, enter one of the three hollows, and use Bombs once inside. After using bombs in all three hollows, the core is destroyed. 	None
Serris (2nd) 	Area 7 	A rematch against Serris, this time fought as Dominic. This plays out largely the same as the first fight, though Serris now starts with his patterns from the second phase of the first fight, and becomes even faster and more aggressive when low on health. 	Speed Booster (Dominic)
Mecha-Metroid Omega 	Area 7 	A robot designed after an Omega Metroid, fought soon after entering the mechanical tower. This robot fights similarly to the Mecha-Metroid Zeta, attacking mainly with jumping and shockwave projectiles. He can also shoot a flamethrower from his mouth, either to sweep an area in front or to shoot a wide wave of projectiles. 	None
Ultra-Malachos 	Area 7 	Malachos’ final form, achieved by merging with his own robots. Now sporting the wings of Alpha-Ridley, he starts by rapidly flying across the battlefield, making several horizontal rushes. He mainly attacks with flying rushes, tail strikes and barrages of electric fire, similarly to Alpha-Ridley, though he puts his own spin on each of these attacks. Like with Alpha-Ridley, he can be pulled down to the ground by using the Grapple Beam on his tail.As his health gets lower, Ultra-Malachos begins his second phase, shifting to a wingless mode that closer resembles Omega-Kraid. In this form, he alternates between a barrage of giant missiles that fly straight forward at differing elevations, followed by one of three attacks - wide waves of icy fireballs, electric explosions targeted at Samus’ position, or reflective green lasers.In his third and final phase, Malachos takes on a unique attack pattern. He will start by rushing several times across the screen, either vertically or horizontally. He then flies to the left side of the arena, where he charges up and causes a huge burst of electric fire around him. After doing this a second time on the right side, he flies to the centre and summons walls of solid lasers from above.Once his health has run out, Malachos makes a final stand against Samus, as they both fire a giant laser at each other. The player needs to continuously mash the B button in order to push Malachos’ laser back, allowing Samus to finally put an end to him.	None
==Difficulty==
There are four difficulties to choose from when starting up a game.
Easy 	
*Enemy attacks deal less damage.
*The first Missile Tank, Super Missile Tank and Power Bomb Tank each offer 10 units, while all future tanks are the same as on Medium.
*Certain boss attack patterns are altered to be easier.
*Time limits for escapes are extended.
Medium	
*Enemy attacks deal the usual damage.
*Missile Tanks offer 5 units, while Super Missile Tanks and Power Bomb Tanks offer 2 units each.
Hard 	
*Enemy attacks deal more damage.
*Missile, Super Missile and Power Bomb Tanks are the same as on Normal.
*Some Hatches become unusable or changed to different types, forcing different routes.
*Certain boss attack patterns are altered to be more challenging.
*Time limits for escapes are reduced.
Expert	Unlocked by completing a game with 100% of the collectibles.
*Samus’ health is halved, only having 50 per health bar, but enemies do the same damage they would on Medium. Health restoration is also halved.
*Missile Tanks offer 3 units, while Super Missile Tanks and Power Bomb Tanks only offer 1 unit each.
*Other changes from Hard also apply.
==Endings==
After the credits, the player gets to see one of several art pieces, depending on how they performed in the game. One these endings are unlocked, they can be viewed from the gallery in the main menu.
Ending 1 	Shows Samus in her Gunship, posing in her full Chrome Suit. Unlocked by completing the game in more than six hours.
Ending 2 	Shows Samus having just left her Gunship, without her helmet. Unlocked by completing the game in three to six hours.
Ending 3 	Shows Samus off-duty in a city, wearing everyday clothes. Unlocked by completing the game in less than three hours.
Ending 4 	Shows Samus and Dominic giving each other a handshake in the Gunship, in their respective suits without helmets. Unlocked by completing the game with 100% collectibles.
Ending 5 	Shows Samus and Dominic off-duty, talking together in a city, and both wearing everyday clothes. Unlocked by completing the game with 100% collectibles and in less than three hours.
Ending 6 	Shows Samus in a uniquely stylised, anime poster-esque format, wearing her Chrome Suit without the helmet and charging up her beam. Unlocked by completing the game with less than 15% collectibles.
Ending 7 	Shows Samus and Dominic in a uniquely stylised, anime poster-esque format, both helmetless and charging their main weapons. Unlocked by completing the game with less than 15% collectibles, and in less than three hours.
Ending 8 	Shows Samus and Cessile in Area 1, having returned to a now-peaceful ANEMO-75. Unlocked by completing the game on Expert.
Ending 9 	Shows Samus and Cessile in the latter’s lab in Area 2, with Samus wearing everyday clothes and watching Cessile researching something on a computer, appearing to be fascinated. Unlocked by completing the game on Expert, in less than three hours.
Ending 10	Shows Samus, Dominic and Cessile in a city, with Samus and Dominic both wearing everyday clothes. Unlocked by completing the game on Expert, with 100% collectibles.
Ending 11	Shows Samus, Dominic, Cessile and Malachos in the same stylised anime-poster style as Endings 6 and 7, with this being the most poster-esque. Samus and Dominic are both helmetless. Unlocked by completing the game on Expert, with less than 15% collectibles.
Ending 12	Shows Samus posing in her Zero Suit, in front of several defeated bosses. Unlocked by completing Boss Rush.
==Minigames==
Minigames can be accessed from their own menu.
Gunship Flight	A multiplayer minigame that can be played with up to four players locally, or eight players online.The players play as differently coloured Gunships. The players have to shoot down aliens and asteroids in space, while avoiding the bullets that they fire. If a player is hit by an attack, they will respawn after a few seconds, but will receive a point penalty. Points are earned for destroying enemies, and the player with the most points at the end of the course wins.
Murder Mystery	A multiplayer minigame that can be played with up to four players locally, or eight players online.The players play as differently coloured Space Pirates. One player has committed a murder - that player may attack other players during periodic blackouts. The players who are not assigned to be the murderer have to guess who the murderer is through three rounds of guessing.
Boss Rush 	Unlocked by completing the main game. Boss Rush can only be played with one player.The player has to contend with all of the major bosses in the main game in quick succession. There are thirteen boss fights in total, and Samus has access to all of her upgrades, though the early bosses have more health to compensate. After every three fights, Samus will enter a healing room that partly restores her health.
==References==
The following are references made to past Metroid games in Planet Protector.
*Metroid: Zero Mission: The game comes pre-packaged with a port of Zero Mission. Additionally, the Ruins Guardian fought in Area 2 seems to be a reference to Zero Mission’s Ruins Test.
*Metroid II: Return of Samus: The various forms of Mecha-Metroids are based on the Metroid forms fought in Metroid II.
*Metroid Fusion: Serris, the boss of Sector 4 in Metroid Fusion, returns as a major boss in Planet Protector.
*Metroid Prime: The areas of ANEMO-75 may be a reference to the areas of Tallon IV in Metroid Prime, with a desert, swamp, snowy area, volcanic area and underwater area. Additionally, the beam-switching mechanic and the two Morph Ball modes were directly lifted from Prime.
*Metroid Prime 3: Corruption: Much like in Prime 3, bounty hunters other than Samus are present, with the introduction of Dominic.
*Metroid: Other M: The scientist Cessile may be a reference to Madeline and Melissa Bergmann from Other M.
==Trivia==
*According to the game files and an interview with the developers, there were plans for a remake of Metroid II: Return of Samus to be packaged as a side mode in this game. However, this plan was scrapped, as Metroid 2 would be given a full-scale standalone remake with Metroid: Samus Returns. Instead, the side mode was changed to a port of Metroid: Zero Mission.
**Several scrapped assets from the Metroid 2 remake are present in the final game, such as the inclusion of the Spider Ball. The Mecha-Metroids are widely believed to be made with recycled code from the Metroids in Metroid 2.
*As confirmed by the Metroid timeline, Planet Protector takes place in the Galactic Year 2080. It is not specified whether this is before or after Metroid: Other M, since that game is not listed on the most recent timeline, though fans agree that it takes place after Other M.
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