With a release date of August 27, 2007 in America and October 26, 2007 (that's my birthday, by the way) in Europe, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is one of the most highly anticipated games for the Wii console. Being developed by Retro Studios and to be released by Nintendo, fans of the Metroid series will not be disappointed with this latest installment in the adventures of Samus Aran. Like its two predecessors, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption promises to be a huge success.

The story picks up six months after the events of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. The Galactic Federation's network computer, Aurora Unit, is corrupted by a virus and very nearly brought down. Believing that the Space Pirates are responsible for the virus, the Federation contacts the bounty hunters, including our favorite lady. While informing the hunters of the situation, the Federation finds itself under attack. As Samus and her fellow hunters rush to defend, they discover their enemy is none other than Dark Samus, who apparently survived her last confrontation with her counterpart. Though Samus and the other bounty hunters put up a good fight, they are ultimately defeated and corrupted with the mysterious material Phazon. Because of this, the Galactic Federation outfits them with Phazon Enhancement Devices (PEDs), which allows them to take advantage of their corruption to enhance their abilites. After learning to use the enhancement, called Hypermode, Samus sets off after her evil twin, who has begun to seed other planets with Phazon.

Gameplay is simple yet effective. Players control Samus in first-person, using the Wii Remote to aim her arm cannon and the Nunchuk to move, as well as use the grappling beam. The player can choose either to use the A button or B trigger to fire, while the remaining button is used to jump. In addition to the X-Ray Visor and the Scan Visor, Samus is also equipped with the Command Visor, which is used to remotely control Samus's ship. By holding down the minus button and flicking the remote left, right, or up, players can switch to each of the three visors. Also, you can lock on to enemies by holding down the Z button. However, there is one option that allows you to lock on to enemies while still being able to manually aim with the Wiimote. Pressing 1 opens up the map, options, and logbook screens. The substance Phazon plays a large part in the game.

Thanks to the Federation's PED, Samus can use her Phazon corruption to greatly enhance her abilities. When Samus's Phazon meter is full, she can enter Hypermode by pressing the plus button. While in this state, Samus can perform a variety of amazing feats and attacks. On the downside, you must keep an eye on Samus's Corruption meter. If it reaches 100 percent, the game is over. Unfortunately, online play will not available for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Apparently due to Retro Studios' limited resources, they decided to focus on making a great single-player experience instead of making a mediocre multi-player aspect for Metroid Prime 3. Also different from the previous Metroid Prime games is the weapons system. In Metroid Prime 3, Samus's weapons will now stack. As she acquires more weapons, they will stack on top of each other, becoming more powerful while keeping their inherent abilities.

With a new, innovative control system, playing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption will be an amazing experience for everyone. Long time fans of the series will find the this third installment as good if not better than the previous and newcomers will easily slip into the game without a hitch. All in all, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is a great end to the Metroid Prime trilogy and well worth the wait.