You’ll get coaxed into turning bounty hunter Samus Aran into a compact, slippy metal Morph Ball shortly after you start the new Metroid Prime Remastered, quickly forcing you to dodge churning, red lava pits and obnoxiously buzzing bombers by rolling around them. This basic bowling ball movement becomes complex as you fight your way through the ruined planet Tallon IV, elaborated on by extensive upgrades, hidden pathways, and new movements to master.
Read More: “13 Things I Wish I Knew Before Starting Metroid Prime Remastered”
It can take a second to get a hang of all of it. You might find yourself getting angry at all things spherical, even the cherished Cocoa Puffs in your cabinet. But don’t stress, because we’ve put together a guide of everything you need to know about mastering Prime’s Morph Ball and Boost ball upgrades—go ahead and read it. You’ll feel better.
What are all the Morph Ball upgrades (and where can I find them)?
Though you get a taste for the armadillo life in Remastered’s tutorial section, like most of Samus’ helpful Power Suit modifications, the Morph Ball is promptly blasted away from you in an explosion. Don’t feel too bad about it, though. You’ll reunite with the Morph Ball soon, and you’ll get to improve upon it, too.
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Here’s the entire list of available upgrades and where you can find them:
- Morph Ball (the standard Ball form, found in the Chozo Ruins, Ruined Shrine)
- Morph Ball Bombs (Chozo Ruins, Burn Dome)
- Boost Ball (Phendrana Drifts, Phendrana Canyon)
- Spider Ball (Phendrana Drifts, Quarantine Cave)
- Power Bomb (Phazon Mines, Central Dynamo)
How do I get the Boost Ball in Metroid Prime Remastered?
You receive the Morph Ball’s first significant upgrade after you kick the game’s fourth boss, mutant mantis Flaahgra, in the butt in the Chozo Ruins. You’ll acquire the Varia Suit after this encounter, which will let you traverse the boiling Magmoor Caverns, which will lead you to the chilly Phendrana Drifts.
From the Phendrana Shorelines, look to your right to find a door halfway sunken into the ground. Scan it and open it with one of your missiles, then scan the station inside. This unlocks the door above it—exit the station, then hop up the set of snow-dusted cliffs to reach it.
Continue through the next series of rooms until you make it to the Plaza Walkway, which leads out to a vantage point along the Phendrana Shorelines. Head left through the door, then through the next room’s door on the right, then through the hallway it leads to. You’ll have made it to Phendrana Canyon.
Jump down to eventually find a scannable post on your right. Scan it, then cross the platforms it triggered. You’ll find the Boost Ball when you reach the end of them.
What’s the best way to go up a half-pipe with the Boost Ball?
The Boost Ball upgrade gives Samus short rushes of speed, which you can leverage into scaling steep half-pipes like you’re playing Tony Hawk’s Underground all of a sudden. The motion takes some getting used to, especially when it comes to building enough momentum to actually reach the tall ledges at the top of half-pipes.
My best advice is to practice moving your left stick back and forth across a half-pipe, charge your boost when you’re at the bottom before you’ve taken the curve up one of the sides, and release B near the middle. Do this repeatedly without the expectation that you’ll make the jump. Try not to overthink it. You’ll notice yourself building a rhythm for it.
Naturally, your rhythm will help you gain speed, and you’ll actually make the jump.
Where do I go after I get the Boost Ball?
Up the half-pipe, naturally. Trial by fire! Or, actually, by a tunnel of ice.
After you grab the Boost Ball, drop down into the Canyon onto the curving blue ice. Your goal is to fly up the sides to make it onto the ledge on your right. Try the tips above. Some people swear by boosting and releasing in a faster burst right at the bottom of a curve, too.
Did you know you can now jump with the Morph Ball?
Did you? You couldn’t in the original Metroid Prime, but the Wii Metroid Prime: Trilogy allowed you to. Remastered does too, so long as you’ve already collected the Morph Ball Bombs upgrade. Press X and be free!
