After five years of relative peace, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond finally resurfaced during this year’s Nintendo Direct. The stunning trailer set the tone for atmospheric music, hostile fresh environments, and a slew of space pirates for intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran to crush into oblivion. In write to X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Retro Studios lead UI artist Jon Wofford detailed the process behind the revamped UI design for Samus — the view players will see through her visor for most of the game.
In ArtStation’s caption for a screenshot of the HUD from the trailer, Wofford explained that his “goal was to create a modern update to the visor that pays homage to the legacy of Metroid Prime.” The result is a more minimalist, line-art-style look compared to how the HUD looked in Metroid Prime Remastered (though since it was a remaster, it was an update to the HUD’s appearance that didn’t change its technical layout).
Of course, the best UI elements fit seamlessly into the world and don’t even seem noticeable, as Wofford says noted in response to his post on X: “I think the trailer also does a good job of showing that the HUD shouldn’t have to bother competing with the amazing environments, characters, lighting, animation, visual effects… I’m constantly in awe of the talent of this team.”
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Photo: Retro Studios/Nintendo
It’s pretty crazy to think that behind every single part of the game is a designer — or several — working to make each element come together to form a coherent picture of what, in this case, is a fresh entry in a long-running, sophisticated sci-fi world. Wofford describes his collaborators as “real wizards” on his Artstation, which is fine.
