Metroid Prime 4 Job Listing Hints at a More Organic Setting than Metroid Dread

gamerant.com:

Having originally announced it back in 2019, Nintendo and Retro Studios' Metroid Prime 4 is still deep in development, and the developer's recent job listing states that the studio is now looking for an Environment Terrain Artist to work on organic assets. While precious little is known about the next Prime title, some tidbits of information have been gleaned from the available materials.

Judging by this particular job listing, Metroid Prime 4 may well end up being a far cry from the franchise's previous flagship title, Metroid Dread. Namely, Retro Studios needs an Environment Artist that would produce «various organic props» for the game, including (but not limited to) rocks, cliffs, trees, and various assorted foliage, which paints a stark comparison with Dread specifically, by the looks of it.

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Specifically, it seems that Retro Studios is hoping to nab an established and experienced Environment Artist, as the team needs someone that's already worked on prop generation for other projects, preferably an artist that has shipped «one high quality game,» according to the listing. Retro Studios wants to see a strong portfolio that demonstrates terrain composition expertise, as the artist would seemingly work on forested areas or, perhaps, even jungles. Though Nintendo is quiet about Metroid Prime 4, this listing may be taken to interpret that the game takes place in a rougher, less artificial environment than was the case with Dread.

The listing may also suggest that Metroid Prime 4 isn't coming out anytime soon, as asset creation takes a good long while to spin up. Doubly so in the case of hiring a new artist who would, presumably, also