Metroid Prime Glitch Discovered Decades Later: How a GameCube Idle Animation Triggers Gunship Drift

Years after its landmark debut, a newly surfaced glitch in Metroid Prime shines a spotlight on the meticulous animation systems that underpin Nintendo’s most iconic franchises.

Originally developed by Retro Studios and released for the Nintendo GameCube in November 2002, Metroid Prime remains one of the most celebrated first-person action-adventures in video game history, known for redefining the Metroid series in a bold and immersive 3D format. Despite the game’s critical success and enduring popularity among fans, it appears that Metroid Prime continues to hold secrets nearly two decades after launch.

Recently, a Reddit user named angelar_—who described experiencing bouts of insomnia—stumbled upon a curious discovery.

During late-night play sessions in which they repeatedly left the game’s prologue area running unattended, the user noticed Samus Aran’s gunship gradually drifting from its initial starting position.

Over several hours, the ship managed to breach the boundaries of its launch platform, an anomaly that had seemingly evaded detection for years. After conducting further tests to verify this phenomenon, the Reddit community delved into the specifics of how such a drift could occur.

One contributor, commenting under the handle antidotecrk, detailed the probable cause with a deep dive into animation rigging.

According to their explanation, Metroid Prime leverages a dual-root system for each rig: a world root, which anchors the actor, and a character-specific root, labeled Skeleton_Root.

This setup is essential for animators to create dynamic cinematic sequences without disturbing an actor's overall position.

However, if the world root subtly shifts during each loop of an idle animation, the cumulative effect—after hours of runtime—can move the object within the build environment.

In this case, Samus’ gunship’s idle cycles minutely advance it forward, resulting in the observed drift. The phenomenon caught further attention when users noted that other titles, such as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, have encountered similar issues with idle animations causing unintended movement over time.

The technical findings were corroborated by GameXplain, a prominent YouTube channel specializing in game analysis, who conducted their own experiments on the original GameCube hardware.

Their results confirmed the gunship drift in Metroid Prime, validating the discovery across independent playthroughs and adding to the game’s storied legacy. Since its release, Metroid Prime has achieved significant sales milestones, been ported and reimagined for subsequent platforms, and continues to generate discussion in gaming communities and Nintendo Direct events.

Retro Studios’ precision in design and attention to animation detail is widely regarded, and even this unintended glitch highlights the intricate complexity behind the scenes.

As more players revisit classic titles through the Nintendo eShop or original hardware, longstanding franchises like Metroid are remastered not just through updates, but through the ongoing curiosity and engagement of their global fanbase.

Metroid Prime GameCube Nintendo Retro Studios GameXplain Reddit The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess