Metroid Prime 4 is finally set to release later this year across Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. First announced at E3 2017, the project has endured mass delays and even restarted development under Retro Studios.

Via Kiwi Talkz, a content creator with a background in interviewing Retro Studios employees, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has been the most expensive game in the series, and has become Nintendo’s most expensive first-party game ever.

“Prime 1 cost about $10 million dollars to make,” they explained in a post on Twitter. “Prime 4 is costing about $100 million to make.”

According to the interviewer, this means that Metroid Prime 4 has a massive target to hit if it wants to make any profit with the game needing to sell “between 4.5 – 5 million [copies] to break even.”

This would mean that the upcoming game would need to be the best-selling game in the series by a considerable margin. The best-selling game in the franchise is currently Metroid Dread which sold just over 3 million copies on the original Nintendo Switch. However, as a cross-gen title with strong Switch 2 enhancements, this could be a major holiday hit for Nintendo.

Nintendo never reveals the exact budgets of its first-party releases, but the studio is known for having smaller budgets for first-party games compared to the high AAA costs of its console rivals. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has been estimated to cost around $70 million due to its long development time. For example, Insomniac Games’ Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 cost PlayStation $315 million according to an internal leak.

Even with Metroid Prime 4: Beyond’s reported budget, Retro Studio’s upcoming adventure is still significantly cheaper than most AAA games. 

Metroid Prime 4 is set to release across Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 on December 4, 2025. The game targets 1080p 60fps on the original hardware in Docked Mode, and 2160p 60fps on the Switch 2 with a 120fps mode for those who want to prioritise performance.