Grapple Beam
From Wikitroid, the Metroid wiki
The Grapple Beam was one of Samus Aran's many weapons. It first appeared in Super Metroid though that version was called the Grappling Beam. The Grappling Beam was used to latch onto certain surfaces, giving Samus some new maneuvers such as swinging from the ceiling. Notably, the Grapple Beam can be used to kill Draygon quickly by grabbing one of the electrified surfaces while in the grip of the boss. It can damage enemies directly, though due to its range and firing speed, it is impractical for this function, although it works very well against Mochtroids. It can also be used to open Blue Doors.
Since Super Metroid, the Grappling Beam has appeared in Super Smash Bros., Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl as Samus' throw, and in Melee, one could use it to hang from ledges (or attack in the air). When Brawl was released, it was made into a simpler to use Tether Recovery (as opposed to requiring a precise aim).
It has also appeared in Metroid Prime, where the Grapple Beam was primarily used to get across long distances. Samus was able to shoot while swinging on it in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, while Metroid Prime 3: Corruption uses it to pull barriers from doors and shields from Pirates (Grapple Lasso), and later on, siphon and feed energy to and from certain devices (Grapple Voltage), using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk.
In Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, there are four Grapple Beam-related powerups:
Somewhat notably, in all of the 3D Metroid games, the Grapple Beam was no longer fired from the Arm Cannon like the Grappling Beam. Instead, a second firing piece, or a glove of sorts (in Prime 3) was used (both on her left hand). This is likely to make it more real-looking, make more use of Samus' free hand, and/or to free up the Arm Cannon for shooting in the sequels (Prime disabled the cannon while swinging).
[edit] Note
The Grapple Swing is the game's name for the traditional Grapple Beam power-up, except in Corruption, where it is a separate power up (due to the new upgradable "glove") that allows Samus to swing from Grapple Points.
Samus's gunship also gains a Ship Grapple power-up, that gives Samus the ability to transport various large objects by having her Gunship fly in and grapple them via the ship-mounted Grapple Beam.
[edit] Trivia
- In the Super Smash Bros. series, the Arm Cannon's Grappling Beam is used, as in Super Metroid. This was not changed even in Super Smash Bros. Brawl despite the creation of the Grapple Beam in the the Metroid Prime series.
[edit] Gallery
 The Grapple Beam is used in Prime. |
 The Grapple Beam is used in Echoes. |
 The Grapple Swing is used in Corruption. |
