Editing Ice Beam

|location=*[[Brinstar]] <small>(''Metroid'')</small>

*[[Norfair]] <small>(''Zero Mission'' and ''Super Metroid'')</small>

*[[Antechamber]] - [[Chozo Ruins]] <small>(''Prime'')</small>

*[[Main Deck]] <small>(''Fusion'')</small>

|authorized= [[Sector 3 (Pyrosphere)]]

|properties=Capable of Freezing most enemies

|combo=*[[Ice Spreader]] <small>(''Metroid Prime'')</small>

*[[Ice Shield]] <small>(''Super Metroid'')</small>

The '''Ice Beam''' is a weapon which has been used regularly by [[Samus Aran]], absent only in ''[[Metroid Prime 2: Echoes]]'', ''[[Metroid Prime Hunters]]'', and ''[[Metroid Prime 3: Corruption]]''. In the games it appears, it is a pivotal weapon when fighting [[Metroid (species)|Metroid]]s since the most effective way of defeating them is freezing them. The Ice Beam was created by the [[Chozo]] according to the official Metroid Prime website and inferences hinted in ''Metroid Prime'' and the [[Metroid Manga]].  

In the original [[Metroid (game)|''Metroid'']], Samus was able to choose between the [[Wave Beam]] and the Ice Beam but was unable to defeat Metroids without the latter. In ''[[Metroid: Zero Mission]]'', Samus obtains both the Wave Beam and Ice Beam. Like its original counterpart, it is necessary to defeat the Metroids. In both games, the Ice Beam is also used for freezing enemies then using them as platforms. This is usually helpful if not necessary to obtain [[Suit Expansion|certain expansions]].

===''Prime'' series===

In the ''[[Metroid Prime (series)|Prime]]'' series, it appears only in ''Metroid Prime'', although the other games have some sort of substitute for it. The original ''Prime'' introduces the Ice Beam to the third dimension. It is obtained in the [[Chozo Ruins|Chozo Ruins']] [[Antechamber]]. The Ice Beam configuration on the [[Arm Cannon]] constantly looses a frigid aura. The beam shoots white shots of a low-temperature substance. These shots fired are slower than any other beams in the game. Enemies damaged by this weapon can be slowed or, if enough damage has been dealt, frozen completely. Completely frozen enemies cannot move and can be shattered with a single [[Missile]]. Some enemies, such as bosses or well-shielded enemies, cannot be frozen.

''[[Metroid Prime 2: Echoes]]'' instead has the [[Dark Beam]], similarly shaped to ''Prime's'' Ice Beam, which can encase enemies in dark matter. Enemies encased in this dark matter cannot move and can be destroyed with a [[Missile]].

The Ice Beam was absent in ''Metroid Prime Hunters'', which features a similar weapon known as the [[Judicator]]. The Judicator is the [[Affinity Weapon]] of the [[Bounty Hunter|bounty hunter]] [[Noxus]]. This weapon shoots plasma at sub-zero temperatures.

 

''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption'' also lacked an Ice Beam but did have [[Ice Missile]]s. These Missiles could freeze enemies. Unlike earlier ''Prime'' games, a frozen enemy cannot be shattered with a Missile. To the contrary, Missiles are deflected from a frozen body. They can, however, be shattered with a [[Charge Beam|Charged shot]]. The Ice Missiles can also be used with the [[Seeker Missile]] [[upgrade]] to launch multiple Ice Missiles at once.

The Ice Beam appears relatively early in ''Metroid II: Return of Samus''. It is unchanged in ability in the game. However, its projectiles appear to have spiked edges.

The Ice Beam also appeared in ''Super Metroid''. Here, Samus could also freeze enemies for platform use. The upgrade is located in the first area of Norfair, and the [[Speed Booster]] is required to gain access. Fortunately, unlike the predecessors, the Ice Beam upgrade increases damage caused to enemies, and only freezes them when they have taken enough damage. Frozen enemies, curiously, could not be Speed Boosted through.

Authorized in [[Sector 3 (Pyrosphere)|Pyrosphere]], the Ice Beam can freeze small enemies. Adam authorizes the weapon while Samus battles enhanced [[Zebesian]]s and other enemies with increased shielding capabilities. The upgrade is required to defeat many bosses in ''Other M''. Aside from its increased power, the freezing ability of the Ice Beam becomes useful. It is also required to bypass certain obstructions, such as freezing a platform in place. Unlike other games, frozen enemies cannot be used as platforms, but the weapon does set some enemies up for an [[Overblast]] or a [[Lethal Strike]]. Also unlike other games, frozen enemies fall due to gravity instead of staying in place. Most freezable enemies are only partially freezable; that is, only a section of their bodies is frozen. For example, [[Dessgeega]] are frozen only at the legs, and [[Zebesian]]s' claws are frozen shut.

===Other===

====''Metroid: Other M'' Freeze Gun====

[[File:Brug Mass 2.jpg|thumb|right|180px|The Freeze Gun in use]]

In ''Other M'', aside from Samus's Ice Beam, the [[Galactic Federation 07th Platoon]] is armed with notable [[Freeze Gun]]s. These guns are vital to the plot's advancement. They are used to defeat the game's first boss, [[Brug Mass]]. It appears later in the game as well, saving [[Anthony Higgs|Higgs']] life and causing the deaths of [[Maurice Favreau]] and [[K.G. Misawa]]. [[Madeline Bergman]] also uses one to freeze [[MB]], albeit reluctantly.

====''Metroid Fusion''====

In ''Metroid Fusion'', the Ice Beam only appears under Samus's control in the cutscene starting the game and the very end of those events. Throughout the game, it is under the [[SA-X|SA-Xs']] control, due to it having [[X Parasite|mimicked]] Samus while she had it in her arsenal. At the end of the game, once Samus defeats a SA-X and its mutant form on the [[Main Deck]], its X escapes. However, once Samus reaches the [[Omega Metroid]], she absorbs the SA-X, returning her previous Ice Beam capabilities to her. Strangely, Samus was told that she would be unable to regain the Ice Beam functionality due to her changed cellular structure, as her DNA changed to resemble that of a Metroid, and Metroids are vulnerable to extreme cold.

Ice Missiles also appeared in ''Fusion''. These Missiles can, like other ice-based weaponry, freeze enemies. Frozen enemies can, again, be used as platforms. There is an upgrade to these Missiles known as the [[Diffusion Missile]]. This Missile upgrade allows Samus to charge her Missiles. Upon release a circle of a freezing medium will appear throughout the area. This weapon is necessary to defeat the SA-X.

==See Also==

*[[Ice Shield]]