I'm all for Samus having a voice, Link on the other hand I feel completely different about

I-do-not-like-her-voice. It-sounds-too-much-like-a-robotic-lightning. I-SOISOISOISOI!

Well actually, the Varia Suit has been in 90% of the Metroid games, including Metroid 1 on the Nes, Metroid 2, and Super Metroid.  It's just the name of the power up that gives Samus the big shoulder thing-a-majigs and makes the armor stronger/cooler looking.  She got some sort of Metroid DNA Armor in Metroid Fusion, and Phazon Armor (and some other armors I'm afraid I can't think of atm) in the Prime Series. 

The Varia suit has tended to be the default since Metroid Prime 2, though with Other M they might be going back to Super Metroid's system. The whole problem started with the Game Boy being Black and White, given that the default suit and all suits were shoulder-less in Metroid, merely palate-swapping. Metroid II had to change the shape to make a difference, but then in Super Metroid they decided to stick with that look as the default, but go back to palate-swapping.

Fusion is an outlier, given that we don't know if she can re-acquire a normal suit, or if we'll ever see that happen (though i bet if Other M takes off, Sakamoto will be given license to do a proper Metroid 5)

I welcome Samus talking

i have a lot of complaints about what i've seen for metroid other m....samus voice acting is not one of them.  i actually welcome that addition, it's just about everything else i'm not so happy about.

I looking to forward to Other M and the voice acting should be good. Team Ninja X Nintendo, I think they know what they're doing.

I have to admit that I wasn't exactly sold on Pit's voice when I first heard it, but it does seem to fit the look of the Kid.  I don't mind some things being voiceless-like Link for instance.  It'll be nearly impossible to find a good voice for him aside from his grunts and huffs.  But then, Link was a different character than Samus and Mario--oftentimes, Link was supposed to be us--the gamer.  Not a character we control, but a character we are and in that sense, it makes sense to leave him quiet--as they did with other "we are them" characters such as in Fallout 3 or the Bioshock titles. 

Samus, though, has identity and arguably the most flesh-out storyline of any other Nintendo character given that so many Mario and Zelda games are little more than the same rehashed plotline over and over again.  I know Mario games are mostly for the joy of gaming (everyone knows that), but seriously, it wouldn't be that damn hard to give Bowser a little more to do than just kidnap the princess over and over.  If only Mario and Donkey Kong hadn't essentially become buddies over the years.  The could do something with Bowser teaming up with DK.  I guess there's still Wario...

Anyway, I've always felt that the voice in Super Metroid was that of Samus.  And it's probably kept unverified if that is her to still have some meaning to revealing Samus as a woman at the end of the game.  Now we all know for sure, but even during the SNES era, there seemed to be this idea of not revealing that right off the bat. 

Overall, though, I think that voice acting is worthwhile and an important part of video games these days.  I loved it in Transformers: War for Cybertronl.  Every other game has it these days, and if Nintendo continues to ignore it altogether, they're going to continue to look like, in some aspects, they are unwilling to move forward.  Keep the characters quiet where it makes sense, but let them talk sometimes.  No other Nintendo character has had as many narrations or inner monologues as Samus.  Might as well be accepting of her talking, so long as it's integrated into the game smoothly and without turning into a movie where we push buttons for a few seconds between countless several-minute-long cinematics. 

Nintendo has always been known for killer gameplay, and games with amazing graphical flair.  Why must their sound always be such a secondary, or tertiary concern?  It's like they were fine to keep playing midi music in their games until Super Mario Galaxy.  Scratch that, aside from Slippy, the audio in the original StarFox64--music and all--was phenominal.  Easily my favorite N64 soundtrack.  And with all the voice work, the game seemed that much more "alive" and interactive. 

No, because not everyone think she didn't have  a soul, especially not for a stupid reason like that.

Power Suit and Varia Suit have different sprites in Super Metroid. It's the Gravity Suit that's the palette swap of the Varia.

Anyways I see the opposition to voice acting as more whiny internet drama. Samus has been speaking since 1994 - it just happens that she didn't get a voice until now, but it's pretty obvious that the series has been moving in this direction. This isn't any different from the small faction of vocal fanbrats that whine about some aspect of every Metroid since Super.