RPGamers Network > Reviews > Game Reviews > Front Mission III

Game Stats
Genre RPG
Platform PlayStation
Format CD-ROM
# of Players 1
Released Jap 09.09.1999
Released US 03.22.2000
Released EU 07.05.2000
Aprox. Length 40-140 hrs.
Reviewer Rankings
Battle System 9.0
Gameplay 9.0
Music 9.0
Originality 8.0
Plot 9.0
Replay Value 9.0
Sound 10.0
Visuals 9.0
Difficulty Medium
Overall
9.0

Front Mission III

By: Square

Reviewed By: S3KI

Ah... the lost art of Mecha Destruction. Will we ever get tired of such games? I seriously doubt it. It's always such fun, blowing things up. What's more, this game is pretty much just FFT in Mechas. And it's so sweet.

The highlight of the game is of course fighting. And lots of fighting there is to be had in this game. While trying to uncover a mysterious government plot, you get caught. A lot. So you hop in your handy-dandy giant wanzer and kick some evil G-Men ass. The battle system, which seems easy enough at first to grasp, has a lot in it's core. The customization is probably the largest factor, enabling one to build and rebuild his or her wanzer after every battle - and it's usually quite necessary. Because many parts aren't "god" parts, you usually have to find the part that is optimized for a certain aspect, say for long range fighting, you wouldn't want a shotgun, but instead maybe a missile launcher.

Within the game itself features over 100 battle scenes and 2 different scenarios which sort of weave around each other giving a familiar feel should you play the second scenario, but also juicing up that much needed replay value.

The gameplay is rather simple. The scenes in between battles usually feature a picture of a backdrop and the lines above; no people. Too much of the game went into the battle engine. But it works well, it's more like an artistic affect, really, rather than a cutback.

A quick, short note on one of the highlights in this game. There is a feature, outside of battle mode, called the "Network." It's the games private world wide web, and it's really cool. It lets you visit sites about the companies you're fighting, home pages of your friends, and so on; A very original and key element to the game.

The music is a strange blend between techno and dark classical music, creating for some interesting and fitting songs. It's done by the Koji Hayama and Hayato Mastuo team, and the quality is very much on par with the current synthesizer capabilities.

The sounds are quite good, engrossing you fully in the game. The bang of shotguns, grinding of wanzers as the trudge across the cement, the whine of the helicopted engine... all replicated here for you.

The battle scene visuals are on the cutting edge for the Playstation, and each bullet fired explodes when it hits its target, although unfortunately there are no FMVs. But you don't really miss them; FMVs are most often just for showing off anyhow, and the story is too intense to bother with such theatrics. ^_^

The Final Word:
What can I say? Great music, dark and intriguing plot, fun characters, amazing battle system... what more do you want? If you like Tactical RPGs, you need this game!

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