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An excellent science-fiction-themed strategy game with
role-playing elements, Front Mission 3 is the first installment
of the popular Japanese series to make it stateside. In a future
where giant robots known as "Wanzers" are the war machines of
choice, you are cast as a civilian test pilot who gets swept up
in an international conspiracy surrounding a weapon of
mass destruction. The majority of the storytelling occurs via cut
scenes and menu-driven "event" screens, with the game's
"network"--a virtual computer that simulates Web and e-mail,
among other things--providing additional background information
and character interaction.
Front Mission 3 features a rich battle system that makes the game
easy to learn but hard to put down. The different models of
Wanzers can be used "as is" or modified to change their
appearance, capabilities, and equipment; since a Wanzer and its
pilot are controlled as one unit in battle, the pilot's battle
skills and experience come into play when pairing them off during
pre-battle setup. Pilots can, however, eject from Wanzers during
battle and board unoccupied ones, or even fight on their own,
David and Goliath style. Battles are turn-based and take place in
3-D isometric environments, which can be rotated to provide a
better perspective. When combat occurs, the viewpoint changes to
close-ups shown from various camera angles. While the battles are
relatively short, Front Mission 3 makes up for their brevity with
quantity, packing well over 100 hours of highly addictive
gameplay on its one disc. --Joe Hon
Pros:
* Topnotch turn-based strategy battles
* Intriguing storyline filled with melodrama and plot twists
* Highly stylized art design
* "Double feature" scenario adds replay value Cons:
* Some "network" features are more trouble than they're worth
From the Manufacturer
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Using a turn-based combat system; the player controls giant
fighting robots called "wanzers" in order to fulfill mission
objectives or to defeat foes in mechanical warafre. Robots can be
continually upgraded by purchasing or scavenging new weapons/
armor/ computers/ ect. This game takes a new approach to
increasing the depth of the game creating the Double Feature
Scenario which allows the player to choose one of two completely
different character viewpoint within the same general plot of the
game.
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Review
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Ironically, the first game in the Front Mission trilogy to
arrive in North America may actually be the best one to introduce
the series to a new audience. This strategy-simulation game
features cool mech designs, an intricate plot, involving
characters, and gameplay suited for both hard-core and casual
gamers. The story takes place in the year 2112, ten years after
Front Mission Second. You play as Kazuki Takemura, a student at a
technical high school, as well as a test pilot for Kirishima
Industries. He and his friend Ryogo Kusama are delivering new war
machines, called Wanzers, to a base located in Yokosuka
when a mysterious explosion leads both characters into an
unexpected turn of events. You navigate through the story with
command windows that let you talk to different characters, move
from one location to another, surf the Net, purchase supplies to
equip your Wanzers. Between stories, you go through several
missions where you will take your characters and their respective
Wanzers onto the battlefield. The battlefield takes the format of
orthodox strategy-simulation games, implementing a rigid grid
system. The Wanzers have assorted types of weapons, such as
machine s, s, missiles, grenade launchers, and
flamethrowers. Each character has an experience level that
conveys how efficient he is at using the different kinds of
weapons. It's up to you whether specific characters take control
of a short-range, heavy-armor type or a long-range, light-geared
type of Wanzer. The field , Wanzers, and foreign objects, such
as trees or freight boxes, are all rendered polygonally. When you
are engaged in battle, the field zooms in and shows the
battle scene. The load time of zooming into the field is
very, very slight, making transitions into battle very smooth.
Also, in FM3, the entire battle sequence only takes a couple of
seconds, as sed to the long 30-plus seconds each sequence
took in FM2. It took several hours to finish just one mission in
FM2, but due to the smooth transitions and shortened battle
sequences, FM3 has a much faster pace. In the battlefield, each
character has a certain number of active points (AP), which are
spent when you move the character from one grid square to another
and fight against other Wanzers, and regenerate after each turn.
Characters also acquire skills depending on what type of armor
the Wanzer is equipped with. Though skills vary, most of them are
useful in battle. For example, your character can shoot more ammo
rounds in one turn, specify which body part of the enemy Wanzer
to attack, or attack more than once in one turn. At the end of
each mission, you will be rated on how well you did. You earn
different medals ranging from platinum, gold, silver, to bronze.
Having more platinum medals could earn you a much bigger reward
later on in the game. You can also surf the Internet (well, the
Internet according to Square, anyway) in the game. You can access
different forums, ranging from government to commercial to
private. Although this was featured in FM2, most of the time the
forums contained senseless English text and wasn't much use in
the main game. In FM3, the Internet is an integral part of the
game. There's also lots of weird little fun stuff you can do in
there, too, such as change wallpaper on your computer, vote for
your favorite school idol, send e-mails to Square, and much more.
You can also engage in training on field s generated by
virtual simulators. Most of the time, you will want to put time
into training to acquire the necessary skills you will need for
the real battle. There are about 60 stages in total, and you
should expect to spend at least 50 hours completing the game. If
you become hooked on the Internet section of the game, the
chances are you will sink several more hours into it. Plus, there
are two separate and different scenarios, which deliver great
replay value. Although Square has managed to make the game more
straightforward, the graphics in the game have been downgraded.
The Wanzers in FM2 were made up of more polygons, and the frame
rate was a little slower in some situations. The lower polygonal
count was probably a sacrifice that had to be made in exchange
for the extremely short loading times in the battle scenes.
Improvements include your ability to rotate the field very
smoothly, as sed to being able to rotate it only every 45
degrees in FM2. Other areas, such as the gridlines on the field
, the digital novel part of the game, and the FMV sequences
are definitely much better-looking. The movements of the Wanzers
from one grid to another looked pretty awkward in FM2; they
looked like baby frogs leaping from one box to another. In a lot
of respects, the field is much more similar to the original
Front Mission on the Super Famicom. The sound effects in the game
have improved, and the FMV sequences definitely are worthwhile
and entertaining. The soundtrack fails to deliver in some
situations and ends up feeling average. One thing that may be a
disappointment for fans of the series is that the dark,
post-industrial atmosphere of the game has been diluted,
resulting in a more futuristic, techno-pop image. As a good
analogy, it's almost like how Namco's Ace Combat series changed
its image and atmosphere completely when Ace Combat 3
Electrosphere came out. Front Mission 3 has managed to retain its
strategy-simulation aspects, albeit at a relatively simpler
level, which will let beginners feel comfortable playing the game
and keep the hard-core gamers satisfied, too. Square has managed
to deliver a good human drama based on the theme of war in the
Front Mission series, and this game fits the series nicely. --Ike
Sato
--Copyright ©1998 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction
in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written
permission of GameSpot is prohibited. -- GameSpot Review
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