by Jay "THE FLEA" Wade
Most Strategy RPG's are Fantasy epics that you choose from wizards, knights, archers, etc. But Square has changed the Strategy RPG with Front Mission 3. The rules are the same, turn based, collect new weapons and upgrades etc. But in Front Mission 3 you play as Mechs in a futuristic world at war.
You play a young hero named Kazuki who works for a company that makes and tests Mechs for the Japanese Defense Force (JDF), He delivers some shipment with a friend and they discover the JDF is testing a stolen weapon that could destroy the world. Kazuki must decide who side to fight on. You'll meet Emma and you can join her fight to retrieve the weapon from the JDF or reject her and fight with the JDF resulting in two different story plots.
The battles play just like any Strategy RPG (Final Fantasy Tactics, Ogre Tactics, etc.)
The battles are great to watch, blow off limbs, destroy backgrounds, you can even knock an opponent out of his/her Mech and kill the pilot leaving a you a extra Mech to use.
Each Mech part has it's own damage meter, and if you lose an arm with a weapon, you'll lose the weapon for that battle. Lose both arms, run and run fast. Lose legs, your stuck or you'll slow down. Lose body, dead Mech. You'll also earn new abilities that really cause a lot of damage.
You can customize you Mech with any Mech parts found. Switch body, arms, legs, weapons to your taste. You can even customize the color.
One of the most original aspects of FM3 is the ingame online network. (no phone line required)
You can go into this network to buy upgrades, weapons, items, and look up clues on web sites.
You'll access new web sites from characters you defeat or meet in the game.
This is the best Mech game ever played, This is a MUST own for any Strategy RPG fan.
PUBLISHER: SQAURESOFT
GRAPHICS: 9 MUSIC & SOUND: 8 CONTROL: 9.5
SECRETS: 9 ORIGINALITY: 10 FUN & REPLAY: 9.5
OVERALL: 9.5