quaresoft's Wanzers are at it again. Standing treetop-tall and toting man-sized shotguns, auto-cannons, axes and such, the Wanzers are stomping onto TV screens across the planet. They come to fight, they come to test gamers' strategic chops, they come to please.
It's 2115, or something like that. Young Kazuki Takemura, who looks remarkably un-Asian, discovers that his sister has disappeared after a mysterious explosion on a Japanese Defense Force (JDF) base. He and his wisecracking buddy, Ryogo, find a sinister plot that leads the teenagers around the world in an effort to save humankind and perpetuate the Asian-Western cross-pollination started by Pokémon.
That's the story; turn-based strategy is the game. Players control up to eight Wanzers (big mecha-style robots) in a series of missions that spin the tale of Kazuki and company. In each mission the Wanzers face enemy Wanzers, gun-turrets, tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, helicopters and assorted other dealers of death. Kazuki moves, targets, fires. The enemy moves, targets, fires. Last side standing wins, and the plot advances.
However, don't mistake Front Mission 3 for SSI's Steel Panthers or tactical war games of a similar ilk. This is straight-up Squaresoft strategy/RPG in the style of Final Fantasy Tactics. Throughout the game Kazuki and the other pilots' skills increase, and their newfound talents may be applied to boosting accuracy, evading shots, and creating combination attacks to flatten enemies. Neither are the Wanzers static entities. Mall-crawlers will love shopping for the latest missile, rifle, shotgun or upgrade and slapping it on their favorite Wanzer.
Stop reading, start buying
Could this be the best strategy game ever written for the PlayStation? Yes, for a mecha freak it could be. Squaresoft has put all their ducks in a row for this one. The story is fun--not believable, not realistic, but fun. The dialogue is merciful--gone are the droning diatribes of Squaresoft's other recent strategy hit, Final Fantasy Tactics, and the characters--especially the irreverent Ryogo--are genuinely interesting. And the missions?
If there were a University of Gaming, Front Mission 3 would be a graduate level course. This is strategy at its brain-teasing best. Light Wanzers with long-range missiles bombard the enemy from the far side of buildings, while their heavily armored brethren close in for the kill, spitting fire from autocannon and punching with Fear Fists. The choices are delicious. For example, repeated assaults with a similar weapon--such as the Fear Fist--breed devastating combo attacks. Properly assigning those attacks to pilot and Wanzer can drastically increase both pilot and machine effectiveness.
The missions' ambience is no less exciting than the strategy itself. Gone are the goofy, hopping Wanzers of Front Missions past. These mecha are wonderfully animated, and each attack triggers a unique close-up animation of the encounter. Shotguns boom, missiles stream trails of feathery smoke and autocannon pop, their target shuddering from the shell's impact. It never gets boring.
Mecha strategy gamers need look no further. This game has it all. Front Mission 3 has story, Front Mission 3 has strategy, Front Mission 3 has style. Who could ask for anything more?
