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Great until about mission 5681...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: April 10, 2001
Author: Amazon User

No there arent really 5681 missions, there's 85. 85 painful and repetative missions. When I first started playing the game, I loved it. The graphics, the sound, story, blah blah blah were great, right up there with Tactics. My favorite part about the game was the ability to completely customize your characters to be whatever you wanted them to be. I went and told my friends how great a game it was, having so many secrets, play hours, abilities, etc. Then at about mission 5681 it was like watching home videos over..and over..and over..and over. You get the picture. All of the battles are almost exactly the same, and you do the same things eighty...five...times. So I stopped playing it. I dont mean to trash the game, but this is truly what its like. This is just my opinion though. If you love mechs and the stuff, this game is awesome and totally awe-inspiring. So, if you absolutely love mechs, get it. If yer only so-so like me, be prepared.

Is Front Mission 3 for you???

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: September 09, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Front Mission 3 - Circa 2000

GOOD:
- A nice change of theme from the usual swords and sorcery that most strategy games use
- Customizable mechs

BAD:
- Graphics might looked dated, to today video game players
- Gameplay can be difficult and slow
- Story is overly complex but can be a little on the dry side

IF IT FITS YOUR TASTE:
- A Sci-fi strategy set in the pacific rim of a near future earth
- Gameplay can be slow and difficult
- No voice-overs so lots of reading
- Customizable mechs

GAME ITS MOST ASSOCATED TOO:
- Armored Core
- Final Fantasy Tactics

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- This first 2 games where on Super Nintendo

An excellent strategy game - but not without its problems

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 14 / 15
Date: June 12, 2000
Author: Amazon User

I bought Front Mission 3 for a few reasons - because I am a diehard Squaresoft fan (Final Fantasy VII was my first game and is still my all-time favorite) because I loved the idea of robots in RPGs (Xenogears is my second favorite) and because RPGs are my favorite game genre. I had logged 29 hours of play time on FM3 when my memory card mysteriously deleted itself (not the game's fault - crappy card) so I didn't get to see all the game had to offer. However, I did get an understanding of the game. The battle system is probably the game's best feature. The isometric, 3D battle fields are reminiscent of the ones in Final Fantasy Tactics, and you fight your enemies in large robots called wanzers. Characters can use machine guns, shotguns, melee weapons (fist, baton, spike), missiles, grenade launchers, and other weapons to decimate your opponents. Each TYPE of weapon gains experience as you use them, so you can have one character who is good with shotguns or another who can effectively wield machine guns. One particular feature of this game is both a pro and a con. This would be the Network, which is like the World Wide Web. You pick a country, a type of site, and the site itself. From there, you can "download" programs, access restricted areas by receiving passwords (more on that later) or just see what's happening around the "world" of FM3. While this makes the game fantastically deep, I think it is way too complex. There are at least 100 web sites, and to see them all would require a LOT of time and patience. With the "Network" also comes a version of E-Mail. The characters in your party will occasionally receive mail from various people they know, and you sometimes have the option of answering it with pre-written replies. In addition to this, people will sometimes give you passwords to enter restricted areas of some Network sites. There is even a secret E-Mail address that lets you see a little congratulatory message for finding the address. One part of FM3 that can be seen as either a pro or a con is that it takes place on Earth, albeit in 2112. This way, you know where everything is, but it takes an element of discovery away from the game. In my opinion, the biggest fault of FM3 is its EXTREME linearity. You do not walk from town to town in this game; rather, you click where you want to go (because of the linearity there is never much choice), taking you there immediately. You can't even walk up to a person to talk to them; you have to choose their name from a list of people that you are near to. I think that this is absurd. I have always liked being able to walk around and talk to people in RPGs, but in this game, that simply DOES NOT HAPPEN. If it were not for that, this game would have probably received the full five stars from me. In all, Front Mission 3 is a great game for people who like fighting with huge machines, using strategy, and surfing the web, but do not mind that you have a set course to follow that is impossible to deviate from. I would recommend this game to them, and hope that they enjoy it immensely.

Mucho Fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: May 23, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Front Mission 3 is my first entry into the Front Mission universe. The game itself is extremely linear, and at times boring, but all is forgiven with the incredible mech battles. If you love giant robots, and dream about fighting in them, this game is for you. I've played for 45+ hours and expect about 35 more and I can't put it down. The fighting is deep and won't disappoint. This game has pulled me into the Strategy RPG arena forever.

One of the best and most original RPG's I've ever played

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: February 18, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Don't let the big mech on the front cover fool you: This is an RPG. Not a mech-battle game, but an RPG. I love the fact that it's a RPG that's not set in a fantasy style world. Sure, I love fantasy worlds as much as the next guy, but there's not enough futuristic or even based in the present style RPG's out there. The battle system is similar to the RPG-fanatic classic 'Final Fantasy Tactics' but is unique enough to give a different feel. The story is also very deep, with enough twists and turns to keep the story-based gamer more than happy, and you can get into it even more by using the whole Internet feature in the game, though it is VERY time consuming. If you so choose to, you can spend hours reading all the things on the Internet feature. Depending on how much of it you take the time to read, the game will probably take you 40-60 hours to complete, but that's boosted up to 80-120 if you count the fact that there's 2 diff. scenarios to play.

But with all these great features, there's a few small problems that keep me from giving it 5 stars. One is that the in-game graphics aren't up to par with other games being released at the same time. Most places are just still shots of backgrounds, like a bar, or a hideout and those are well done, but the battle graphics can sometimes be a pain on the eyes. But I can live with them, especially since the cut-scenes, while few and far between, are some of the best ever to be featured on a PS1 game. Another problem I had was with the Internet feature I mentioned earlier. While it is cool to delve really far into the story and get into background info on many things, it's too confusing a lot of the time. You'll speak to someone who gives you a new site to look at or read an address on another site, and when you try to find it on the menus, it's a huge pain...to find. It's cool, innovative feature, but it could have been done much better and easier to navigate. And the last thing is the absence of any type of world map. There are a few times when you can select to go to a bar or a shop around a city, but that's about it. You very rarely see the characters moving around, and you can't explore around the world at will. You're very limited with your optionsconcerning moving about a city. But it does add a sence of realism to the game. I mean, when invading troops are going to strike or the world is about to be destroyed, you don't mosey about the world, collecting treasure, meeting people on the other side of the globe or fight with wild animals whenever you please. You go find 'em and kill 'em. Right then and there. It makes the game seem more like a re-enactment of real events than a fantasy world dreamed up in someone's head.

Overall, Front Mission 3, while not perfect, is definatly an excellent game and a game any RPG fan should pick up if given the chance. If I Amazon let me, I'd give it 4.5 stars.

love it not for everyone

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: October 06, 2000
Author: Amazon User

if you hate complicated games , dont have alot of time to play games dont waste your money and stick with resident evil, but if you can undestand these types of games and have time to play games waste your money and get this game! i dont have trouble with complicated games like fm3, ff8, etc. so i have no complants in that department, the only problem i have is the graphis, thair not bad but thair choppy, like this one part (i have many examples) where thair is a railway and it is all jaggiety like a train can ride on a bent up railroad. that is my only complaint. if you like gundam wing shows, like big robots(wanzers),have lots of patients and lots of time get this game.

Fun, but it's not Final Fantasy Tatics!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: December 19, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This game is great, yes it has two, count em two great plots with over 150 missions! It it great game! You go around the battle maps with giant mechs called wanzers. They have different weapons and you can make your own. There is also a huge internet and e-mail system which is very fun. But the game can get some what boring after a while. Buy this game, but buy Final Fantasy Tatics First!

It's about time

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: October 29, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I tell ya. I did'nt think square could get a meca tactics game right with the first two front missions but wow! this game is amazing.

If you like turn based strategy, this game is for you!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 13, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This title is the first World release of the great Front Mission series of games from Square before it's Square-Enix merger.
If you enjoyed Final Fantasy Tactics, this is the next best thing in the genre of turn based sci-fi strategy from Square during the Playstation's reign.

Why Aren't There More Games Like This

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: November 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I'm about halfway through, meaning I've spent about 20 hrs so far, and I really must hand it to Square, this is a great game. The cinematic battles, the mech upgrades, and having money in the game, really make this challenging and fun. Any game that gives you the freedom to spend money and configure things is on the right track in my book.

My only criticism would be that they are trying to be an RPG. Oh, and this isn't an RPG in my book. They have some RPG trappings around, all around, in fact, all over the dang place. There's a lot of talking heads talknig, and sometimes that seems to eat up your time when really, all I want to do is check the shop for new upgrades and then get out to mech killing.

I with Agetec would make something like Armored Core Tactics or something. There should be more turn based combat games that aren't in a fantasy setting.

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