Mega Man 3
reviewed 5/7/00
Making "part 3" of any series is a difficult task. Part 3 is where most series' are either immortalized in fame or disgraced with shame. It is where the game designers try to add in all new types of features, and either make an excellent update to the previous games in the series or overdo it and ruin everything. While Mega Man 3 looks all too similar to MM 1 and 2, it has more in the way of innovation than it seems. One of the best additions is the slide manuever, where Megaman ducks down and slides across the ground quickly. Not overly useful, but the level design of the game, especially in the later levels, take this new move to the max. Another distinction from the earlier games, to me at least, was that you had to use your brain a lot more. You couldn't beat every boss with the default gun, each boss could only be beaten by 1 or 2 other guns, so you had to have a strategy in the order you finished the first 8 levels. What pissed me off is that, after you beat the standard 8 wily robots, you have to go through 4 MORE stages, which are 4 of the initial levels with the difficulty level DOUBLED. Not only that, but you had to take on every single boss from Mega Man 2, who are all harder than they originally were! And at this point you're not even at the Wily stages yet, which are equally hard and feature the near impossible rock/blob monster (there is some debate over what that thing really is). So, yeah, MM3 is tough, but it's nothing that will make you throw your controller through your TV (too many times), and it can be conquered as long as you stick with it. Graphically, Mega Man 3 is done in standard Capcom format - everything has a bright and cartoon-ish tone to it. Theres really nothing in this game that sets it apart from all of the other MM games on the NES, and it was slightly outdone by MM2, which came out a year or so before it. Even though it may not look better by comparison, the game still has good graphics. And the music? Oh man are you in for a treat. Mega Man 3 is chock full of those kinds of tracks that will be stuck in your head 12 hours after you've last played the game. The majority of it sounds techno-inspired (if you've ever played a MM game you know what I'm talking about), but it even has some blues tunes thanks to Proto Man and his whistle. MM3 has the kind of music that will keep you in the game until it's finished, and even after that. The game, in a word, is "fun". It may seem difficult at first but after some practice you will start beating the stages with ease. It is a bit more advanced than MM 1 and 2 while not blatantly overdoing it with special features like the later MM games. Some have even called it "the pinnacle of the series". I don't know if I'd say that (I'm a bit partial to part 2) but I would say you owe it to yourself to play this great game.
GRAPHICS 7

Bright Capcom graphics that stand out
Games released earlier in the series kick this games ass in the graphics department

SOUND 9

Awesome tracks that get inside your head and KICK YOUR HEADS ASS!
Some levels sound better than others, it doesn't have a consistent quality

INNOVATION 4

It's a Mega Man game, nuff said
Still, it brings some new features to the series

GAMEPLAY 8

Thought inducive level design and strategy elements (plus, of course, classic MM gameplay)
Not much new here

REPLAY VALUE 7

Cool ending, good final boss fight, and overall a fun game, you'll want to play after you've beat it
Then again, it's not exactly a game you can just pick up and play

86%

Overall Rating

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