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Review: Battle Arena Toshinden 3 |
So, you, along with many others are getting tired of the same old cheap polygonal fighters? Well the third installment of the Toshinden series should be the antidote to that poison of awful fighting games you have been unfortunately playing.
As soon as you turn the power on and sit down to enjoy another CG Intro, thinking, I wonder if this one can be as lame as the first 2 were. But you were dead wrong, similar to the intro of Tekken 2, it is quite fluid in fact. Running beautifully at 30FPS, you don’t notice a single flicker. As it plays through showing various characters, you watch in awe. And that is when the fun begins. As you start a 1 player game, first thing noticed is the incredibly arena-like levels. A true 3D fighter gives you the ability to scroll around the fantastically detailed board. And watch as the 2 characters duke it out. But then you say, this isn’t going as fast as I would like. So you quit, and change the game mode to 60FPS… Yes you heard right, you have the OPTION to switch between 30FPS and 60FPS. Takara really started something here.. But to your dismay, the polygons are incredibly flat and poorly textured, similar to the graphics of Tobal No. 1. This is the only downfall to otherwise fantastic graphics of BAT3.
What can I say about the music? Not much different than any other BAT game. Pretty much of the same old stuff. The sounds are quite good however. At the end of each match, your character yells a final word at his beaten opponent. Very clear voice is quite understandable, (if you understand Japanese of course). In many fighters, there is an abundance of sound that is unnecessary and annoying, but not in this game.
What would make this game all the more better is the Namco Arcade Joystick. I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Soul Edge Box Set which includes this joystick, but it has been unfortunately sold out for quite some time now. But the control is still very responsive. For those of you who have ever played a BAT import, you know that the controls easily set to the way you want them. Including an option to make the special moves of each character as the four buttons on the top of the controller. The execution of super moves and such are quite easy, and in fact probably too easy. The other moves are detailed in the handbook to the game.
After accessing all of the characters, including the bosses, the game becomes quite boring unless you always have someone to play with. There are hardly any options to liven up the game either. Maybe other developers will learn from Killer Instinct Gold that options keep a game alive after beating the crap out of it.
Toshinden 3 definately ranks in the top 3 fighters on the PSX system, whether they be import, or domestic games. Not to mention, it contains the coolest fighting game character to ever grace the genre, Vermilion. Wanna find out what this awesome character looks like? Can’t help you, too cool to describe. A quick summary, he carries a shotgun, a pistol, and wears a black trenchcoat. BAT 3 is a definite must have for any fighting game enthusiast who has ever remotely like any of the games in the BAT series.
- Valium
