Mega Man 3

When it comes time for some classic gaming, the Mega Man series is easily one of the top contenders. In an era where most games settled for one or two sequels, Mega Man had an almost unheard of release of six games for the NES alone, not to mention the numerous Game Boy games which, rather than be a port of the NES games, had their own storylines and unique game elements.

This review is for Mega Man III for the NES. Good classic gameplay here. Taking the best of what the previous games had offered, most of the gameplay and control is the same as the previous games, which is good because they had the controls right the first time. Among changes introduced for the third game comes the ability to slide. I'll admit, this was gimmicky and aside from a few places where its required to progress, not very useful. Also, Capcom took the three 'items' from the second game and combined their usefulness into Rush, the robotic companion who becomes a staple of the series.

Like nearly every other Mega Man game in existence, progression through the games is the same. You pick any of the eight stages, defeat the boss, and gain their ability. Its possible to start at any stage, but depending on skill the levels will be harder without certain weapons or upgrades. One fun way to get replayability? Challenge a stage you normally would save for last, just to play with only the arm cannon. Its not the same.

The storyline is rather cheesy, and only referenced in game once. After defeating Wily in Mega Man 2, Wily gave up his evil ways to assist Dr. Light in building Gamma, the peace keeping robot. But there are eight elements needed, so Mega Man is sent to gather them. Aside from the usual Robot Masters, the mysterious Break Man also shows up from time to time to challenge our hero. But who is this robot, and why does he show up to test Mega Man's skills?

Not so much a new feature, but a change in Mega Man 3 is that there are levels AFTER the original eight, but BEFORE Wily's fortress. This change will carry on in other games in the series. The Doc Robot stages were gaming fanservice in its finest form, they brought back classic bosses from Mega Man 2 so you could fight them again with the new weapons. These stages are easily my favorite in the series.

The difficulty here is just about right. Not insanely hard, or 'I gotta cheat my way through' hard, but not a walk in the park either. The music is hit or miss. I don't find many of the themes as entertaining as the other games in the series, but its not bad music either.

Certainly a game worth picking up if you haven't played, or replaying for the nostalgia if you have played it in your past.

Graphics 7/10 (NES standards)
Sound 8/10
Control 8/10
Fun 9.5/10
Overall 8.5/10

Review by Red Silvers