Shining Force III

"The Shining Force series makes the transition from 2D to 3D flawlessly"

Shining Force III(Scenario 1) was originally released in Japan in 1997, and in the US the following year. The 'Shining' series stretches back to the early Genesis days, with each and every Shining Force game(there are far more than just three...) being an unforgettable classic. Up until Shining Force III, the series had been 2D. However, as the first 3D Shining Force, SF3 does not mess up the excellent gameplay that the 'Shining' series has come to be known for.

Story: 10/10
Whereas the earlier Shining Force games had rather mediocre storylines, usually involving evil kings, powerful dragons, and damsels in distress, Shining Force III's plot is deep, complicated, and engaging. The story has more political intrigue, backstabbing, double-crossing and triple-crossing than the average gamer's brain can handle! The most incredible aspect of the story(and the aspect that has ''forced'' many gamers to import Scenarios 2 and 3) is that the player is only witnessing one-third of the overall story. In Scenario 1, the main character is Synbios, a soldier of the Republic, and friend/follower of Benetram the King. During the course of the game, you will encounter a young prince named Medion(star of Scenario 2), and a warrior named Julian(star of Scenario 3). Unfortunately, only Scenario 1 was released outside of Japan, although several web sites feature translations for Scenarios 2 and 3(so go import them now!!!).

Graphics: 7/10
I'm being very generous by giving the graphics a 7. Maybe it's because of the beautiful character portraits... However, the battle ''cut-scenes'' in which a character makes an action(always a highlight of previous Shining Force games) are honestly not very good looking. The characters are blocky, and do not have much detail. The effects that accompany magic spells, however, are quite pleasing to the eye. Also, the graphics are slightly improved in Scenarios 2 and 3(I'd give the graphics 8/10 in those).

Sound: 9/10
Shining Force III features an excellent soundtrack. The music in the game ranges from ethereal to spooky to exciting. All-in-all, the music is very well done, and may even warrant purchase of the soundtrack(which was even released in Europe).

The sound effects, however, do not fare quite as well(in the US, at least). While the booming and clanking noises featured in battles get the job done well enough, the dubbing of English voices is absolutely horrendous. Oddly enough, this can be looked at in a good way(if you're very open-minded). The voices are soooo bad that they are actually quite humorous. For example, I dare you to listen to the wizard Noon say ''Thpirith, help muhh..''(translation: ''Spirits, help me!'') without cracking up. Synbios' voice is equally abysmal, and he truly does sound like Sloth from 'The Goonies.' Anyways, I can't lower the score much considering the Japanese voices are quite good.

Gameplay: 10/10
Here's the category that most influences the overall score. The gameplay in SF3 consists mostly of strategic battles in which your ''army'' of up to twelve characters is placed on a map, with each character taking up one space. Depending on the characters statistics, they can move a certain number of spaces, towards the enemy. There are many character ''classes'' in the game, including priests, wizards, priests, and even a penguin! In order to succeed in battle, your force must have balance. In other words, don't expect to win if most of your characters in battle attack from long-range. The most notable addition to the gameplay in SF3 is the way that characters can become ''friends'' with each other. A character will increase the stats of another character that they are friends with, as long as they are standing nearby. This ''ally'' system adds an incredible amount of depth to the already deep gameplay.

Overall: 10/10
If you are a fan of the Shining Force games, chances are you know how incredible Shining Force III is. Even if you are not a fan of the series, if you are even remotely interested in strategy battles, then SF3 is the best that you can get(along with the incredible Tactics Ogre games). This game is definitely worth buying a Saturn for, and after playing it, you'll be dying to play Scenarios 2 and 3.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 12/23/02, Updated 12/23/02