Mega Man Battle Network 3 White

"If you've never played this game, now you should."

Ok, first off. This game is a sequel of Mega Man Battle Network 1 and Mega Man Battle Network 2. I recommend you play those first, as this game could ruin a lot of the plot for the others ones.

First off are graphics. You've got to admit, these aren't your basic graphics. The Navi's (the internet companions used to fight, like Megaman) are very vivid and detailed even though there are tons of different ones. Some of the battle chips you use in battle are also very clear. Some of them are average, others inspire you to use them just because they look so awesome.
The above has to do with what you do in the internet. The real world graphics are great too. You can very easily tell what something is.

The sound is just, well, meh. It's good, but neither eye-boggling or boring. There are a few main battle tunes that repeat over and over, so it DOES get repetitive. Don't get me wrong though, some of the music is awesome. I love the final boss music and the title music and listen to them constantly. This is possibly the only ''bad'' thing about this game.

Next up are the controls. This game has the easiest controls for a game that I've ever seen. In the real world and the internet, you walk around by moving the Control Pad, and run by holding the B button (while moving the Control Pad).
When in battle, you are on a 3x6 grid. You own the 9 squares on your side, and the enemy or viruses own the 9 squares on the other side. You get battle chips to fight with and to kill the enemies with. The A button is to use your battle chips and the B button is to shoot your buster. You even get stuff later on to help do this.

This small section here talks about the gameplay. Let's see, use your Navi named Megaman and solve problems that are happening in the world. Boring, right? WRONG! This game has a very detailed plot. While this is happening, many things that are just a tiny bit important are happening. Also, this game features a few plot twists you wouldn't expect. Besides the main storyline, many sub-quests are available.
What you do most while completing tasks are killing viruses along the way. Apart from killing the viruses, you can even use them in combat later in the game. You can read the message boards that appear in the game, and talk to the many characters too!

This is rarely brought up in a review. How are the designs of the characters? In my opinion, I say they are awesome. There are a lot of different designs for the people, but they do tend to repeat sometimes.
The Navi's are the most exquisite pieces of work in this game. The Navi's designs are all different, and some are very neat. Picture what Megaman looks like in your head. Now picture a dark purple navi with his ears sloped back sharply. Picture him being in armor and having somewhat sharp toes. That's actually one of the characters.

Most games aren't that challenging, but this defiantly is. Getting to each boss is very hard after a while, and then you may have trouble defeating the boss, or even finding a strategy to defeat him. After defeating the final boss in the game, you'll realize that it's not over. The final boss is a very hard boss to kill, but the stuff after it is even harder. Rely on your fingers and hope they move blazing fast.

This game's durability is long. Let's see, getting past the game is around 15 hours, maybe 12 if you're used to the series. Getting the stuff afterwards takes another 12-15 hours. Throw in a few more hours for battling and a half hour for game dialogue and you have a 35 hour game or so.

The Mega Man Battle Network series have some of the best replay value I've seen. As I said before, deleting the final boss doesn't mean it's over. You have other, stronger Navi's to kill. You get special things if you complete a large section in the game, like getting all the Battle chips or getting all of the Program Advances. (Program Advances are basically a combo you get when you put chips in a certain order while battling.)

Now for the conclusion. Mega Man Battle Network 3 is possibly the best game on the GBA. I'd suggest buying both Blue and White to get all the stuff, but you could just persuade your friend to get this game.

Graphics: 10/10
Sound: 7/10
Controls: 19/20
Gameplay: 17/20
Characters: 10/10
Challenge: 9/10
Playability (Length of Game): 5/5
Replay Value: 15/15

Overall (Not an average): 9/10

After reading this review, you should buy this game. Not rent it, buy it! Even if you don't like a strategy and RPG based game, you'll end up liking it in the end. Thanks for listening to my opinions!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/14/04