Thunder Force 3
	Genre: Shooter Developer: Technosoft
Publisher Region Released Seismic NA ??/??/1990

Your Account Options

You currently have no privileges related to this game profile because you are not signed into an HonestGamers account. Please log in, or click to register for a free user account.

More Reviews by Zigfried
	One Chance (PC) One Chance is a bad game for obvious reasons. The graphics are poor, the music is repetitive, the guy walks slowly, the story is silly, player interactio...
	Canabalt (PC) I view people who subscribe to the holy book of Canabalt the same way that Orson Scott Card intended readers to view Xenocide's Qing-Jao: as obses...
	Splatterhouse (PlayStation 3) Once upon a time, all this blood and nudity would have been daring. I remember gasping in awe when playing the originals . . . of course, those were marketed t...
	Rad Mobile (Arcade) I remember drooling over magazine screenshots for Rad Mobile, known back in 1991 as "that 32-bit arcade game WHOA MOMMA". I remember actually playing
	Super Sprint (Arcade) Most players will quickly realize the true nature of the deceptive diagonal path and avoid it. True racing experts will keep trying -- and failing -- until the...

Best Genesis Games
	Shining Force II Average Rating: 10.0; Reviews: 3
	Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master Average Rating: 10.0; Reviews: 3
	Ristar Average Rating: 10.0; Reviews: 3
	Phantasy Star II Average Rating: 10.0; Reviews: 2
	Toejam & Earl Average Rating: 10.0; Reviews: 2
	Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Average Rating: 9.5; Reviews: 4
	Contra: Hard Corps Average Rating: 9.5; Reviews: 4
	Twinkle Tale Average Rating: 9.3; Reviews: 3
	Rocket Knight Adventures Average Rating: 9.3; Reviews: 2
	Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium Average Rating: 9.2; Reviews: 3

Looking for a good read?
Check out a selection from our database of more than 8000 reviews! Masters has weighed in on Twin Cobra for the Genesis and figures it rates 3 out of 10. What do you think? Read the review, then be sure to leave feedback or chime in with one of your own!

Staff Review

Review by Zigfried
March 12, 2005

No matter how you cook it, a shooter comes down to a few key ingredients. Whether a horizontal appetizer like Thunder Force 3 or an overhead feast of carnage like Soukyugurentai, pretty much any shooter can be, and has been, described by someone somewhere with the same standard stock. "Beautiful", "stylish", "great music", and my personal favorite: the nebulous "intense". But do they all deserve the accolades? In some sense, yes: if the game didn't have intensity, decent graphics, or appropriate music, it would probably be atrocious. But when we describe every single shooter in the same manner, we can easily forget that some are far, far more deserving of these words than others.

Graphics. Yes, there are ugly shooters in this world, such as Insector-X. Here's a tip -- Insector-X sucks. Unless you're playing an absolutely bloody awful shooter, it's going to have some decent graphics. How many such miserable titles have you played, honestly? Most of the truly terrible shooters never escaped Japan, leaving us with a plethora of "worthy games" to choose from. They're all good, but they can't all be the tops now, can they? So, let's be a bit more discriminating in our judgments.

Thunder Force 3 is by far not the prettiest shooter out there, not even on the Genesis. Yes, one level has a famous (and deservedly so) "fire" background, made up of wavey arcs of flame, swirling back and forth as you battle through inconveniently-placed rocky crags. Oddly enough, despite such a memorable background, the scenery is Thunder Force 3's primary graphical weakness. There are a couple levels with neat effects; however, when forced to impress on their own merits, the backgrounds fail. Some of the coloration is horrid -- just look at the putrid green slobbery of the woods. Compare it to Gaiares, a shooter released in the same 16-bit era: even today, Gaiares' purple nebula field (with blue blasts of lightning) is still a beautiful backdrop. Also, when judged next to other games, Thunder Force 3's detail is simplistic. Nothing here matches the dilapidated cityscape of Gaiares' Ruins level, with windows visible in every broken building. Instead we have low-resolution, unimaginative drek -- nondescript starfields and generic, metallic "this is a Base level" lattice.

Don't even ask about the parallax. Anyone who has witnessed the scrolls of Thunder Force 4 is in for a tremendous disappointment. When it comes to graphics, part three has a few cool effects and some interesting enemies, and nothing more. And even on that note, the most interesting foe of all is the gargantuan first level firebreather, leaving little to see later on.

Music. Have you ever played a shooter with no music? Probably not. But perhaps you've played a shooter with ill-fitting music. Some games' soundtracks bring to mind a jaunt through space, whereas others are more fitting for a walk through the local clothier.

Thunder Force 3 is somewhere between. The music is fast-paced and melodic, but passive and mindless. It could even be called the "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" of the video game microcosm. Don't get me wrong -- I like Wham! as much as the next fellow, but its innocuousness isn't befitting of the "save the world" plotline thrown at the player. Also, much like Wham!, the music is quite dated in style. If you crave a nostalgic trip back to the 80's (although this game is from the 90's), visit the Route TF3 Diner. If you're looking for something saucier, with a more powerful score, I suggest Chez Gaiares or even Sol-Deace, which takes the same basic dish of pop but adds a bit more pepper.

So Thunder Force 3 has acceptable graphics and music, though by no means the best. What else, what else... yes! Intensity. How could such an important factor have slipped my mind? Perhaps the reason is because Thunder Force 3 doesn't have it.

When I think of "intensity", I think of the hordes of attacking troops in Lightening Force. The swarms of bullets in Sol-Deace. The hellishly huge level leaders of Gaiares. Or the relentlessly diverse barrage of Gate of Thunder. That's not to say Thunder Force 3 doesn't have any action; there's plenty to shoot at. However, the enemies are meted out in a haphazard manner, leaving spots where very little threatens you and other spots where... well actually, the game is never particularly threatening. It's far too easy, especially if you use the overpowered wave cannon.

Although the game itself is underpowered, Thunder Force 3 isn't bad; it can be a fun way to pass twenty minutes. It's just not as fun. Feel free to try this appetizer, but don't pass by Gaiares, Lightening Force, or the newer shooters on more modern systems.

//Zig

Feedback

Facebook()

Forums(0)

You can click the tabs on the above bar to choose whether you wish to read comments from visitors who have posted on Facebook, or from registered site users who have left feedback on the forums. Please leave a comment of your own if you have anything to say!

Info | Help | Privacy Policy | Contact | Advertise

© 1998-2012 HonestGamers
None of the material contained within this site--from reviews, guides, cheats and editorials to message board posts--may be reproduced in any conceivable fashion without permission from the author(s) of said material. This site is not sponsored or endorsed by Nintendo, Sega, Sony, Microsoft, or any other such party. Thunder Force 3 is a registered trademark of its copyright holder. This site makes no claim to Thunder Force 3, its characters, screenshots, artwork, music, or any intellectual property contained within. Opinions expressed on this site do not necessarily represent the opinion of site staff or sponsors.