Squaresoft

• 1 Player
• Memory Card 2-6 Blocks
• Analog Control Compatible
• Vibration Function Compatible
• Over 150 Hours of Gameplay

Description
True strategy finally comes to the PlayStation! As Kazuki Takemura, a student at a technical high school, as well as a test pilot for Kirishima Industries, you must investigate the mysterious explosion that cut you off from completing your mission to deliver your Wanzer, a robot armed with dozens of deadly weapons. Now, using nothing more than the Wanzer and your strategic skills, you've got to navigate through dozens of missions that will push your tactical skills to the edge. With 60 stages in total, dozens of randomly generated scenarios and two completely different campaigns to pursue, replay value is unparalleled, and with a name like Square, the creators of the Final Fantasy series, you know the game play will be there, too!

Features:
• Sci-Fi stategy game set in Japan, 2112 AD
• Use wanzer robots to fight for or against the rebellion
• Wanzar robots are customizable
• Nearly 100 different battle skills
• For 1 player

Manufacturer Description
Using a turn-based combat system; the player controls giant fighting robots called "wanzers" in order to fulfill mission objectives or to defeat foes in mechanical warafre. Robots can be continually upgraded by purchasing or scavenging new weapons/ armor/ computers/ ect. This game takes a new approach to increasing the depth of the game creating the Double Feature Scenario which allows the player to choose one of two completely different character viewpoint within the same general plot of the game.

Amazon.com
Editorial Review
An excellent science-fiction-themed strategy game with role-playing elements, Front Mission 3 is the first installment of the popular Japanese series to make it stateside. In a future where giant robots known as "Wanzers" are the war machines of choice, you are cast as a civilian test pilot who gets swept up in an international military conspiracy surrounding a weapon of mass destruction. The majority of the storytelling occurs via cut scenes and menu-driven "event" screens, with the game's "network"--a virtual computer that simulates Web and e-mail, among other things--providing additional background information and character interaction.

Front Mission 3 features a rich battle system that makes the game easy to learn but hard to put down. The different models of Wanzers can be used "as is" or modified to change their appearance, capabilities, and equipment; since a Wanzer and its pilot are controlled as one unit in battle, the pilot's battle skills and experience come into play when pairing them off during pre-battle setup. Pilots can, however, eject from Wanzers during battle and board unoccupied ones, or even fight on their own, David and Goliath style. Battles are turn-based and take place in 3-D isometric environments, which can be rotated to provide a better perspective. When combat occurs, the viewpoint changes to close-ups shown from various camera angles. While the battles are relatively short, Front Mission 3 makes up for their brevity with quantity, packing well over 100 hours of highly addictive gameplay on its one disc. --Joe Hon

Pros:
Topnotch turn-based strategy battles
Intriguing storyline filled with melodrama and plot twists
Highly stylized art design
"Double feature" scenario adds replay value

Cons:
Some "network" features are more trouble than they're worth