The evil Bydo Empire returns in this entry of the R-Type series. So climb into the latest R-Type vessel, the R-90, and blast through six side-scrolling levels on your way to destroy the Bydo mothership. Gameplay is still the classic R-Type way with huge levels and bosses. With your detachable laser unit, you can fire in front or behind your ship. R-Type III now features three different kinds of laser unit, selectable at the start of a game. Each offers different laser types depending on the power-ups collected.
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Uh-oh, I feel a little bit left out with this one.
From a technical standpoint, it's awesome; there are tons of visual tricks that display the power of the Super Nintendo hardware. Gameplay is not all that bad either; there's some really neat boss battles, like that one where the whole screen rotates.
What kills it for me is a combination of my four biggest pet peeves when it comes to shoot 'em ups.
First, the scroll is way too slow. There are times when absolutely nothing's happening.
Second, there's no instant respawn; if you die, you are forced to get it at the beginning of the stage.
Third, enemy ships are just bullet sponges and your projectiles are useless. You are basically forced to charge your beam at all times since it's the only attack that actually does something.
Fourth, the game has unreadable enemy patterns. Projectiles will kill you in the blink of an eye at the speed of light with not enough time to react, so the challenge feels more like a trial-and-error kind of deal than a skilled-based one (I'm especially looking at you, laser tubes). I feel like I'm playing the shoot 'em up equivalent of Syobon Cat or one of those "I Wanna Be the Guy" kinds of games.
It's also really short, and... I don't know, man. I truly wish I had enjoyed it.
From a technical standpoint, it's awesome; there are tons of visual tricks that display the power of the Super Nintendo hardware. Gameplay is not all that bad either; there's some really neat boss battles, like that one where the whole screen rotates.
What kills it for me is a combination of my four biggest pet peeves when it comes to shoot 'em ups.
First, the scroll is way too slow. There are times when absolutely nothing's happening.
Second, there's no instant respawn; if you die, you are forced to get it at the beginning of the stage.
Third, enemy ships are just bullet sponges and your projectiles are useless. You are basically forced to charge your beam at all times since it's the only attack that actually does something.
Fourth, the game has unreadable enemy patterns. Projectiles will kill you in the blink of an eye at the speed of light with not enough time to react, so the challenge feels more like a trial-and-error kind of deal than a skilled-based one (I'm especially looking at you, laser tubes). I feel like I'm playing the shoot 'em up equivalent of Syobon Cat or one of those "I Wanna Be the Guy" kinds of games.
It's also really short, and... I don't know, man. I truly wish I had enjoyed it.
It's actually really cool.
I mean it's not 'real mans' r-type. but it's super fun.
I mean it's not 'real mans' r-type. but it's super fun.
- Normal dif., blue force, 01/jul/2023
Upon revisiting this after playing more shmups, I'm a bit surprised I didn't find myself raising or lowering the score.
It's got some things that really make me want to put it higher, but also some things that make me want to lower it.
R-Type III has this cinematic flair to it that really makes it shine, especially in the final level. I really like the final boss in this one. Its final phase is notably super intense, although on my first playthrough it felt impossible because I didn't realize you have to throw away your pod to end it. I guess you could argue it's unintuitive, but it definitely fits the scene as this last ditch effort type of thing.
As I said the first time, this game is also insanely fucking hard. The series is notable for being much more heavy on level memorization than its contemporaries, but there are still some areas where I think it's a bit overboard? Level 4 has this part with these huge lasers that you have to navigate around in some sort of maze, then you fight a boss, and then you go back through the maze backwards. It's super overkill, and definitely the game at its least enjoyable. Not helping is that the R-Type series is also generally checkpoint based, so if you eat shit in that laser maze (or a similarly irritating segment shortly before the penultimate boss) you are getting sent back a little and you have to do it over again. I really don't like checkpoint shmups, man. It's a good thing this game has so much going for it in every other regard.
The music is worth mentioning as well, at least I think so. The compositions are great, but the soundfont is silly as hell. I think it has some charm to it that honestly makes it better, but I can see how it would be off putting. That being said, it really helps elevate some moments, notably in the bosses and the aforementioned final sequence.
I would definitely give this one a look, but honestly? Not without savestates, at least on your first time. I almost always play older games with them anyways, but this is one of those where I would genuinely suggest them early on and it's just not me being talentless lmao. If it was a little more reasonable in level design it would probably be one of my favorite shmups ever made, and I don't think that problem alone should lead you to discard it.
(update: I did eventually raise it by a point i like this game)
It's got some things that really make me want to put it higher, but also some things that make me want to lower it.
R-Type III has this cinematic flair to it that really makes it shine, especially in the final level. I really like the final boss in this one. Its final phase is notably super intense, although on my first playthrough it felt impossible because I didn't realize you have to throw away your pod to end it. I guess you could argue it's unintuitive, but it definitely fits the scene as this last ditch effort type of thing.
As I said the first time, this game is also insanely fucking hard. The series is notable for being much more heavy on level memorization than its contemporaries, but there are still some areas where I think it's a bit overboard? Level 4 has this part with these huge lasers that you have to navigate around in some sort of maze, then you fight a boss, and then you go back through the maze backwards. It's super overkill, and definitely the game at its least enjoyable. Not helping is that the R-Type series is also generally checkpoint based, so if you eat shit in that laser maze (or a similarly irritating segment shortly before the penultimate boss) you are getting sent back a little and you have to do it over again. I really don't like checkpoint shmups, man. It's a good thing this game has so much going for it in every other regard.
The music is worth mentioning as well, at least I think so. The compositions are great, but the soundfont is silly as hell. I think it has some charm to it that honestly makes it better, but I can see how it would be off putting. That being said, it really helps elevate some moments, notably in the bosses and the aforementioned final sequence.
I would definitely give this one a look, but honestly? Not without savestates, at least on your first time. I almost always play older games with them anyways, but this is one of those where I would genuinely suggest them early on and it's just not me being talentless lmao. If it was a little more reasonable in level design it would probably be one of my favorite shmups ever made, and I don't think that problem alone should lead you to discard it.
(update: I did eventually raise it by a point i like this game)
Contender for the best shmup on the SNES hands down, spectacular music, interesting, yet laid back use of mode 7 graphics and 3d objects, and solid gamefeel make for a great R-Type game once you get over any qualms with memorization, specifically on that factory stage with the lava.
What can I say about R-Type III? ... It was R-Type III.
The Third Lightning seems designed to kill you, both in-the game and real life as it tries your nerves so hard you begin to question what the point is in even living. I'm terrible at shoot-em-ups, yet my need to play them is downright compulsive, and somehow I managed to push myself to the end of this game. It wasn't easy though, and in fact it might be the most difficult shoot-em-up (at least of the side-scrolling variety) on my retro bucket list.
Gameplay is fairly unremarkable. If you've played one R-Type, you've pretty much played them all. They're solid games, even if the sheer difficulty of III may get in the way of you having a good time. At least the graphics, art direction, and sound design are all good enough to carry the game even through its weakest moments. I've actually found myself throwing on the soundtrack while drawing or doing work, and I find it a whole lot more worthwhile to revisit than the game itself.
I wouldn't say The Third Lightning is bad. It's a perfectly fine game, just a bit too imbalanced and samey.
The Third Lightning seems designed to kill you, both in-the game and real life as it tries your nerves so hard you begin to question what the point is in even living. I'm terrible at shoot-em-ups, yet my need to play them is downright compulsive, and somehow I managed to push myself to the end of this game. It wasn't easy though, and in fact it might be the most difficult shoot-em-up (at least of the side-scrolling variety) on my retro bucket list.
Gameplay is fairly unremarkable. If you've played one R-Type, you've pretty much played them all. They're solid games, even if the sheer difficulty of III may get in the way of you having a good time. At least the graphics, art direction, and sound design are all good enough to carry the game even through its weakest moments. I've actually found myself throwing on the soundtrack while drawing or doing work, and I find it a whole lot more worthwhile to revisit than the game itself.
I wouldn't say The Third Lightning is bad. It's a perfectly fine game, just a bit too imbalanced and samey.