King's Field III advances the series from King's Field II once again, but unfortunately goes in some directions that undermine many of the strengths of the series for me. I still had a good time playing through it, but it definitely isn't as good as King's Field II.
Visually, the environments and textures in King's Field III are only slightly more detailed, but the enemy and NPC models are a noticeable step up from King's Field II. Characters do still maintain the blank, mysterious faces that are a staple of the series at this point, but are more detailed in every other way.
The best improvement here is the framerate however. King's Field II had a variable framerate that took a bit of getting used to, but that is smoothed out here. The experience is more consistent and it definitely feels better to explore and fight in this world from a strictly technical perspective.
This feels like a much broader open world. You travel across the entirety of a kingdom, represented by zones that are much larger than anything we have seen in the series up to this point. I liked seeing these fields of ice, intricate cave systems, and canyons but they remind me mainly of Hyrule Field from Ocarina of Time and feel similarly lifeless, despite scatterings of buildings and random enemies. The unique, player-driven fast travel system from King's Field II is replaced with specific teleportation options that open up as the game progresses -- a change that doesn't do this more expansive (and more grueling to travel across) world any favors.
The main thing this game loses, however, is the intricate interconnectedness of its world. King's Field II is characterized by a comparatively naturalistic series of connected passageways, opening up to you as you play through it in a manner not too dissimilar from Dark Souls. The comparison holds true here as well, with King's Field III aligning fairly directly with Dark Souls 2's more discrete and arbitrarily connected zones. There are cool things to see here, but it feels more like a tour of a kingdom than an exploration of a world.
One other interesting parallel is that King's Field III has items that function exactly like Fragrant Branches of Yore (restore life to petrified NPCs and monsters to open areas) and Pharros' Lockstones (one time use keys to certain doors) from Dark Souls 2. This is a super cool nod on the part of the Dark Souls 2 dev team to the series' lineage.
King's Field III also eschews the mystery and dark ambiance of the first two games in favor of a more straightforward, linear quest. You are a prince who has returned to his land that has been ravaged by corruption and monsters. Throughout the game you have a couple of goals (recover your magic, recover an artifact that will let you forge the key to enter the corrupted castle of your father, then enter the castle and reclaim it), but each is presented to you obviously and immediately, rather than with the conspicuous lack of information characteristic to the series.
Events are more involved and NPCs directly send you on quests, but these clear goals and more obvious linearity rob King's Field III of the feeling of being unstuck (and free) from the timeline that is unfolding around you. The adventure feels more epic, your actions more impactful, but this trek across the lands of Verdite feels hollow and generic in comparison to its forebear's intricate webs of hauntingly disconnected and surreal people and events.
Fortunately, the narrative does bring together many of the threads that were set up in the previous games. Characters return and are recontextualized in ways that feel natural and rewarding for returning players. I really like that the final boss in King's Field III is the character you played as in King's Field and that his corruption and fall makes sense, is motivated by the background narrative you realize throughout the course of the third game, and the resolution pulls all three games into an interesting trilogy exploring the Kingdom of Verdite's struggles for power, betrayal, and redemption as well as the primeval figures influencing them from the shadows.
Mechanically, King's Field III is a bit overwrought, but comes together pretty well. Crystals are the thing again, and collecting them powers up your magic spells, unlocking more powers as you play through the game. This is a combination of the systems from the first two games, where you have to unlock each type of magic but your aptitude with a type (also improved through use) determines what spells are available. It isn't as clean as King's Field II's system, but I had a good time with it.
Sword Magic is much the same, though you unlock two levels of it through quests. I like that this makes it a specific part of the world, handed down by swordmasters to their pupils, though it does feel pretty random. I found the Sword Magic itself to be more usable than it was in II, with a better balance in power between regular magic and Sword Magic.
They abandoned the interesting map system in favor of an automap item you can look at any time. It is much easier to use (and less fiddly) but also less unique.
I ultimately liked King's Field III as a capstone to this trilogy. I wish it had more of King's Field II's carefully constructed, puzzle-box, world design and King's Field's haunting strangeness, but it delivers on the narrative and makes some interesting mechanical choices. I like all three of these games, and definitely rate them favorably alongside From Software's more modern titles.
Visually, the environments and textures in King's Field III are only slightly more detailed, but the enemy and NPC models are a noticeable step up from King's Field II. Characters do still maintain the blank, mysterious faces that are a staple of the series at this point, but are more detailed in every other way.
The best improvement here is the framerate however. King's Field II had a variable framerate that took a bit of getting used to, but that is smoothed out here. The experience is more consistent and it definitely feels better to explore and fight in this world from a strictly technical perspective.
This feels like a much broader open world. You travel across the entirety of a kingdom, represented by zones that are much larger than anything we have seen in the series up to this point. I liked seeing these fields of ice, intricate cave systems, and canyons but they remind me mainly of Hyrule Field from Ocarina of Time and feel similarly lifeless, despite scatterings of buildings and random enemies. The unique, player-driven fast travel system from King's Field II is replaced with specific teleportation options that open up as the game progresses -- a change that doesn't do this more expansive (and more grueling to travel across) world any favors.
The main thing this game loses, however, is the intricate interconnectedness of its world. King's Field II is characterized by a comparatively naturalistic series of connected passageways, opening up to you as you play through it in a manner not too dissimilar from Dark Souls. The comparison holds true here as well, with King's Field III aligning fairly directly with Dark Souls 2's more discrete and arbitrarily connected zones. There are cool things to see here, but it feels more like a tour of a kingdom than an exploration of a world.
One other interesting parallel is that King's Field III has items that function exactly like Fragrant Branches of Yore (restore life to petrified NPCs and monsters to open areas) and Pharros' Lockstones (one time use keys to certain doors) from Dark Souls 2. This is a super cool nod on the part of the Dark Souls 2 dev team to the series' lineage.
King's Field III also eschews the mystery and dark ambiance of the first two games in favor of a more straightforward, linear quest. You are a prince who has returned to his land that has been ravaged by corruption and monsters. Throughout the game you have a couple of goals (recover your magic, recover an artifact that will let you forge the key to enter the corrupted castle of your father, then enter the castle and reclaim it), but each is presented to you obviously and immediately, rather than with the conspicuous lack of information characteristic to the series.
Events are more involved and NPCs directly send you on quests, but these clear goals and more obvious linearity rob King's Field III of the feeling of being unstuck (and free) from the timeline that is unfolding around you. The adventure feels more epic, your actions more impactful, but this trek across the lands of Verdite feels hollow and generic in comparison to its forebear's intricate webs of hauntingly disconnected and surreal people and events.
Fortunately, the narrative does bring together many of the threads that were set up in the previous games. Characters return and are recontextualized in ways that feel natural and rewarding for returning players. I really like that the final boss in King's Field III is the character you played as in King's Field and that his corruption and fall makes sense, is motivated by the background narrative you realize throughout the course of the third game, and the resolution pulls all three games into an interesting trilogy exploring the Kingdom of Verdite's struggles for power, betrayal, and redemption as well as the primeval figures influencing them from the shadows.
Mechanically, King's Field III is a bit overwrought, but comes together pretty well. Crystals are the thing again, and collecting them powers up your magic spells, unlocking more powers as you play through the game. This is a combination of the systems from the first two games, where you have to unlock each type of magic but your aptitude with a type (also improved through use) determines what spells are available. It isn't as clean as King's Field II's system, but I had a good time with it.
Sword Magic is much the same, though you unlock two levels of it through quests. I like that this makes it a specific part of the world, handed down by swordmasters to their pupils, though it does feel pretty random. I found the Sword Magic itself to be more usable than it was in II, with a better balance in power between regular magic and Sword Magic.
They abandoned the interesting map system in favor of an automap item you can look at any time. It is much easier to use (and less fiddly) but also less unique.
I ultimately liked King's Field III as a capstone to this trilogy. I wish it had more of King's Field II's carefully constructed, puzzle-box, world design and King's Field's haunting strangeness, but it delivers on the narrative and makes some interesting mechanical choices. I like all three of these games, and definitely rate them favorably alongside From Software's more modern titles.