Note: Played on the Mega Man Legacy Collection.
Disappointment: The Game. After Mega Man 2, I thought the series would reach the same heights, at least in the NES era, but I hoped that it would stay a consistent quality. But no, Mega Man 3 feels like it drops a lot of the features that made 2 so great and tries to make it more like 1, in all the worst ways possible.
Before I complain though, I do wanna give a compliment to the story. This is the first game where there's a slightly more apparent narrative, and by that I mean there's text at the very end, but it's more than we've gotten before. Proto Man is a very cool character and I really hope to see more of him in future games. Also I was not expecting Wily to literally die, though I am curious how he'll come back.
First is the combat. It's alright, but a notable step down. The abilities in this game are less interesting and versatile. I get they couldn't just copy the ones in 2, and it's hard to come up with good concepts, but I don't know man. None of the abilities really stood out. In 2, each had a purpose but they could be used in a variety of situations. Air worked like a shotgun, Wood was a shield that became a powerful projectile, Quick obliterated bosses and groups of enemies, etc. I found myself constantly switching between them to get through levels, not because I had to but because it was fun. In this game though, the abilities just feel clunky. Snake, Gemini, and Spark are good examples of this, being really slow or way to specific to be useful.
The bosses also show a downgrade. In 2, the bosses were easier than in 1, but were more advanced. They also still had weaknesses, but you also could take them down with any weapon you wanted without much trouble. In 3 though, it feels like they just decided to go back to 1's design. If you don't use the ability the boss is weak to, you'll be doing chip damage. The bosses also move super fast in this game, which I generally wouldn't have a problem with if half the abilities didn't move like snails.
The enemies in this game also suck. Some of them are fine, but a lot are really annoying. They decided that in this game, a lot less enemies would die in a single hit. It sounds good on paper, but when these enemies appear as, if not more frequently than one hit enemies, do a shit ton of damage, have annoying movement patters, and are small, than it becomes unbearable. Enemies are also more oftenly placed at annoying spots where you can't hit them well. I can't remember any specifics right now since the game is kinda blending together in my head rn, but I know there's a good few like this.
The level design also feels worse. None of it was particularly fun, and once again it felt more like 1. It's not nearly on the same tier as 1, I never got too angry from the levels themselves, but I certainly wasn't enjoying them as consistently as 2 either. The only stage I remember truly enjoying was the one with the projectors from 2's final boss, which I thought was a fun gimmick that expanded upon the one found in 2. Surprisingly though, I found the Wily levels to be pretty enjoyable. Ignoring the bosses at the end which were pretty consistently annoying, I had a fun time going through the stages, though they were also very very short which played a good part.
I think the part of this game that's easily worse though are those 4 levels that unlock after you beat the main 8 guys, but before the Wily stages. Seeing Mega Man 2 bosses again was kind of neat, but the stages themselves were really bad and boring. They basically slightly remixed the original levels, making them overall more difficult but notably shorter. Also these levels all have 2 bosses in them, so if you get a game over you have to fight all the bosses again. At this point of the game I was save state scumming so it didn't really effect me.
Also, the most disappointing aspect; the music. I didn't realize that 2's composer dipped after that game and never returned to Mega Man, so going into this game and not hearing the same style of incredible music was disappointing. I did like the game's main theme and Proto Man's theme though.
Mega Man 3 is overall a step down. It feels like a worrying setup for how the rest of the NES era is going to go. I really am hoping that they learn from their mistakes and shift more towards a fun and slightly easier but still thrilling experience (also please add the difficulty options back, that was such a random removal).
Disappointment: The Game. After Mega Man 2, I thought the series would reach the same heights, at least in the NES era, but I hoped that it would stay a consistent quality. But no, Mega Man 3 feels like it drops a lot of the features that made 2 so great and tries to make it more like 1, in all the worst ways possible.
Before I complain though, I do wanna give a compliment to the story. This is the first game where there's a slightly more apparent narrative, and by that I mean there's text at the very end, but it's more than we've gotten before. Proto Man is a very cool character and I really hope to see more of him in future games. Also I was not expecting Wily to literally die, though I am curious how he'll come back.
First is the combat. It's alright, but a notable step down. The abilities in this game are less interesting and versatile. I get they couldn't just copy the ones in 2, and it's hard to come up with good concepts, but I don't know man. None of the abilities really stood out. In 2, each had a purpose but they could be used in a variety of situations. Air worked like a shotgun, Wood was a shield that became a powerful projectile, Quick obliterated bosses and groups of enemies, etc. I found myself constantly switching between them to get through levels, not because I had to but because it was fun. In this game though, the abilities just feel clunky. Snake, Gemini, and Spark are good examples of this, being really slow or way to specific to be useful.
The bosses also show a downgrade. In 2, the bosses were easier than in 1, but were more advanced. They also still had weaknesses, but you also could take them down with any weapon you wanted without much trouble. In 3 though, it feels like they just decided to go back to 1's design. If you don't use the ability the boss is weak to, you'll be doing chip damage. The bosses also move super fast in this game, which I generally wouldn't have a problem with if half the abilities didn't move like snails.
The enemies in this game also suck. Some of them are fine, but a lot are really annoying. They decided that in this game, a lot less enemies would die in a single hit. It sounds good on paper, but when these enemies appear as, if not more frequently than one hit enemies, do a shit ton of damage, have annoying movement patters, and are small, than it becomes unbearable. Enemies are also more oftenly placed at annoying spots where you can't hit them well. I can't remember any specifics right now since the game is kinda blending together in my head rn, but I know there's a good few like this.
The level design also feels worse. None of it was particularly fun, and once again it felt more like 1. It's not nearly on the same tier as 1, I never got too angry from the levels themselves, but I certainly wasn't enjoying them as consistently as 2 either. The only stage I remember truly enjoying was the one with the projectors from 2's final boss, which I thought was a fun gimmick that expanded upon the one found in 2. Surprisingly though, I found the Wily levels to be pretty enjoyable. Ignoring the bosses at the end which were pretty consistently annoying, I had a fun time going through the stages, though they were also very very short which played a good part.
I think the part of this game that's easily worse though are those 4 levels that unlock after you beat the main 8 guys, but before the Wily stages. Seeing Mega Man 2 bosses again was kind of neat, but the stages themselves were really bad and boring. They basically slightly remixed the original levels, making them overall more difficult but notably shorter. Also these levels all have 2 bosses in them, so if you get a game over you have to fight all the bosses again. At this point of the game I was save state scumming so it didn't really effect me.
Also, the most disappointing aspect; the music. I didn't realize that 2's composer dipped after that game and never returned to Mega Man, so going into this game and not hearing the same style of incredible music was disappointing. I did like the game's main theme and Proto Man's theme though.
Mega Man 3 is overall a step down. It feels like a worrying setup for how the rest of the NES era is going to go. I really am hoping that they learn from their mistakes and shift more towards a fun and slightly easier but still thrilling experience (also please add the difficulty options back, that was such a random removal).
brockreiher
1 year ago