Thunder Force III

Developer: Technosoft     Publisher: Technosoft     Released: 1990     Genre: Shooter

The Sega Genesis had a small but varied launch lineup. While everyone was fawning over Altered Beast Thunder Force II was the star of the lineup in my opinion. It was an excellent port of the Japanese PC version and a solid game all around. Yet in the space of a year Thunder Force III makes that game look like child’s play. In a year that saw many average shooters like Arrow Flash and Whip Rush Thunder Force III would set a standard further game in the genre would be judged against. Even in spite of its early release it remains a fantastic game and one of the better shooters for the platform.

The biggest change is the removal of the overhead stages. In my opinion the game is better for it. As much as I liked Thunder Force II its vertical scrolling levels dragged it down. I could see what they were going for; assaulting a massive enemy fortress or encampment sounds cool. But in practice they were frustrating due to the removal of the map. What should have been an exciting hunt for enemies became a boring and aimless search in a walled off arena with no way to mark your position. With that out of the way the Thunder Force II makes good on the promise its predecessor had and gave early adopters a kick ass game.

The weapon system from the prior game returns with a few changes. CLAWs now function like rotating options in Gradius. At least you only need to collect one to grab the full set. Not every weapon has made the transition but the ones present are all situationally useful. The Hunter, Lancer, and Wave join the default twin and back shot. Death does not remove all weapons, just the one currently selected, making the game less punishing. While the list of weapons is small the fact that entire sections of each level were designed around their use is part of what makes Thunder Force III so fun. Managing your load out for maximum efficiency separates veterans from novices.

From the start you can choose your starting level among five. Each planet presents a different set of challenges for the beginning player. Planet Gorgon features sudden gouts of flame and falling rocks to say nothing of the distracting warping effect in the background. Planet Haides takes place in a mountainous cavern that rises and falls, threatening to crush you at any moment. The bubbles of Seiren seem innocuous at first but push you upward and into danger. The most accessible is planet Hydra, the closest the game has to an introductory level with no major threats.

You’ll notice that the levels will scroll both diagonally and vertically at times, a small change but one that also brings new challenges with it.  There’s a much heavier emphasis placed on stage hazards such as opening and closing gates, sudden shifts in terrain, and other moving parts.   You’ll spend just as much time fighting the environment as the enemies themselves at times requiring lightning reflexes.  Thunder Force 3 moves fast, and even on the slower planets such as Ellis the enemies can fly in at a moment’s notice.  I noticed that the levels are a little shorter than in other shooters but at eight levels this is also longer than most shooters on average. Even after the first five are complete the final three stages, which are an attack on the ORN base are no pushover. That being said

Unlike most shooters Thunder Force III is easy. With the change in the weapon system you are no longer heavily penalized for dying. Weapon drops are fairly generous as well, meaning you are rarely without some special weapon even if it is not at full power. Some weapons are grossly overpowered; once upgraded the twin shot becomes the laser and can decimate bosses in seconds. The generous scoring system showers you with extra lives. By default you start with four but by the end of the first stage you can have as many as seven.  Continues are few but chances are you won’t need any on the default setting. If you want any semblance of challenge you will need to bump up the difficulty.

Thunder Force III is an exceptionally pretty game that holds its own against late releases on the system. The game lavishes a ton of detail in its environments which feature multiple layers of parallax scrolling. Thanks to interplanetary journey there is a great deal of variety in levels, even if they do cover most of the standard tropes. Special effects are not prevalent even though the few that are present are impressive. The warping fire backdrop of planet Gorgon is still cool in motion and was not common for the time. Although the graphics receive the majority of attention the soundtrack is just as excellent. Thunder Force III shows just how far Technosoft had come with the hardware in just one year. And to think they would go even further with its sequel. Scary.

In Closing

Thunder Force III is a fantastic game and a stand out in the Genesis library. Even though it released early there are few better. Great graphics and accessibility make this one of the system’s best games.