Game Review: Breath of Fire III (PSP)

PSP RPGs are here and there, they're everywhere they're up the stairs and behind the chairs. Yes, i did make that off the top of my head as I went but the point stands that there is an abnormal amount of sh**ty PSP RPGs out there. And then there are some good ones. Then there are some o.k. ones. Yadda yadda. Breath of Fire III seems like your average RPG, turn based, plot, stuffzes that make it an RPG...you know how it is. So lemme get to the review before you jump to conclusions....

You start out as a dragon (huh?) that ends up being found, abandoned as a human child, found by a duo named Rei and Teepo, 2 juvenile thieves. You soon become family, and have a time together...until two assassins named Balio and Sunder attack you and your family, who presumably kill Rei and Teepo after you black out. You soon set out to try and find them, in the way learning of your origins as a half-dragon, half-human race, and the most powerful in existence. Along you way you befriend a princess, a guardian, a wacko scientist, and a list oft friends as you journey to find out just what happened to you and you dragon race.

Graphics are sprites. But they are some darn fine looking sprites. However, for the first part of the game, the main character's sprite doesn't look much like the character himself, so it really doesn't matter. backgrounds are full 3D, however, and look pretty nice, not terrible and not stunning. They're just what they need to be.

Now for a turn based RPG (which I used to hate, btw) this one is pretty deep. Physical attacks, magical attacks, over 100 spells, weapons, armor, secondary armor, rings, quite a lot of stuff you can customize your characters with. but theres different strategies that you have to employ in every different battle, as all enemies have resistance, weaknesses, abilities, stats, all that may seem normal for RPGs, but Breath of Fire forces the player to take each one of these factors into consideration, as your normal strategy will almost never work all the time later on in the game. Each character that joins you, too will have they're owns abilities you must factor in. You may find yourself frustrated at times, but I'm just a really impatient person myself. But boy, playing as dragon Ryu sure is fun!


Sound is fine, at least for what it is. It wouldn't have killed them to add some voice acting to the scenes, though would it? Music is so-so, and the battle cries are still in Japanese. Eh....

Replay value...well, its standard for an RPG. You should get a good 30 hours of gameplay, but theres little to do except collect items and dragon genes after your done.

Graphics: 3.5/5
Great sprites, decent battle animations. Nothing special, but their fine for what they are.

Sound: 2.5/5
Everything works, but it still would've been nice to have seen some voice acting.

Gameplay: 3.5/5
Pretty nice and deep for a turn-based RPG. Multiple strategies for enemies, all which must be utilized to the best of your characters abilities. Unfortunately, you have to guess the strategy for many opponents.

Presentation: 4.5/5
An interesting storyline through the whole experience will keep you coming for more. Combat is easy to learn as well.

Replay value: 3/5
Like I said, a good 25-30 hours of gameplay, but after that, your done.

Overall:

it was tough debating whether it'd be a 8, 7.5, or an 7...but its age is starting to show. Still, if you want a mix between old school and new age RPG that still is pretty fun, look no further.