Blaster Master Zero III kind of confused me. It fixed 2's biggest problem: The clutter of a toolkit in the Top-Down sections. In III, there's 5 guns (each of which upgrade individually), a selection of subweapons, a dedicated dash button, and a singular counter button. I also loved the risk-reward element that many of these dungeons had: risking your progress for even more upgrades, or playing it safe and leaving. The Top-Down sections still have problems; The progression isn't nearly as developed as in the 2D sections, the level design is still very basic and rarely makes use of all the moves, etc.... However, they were undeniably better than those of 2.
However, I think I prefer the 2D sections in 2 more than in III, for several reasons. 2 had much more level variety and felt like a much more streamlined yet still unique experience. In III, most of the locations are just cyber-hallways. The movement in 2 was also much better. You had a dash, a 'ground-pound' in the form of a drill, wall jumps, and deployable springs. III ditches the drill and springs, and has spawnable block lines. An interesting concept, but it's introduced near the very end and is underutilized.
I also wasn't a fan of the reverse dimensional rifts. It's an interesting idea: Flipping a game mechanic on it's head in fun ways. The issue is that often, the ways are not actually fun. I liked the enemies jumping when you touch a spring, but everything else was pretty forgettable. In Top-Down, the rifts are just auto-generated sections that aren't all that great.
That just reminded me of another thing that annoyed me. In the top-down sections, often you're presented with really tough enemies or constantly respawning enemies. However, fairly early on the game basically says, "Oh, just take the rifts to skip those." What? Why are you making a section intentionally annoying and encouraging the player to skip it in a game where scouring the map for collectibles is the whole point? There's nothing in said sections, so they are quite literally made to be skipped.
I know I've been ragging on this game, but I still enjoyed it more than I didn't. The visuals and sound are a bump from 2, the story is cheesy but somewhat entertaining, and most of the bosses are really good (Although a few were reused ones from previous games). However, a few dumb choices prevented this from being the true pinnacle of mutant-blasting action.
However, I think I prefer the 2D sections in 2 more than in III, for several reasons. 2 had much more level variety and felt like a much more streamlined yet still unique experience. In III, most of the locations are just cyber-hallways. The movement in 2 was also much better. You had a dash, a 'ground-pound' in the form of a drill, wall jumps, and deployable springs. III ditches the drill and springs, and has spawnable block lines. An interesting concept, but it's introduced near the very end and is underutilized.
I also wasn't a fan of the reverse dimensional rifts. It's an interesting idea: Flipping a game mechanic on it's head in fun ways. The issue is that often, the ways are not actually fun. I liked the enemies jumping when you touch a spring, but everything else was pretty forgettable. In Top-Down, the rifts are just auto-generated sections that aren't all that great.
That just reminded me of another thing that annoyed me. In the top-down sections, often you're presented with really tough enemies or constantly respawning enemies. However, fairly early on the game basically says, "Oh, just take the rifts to skip those." What? Why are you making a section intentionally annoying and encouraging the player to skip it in a game where scouring the map for collectibles is the whole point? There's nothing in said sections, so they are quite literally made to be skipped.
I know I've been ragging on this game, but I still enjoyed it more than I didn't. The visuals and sound are a bump from 2, the story is cheesy but somewhat entertaining, and most of the bosses are really good (Although a few were reused ones from previous games). However, a few dumb choices prevented this from being the true pinnacle of mutant-blasting action.