<I am 100 percent aware that there's a page for Bare Knuckle III. However, I'm sharing the review here since I imagine "Streets of Rage 3" is what most people are going to put in the search bar and I wanted to encourage people to try out the JP version before dismissing the game>
Your experience with this game is going to hinge on whether or not you're playing the American or Japanese version. I think a lot of the hate stems from the fact that this game got outright butchered in North America.
They got rid of one mini-boss due to (probably) homophobia and decided to up the difficulty in ways that are far worse than what was seen in Dynamite Headdy and Contra Hard Corps. Not only is damage scaled higher (like Dynamite Headdy's localization), but the speed of the enemies is also shot way the fuck up- it reminded me of what happened when I tried playing a PAL ROM of Power Strike II on NTSC hardware. It just felt broken and I'd originally shelved the game years ago before even making it beyond the junkyard.
Then I booted up an English patched rom of the original version (Bare Knuckle III) on my everdrive and what a difference. Everything clicked and made sense. Pacing was on par with something modern like Fight 'n Rage (a game I love btw) and not once did it feel unfair.
If I had any real gripes outside of the usual monotony that the genre is prone to, it's that the star system is kinda silly. Essentially, you'll gain more moves if you break a certain points threshold without dying and these can be especially powerful. Die, however, and you lose a star. This would be a great risk/reward system if it weren't for the fact that the six button controller allows you to perform these at will. If you hold the X button down and perform a circular motion (at least with Blaze) you'll be able to do them, and even as a non 1v1 fighting game player, these were piss easy to pull off and always take a considerable chunk of life away from enemies. I'm guessing Sega may have done this as a way to peddle more six button pads back in the day.
Some also point to the music as being lackluster compared to SOR1 and 2, and I unfortunately have to agree. There are a few decent tracks here, but even the best don't nail the vibe of the first two entries.
Still, I think the improved pacing (as well as the ability to run and roll about) is what helps Bare Knuckle III stand out in a good way. The star system was a nice touch, but is ultimately trivialized just by going with a six button setup. If Sega hadn't fumbled in localizing it so badly, I think it'd have a better reputation these days.
Your experience with this game is going to hinge on whether or not you're playing the American or Japanese version. I think a lot of the hate stems from the fact that this game got outright butchered in North America.
They got rid of one mini-boss due to (probably) homophobia and decided to up the difficulty in ways that are far worse than what was seen in Dynamite Headdy and Contra Hard Corps. Not only is damage scaled higher (like Dynamite Headdy's localization), but the speed of the enemies is also shot way the fuck up- it reminded me of what happened when I tried playing a PAL ROM of Power Strike II on NTSC hardware. It just felt broken and I'd originally shelved the game years ago before even making it beyond the junkyard.
Then I booted up an English patched rom of the original version (Bare Knuckle III) on my everdrive and what a difference. Everything clicked and made sense. Pacing was on par with something modern like Fight 'n Rage (a game I love btw) and not once did it feel unfair.
If I had any real gripes outside of the usual monotony that the genre is prone to, it's that the star system is kinda silly. Essentially, you'll gain more moves if you break a certain points threshold without dying and these can be especially powerful. Die, however, and you lose a star. This would be a great risk/reward system if it weren't for the fact that the six button controller allows you to perform these at will. If you hold the X button down and perform a circular motion (at least with Blaze) you'll be able to do them, and even as a non 1v1 fighting game player, these were piss easy to pull off and always take a considerable chunk of life away from enemies. I'm guessing Sega may have done this as a way to peddle more six button pads back in the day.
Some also point to the music as being lackluster compared to SOR1 and 2, and I unfortunately have to agree. There are a few decent tracks here, but even the best don't nail the vibe of the first two entries.
Still, I think the improved pacing (as well as the ability to run and roll about) is what helps Bare Knuckle III stand out in a good way. The star system was a nice touch, but is ultimately trivialized just by going with a six button setup. If Sega hadn't fumbled in localizing it so badly, I think it'd have a better reputation these days.