Double Take: Thunder Force III

If you ask a Genesis fan which shooter they're most partial to, most of them will likely mention one of the Thunder Force games. Better known than probably any other series in the genre, the three titles released on Sega's little black box have become the stuff of legend. Most would argue that the fourth game, confusingly (and incorrectly) renamed Lightening Force in the U.S., is the best, but there are those with a soft spot for the epic third installment. The latest installment of Double Take looks back at Techno Soft's masterpiece and recalls fond memories of the great times playing it. Check out the full article for more!

TFIII blew me away back in 1990 when it came out. Remember playing it with my old family friends, back when everyone was young and had time to visit. It was senses-shattering, and to this day I still prefer III over IV

I played the Saturn port years ago, and somehow, it just wasn't as sweet as the Genesis one



EDIT: Bought TF III a couple years ago off a nice ex-gamer I found on Craigslist. Got this whole lot for just one crisp 20


http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400...1/IMG_1158.JPG

TF3 is really one of the best - even though my favorite is part 4. That's because I think TF3 gets a little repetitive in the last stages.

And yeah!! Hydra is also my favorite stage!

I've always liked Teknoe Soft. Like any game from the company, you can get to the options screen from the title just by holding A and pressing Start (no need to hold C as well. The voices in part 3 are MUCH worse than those in part 2. Thunder Force 2's voices were very smooth and really not very scratchy at all (except the opening male voice). Check out these examples (uncompressed WAVS) I made using the REAL HARDWARE and the REAL GAMES of how each game sounds during actual gameplay:

Thunder Force 3 - Hunter, Claw, Saber

Thunder Force 2 - Hunter, Clash, Side Blaster

They are poorly pronounced, but this is no fault of the Genesis, but lots of people like to say that the voices even in Thunder Force 2 are mutilated by the Genesis' pathetic sound chip (I'm not accusing you of this, Ken... just speaking in generalities).

Great article. TF III was an instant classic among my friends and I.

A little grammar error: "Besides, that awesome boss is always the first thing I want want Thunder Force newcomers to see". And a spelling error: "Bruce Dickenson" - it should be "Dickinson".

Other than that, top notch stuff as always. I think this one was my first Genesis game, so it has a special feel for me as well. It as actually the soundtrack that I love most about it, with the songs "Gargoyle" and "Final Take a Chance" being my favourites.

Joe Redifer: It is the sounddriver to blame. TFIII had a new one, which was splendid for FM but piss-poor for PCM.

I think Thunder Force III appealed to me so much because it was the first shooter I played which was easy enough for me to beat. The only (minor) gripe I have now about the game is that is has so much dead time in each stage where nothing much is happening due to its easily dispatched enemies that don't respawn often enough, but it doesn't really detract from the game.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zebbe

Other than that, top notch stuff as always. I think this one was my first Genesis game, so it has a special feel for me as well. It as actually the soundtrack that I love most about it, with the songs "Gargoyle" and "Final Take a Chance" being my favourites.

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Yeah, the Technosoft Megadrive shooters always tend to have great music. I really love easton888's piano renditions and would love a CD of them.

Ben, you can embed YouTube videos now!

^ Wow that's pretty damn good. I know I sure as hell couldn't do that, lol

Hah ha, great article Ken. Good stuff. But isn't it redundant to say "teenage, amnesiatic, angst-ridden teenager"? I would change the first teenage into blue haired or something.

True! I took out that first "teenage."

Thanks!

No problemo

It has been a while since I last played it, but it was one of my favorite shooters on the Genesis. It was a pretty intense shooter, but was a bit on the easy side in terms of difficulty.

However, I think that all upgraded weapons are lost as soon as you lose your ship on difficulty levels higher than normal. Can anyone else confirm this?

That is incorrect.

Gosh! Has it already been 18 years since this game was released? I remember getting this game when my mom & dad bought me my Sega Genesis back in 1990. At the time, a promotion was running for the Genesis which gave away a free game (in addition to the Altered Beast pack-in) with any new Genesis system purchase. I remember filling out the mail-in form for the game, which listed a bunch of games and asked for my first-choice, second-choice, third-choice, etc. Of course, I chose Thunder Force III as my first choice - but I never actually suspected that I would receive my first choice, but maybe my second (Batman) or third (can't remember which game this was). Boy, was I blessed to actually receive my first choice! I too agree that this is one of the best shooters on the Genesis. The graphics and soundtrack blew me away back then...and I sometimes still get goose-bumps whenever I play it now!

Regarding Thunder Force IV...I played it for a few moments once, but I wasn't impressed by the way the screen moved when I moved the ship all the way up or down. I guess most people would consider this a great feature of the game, but not me. Perhaps I should give it another chance, but I digress...