"Breath of Fire 3" - part 3

Enough about memories and story, let’s talk about what makes a video game great; the game play.

By just glancing at the surface “Breath of Fire 3” looks and feels like a generic JRPG. The player selects a party of three characters and encounters enemies at random while walking across the game world. Select an attack command or defensive strategy and continue to do so until you level up. Repeat these processes until you are in a comfortable position to trounce all over the corpses of the next horde of minions within a dungeon or until you feel confident enough to defeat the next boss encounter by merely breathing on them.

True, “Breath of Fire 3” does borrow heavily from tried and true methods but it manages to spice things up with several unique characteristics that are entirely distinctive to the game.

When walking around the world map the player does not encounter enemies at random. Instead the game allows the player the option of entering an instanced battle area where they can walk about and engage with enemies. From here it’s pretty basic, although within each of these personal battle areas awaits a free item for the player to pick up outside of combat as well as several rocks and trees that they can abuse for some spare coin. As soon as the player grows tired of the constant murdering they can choose to leave the area and even set up camp before continuing on with their quest. The camp allows for a quick rest to restore health and mana while also providing the opportunity to communicate with party members to see what they have to say about the current circumstances that surround them in the story.

These options are immensely satisfying as they allow the player to control the game at a level that is comfortable for their play style. While dungeons still demand that the player engage the enemies, on the map field it’s totally up to the person holding the control pad whether or not they want to kill a few more baddies for that extra experience needed to level or snag up some spare money to purchase that shiny new shield. Also, allowing for a spot to rest without the need for an inn and giving the PC the chance to sit down and learn a thing or two about the various stragglers that are picked up on the adventure is an interesting feature that gives a bit more heart to the overall experience. When you as the player are capable of taking a moment to speak with your squad mates, it gives an uncanny sense of intimacy that is often sorely lacking in these kinds of titles. Of course in this post-Bioware world, the idea of talking to your various party members is a staple rather than a far cry; however this was something unheard in the late ‘90s console market that offered a whole new level of play for the person who was interested in the various roleplaying aspects of video games.

When the player wasn’t fighting baddies, setting up tent to satisfy a quick late-night s’mores craving, or entering the next plot point destination, they could also try their hands at fishing. Fishing and hunting was always a feature that had been implemented into previous “Breath of Fire” titles, but here they went the distance. Regrettably, the developers elected to remove the hunting feature all together but in its place they beefed up the fishing game to a level that still holds up today as one of the best mini-game time-sink exercises.

Upon entering a fishing spot the player would have to select a particular rod and bait. Each rod had its own strengths and weaknesses ranging from how far it could cast to how much tension the line could hold before it broke. The bait did various things: some would float while others sank. Certain fish were attracted to specific kinds of bait. If the angler was inclined to truly master the art of reeling in the catch of the day, they could also memorize movement patterns that would entice the fish by moving the bait in very precise motions. Different locations around the globe had different fish so it was important to try them all.

For the most part the fish themselves weren’t all that useful. Some could be eaten for health, while others were poisonous and could debilitate the enemy. The most common use for fish was currency. There just so happened to be a savvy fish merchant in the game that would shell out fantastic equipment in exchange for a handful of rare fish. As a result, fishing became incredibly addictive as the rewards were oftentimes better than what could be purchased or found anywhere else. This is a rare phenomenon in games when the mini game offered such a substantial benefit to the player; usually mini games are nothing more than an annoying method of diverting the player’s attention away from the core game mechanics to fool them into thinking they are getting more value from an otherwise shallow 40 hours of play.

Fishing and world travel aside the developers over at Capcom also provided a pretty elaborate and complex level of character development to the game as well. Many of the characters had unique powers that no other character could emulate: Peco could regenerate his health and had a high counter-attack rate and Rei could transform into an almost uncontrollable weretiger. The show stealer however was Ryu, the main character. Sticking to tradition, Ryu could transform into a dragon during combat but with “Breath of Fire 3” they offered a whole new level of customization to this feature.

While traveling the world the player would discover dragon orbs, small spheres that would bestow power to Ryu during a dragon fusion. Some would add electrical damage to his attacks, others would bolster his ability to defend or attack. Whenever Ryu wished to perform a transformation he could select up to three of these artifacts and depending on the combination it would change both Ryu’s abilities and physical appearance. A player could for example junction together a fire orb with the warrior orb and magic orb to create a melee character that could channel fire magic through his attacks. Of course with all this power at the tips of the fingers comes a cost. Remaining in dragon form constantly requires mana upkeep which is removed at the end of each turn of combat for an amount based on which orbs were assigned to the transformation. Once the mana was gone, Ryu would revert back to normal. This is easily one of the cleverest ideas for combat diversity seen in any game and it was balanced enough to still challenge the player by requiring the right combination of dragon abilities for each boss encounter.

The final element of the game that truly deserves mentioning is the master system. Throughout the game the player encounters legendary fighters who are willing to train each of the characters as they advance in level. Before receiving any tutelage from these great sages, the player must first perform a task for them like giving a charitable donation or becoming a legendary fisherman. Once the master opened his doors to the idea of training an apprentice the game picks up in a way that can only be matched with MMOs in the scale of character customization.

When training under a master the player’s stats would be altered. Whenever they level up they gain a benefit to specific stats while also possibly taking a penalty to others. The great lumberjack Bunyan can teach a player to be hardier by bolstering attack, defense, and maximum health but comes at the cost of lowered intelligence and mana pool. After leveling up several times under one master’s discipline you can return to them and have them teach you a new trick or power to be used in combat. Once learned they can be swapped between party members provided you have access to your journal and have a spare skill ink handy.

At the time, this level of character progression only existed in “Breath of Fire 3”; even today most console RPGs shy away from such tricky methods of manipulating the statistics of the playable characters. MMORPGs allow various tweaks and modifications to the player’s avatar, but for a console title this is still a radically original concept. Being able to bolster an already proficient magic user’s magic score OR augmenting their weaker physical stats is a brilliant concept that gives the player a true sense of ownership, making each play through unlike any other.

“Breath of Fire 3” was a game made for the obsessive compulsive. By opening the flood gates and setting the player loose in an open room filled with all the tools they needed to create a truly unique experience, they were setting the standards for all RPGs to come. They even managed to make all the various game play features fun to boot! After all, what’s the point in catching some fish if it ain’t fun? Especially when there is no booze involved.