As publishers rush to deliver role-playing games to the PlayStation, observing the monstrous success of FF VII, Capcom seized on the opportunity with a phenomenal entry in an underrated series from last-generation. Breath of Fire III follows Ryu, a half-human, half-dragon warrior discovered as an abandoned dragon pup in a mine. Ryu embarks on a journey to learn the truth of his ancestry and the mystery surrounding his realm. It's a traditional RPG plotline involving medieval tech and ancient conflicts, but the upside of BOF's so-so theming is its brilliant dialogue translation handled with humor and precision. Visually, Capcom chose to forgo polygonal fanciness in favor of detailed, hand-drawn character and creature sprites. Developers incorporated an isometric perspective with 3-D terrain and a rotatable camera, not unlike FF Tactics, which works just as well as it did in that game.

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Combat is turn-based, in which each party member can choose to attach, defend, activate a special ability, or watch an enemy to learn their skills. Certain characters can transform into beastly dragons, all with devastating attacks, although this requires crystals called Dragon Genes to pull off the trick. Beyond simple hack-and-slash, the adventures of BOF include a variety of other activities like fishing, town-building, side quests, and dragon gene splicing. This disc's musical arrangements are bizarre to say the least, an unmemorable mix of light jazz and electronica, but the sounds are not a deal-breaker. Occasional slowdown can mar this title's otherwise fluid pacing at certain moments, as well.

Printed in Issue #46, May-June 1998