Descent³ (1999 Video Game) User Reviews

95% -- a true classic that tragically never received player recognition

[FreeMediaKids · 9/10 · 28 April 2018]

PROS

• The final chapter to the Descent trilogy saga was greatly needed for a story that was a little more than half-complete, and, executed using the right scripting, Descent 3 helps explain the entire situation about PTMC robots, why they were corrupt, and who was behind all of the attacks throughout the saga. (Forget the animation of the cutscenes that is rather dated and thus somewhat cringeworthy, although it may also make the cutscenes fun to watch because of the so-bad-it's-good effect.)
• The graphics even for a Windows 98 game are the very type that makes us want to take them seriously and solemnly respect them, which is to say, it is among the best-looking graphics even by today's standards. The audio fits well as an excellent quality, too, and that music...
• The artificial intelligence is greatly enhanced (they are more aware of their surroundings and stay being involved) and unpredictable, and the combat is surprisingly challenging, especially more so without powerups or on a higher difficulty level.
• What makes this game arguably the best in the saga is the ability to fly in outside environments. Previously, we were busy navigating only mines and destroying reactors before escaping through an exit. With this, however, the game allows players to fly in mines and in the outside environment, allowing a true sense of variety.
• Another thing that makes this game the best in the saga is that each mission has its own objectives for the player to complete, primary and sometimes secondary. Previously, we would play numerous varying levels with the primary objective being to destroy the mine's reactor core and escaping and the secondary objective to rescue hostages (for which the game rewarded the player). Descent 3 promises that numerous types of missions are possible.
• Multiplayer is greatly expanded again, and it seems that it has reached the best that it could. One of the most functional and most developed multiplayer out there.
• The useful wireframe automap has been entirely replaced with an even more useful one with textures, and using it is easier and clearer than it ever was beforehand.
• Undisappointingly, it has played it safe and retained all the features that make a Descent game what it should be: level editor, first-person shooter perspective, robots, multiplayer, cooperative, secret areas and levels--I could go on.
• There may not be the Pyro-GX anymore, or the Earthshaker Missile, but there are three ships (plus another in the expansion pack that comes with the Steam version) with their own statistics, with one average, the second fast but weak, and the last slow but powerful, and there are more weapons like the Black Shark missile with more originality and an even wider variety of function. And we also have the beloved Guide-Bot as a sidekick that comes with us for all of the campaign. Like the one in the game's predecessor, it is of high assistance, which may make it and the Material Defender an excellent duo. However, powerups can make it an excellent weapon.

NEUTRAL

• Descent 3's campaign, Retribution, somewhat falls "short" in that it partly feels like a comprehensive summary of a larger story, leaving some questions to be answered in the end, although all the important plot points are given. Descent 3: Mercenary seems to have resolved the issue, so this does not apply.

CONS

• The game has been notorious for bugs such as those that would cause the game to crash apparently without an explanation, and unfortunately, at version 1.4, it still is somewhat buggy. The crashing is occasional, though somewhat predictable, and it can be made even rarer if one can identify the cause of the crash (such as using the Guide-Bot in multiplayer and exiting the Descent 3 windows perhaps to calibrate the joystick before returning) and avoid it. Gameplay-wise, I do not expect people to have too much trouble with bugs such as the Guide-Bot seemingly swaying to and fro in one area.

CONCLUSION: It may be a commercial failure, and the bugs may occasionally throw off some gamers, but Descent 3 firmly stands as a 6DOF classic to one of the greatest game series, and with a consistent conclusion. Speaking of which...

P.S. Rest in peace, Descent. It may be true that there may never be a Descent 4 (though we do have Descent: Underground and Overload) and that the causative commercial failure was Interplay's fault, but you rocked the world with your inspiration and at least completed the entire story with 3. See you later. <:-(

This is a great computer game!!!!!

[windows-2 · 10/10 · 24 September 1999]

I played this game Descent 3, developed by Outrage Entertainment and published by Interplay Productions it is really great and very addictive. This is VERY cool, much cooler than D1 and D2. There are books out and they are GREAT, apparently according to a press release I read, Interplay Films a divison of Interplay Productions is currently making a Descent Movie possibly based on the Descent series, according to the press release someone named George DeHoya(?) wrote the script and there are actors in place. Well D3 is when D2 left off, for you who don't know the Pyro-GX (the ship you fly in and shoot robots) had a prototype warpcore integrated into his navagational systems, allowing him to jump to any specified point in space and it malfunctioned at the end of D2. This is a VERY great game. SPOILER ALERT (If you are new and want to find out what happened next read on, but if you want to find out what happened on your own DO NOT READ BELOW THE LINE) ----------------------------------------------------------------

At the beginning of D3 the warpcore jump brought you to an unknown part of space hurling your Pyro-GX right into a star, as you almost go near the star, the heat of the star melted the doors shut and the glass is all charred and before you almost fall into the star, a tractor beam is locked onto your ship in the nick of time and it pulls you into a ship belonging to CED or Collective Earth Defense a new ally for PTMC (Post Terrain Mining Corp.) and when your ship is in a cargo bay little extraction droids starts the long and hard work to cut the door open and after they do that rehydration droids wake you up and rehydrate your body with water. A doctor speaks with you then telling you that Dravis, the person who hired you in Descent 1 and Descent 2 to eliminate robots which is infected with a virus is working with a Dr. Switzer(?) with the virus and infected the robots themselfs but CED has no evidence to prove that they did that so they can arrest them so you are given a mission by CED to eliminate all the infected robots, find evidence to apprehend Dravis and Dr. Switzer to finish the game.

Very fast, very fun. Multi-player is where it's at!

[imdb-6494 · 22 May 2005]

Although Descent 3 is an old game I would have to say it's my favorite game because of the heart pounding speed and complexity of the controller. This game has a very steep learning curve and many beginners become overwhelmed quickly. The single player part of this game is lots of fun but should be used primarily as a training session for the multi-player. Multi-player is where this game really takes off and you begin to feel at one with your ship. You will fly against some incredibly good people that have been playing this game for years. Because this game is so fast and fun it really keeps you challenged and that's why it has remained so popular for so long when other games would have faded from memory long ago. If you haven't tried Descent 3 you can find it for sale on the internet at a very reasonable price.