DINOSAURS in SPACE
There’s no getting around it. The storyline is just stupid.
But since this is a video game, wackiness can be good. While commandos flying around with jetpacks may be insulting to your intelligence, that’s not to say that it isn’t fun to control them. Patrick’s jetpack is an integral component to combat. You may come equipped with a machinegun with infinite ammo, but dodging and avoiding attacks is key when you’re up against packs of agile dinosaurs that can rip your guts out in a few swipes. When used, the jetpack allows for a tremendous boost of speed on ground to easily employ tactics, such as dodging multiple attacks in the span of mere seconds or circling foes while firing. If you find yourself surrounded, you can even jump 20 feet in the air and slowly descend while pumping bullets into your pursuers. Of course all of this drains your jetpack’s energy meter, which automatically refills when not in use, meaning careful planning is required.
When it’s time to eliminate dinosaur scum, Patrick is thankfully packing more than the default machinegun rounds. Your weapon can also be loaded with two finite ammo types: wide shot and laser. The wide shot discharges a spray of green energy bullets to blast multiple targets, and the laser is just about the deadliest urine colored beam I’ve seen since DoDonPachi. In addition, all three ammo types can be charged Mega Man style for brutal enhanced attacks. Patrick’s arsenal also includes a variety of tiny robots called WASPS that deploy on your command and automatically strike nearby enemies.
As expected, an action game with shooting as the predominate means for kicking ass isn’t going to be a deep or complex as games like Devil May Cry. Dante may have employed a wide variety special moves and combos, but fighting with Patrick amounts to little more than mashing the fire button while boosting with the jetpack. Yet at the same time, Dino Crisis 3 tries to add a level of complexity by borrowing the experience system that has wormed its way into action games since Onimusha. Each kill earns Tactical Credit that can be spent at save points on special ammo, healing items, additional health, and so on. However, there is one neat twist here with the inclusion of the Elimination Bar, which fills with each downed enemy. You earn bonus TC depending on how much you’ve filled your bar meaning ballsy players that spend a little extra time fighting before hitting up a save point are rewarded with loads of credits.
Racking up credits won’t be easy though. Thanks to the ridiculous dinosaur-human hybrid plot, you’ll be up against tough monsters. Instead of facing swift raptors that merely claw and chew through your flesh, you’ll be battling hybrids with far stranger abilities. They’re still the same pack hunting raptors you’ve come to love since Jurassic Park only now their human DNA allows them to teleport, temporarily become invisible, and shoot lightning. Sure, it makes zero sense as to why human DNA imbues dinosaurs with magical powers, but it can set up cool situations. Imagine narrowly escaping two pursuing raptors only to find a third disengage from stealth camouflage right before your eyes!
Or at least this would be undeniably awesome if Dino Crisis 3’s camera wasn’t so terrible. Capcom has used pre-set camera angles before but never this poorly. Nearly every room of the ship is gigantic yet the camera almost always zooms in on Patrick allowing you to see only a tiny portion of the area. Even worse is the fact that about half the time you’ll be staring at Patrick’s front side giving you plenty of opportunities to walk straight into a hungry dinosaur! Basically you’ll end up listening for upbeat battle music to start playing and then begin either wildly firing away and hoping auto-aim will hit an unseen enemy or randomly move around until the camera cuts to an angle behind Patrick. Fortunately this combined with the fact that all of your attacks are long-range means combat is workable, but fighting could have been a hell of a lot better with a free moving camera like Ninja Gaiden.
There are times when the camera does behave itself such as during boss fights. Since these encounters take place in more confined rooms and the bosses are about ten times your size, you’ll actually be able to see most of what you need to, which is great because the bosses are the best part of the game. Capcom went all out on creating fierce creatures that are hokey yet totally fun to fight. Early on you’ll confront a slimy T-Rex that harnesses electricity to heal itself and then belches lightning bolts in your direction. Later there’s a heavily-armored quadruped that curls into a ball and begins slamming into anything that moves. You’ll have a blast maneuvering yourself with the jetpack to dodge the beast and then unloading all your firepower once it uncurls. My favorite has to be this one battle with a massive sea-dragon type monster in an area flooded with toxic waste. While you continually jump onto islands of floating debris, the boss slurps up the liquid, aims for Patrick, and begins spitting streams of damaging toxins like a fire hose.
That's what I call interesting, memorable encounters.
Playing Dino Crisis 3 is a bizarre experience and not just because of the ridiculous plot. The action is simple, but the jetpack and enemies (especially the bosses) make combat interesting and exciting. At the same time the camera will frustrate you with horrendous angles that don’t even show what you’re shooting at. I’d be taking down four raptors while trying to decide whether I was loving it or hating it. With a better camera, this game could have earned an 8. As it is, it’s like one of hip-hop has-been Flavor Flav’s many reality shows – goofy, fun, and at times downright annoying.