Square Enix

FM3, at its core, is a turn-based strategy game where tactics and control are concerned only as far as a squad of four soldiers rather then an army of thousands. What has always been a trademark of the Front Mission series (Parts 1 and 2 were never localized for the North American market) is that all the soldiers under a player's command pilot Japanese anime-styled combat robots known as Wanzers (pronounced Van-ser).

According to ESRB, this game contains: Animated Violence 

This game really surprised me. I generally don't get too excited about turned-based RPGs (I lost interest about midway through Shining Force), but I couldn't stop playing FM3, and it's difficult to explain why. Like Chi, I have mixed feelings about the game. FM3 left me feeling short-changed on several occasions. And yet, this game managed to pull me in and keep me interested. I found myself addicted to the fun battle scenarios, and the story proved just compelling enough for me to keep plugging away at this futuristic RPG.

To all the Square-heads and otakus out there (who are gonna buy this game regardless), I apologize in advance, but this review isn't meant for you. It's meant for Squaresoft whom I hope to sting a little.

Game Description: Combining two titles from the highly acclaimed Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy Anthology offers PlayStation game console owners a glimpse into the past of one of the most successful role playing series of all time. The inclusion of Final Fantasy V marks the first time this title has appeared on a console in North America. Final Fantasy VI, originally released as Final Fantasy III on the SNES system in the U.S., brings one of the most successful RPG's in history to the PlayStation game console for the first time. Each game in the compilation will feature never before seen CG movies.

To its credit, Square EA did pack in the second best RPG in the whole series with Final Fantasy VI, but I cannot let Square off the hook because they left out my all-time favorite, Final Fantasy IV.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Comic Mischief, Mild Animated Violence

Game Description: A revolutionary new Battle System has been created to add more customization to your characters by way of the Junction System. The latest features such as Dolby Surround Sound, Pocket Station compatibility and CG movie integration have also been incorporated into this masterpiece, making this title a showcase in technological game advancements.

In a word: "overrated." Alongside games like Tomb Raider and Resident Evil, Final Fantasy VIII (FF8) will go down in my book as one of the most overrated games of all-time. I'm convinced that if this role-playing game (RPG) did not bear the Final Fantasy moniker, it would have been universally panned as a poorly written obnoxious piece of CG fluff by the public and press alike.

For all its depth, though, I quickly discovered that I had little control of the game after the early part of it. No matter what I did or what kind of responses I gave [to the non-player characters (NPCs)], the story progressed regardless of that. It has been a running trend with Sakaguchi since Final Fantasy III (FF3) that furthering the plot takes precedence over player involvement.