Thinking about getting a 3DO

Martin III · Post by **Martin III** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 1:54 am

Yeah, I lied like a rug on the "Textual Confirmation question" in order to register for this forum. In fact, I'm a total Saturn fanatic.

Lately I've been thinking: While I am particularly fond of the Saturn, the whole Fifth Generation of video game consoles is pretty cool, and I'd like to own a second console from that generation to give me a fuller picture. Why, out of the seemingly dozens of consoles for that generation, would I pick the 3DO? Well, in large part because none of the others seem like good options!

At first consideration the 3DO didn't seem like much of a choice either, since so many of the system's games were ported to the Saturn: D, Gex, The Horde, Quarantine, Creature Shock, Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels, Casper, Cyberia, The Need for Speed... the list goes on, and includes most of the 3DO's reputedly good games.

However. I am a huge fan of Crystal Dynamics. In particular, Solar Eclipse is my favorite space shooter. It blew me away when I first played it, and replaying it recently I was reminded of how outrageously good it is, and resolved that somehow, I have to play Total Eclipse. Can't play it without a 3DO - or Star Control II and Crash 'n Burn. Also, I'm an RPG freak, and am impressed by the library of RPGs. Five USA releases, and aside from a Japan-only port of Lucienne's Quest and a PC version of Star Control II, none have been seen outside the 3DO.

Bear in mind that if I do decide to buy a 3DO, it'll be a while before I actually get one, as right now I'm on a budget and have too many unplayed games on my other consoles anyway. Nonetheless, I thought I'd ask these questions of you guys now:

1.First of all, go ahead and try to sell me on the 3DO. I've done plenty of research and have heard all the fair and balanced analyses of the console; now I'd like to hear from the fanboys and girls.

2.I'm a bit confused about the different versions of the 3DO. In my initial research, what I'd been hearing is that many companies manufactured 3DOs, and that no one console is fully compatible with every 3DO game. But recently I saw a video which tells a much simpler tale: Panasonic systems are fully compatible with all 3DO games, Goldstar systems are not, and those are the only two which were produced in the USA. What's the real story? In particular, the 3DO games I'm most interested in are:

Total Eclipse
Guardian War
Slayer
Hell

Is there a 3DO system which works perfectly with all four?

3.Do any of Crystal Dynamics' games for the Saturn and 3DO(Gex, The Horde, Off-World Interceptor, and Slam 'n Jam) have major differences between versions? Basically, I'm wondering if it's worth my while to get the 3DO version in addition to the Saturn version for any of them.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 2:29 am

It's always good to see someone new interested in the system. I could say a lot about the subject, but I think it sounds like you have already done your research.

I haven't heard much about games not working on certain models. If it's true, I'm going to make the guess that incompatibilities are exclusive to the crap titles, so, you shouldn't have anything to worry about.

I'm sure plenty here will like to chime in with their favorites.. here are a few that you might like. At least, I like them: Wolfenstein 3D, Icebreaker, Pataank (A little choppy, but awesome when you get used to it), Escape From Monster Manor, Lemmings (Great port, particularly with the mouse), Trip'd (Puyo Puyo-like puzzler), Blade Force.. I could name more, but will leave it at that.

As far as some of the ones you named:

Total Eclipse: You will get mixed opinions on it. Some people received it as one of their first 3DO games and will rave about it. Me, I came from your position--I had a Saturn well before I had a 3DO and I LOVED Solar Eclipse. With that, Total Eclipse was a complete letdown for me.

Guardian War: Very basic tactics-style RPG, but it gets the job done. I enjoyed it. It's made by the same company that did Mystaria (or Blazing Heroes) on the Saturn--If you enjoyed that, you are likely to enjoy this, although this one is far more linear. I really like the rock and metal soundtrack, too.

Slayer: It was tough for me to get into it because the framerate is fairly sluggish. I'd like to give it another go though.

Hell: Neat concept, but again, I couldn't allow myself to play very far because there seemed to be a ton of loading after every action I tried to perform. If you have patience though, it could potentially be pretty good (I hear it is, but, you know..).

If you are concerned with any games being "good" or not, spend some time watching YouTube videos. You are the best judge, especially when it comes to the 5th Generation of gaming. Also, keep in mind it's easy to "try" 3DO games before you buy.. That is, if you know what I mean.

T2KFreeker · Post by **T2KFreeker** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 3:33 am

A safe bet for a 3DO system is the Panasonic FZ-1. It's durable and build like a tank. The FZ-10 is also a good little system as well, however, not of the same build quality. I personally do not like the Goldstar unit as it is the system that always gave me trouble, however, others love it. It's all about preference. I can tell you this: I hate the fact that the CD drive and everything on the Goldstar unit is in the slide door itself. As for incompatibility issues, I have heard of none unless using burnt discs.

Games:

Both of the Dungeons & Dragons games are tops.

Star Fighter on the 3DO kills the Saturn version as I love the looks much better.

The Shockwave games are outstanding as well. Classic series of games that more people need to play.

Samurai Shodown on the 3DO is an excellent and was handled by Crystal Dynamics and was a spot on port of the arcade game. SNK was not too happy about that.

Need For Speed was amazing on the 3DO. Best version ever.

Killing Time is also an amazing FPS that was a bit ahead of it's time in what they were doing. The game was supposed to be ported by Acclaim to the Playstation and Saturn, but the release never happened.

Lastly for me; Return Fire. Man, you cannot own a 3DO without owning this screamer! The game is fun as Hell and the Soundtrack just makes you love it even more. Two Player is a total blast!

I too could go on and on, but I get long-winded usually as it is. Either way, a 3DO would not be a bad purchase for someone that enjoys the 32-bit generation as there is quite a bit to enjoy on the system.

Oh, and I actually like Off World Interceptor for the 3DO better than the Saturn version. And I also liked Total Eclipse as well . . .

Martin III · Post by **Martin III** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 3:44 am

Austin wrote:Total Eclipse: You will get mixed opinions on it. Some people received it as one of their first 3DO games and will rave about it. Me, I came from your position--I had a Saturn well before I had a 3DO and I LOVED Solar Eclipse. With that, Total Eclipse was a complete letdown for me.

Oh, I'm not expecting Total Eclipse to hold up to the sequel. I know about the lack of a save function, which by itself would have made even Solar Eclipse a lot less awesome. I've also seen the videos, and really it's no surprise that the graphics - both gameplay and FMV - are nowhere near as sharp as in Solar Eclipse. But if I can experience even a few moments of the exhilaration and mental stimulation I got playing Solar Eclipse, it's a must play for me. I just love the game that much.

Guardian War: Very basic tactics-style RPG, but it gets the job done. I enjoyed it. It's made by the same company that did Mystaria (or Blazing Heroes) on the Saturn--If you enjoyed that, you are likely to enjoy this, although this one is far more linear.

Yep, that's actually what first got me interested in the game. Mystaria isn't one of my favorite Saturn RPGs, but that's only because it's up against such stiff competition; in absolute terms, I love it. I got a look at the screen shots for Guardian War and just thought, "Wow, it's like Mystaria is the spiritual sequel to this game!" I love that rough early 3D graphical style.

Hell: Neat concept, but again, I couldn't allow myself to play very far because there seemed to be a ton of loading after every action I tried to perform. If you have patience though, it could potentially be pretty good (I hear it is, but, you know..).

Yeah, I'm not too bothered by loading times in general. The only game that really annoys me with load times is the Saturn version of Mega Man X3, and that's in part because the game is so last generation that load times should be practically non-existent.

If you are concerned with any games being "good" or not, spend some time watching YouTube videos. You are the best judge, especially when it comes to the 5th Generation of gaming. Also, keep in mind it's easy to "try" 3DO games before you buy.. That is, if you know what I mean.

I do, but sadly no one I know has 3DO games I could borrow.

As for YouTube, there are actually no videos of Hell on there(or on Daily Motion, for that matter). Just videos of the intro cinema, which I prefer not to watch since I don't like spoiling myself on a game, and it wouldn't tell me anything about the gameplay anyway.

T2KFreeker wrote:A safe bet for a 3DO system is the Panasonic FZ-1. It's durable and build like a tank. The FZ-10 is also a good little system as well, however, not of the same build quality. I personally do not like the Goldstar unit as it is the system that always gave me trouble, however, others love it. It's all about preference. I can tell you this: I hate the fact that the CD drive and everything on the Goldstar unit is in the slide door itself. As for incompatibility issues, I have heard of none unless using burnt discs.

Thanks, that definitely puts my mind at ease. I think I'll try and go for an FZ-1; in addition to what you've said, I like the look of it better than the FZ-10 and Goldstar.

Oh, and I actually like Off World Interceptor for the 3DO better than the Saturn version.

Any reason why? None of the comments I've seen up till now say anything about differences between the two versions.[/quote]

Austin · Post by **Austin** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 9:49 pm

I can't comment on the Saturn version of Off-World, but I had the PlayStation version. It runs smoother than the 3DO game, but the 3DO version is still playable.

Trev · Post by **Trev** » Sun Feb 13, 2011 6:16 pm

The Saturn version of OWI has a save feature, yes? That alone probably gives it a leg up on the 3DO version.