Blaster Master Zero 3

Blaster Master Zero 3 keeps the series’ odd mix of side-scrolling shooting and top-down exploration, so it ends up speaking to players who like action games with a bit of route-finding between fights. By our assessment, that hybrid is the main appeal: the hopping between the tank, the on-foot sections, and the maze-like progression gives it more texture than a simple run-and-gun. The trade-off is that the game can feel fussy if all you want is a straight arcade rhythm, because its structure asks for patience and attention to movement. In practice it has the feel of a compact, careful action game rather than a loose power fantasy, with a lot of switching between modes as you move through its stages. Compared with cleaner modern action-platformers, it is more old-school in how it asks you to learn the map as well as the controls. The 3 in the title is part of the recorded name, which fits its place as a later entry rather than a fresh reboot.