Travis Returns to the Garden of Insanity - No More Heroes 3 Review
No More Heroes 3 - Welcome back to the Madness inside the Garden of Insanity
Review by Zachary Filstrup
Fire up your Nintendo Switch, grab your Soda, Snacks, and Start the Game!
Travis returns to the garden of insanity in the latest Suda 51 game from Grasshopper Manufacture on the Nintendo Switch. It's time to extend that beam katana again *boom* to become the No.1 ranked assassin this time against an alien race attempting to take over the planet. The main cast returns with Travis, Silvia, Bad Girl, and many more characters from the previous entries. This is a direct sequel after No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle. There was also an entry in-between No More Heroes 2 and 3 called Travis Strikes Back but I haven't played this spin-off entry in the series yet. It tells the events between these two entries so maybe one day I will review this one.
So what is new with the latest entry? Honestly, the formula is the same as not too much has changed from the same zany formula of the hack n' slash action of slicing and dicing. Suda 51 is in full stride as he tells his latest story of the UAA, Travis Touchdown, and his breaking the fourth wall conventions with anime scenes and 80's/90's nostalgia mixed into the blender. The goal is still the same to become #1.The sequence is still the same between boss fights where you must acquire cash to pay the UAA fee to advance between the different boss fights. The UAA for those unfamiliar with the franchise is the United Assassins Association which conducts fights and organizes the structure for assassins to move up the ranks.You acquire cash from completing side quests, defense fights, and other misc. tasks. I will say there is less variety of them then the original with the gym and job center being omitted from the latest entry. This may disappoint some but for me wasn't that much of an issue. After accomplishing this you eventually and ultimately then have a showdown with the final boss and become the best and see the conclusion to both the story and the series.
An alien named Fu and his band of aliens have come to the fictional Santa Destroy to take over and conquer the Earth. It's a simple plot but what you really care about is the action right? The previous games also were simple an Otaku and anime lover that is Travis Touchdown wants to get with Silvia and become the #1 assassin. So it sticks to a simple plot with little deviation. One of the fun aspects I enjoyed is the streamlined approach to upgrading your character. In previous entries, you had to go to the gym and do various activities to boost your stats. This entry in the series only requires you to deposit WESN coin to upgrade different attributes such as Power, Health, Combo Specials, etc. So while this is quite different from the original and strips much of this charm away it also makes it easier to continue through the adventure using the machine at Naomi's Lab. My preference is that I like this approach over having to go to multiple places to upgrade different aspects/attributes of your character but that is just my opinion.
So I will start with the good and then bad. Afterwards, I will summarize my thoughts and give my overall score and verdict!
The good well it has the same characters that you know and love. It has the same action that you love. The boss battles are amazing and one of the major highlights of this entry and the series as a whole. I find the graphics work well for the game with its stylish look and it fits well within the series framework since it started on the Wii. I like the expanded control options from the original Wii entry to include more then motion controls and while you can use different button options to umm... lol recharge your beam katana. There is something fun and satisfying possibly embarrassing. I had played with the motion controls in the past but in this one used the traditional controls and it definitely gets the job done. However, there is something satisfying with the beam katana shaking action you can't replicate without the motion aspect of a Switch Joy-con as the Wii had also previously been able to accomplish.The anime references and references to Terminator, Akira, and Rocky references are such a treat and gave me both nostalgia and joy how he inserted them into the game in a unique way.
So the bad, technical issues plague this game from the long loading times between different transitions in-game whether your opening a door to the motel or going into a shop or the cutscene to the next boss battle. I will say it varies as sometimes the load times are short and others feel like it drags. I was kinda surprised by this hiccup. The mini-games are fun at first but become a repetitive chore after awhile as you need to continue to repeat/replay to farm for money to pay the UAA fee between each boss fight. However, I also understand it is part of the gameplay but more variety would have helped alleviate this pain point or keep the repetitive aspect a little more accommodating. The open world returns but honestly much of it is blank and empty so I found myself going from point A to B often but only exploring from time to time and finding the random cat or card as part of the different side quests that the game offers.
As a point of reference I played my copy on my new Nintendo Switch Lite I picked up before PAX. I will be putting up a video/review on TikTok on my thoughts of this portable Switch. This is more a side note but good to compare as different models of the Switch can have various performance impact based on what model you play albeit small but noted nonetheless.
No More Heroes 3 is a game for the fans. If you are new to the series or have never played one I suggest playing the original game. If you like that one play the remaining ones so you can understand the story as well as see if the gameplay is something that you will enjoy. The game caters to you also knowing the story and doesn't give a background if the latest entry is your first time playing the franchise.
Fortunately, both the first and second game are available on the Switch and Steam. So, no need to hunt down a Wii or dust off your old one should you still own one.
So given the good and bad I have highlighted in my review and thoughts above I give the game a 7/10. Unfortunately, technical issues and repetitive gameplay hinder my experience a little but overall I loved the story and the game. I was glad to return to a franchise I loved on the Wii and continues to this day. I love Suda 51 and how he crafts his games with such witty and off-the-wall design. This starts from the breaking the forth wall conventions, humor, writing, and puns on gamers and the community, direct jabs, and overall just a sense of wonder because you never know what he will throw at you. Grasshopper Manufacture is like a punk rock band that continues to tape up the amp and keep going and there is such a charm that you get hooked into it! Lastly, the commentary on video games and gamer culture, and there are plenty of self-deprecating lines and overt references are icing on the cake! Finally, I completed the game in about 15-20 hours completing both the story and most of the side quests. However, I didn't collect all the in-game items such as T-shirts to customize Travis and his wardrobe, cats, and cards for cash. There is also a harder mode for more challenge in New Game Plus. Most of these tend to be more cosmetic changes or just to max your level which I didn't need to do at all to complete the game. I didn't see a payoff and these days as a gamer I don't 100% games unless I have something compelling in terms of a pay off or reward. I enjoy trophies and achievements but I don't like filler or fluff content that isn't compelling or interesting. This will be in another video/blog post but worth mentioning in terms of my playthrough and what I did and didn't complete.
So what did you think of No More Heroes 3 let me know in the comments below. Did you pick it up? Love it? Hate it?
My next review will dive into the RPG realm with Tales of Xillia 2 which lines up with an entry prior to the latest release of Tales of Arise which I will have a review up in October. This review for the game will likely drop mid to end of the month as I will be in Europe for about 1 1/2 weeks on vacation. I will have more TikTok content and likely some game pickups planned so stay tuned!
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