Jagged Alliance 3 Review – A Triumphant Return to Tactical Excellence and Old-School Charm

After a staggering twenty-five years, Jagged Alliance has risen from the ashes, captivating players once again with its intense squad tactics and captivating RPG elements. As an ardent fan of the 1999 gem, Jagged Alliance 2, I felt an indescribable excitement when Tropico developers Haemimont Games unveiled Jagged Alliance 3, promising to modernize the series while preserving its original essence. Little did I know that this thrilling installment would not only rekindle the cherished memories of the past but also elevate the franchise to new heights.

Jagged Alliance 3: A Nostalgic Yet Refreshing Tactical Adventure

For fans of tactical squad games, Jagged Alliance 3 is a nostalgic delight that modernizes and streamlines the original’s charm while staying true to its old-school roots. Developed by Haemimont Games, known for Tropico, this game successfully captures the essence of the 1999 gem Jagged Alliance 2.

Set in the former French African colony of Grand Chien, the game throws players into a diamond-rich land full of opportunities and danger. As the leader of a squad of formidable mercenaries, your mission is to rescue the kidnapped president and restore order to the country. But with a limited budget of $40,000, you’ll have to assemble the B-Team, making strategic decisions a vital part of the gameplay.

Game shines with its mix of tactical gunfights, strategic mercenary management, and RPG elements like engaging dialogue, sidequests, and looting. The combat system offers depth that can be mastered through learning, reducing frustration while keeping players engaged and challenged.

Embracing a humorously irreverent tone akin to action movies of the era, the game successfully strikes a balance between being dark and edgy while maintaining a sense of joy. Haemimont Games, not typically known for squad tactics, proves their prowess in capturing the spirit of Jagged Alliance and reviving the beloved franchise.

With a setting just a few years after the events of the ’90s original, Jagged Alliance 3 pays homage to its predecessor while introducing modern elements that appeal to both long-time fans and new players. If you’ve been missing the tactical brilliance and quirky charm of Jagged Alliance 2, this latest installment will surely reignite your love for the series. Get ready to lead a squad of badasses on a thrilling adventure to liberate Grand Chien and bask in the nostalgic yet refreshing experience that is Jagged Alliance 3.

Jagged Alliance 3: A Hilarious and Diverse Mercenary Roster Enhances Tactical Gameplay

In the game, players will be delighted to find many of their favorite mercenaries from JA2 making a return, accompanied by a diverse cast of newcomers. With a multinational bunch of misfits to choose from, players have around 36 mercenaries available for hire, each fully realized as RPG party members. Whether they are professionals, dumbasses, or quirky characters, almost all of them are likable and add a unique flavor to the game.

The game’s jokey tone and scenery-chewing performances may not appeal to everyone, but for fans of the series, it’s a fundamental part of the Jagged Alliance experience that provides plenty of chuckles. The voice cast has done an impressive job of nailing the personalities of the returning characters, and the newcomers are equally engaging. Special recognition goes to Leili ‘Livewire’ Idrisi, a cheerful young Pakistani engineer who not only repairs gear but also offers snacks on long trips and uses her custom PDA for hacking devices, adorned with cute stickers.

Each character is fully voiced, adding to the immersive experience both in combat and during interactions with NPCs. Mercenaries have their own friendships and rivalries, leading to banter and beef within the squad. With 4-6 mercenaries forming a squad, players can create entirely different vibes by assembling various combinations, adding replayability to the campaign.

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Jagged Alliance 3’s diverse and lovable mercenary roster, along with their witty banter and unique abilities, enhances the tactical gameplay and makes the journey through Grand Chien an enjoyable and humorous adventure. Whether you’re a veteran of the series or a newcomer, the characters’ individual traits and interactions are sure to leave a lasting impression.

Jagged Alliance 3: The Perfect Blend of Tactical Realism and Streamlined Gameplay

Jagged Alliance 3 strikes a balance between the simulation-heavy combat of its predecessor and the more readable battlefields and systems of modern XCOM games. The movement is action-point based, influenced by factors such as agility stats, morale, and rest, but it is visually intuitive for players. The movement grid displays a ‘blue’ move radius, indicating where you have enough action points to shoot from. While the game is easy for players familiar with modern tactics games to jump into, the process of engaging enemies is more detailed than a simple dice-roll.

In combat, each bullet is treated as a physical object that leaves the gun’s barrel and travels towards its target. If it encounters obstacles, such as rocks, walls, or bystanders, the bullet will do its damage there instead. Instead of to-hit percentages, there’s an aiming cone based on gear and stats. Spending extra action points to aim tightens the cone, providing a flashing yellow crosshair to indicate a high chance of hitting the target, making fights feel naturally intuitive.

Cover is essential as it stops bullets, but limbs poking out from cover can still be hit by stray fire or individually aimed at. Headshots are lethal, arm shots reduce accuracy, and leg shots slow movement. This system encourages cautious movement, with players swinging the camera around to ensure everyone is safely behind cover. Armor provides protection but wears down during combat, requiring players to assign mechanically minded mercs to repair duty between fights.

Jagged Alliance 3 streamlines many of the fiddly elements from JA2. While enemies can still be sneaked up on and taken down during the real-time infiltration phase before turn-based combat begins, characters now have 360-degree vision, and facing doesn’t affect shooting. Stamina and Morale bars from JA2 are replaced by simple buffs and debuffs, which players find more manageable. The game introduces unique abilities for each mercenary, both passive and active, giving combat a distinct feel for every party. Different weapon types also offer unique perks, such as SMGs being effective for spraying defensively while moving, and machine guns excelling in accurate overwatch. This reduction in micromanagement during combat allows for more tactical options, giving Jagged Alliance 3 its own distinctive gameplay experience.

Unraveling the Enthralling Depths of Jagged Alliance 3: An Adventure Through Grand Chien

Step into the captivating world of Jagged Alliance 3, where the strategic and RPG layers set it apart from its predecessors. Grand Chien, an expansive open world with its French-accented NPCs and a multitude of side-quests, beckons you to embark on a thrilling journey. This diverse landscape boasts diamond mines, formidable forts spawning forces for territorial recapture, and ports facilitating swift water movement, all while demanding strategic acumen.

In this dynamic world, mercs can mend each other’s wounds, train local militias to bolster defenses, craft ammunition, repair gear, and even modify weapons using scavenged parts. To navigate this realm effectively, you must learn through experience and feel your way through every situation. The non-linear and extensive campaign challenges you to face escalating enemy aggression, unexpected story-driven battles, and the repercussions of delaying actions, such as mines depleting your finances.

Unraveling the world map reveals the exceptional prowess of JA3. Each square on the map serves as a unique battlefield, complete with underground areas and hidden loot-caches to explore. Scouting or hacking for intel reveals annotations on the maps, showcasing vantage points and patrol routes, which makes Grand Chien feel like a living, breathing country rather than a mere collection of abstract tiles. The visual appeal further enhances the experience with meticulously detailed and beautifully lit battlefields, where weather and time-of-day intricately impact combat outcomes.

Prepare for a true test of wit and skill in Jagged Alliance 3, even on the ‘Normal’ difficulty setting. The game intricately balances complexity and challenge, making overconfidence and underspending potential hindrances to progress. While your foes may not be exceptionally cunning, a well-aimed sniper shot or a hail of bullets from an assault rifle can spell doom for your mercenaries. Be prepared to face overwhelming odds as you’re almost always outnumbered, and consider enabling Ironman mode for an even more punishing experience.

Yet, fear not, for there are options to cater to various playstyles. The Forgiving Mode, a difficulty-lowering feature, provides a small daily income and reduces recovery time and resource expenses between battles, allowing you to adopt a more aggressive approach. It serves as training wheels for newcomers and veterans alike, striking a balance between approachability and challenge that few tactical games achieve.

With its depth and allure, Jagged Alliance 3 promises an adventure unlike any other. Each playthrough unlocks new knowledge and strategies, leaving you eager to delve back into the enthralling world of Grand Chien.

JA3: An Impressive Strategy RPG with Room for Growth

While Jagged Alliance 3 shines brightly as a captivating strategy RPG, it does fall short in some aspects when compared to its predecessor. One notable omission is the truncation of the fake retro internet, leaving out delightful elements like life insurance policies, a mercenary obituaries site, and the ability to send flowers to your arch-enemy – all of which added a charming touch to the game. However, the Institute for Mercenary Profiling (IMP) site remains intact, allowing players to take a tongue-in-cheek personality quiz to generate an optional custom character, even though they might lack some individuality, they do come in handy by working pro bono.

One area that could use improvement is the user interface. Combat tooltips and stat blocks can be obtrusively chunky, causing players to wish for a more streamlined design. The inventory screens also prove to be problematic, requiring extensive scrolling through detailed backpacks and stashes without any auto-sorting or cleanup options. This cumbersome experience can turn re-equipping an entire squad into a tiresome chore.

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While the battlefields and character models are stunning, revealing meticulous attention to detail, the game’s budget constraints become evident in certain aspects. Character animations, particularly knockdown animations from shotguns and explosives, may appear somewhat stiff, and the gore effects, with their unrealistic blood splatters, leave room for improvement compared to other recent games.

Despite these flaws, Jagged Alliance 3 remains an excellent strategy RPG, earning a strong recommendation from genre veterans. The developers at Haemimont have pledged extensive mod support shortly after launch, allowing players to create new maps, characters, gear, and even entirely new stories. This promise of ongoing improvement ensures that the game will evolve, offering more battles to fight and keeping players eagerly anticipating the future of this captivating campaign.

Conclusion

Jagged Alliance 3 reinvigorates the tactical strategy genre with its thrilling combat mechanics, immersive RPG elements, and strategic complexity. Despite a few minor flaws, this triumphant return to the series proves to be a joyous experience for genre veterans and new players alike. Haemimont Games’ commitment to post-launch mod support promises to expand the game’s universe, guaranteeing countless battles and adventures for fans to look forward to. If you’re seeking a heart-pounding challenge paired with a dose of old-school charm, Jagged Alliance 3 is the game you’ve been waiting for. Embark on this memorable journey to reclaim Grand Chien, and trust me—you won’t be disappointed.

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