Syphon Filter 3 Playthrough
12001, PS-X. Rating: 3 out of 4 stars
Syphon Filter 3, released at the tail-end of the PS1 era, is an odd, but compelling, title that works to resolve the loose narrative strands from the second title. What results is a peculiar story structure that spends more time looking backwards through flashbacks explaining parts of the original game as well as past characters. Using flashbacks is not a great narrative device in the first place and the last major one has nothing to do with the Syphon Filter story apart from a few characters. A more condensed narrative with longer levels would have been a better choice here.
That said, the game design is more polished and balanced after the trial-and-error madness that occasionally happened in the second game. If anything, it’s almost a little too easy. Most of the missions can be beaten without too much trouble. The game sticks to action with only a few required stealth bits. The levels are engaging, particularly in the first half, and there’s enough variety in the situations and settings to keep it from going stale.
The second half flags a bit with the flashbacks interrupting the narrative flow, but it does recover nicely for a strong finish and even the weaker levels have some interesting parts to them. Voice acting is decent overall and the music has some low-key winners. The visuals are a bit muddled and they look even worse compared to the full-motion videos, which are a bit jarring. Particularly given how Gabe looks.
While by no means a classic or near the first two, Syphon Filter 3 does enough right to be worth a playthrough. It eases off the brutality of the second game and delivers decent, albeit inconsistent, fun.
0:00 Prologue
2:23 Hotel Fukushima
10:12 Costa Rican Plantation
19:18 C5 Galaxy Transport
21:39 Pugari Gold Mine
26:44 Pugari Complex
31:45 Kabul, Afghanistan
36:07 S.S. Lorelei
43:56 Aztec Ruins
55:17 Waterfront
1:01:40 Docks Final Assault
1:06:40 Convoy
1:14:29 The Beast
1:17:10 Australian Outback
1:22:48 St. George Australia
1:29:11 Paradise Ridge
1:36:15 Militia Compound
1:42:39 Underground Bunker
1:50:54 Senate Building
1:55:33 DC Subway
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