Rolling Thunder 3

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Rolling Thunder 3

Publisher: Namco

Genre: Action

Number of players: 1

Release	Date	RRP	Code
US	1993-07^[1]^[2]	$59.9559.95^[3]	T-14096

Rolling Thunder 3 is the sequel to Rolling Thunder 2 and was released exclusively for the Sega Mega Drive in North America in 1993.

Story

Jay

Taking place at the same time as Rolling Thunder 2, players will take control of "Jay," an Interpol operative tasked with eliminating Dread, second-in-command of the Geldra terrorist organization, who is believed to be somewhere in southern California.

Gameplay

Weapon select

The game is an action platformer like its predecessors. The player can controls Jay, who walks with and and crouches with . He jumps with and jumps higher with +. His high jump can be used to jump up to a higher platform; he can jump back down from the platform with +. He can enter doors by holding while standing in front of a doorway; he comes back out when is released. Doors can contain special items, including weapons and ammunition, or can be used to evade enemies. There are also numerous objects that can be used as cover by either the player or an enemy.

Jay is armed with a revolver, which is fired with . He can shoot while jumping or crouching. He can aim in an upward diagonal direction with +. The revolver has limited ammunition. When it runs out of ammo, it can only shoot slow "chaser" shots; only one can be on screen at a time. Jay can also equip a special weapon before each round begins, which is fired with . It can be fired while crouching, but unlike the revolver, special weapons cannot be fired while jumping or aimed diagonally. The special weapon also has limited ammunition; it is replaced with a knife if it runs out of ammo (or if the player chooses not to equip a special weapon for the mission). Some rounds contain other special weapons, which replace the current special weapon.

Two rounds are autoscrolling with Jay riding a vehicle. In these rounds, Jay slows down and speeds up with and and moves between the background and foreground layers with and . Jay has his revolver but does not have a special weapon in these rounds.

Jay starts with three hit points. Hits from bullets and other projectiles such as lasers cost two hit points. Running into an enemy but not being attacked knocks the Jay back but does not cost hit points. Jay loses a life when he runs out of hit points, but he revives in place momentarily, retaining his weapon ammo. Some doorways contain extra hit points. Hit points and weapon ammo do not carry over to the next round.

The game has a password system for continuing. Similar to the previous game, the player is given a password for a higher difficulty level ("RISKY") after completing the game.

Unlike the previous entry, there is no two-player mode. Though there is normally only one playable character, the player can play as Ellen, an Interpol operative who is Jay's handler in the standard game, by entering a special password ("GREED"). She plays identically to Jay, but the game does not play cutscenes while playing as Ellen.

Special Weapons

Before most rounds, the player can choose a special weapon to equip. Each weapon can only be selected once.

	Knife
	High damage melee weapon. The knife is equipped if the special weapon runs out of ammo or if the player chooses not to equip a special weapon.
	Full Auto
	Rapid-firing assault rifle. It can fire continuously by holding . 60 rounds.
	Bazooka
	Powerful rocket launcher. Capable of causing massive damage, but slow rate of fire. 10 rounds.
	Grenade
	Anti-personnel hand grenade thrown in a slight arc. It can bounce from obstacles. 30 rounds.
	Shotgun
	Pump-action shotgun. Fires 4 bullets in a conical spray. 30 rounds.
	Cannon
	Incendiary grenade launcher fires napalm grenades in a slight arc. It causes a small fire when detonated, which can harm the player. 20 rounds.
	Flash
	Flashbang. Stuns all regular enemies for a few seconds but does no damage. 20 rounds.
	Laser
	Prototype optical energy weapon. Streams pass through enemies, hitting multiple targets. 20 rounds.
	Fire
	Flamethrower. Fires streams of fire rapidly. Short range and low capacity. 60 rounds.
	Cracker
	Powerful hand grenade that causes a large explosion. 20 rounds.

Items

These items are found in doors marked with signs.

	Bullet
	Gives the character more ammunition for the standard pistol.
	Arms
	Acquires the Submachine Gun special weapon.
	Fire
	Acquires the Flame Gun special weapon.
	Shot
	Acquires the Shot Cluster special weapon.