Syphon Filter 3

The excellent Syphon Filter 3 shows that there?s plenty of love left for PlayStation gamers as Sony?s latest black-bag operation preserves the series? now-familiar style and quality.

Syphon 3 finds Gabe and Lian facing congressional hearings on the Syphon Filter virus. As they recount their missions that precede the first Syphon game, you play through them, building toward a big current-day surprise at the end. This flashback approach makes the plot feel a little strained, but at least they didn?t stoop to having Gabe wake up to learn it was all a dream?.

More importantly, the gameplay still delivers thrilling combat that?s focused less on stealth and much more on action. Sneaking still has its rewards, but if you develop some decent, twitchy aim, you can charge full-tilt through the skirmishes. Occasional scripted events change your objectives on the fly, injecting an organic, more realistic feel, though an element of ?die until you memorize the patterns? remains. Fortunately, you can save at checkpoints, which minimizes the tiresomeness of replaying levels.

Syphon 3?s only big new feature is the mini-games that complement the two-player split-screen deathmatches. But a big part of Syphon?s fun is that feel of being on an important mission?part of a grand plan. When that?s replaced with a Mario Party?like approach, it feels pretty hollow, and it?s definitely not as interesting as the one-player mission.

Syphon 3 is really more of an add-on level pack than a whole new game, which is hardly a bad thing. Pros will comfortably stride right into the fray, while newbies should start with Syphon 1 to avoid being lost. Either way, Syphon 3 is a riveting mission that no self-respecting commando wannabe should skip.

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