Rance 03 is not Alice Soft at their best, but it's certainly a game where the dev provides you with many examples of impressive. Whether the mention is characters/story, adult content, improvements to gameplay (from 01), production values, or just plain old fun factor, it makes no difference, because the quality level is consistently high. If something that tarnishes all the goodness must be pointed out, particular aspects of the gameplay are the ones to be chastised.
Remake or not, an old and unfortunate mindset still persists, and in my opinion it's getting in the way of complete enjoyment. Not everyone feels that way however, more "meticulous and completionist folk" probably enjoy repeating the same content over and over again, until everything is achieved. As in all things, perspective is a wonderful gift.
Positive:
- Story/characters - This needs to be taken in a context of "Story Eroge" with gameplay. The story in Rance 03 is more than just satisfying, because Rance is often doing his (not so) "lateral thinking", and you can tell that whether by instinct or smarts, the process makes sense within the established setting.
Obviously, you could argue for "plot armor" and work against the notion, but there's more to it like events where they use another character to provide spotlight/relevance, removing ideas of invincibility from the picture. Sometimes they remember key plot points, and use them beyond their primary function, adding diversity to the storytelling. Another good idea is to use large parts of the cast in missions or important scenes
Lots of fancy details, and one of the best "Rances" in this department.
- Voice acting - Personally speaking, V.A making things worse is rare (it's almost always good thing). Most characters felt close to a built mental image. Maybe i thought Nekai was a bit more sultry, or expected Kanami to be less annoying, or Minerva to feel more berserk (whatever that means), the point is that the V.A delivers certainty, in a place where personal interpretation was a major "nuance filler". The only complaint is Rance not having V.A (has a bit in combat), that was a real shame.
- H-scenes - So many good ones. Forget them being true to their purpose (it happens, if you are so inclined), it's all about fun, originality, diversity, quantity, and staying true to established lore. It is possible that "D&D alignments", have Rance 03 falling to chaotic evil every now and then, but that's not the rule.
If anything the instances of "fighting evil with evil" (sexually) are "productive"***. Memory is a tricky thing, but i remember 2 and 6 laying it thick on "clear victims". It's still Rance though, even pure love is demonstrated excessively.
*** (And there's more than just "Rance scenes". Ex: Lia.)
Negative:
- Level design and repetition - The main obstacle to enjoying Rance 03, is going through the same content repeatedly to get one little thing. Basically, at first you don't have the right tools to clear the dungeon, go through it in one go. Then you miscalculate or forget the position of the panel you are looking for. Following that you need to go back to "town" for more story.
Now you realize we are not talking about items only, there's more stuff like trials for skills, or pieces of puzzles that lead to more laps. And finally Rance 03 does not sport standard RPG map exploration, you are literally "looping" multiple times through a maze of panels. Revisiting content in a game, should be gently encouraged, and generously rewarded. Multiple and often forced instances of it, is not the way to go.
Score: 8/10, and a "no-brainer" for Rance fans. It's no exaggeration to say that this offers all the value you could possibly want in adult (sexual) matters, along with gameplay that only fails under high maintenance scrutiny. Highly recommended, and here's hoping this release becomes a great success (buy it, if at all possible).
