Name: Rambo III
Platform: Sega Genesis / Mega Drive
Region: USA
Media: Cartridge
Controller: Gamepad
Genre: Action, Adventure
Gametype: Licensed
Release Year: 1989
Developer: SEGA
Publisher: SEGA
Players: 1
_________________________
- The Rescue -

Hand-to-hand combat! Grenades bursting! Machine guns rattling! Explosions, smoke, and the faces of men suddenly caught dead by a bullet.

These pictures burn in the mind of a man helping to build a simple temple in the mountains. The man is John Rambo, private citizen, former Green Beret. In Vietnam, Rambo earned his rep as a hero who couldn't be stopped, even in the face of impossible danger. Now he spends his days in a forgotten village, struggling with the anguish of memories he can't shake.

But today a stranger appears at the temple. "Rambo" the man says, "I've been looking for you"

Rambo stares at the speaker. The pain of the memories fades as he recognizes his old friend.

"Colonel Trautman!" Rambo says. "Why are you here?"

"Because I need you. I'm going into Afghanistan on a top secret mission. Right now the border is crawling with Russians. But I've got to get in there! You're the only one I can trust to get me across the border alive!"

Rambo's heart cringes at the idea of more war - for what! He gazes into the distance, remembering past horrors.

"Sorry, Colonel. My war is over."

Deep in a night-shrouded mountain pass somewhere between Pakistan and Afghanistan, three jeeps led by Colonel Trautman attempt to cross the border. Suddenly the sound of raging thunder surrounds them. A Russian Hind helicopter is in pursuit and firing! Before they can reach cover, two jeeps are hit and demolished! Then a voice booms out: "You cannot escape! Drop your weapons now!"

"Trautman's been caught!"

Hearing this, Rambo starts to boil with anger. All through Vietnam, Trautman was the only one who understood his deepest feelings. The Colonel was like a father to him. Now his life is at stake! If only Rambo had gone with him into Afghanistan! If only... if only...

Rambo turns to the agent who brought him the news. "I'm going after him! I want you to get my supplies. They've got Trautman, and now they're going to get their worst nightmare!"

--From the Genesis Rambo 3 instruction manual.

Directions:

Your mentor, and the best fry cook the U.S. Marines ever had, has been taken captive, so what must you do? Save the Colonel! Do you need anymore reason that that? So to get you started on your missions I give you the following information:

When you have selected the explosive arrow, the longer that you hold the "B" button down, the more powerful it becomes.

Explosive Arrows work against towers but not ammo dumps and conversely, Time Bombs work against ammo dumps but not towers.

Missions 1, 3, 5 and 6 have bonus rounds that you must win in order to advance.

Charge your explosive arrows to the fullest; jump out at the proper time and fire at the tank and helicopter! Simple Enough!
     
Special Objects-

Smiling Faces in a box give you extra lives

An "A" in a box gives you a Bow and Arrows

A "B" in a box gives you a Time Bomb

Hero or Baby? Which shall it be? Heroes will ignore the following information and just fight like the real Rambo would do while Babies, who just want to win, have no choice but to use these cookbook directions. Babies make me SICK!

Mission One-
After killing all the commies, blast your way through the gate with machine gun fire and explosive arrows. (OK, Baby, aren't you ashamed? You could have figured that out by yourself if you hadn't been so worried about your dirty diaper)

Mission Two-
OK Sissy, you will need to fire your machine gun (not your milk bottle) at the cells until the Secret Agent identifies himself. When he does, the place is about to blow up so get out quickly by blowing up the exit.

Mission Three-
You have to destroy the guard towers with timer bombs (like I was going to use oatmeal) and use machine gun fire to break through the gate.

Mission Four-
This is Real Rambo Rampage Time! You have to destroy EVERYTHING until some hokey ratio reaches 100%. (10,000 dead commies and I still only got a 98%!)

Mission Five-
He's at it again! Destroy the tanks and helicopters using fully charged explosive arrows (is there another kind?) and kill everybody (except for yourself - you are a psychopath, not a suicidal mental patient).

Mission Six-
You Whiny Babies make me so sick I shouldn't even tell you what to do! But here goes: search through the maze until you find the Colonel (you know, the guy that didn't need cheat notes to get here. Wait a second, he has been captured. Maybe cheat notes would have helped him). 

Gameplay:

Based on the film of the same name, this game puts you in John Rambo's shoes as he travels to Afghanistan to free Colonel Trautman from the Soviets.

In six missions, Rambo must complete various objectives. Besides finding the exit of the level, prisoners must be freed and enemy ammunition supplies destroyed. Rambo is controlled from an overhead perspective and has several weapons at his disposal. Besides a machine gun that never runs out of ammo, he can use a knife for close range kills, set off timed bombs and use his famous crossbow with explosive arrows. Ammunition for the bow and the bombs is limited and can be collected from dead enemies.

After some of the missions, the perspective switches to a view behind Rambo and additional boss fights take place. Soviet tanks or helicopters must be destroyed using the crossbow. While aiming the bow, Rambo cannot move, but otherwise he can hide behind rocks or other obstacles from enemy fire.

Controls:

A Button: Select Special Weapon
B Button: Use Special Weapon
C Button: Fire Machine Gun
Start Button: Start / Pause

Hints:

- Your Friend The Knife -
Knifing certain soldiers gives you extra lives

- Limited Invincibility -
In Mission 2, go to the destructable box up and to the far left from the starting point. Proceed to the left until a little shiny bit of the box is showing. Destroy the box with an arrow, making sure there's no enemy soldiers on the screen. As soon as there's an impact, walk left as far as you can with a trail of smoke behind you. You will be invincible until you reach a bonus stage where you can be killed, or until you destroy another box.

Reviewer:WillyTheRat
http://www.consoleclassix.com/genesis/rambo_3.html
http://www.mobygames.com/game/genesis/rambo-iii_
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/genesis/code/586412.html