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Infinity Blade 3’s graphical prowess makes standard iOS games look like the product of an arts and crafts session at nursery school. Is that the only entertaining feature of this final part in a celebrated trilogy? No, combat would be on the list as well, but all too often you’ll end up turning a blind-eye to both, ready to put a fist through anything breakable out of sheer frustration.
A five-act action-RPG campaign drives the story, but while there is a decent tale to be told – Siris and Isa both have separate levels and attack styles – chances are you won’t have a damn clue what to make of the fantasy/sci-fi spliced world if you’ve neglected the first two entries.
Thankfully, swordplay is a genuine joy, much like before. With the exception of blocking, attacking remains a simple case of either parrying an enemy – by swiping in the direction of their attack – or dodging their blows with the provided buttons until their guard is down. Then you can go to town on your foe, swiping at the screen like a man possessed. Anyone watching will think you’re trying to wipe something incriminating from view before they see it.
Each chapter is peppered with these brawls until you reach the final boss, at which point things start on a downward spiral. The game’s design is exposed here, as the end-of-stage enemies are the only ones that don’t afford you a retry option. So if you die, you’re dumped back at Hideout Island to drop some cash in the shops or grind time away in one of the side missions.
As ever, it’s an excuse to upgrade your weapons and armour, to hone your skills, and the system can be quite rewarding (if somewhat reliant on IAPs). But you’ll soon realise that Infinity Blade 3 has a dark side; a noticeable lack of variety and an inconsistent difficulty. It’s worth the price for genre and series fans, but tread carefully if you’re a newbie.
Version Tested: iPhone 4S. Played for 8 hours.
