gameoverDude

Not too long ago, the True Mastermind Edition upgrade for Time Crisis 5 started trickling out to select areas. Now it has been released worldwide. The kit comes with 2 pop cards labeled "New Stages! The Complete Edition!" & "Mastermind Edition Released!' for operators to hang on the cabinet. Look for a new title screen which also features Wild Dog & Wild Fang instead of just Luke & Marc. Upgrading the game is as simple as plugging in a USB jump drive.

A couple quick observations: I felt that gun accuracy was improved, and it seemed that the horrid stuttering that sometimes raised hell in the original version has been killed. There is an option to skip the first three stages, but I don't see a reason to use that.

The first three stages seem the same in general, right down to the John Doe ending after stage 3. John Doe grabs the briefcase that Wild Dog had sent away, then chops down a few enemy soldiers with his sword. Next you're going to stage 4, working your way through a forest at night. Your gun has a flashlight attached to it for the first couple sections. In the Sniper Event that soon follows, you take out 8 guards (one-shot kills are best, so use headshots). If you miss or otherwise alert an enemy, things are a bit different than Razing Storm. While you do not fail immediately, there is a 5 second countdown. Then you have to clear out the alerted enemies quick or lose a life. After that, you storm the warehouse.

Some of the more interesting ones of the new scenes include one where you're firing up through a grated floor at enemies above, one section with moving crates that have to be shot around (the double pedal system can help here), and another HACS battle. You're not dealing with another ponderously slow heap like the first one. No, this one turns around faster- so just getting behind him isn't quite enough. There are some red fuel tanks on an overhead conveyor that may be useful though. Later you're on a gondola, and the security system detects intruders and activates a series of laser barriers. John Doe from the original TC5 ending cutscene turns out to be the boss. You find out that he is another VSSE agent, Keith Martin, and then fight him. What is in that briefcase will cause a big turning point in the story.

On stage 5, you fight some enemies who act like mindless zombies who feel no pain or fear whatsoever. Either spit a few quick rounds into them, or use a head shot. Keep these mobs back. You'll get some help here from your old friend, the red exploding barrel. Also new here are some enemies that can superjump off the screen and need to be hit when they stop.

Finally, the traitor awaits in stage 6. He's not alone though... wait until you see his new toy, a huge ED-209 type mech. It likes to cut in front of him and block your shots. This is one epic final battle.

At least there are no more vehicle rail sequences. There's plenty of that in stage 2 and 3.

On stages 4 & 5, how fast you do the first area of a stage is seriously important. The 7200-4800-2400 rule from stage 1 applies here because your time bonus in an area is based on cumulative time, rather than only that area. A slow time on the first area of a stage can screw you bad. Combo bonuses and headshots are not as lucrative as in TC2-4.

A couple more Evade QTEs are in the final half of the game where you press the left or right pedal at the prompt. Not truly necessary. I'd rather plow through another section of enemies. The weapons are not as well balanced as in TC4. The handgun is definitely king- if your fire rate is fast enough you WILL do more damage than if you use machine gun.

There is one bitter pill for longtime TC fans to swallow, with a revered character from the series being put down for good. Overall the clear time ranges from 13-17 minutes which is a bit longer than Time Crisis II. This is the first time Namco has touched the series in a while rather than giving it over to Nex Entertainment (who did TC3 & TC4). Not as long as Nex's games, and it doesn't really introduce any new faces among the boss enemies, but it's still worth it. Though Takeshi Miura's BGM in 3 & 4 is untoppable, Kaz Nakamura (TC/TC2/Crisis Zone BGM composer) does a decent job on the soundtrack.