James Pond 3

James Pond 3: Operation Starfish

Company type	Video game
Industry	Video games
Predecessor	James Pond 2
Founded	1993
Founder	Vectordean
Headquarters	United Kingdom
Products	Platform video game
Parent	Millennium Interactive (publisher for Amiga)

James Pond 3: Operation Starfish (presented as Operation Starfi5h, a nod to the fictional F.I.5.H intelligence agency) is a platformer released in 1993, developed by Vectordean and published by Millennium Interactive for the Amiga, Electronic Arts for the Mega Drive, and U.S. Gold for the Game Gear and SNES. This installment marks the third and final chapter in the James Pond franchise and stands as the sole game launched exclusively for Advanced Graphics Architecture (AGA) Amiga systems, including the Amiga 1200, Amiga 4000, and CD32.

Initially named James Pond 3: Splash Gordon—a play on the name Flash Gordon—the title enjoyed respectable commercial success but did not garner as favorable reviews as its predecessors.

Gameplay

The gameplay in Operation Starfish closely resembles that of Super Mario World, featuring a lunar-themed map that links various levels divided into zones with themes such as cheese, custard, and ice cream, each culminating in a boss encounter. Level names often incorporate puns, like "The Garden of Edam." A unique feature is James Pond’s magno-boots, which permit him to traverse walls and ceilings; he only detaches from these surfaces by jumping. Unlike earlier games where James Pond could stretch vertically, this title replaces that ability with different gadgets to assist in upward movement.

Players control James Pond using basic actions such as running, jumping, and punching, complemented by an array of items including spring shoes, fruit guns, and dynamite sticks. After rescuing Finnius the Frog in a designated level or through a cheat code, players can switch to controlling Finnius, who has a high bouncing ability but cannot utilize gadgets aside from chattering teeth.

The primary mission within each stage is to find and destroy communication beacons. Certain beacons become accessible only after collecting four teacups of specific colors. Hidden collectibles uncover secret pathways essential for achieving full completion of the game, similar to secret exits found in Super Mario World. To fully complete the experience, players must eliminate all of Dr. Maybe’s Cheese Mines along with Stiltonium extractors—components of his superweapon—not merely the cheese mines alone.

Gadgets

• Dynamite: Explodes immediately upon pickup; its blast can clear certain blocks or TNT crates and inflict damage on enemies or the player.
• Bomb: Functions like dynamite but ignites only after being thrown.
• Fruit Gun: Allows loading of discovered fruit as enhanced ammunition; different fruits have varying effects—for example, a cupcake acts like a homing missile.
• Fruit Suit: Provides protection against multiple enemy attacks and permits walking through hazardous substances such as hot custard without harm.
• X-ray specs: Makes hidden blocks visible by rendering them translucent.
• Spring Shoes: Enable continuous bouncing to reach elevated areas.
• Television: When broken, releases a ghost that players can bounce on to gain extra height.
• Jetpack: Uses rocket thrusters to propel the player upward; fuel cans are used to replenish it. Equipped with a potent yogurt cannon.
• Finnius: After being rescued, players can switch control to Finnius Frog by activating his icon.

Plot

Following his defeat in RoboCod, Dr. Maybe uncovers premium cheese deposits on the Moon and employs rats to extract it. His goal is to control global cheese markets and finance his schemes. To put an end to these operations, James Pond teams up with his companion Finnius Frog and journeys to the lunar surface.

Unreleased ports

A version for the Atari Jaguar was being created by Millennium Interactive on behalf of Telegames, but it never saw release after the contracted programmer vanished along with the source code. Furthermore, a port for the Amiga OCS/ECS was abandoned because its levels surpassed the platform's one-megabyte RAM capacity.

Reception

Reviews for the Amiga edition were mixed. While reviewers appreciated the quantity and size of the levels, they expressed dissatisfaction with the black backdrop and described the gameplay as somewhat "fiddly." Ratings differed widely among magazines: Amiga Format awarded 75%, Amiga Power gave 46%, Hyper rated it 87%, and Nintendo Magazine System scored it 65 out of 100.

In 1995, Total! placed the title at number 99 in its Top 100 SNES Games list, calling it a "smooth platformer" that is "large and demanding," although the fluidity of play was noted to become monotonous over time.

See also

• The Moon is made of green cheese