Cannon Fodder 3 is… well…

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 3 February, 2012

Quite.

So this is how Cannon Fodder 3 turned out.

Trailers for the game show an... interesting take on the much-loved retro strategy series. One is below.

Eurogamer reported on Cannon Fodder 3, from unknown Russian developer GFI, in January 2011.

At the time Codemasters, which licensed the Cannon Fodder IP to GFI for a one-title project in 2008, distanced itself from from the game, confirming it was only set for release in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Now we know how it turned out, thanks to internet super sleuth Superannuation, who spotted a YouTube video that includes a link to download the demo - if you dare.

Jon Hare, creator of Cannon Fodder, has nothing to do with it. The blurb tells of an evil military alliance by Europe, Asia and Africa that you must stop.

Russian developer GFI, founded 2003, has previously worked on The Precursors, White Gold, Warfare: Reloaded and Who Said Meow?.

Cannon Fodder 3 launched in Russia in December 2011.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (79) Latest comment 4 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • CrispyXUK #1 4 months ago

    Bet it turns out to be an FPS

  • hiddenranbir #2 4 months ago

    Needs translation, now.

    Some real gems that Russia produce, Space Rangers 2 was one. This could be another. Gimme my Cannon Fodder!

  • Kanselier #3 4 months ago

    What have they done to Jools!

  • Bealsy #4 4 months ago

    I REALLY want to play this

  • Casserole #5 4 months ago

    Where's the mosh pit

  • Timotei #6 4 months ago

    Yeah, looks alright actually.

  • kosigan #7 4 months ago

    Brings back memories of playing the original on the Amiga. I must fire up Amiga Forever and see if I can find it.

  • rochyroch #8 4 months ago

    War! never been so much fun!

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #9 4 months ago

    That looks like it might be OK, depending on how it plays. They seem to have mixed in a bit of Metal Slug aesthetics. At least it's more faithful than Syndicate...

  • skunkfish #10 4 months ago

    Looks true to the original games.

  • roquey Verified Lead Quality Assurance Tester and Compliance Specialist, Universally Speaking #11 4 months ago

    Maybe the whole Tera not in russia and CIS is in retaliation for this?! who knows....

  • chiz #12 4 months ago

    There was a demo of this a while back. It was ok, but certainly not a proper sequel. Get yir finger out, Mr Hare!

  • DwarfyP #13 4 months ago

    It actually looks pretty good

  • jaguarwong #14 4 months ago

    The text of this story suggests we are supposed to feel rage about the ruination of the franchise... but I couldn't help thinking it looked quite good.

    For the record I love Cannon Fodder, was actually playing it on my phone just yesterday.

  • pantherjag #15 4 months ago

    Oh the memorys of trying to keep jools and jops alive for as long as possible. I hated losing those guys!!!!

  • landlock #16 4 months ago

    Syndicate?

  • kickerconspiracy #17 4 months ago

    War.

    What is it good for?

    Inspiring Cannon Fodder.

  • OnlyMe #18 4 months ago

    What I'm worried about is, does Codemasters giving them the permission to call this Cannon Fodder 3 rule out the possibility of a proper Cannon Fodder 3 at some point?

    Although who am I kidding, it would probably just be called Cannon Fodder Unleashed or something.

  • Francisnf #19 4 months ago

    @CrispyXUK lol

    Had some great times on this game back in the day.

    Would be amazing if a new version was released, same style, just with awesome updated graphics, big complex maps and stuff, it was such a simple formula that worked so well.

    After playing that "Syndicate" demo (which i turned off in disgust within 2 minutes) though i very much doubt it will happen.

  • DDevil #20 4 months ago

    Go to your brother
    Kill him with your gun
    And he'll be lying in his uniform
    Dying in the sun

  • Mellissa #21 4 months ago

    8/10

  • schnide #22 4 months ago

    @jaguarwong

    I thoroughly agree. "Cannon Fodder 3 is.. well.." "Quite."

    Well, what? Quite what? A fairly faithful looking sequel to the original, only available in Russian? Okay then. Now what?

  • TheTingler #23 4 months ago

    Yes, there are giant metal spiders, but that's pretty true to the aliens/time travel craziness of Cannon Fodder 2. Gameplay-wise it looks the same, as long as it's tactical as much as action. Honestly don't mind the look of it.

    This is coming from someone who lists Cannon Fodder as one of his favourite games ever made, btw.

  • TelexStar #24 4 months ago

    "At least it's more faithful than Syndicate..." When will you whinging babies stop complaining about the Syndicate reboot? For fucks sake. Will it be soon? Please? It's actually pretty good if you've bothered to play the demo with some mates.

    What's that I hear on the wind? Oh yes, it's your mis-guided sense of nostalgia calling you back to the 90's. Please fuck off.

  • Waffleaber #25 4 months ago

    I too thought it didn't look too bad, then I saw the giant robot spider and it all went downhill.
    Also none of the squad members seemed to be dying when shot or caught in a massive explosion.

  • bobfish09 #26 4 months ago

    I was never a fan of the alien/sci-fi stuff in Cannon Fodder 2, so seeing it in Cannon Fodder 3 is disappointing, but at least it appears to be faithful to the franchise.

  • irve77 #27 4 months ago

    All this talk of sequels and yet we still don't have the Cannon Fodder HD on XBLA or PSN .... WHY !!!

    I know it wouldn't be perfect as it would have to be some sort of hybrid twin stick shooter wher the right stick acts as your mouse but it would be better than nothing right and you could have original controls on the Steam version

    I've got 800 points with the CF name on it right here !!

  • Clipper #28 4 months ago

    Faithful to the original? Did you watch the trailer? All that remains is the viewpoint and the fact you control 4 guys!

    Ignoring the ridiculous rock track the game looks a mess... It opens relatively promising with the copter coming in. And then we see something approaching a classic cannon fodder level although the men are too big and the graphics quite busy... And then? A billion rockets and explosions! Giant spiders and robots? More explosions! EVERYTHING EXPLODES IT MUST BE BETTER!!!!

    It looks like a pile of shit for people with ADD.

    Cannon Fodder (and its sequel) were pitch perfect strategy games at heart with a lil action thrown in on top. This is an OTT action game with a cannon fodder skin pasted over the top

    I wouldnt have been impressed if the game trailer had been similar to the first 20 seconds where it looks like old cannon fodder but with bigger characters as that also misses the point...

  • spunkythefunkymunkey #29 4 months ago

    I think it looks good! I loved the original.
    For a moment there when I read the headline I was afraid they'd turned it into an FPS!

    Off topic: I was also a huge fan of the original Syndicate games and as such am quite against the new FPS version. You know the sad part though, I played the demo and actually really liked it. They didn't need to piggy back the Syndicate name but EA clearly wanted to cash in on a classic name. Now a lot of people won't buy it purely out of principle when they might have otherwise.
    Edited by spunkythefunkymunkey at 03/02/12 @ 09:39

  • thisisatempaccount #30 4 months ago

    Looks like a decent game. The movement of the squaddies seemed very true to how I remember the originals.

  • sonicyoda #31 4 months ago

    Well bugger me, this looks pretty ace! European release now?

  • persus-9 #32 4 months ago

    The trailer is terrible but the game underneath does look okay. I'm tempted to see if I can acquire it somehow. Perhaps they'll be able to sell a translated version elsewhere without the Cannon Fodder brand.

  • BearFishPie #33 4 months ago

    Nice to know we Europeans can be the ones to forge an Evil Alliance for a change.

    For what it's worth, the original CF is one of my favourite games ever (not played CF2) and going by the video this looks to be holding up pretty well.

    @Clipper I see what you're saying, but imagine someone cutting together a trailer for the original game nowadays. I daresay you'd just get a lot of fast cutting between the moments stuff gets blown up. And a post-reveal finish with the mined sheep.

    Of course, it could still be terrible.

  • vert1go #34 4 months ago

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cch0wrwg4tg
    If the song isn't in it, it ain't Cannon Fodder.

  • geeza2020 #35 4 months ago

    Umm, I actually think this looks quite good. Sure the graphics look a little shoddy, but the fact that they've retained the original viewpoint, and four mand squad set-up are big pluses. If this was available in English I'd download it in a shot.

  • TonyCocaCola #36 4 months ago

    This looks exactly how I would want cannon fodder 3 to look!

  • asphaltcowboy #37 4 months ago

    Despite the horrifically shit music (see: all Russian YouTube videos), that actually looks rather good!

  • rudedudejude #38 4 months ago

    That looks awesome!

  • ShiroBen #39 4 months ago

    Is it just me, or does this actually look pretty okay? Apart from the music, obv. It'd all come down to gameplay and design, I suppose, is it rock-hard but unflinchingly fair like the original games? If so ... kind of interested.

  • kingmancheng #40 4 months ago

    After so many friggin' years, finally another Cannon Fodder!

    I'm going to go up to your brother, kill him with your gun, leave him dying in his uniform, dying in the sun.

  • syra #41 4 months ago

    Atleast it's faithful to the original and not an fps or something ridiculous

  • toa_boa #42 4 months ago

    Time to bring out the old Amiga 500 from its closet and dust off the original :)

  • TelexStar #43 4 months ago

    Sorry I know this is way off topic from this discussion but...

    @ spunkythefunkymunkey "Off topic: I was also a huge fan of the original Syndicate games and as such am quite against the new FPS version. You know the sad part though, I played the demo and actually really liked it. They didn't need to piggy back the Syndicate name but EA clearly wanted to cash in on a classic name. Now a lot of people won't buy it purely out of principle when they might have otherwise."

    I know everyone loves to hate big publishers (I don't have much love for them especially myself) but not everything has to be a "cash in" automatically. To me, a cash-in is a game that's fundamentally shit and sold off the back of a previous success. Does the Syndicate reboot have the potential to be a cash in? Certainly it does but the proof is in the playing and from the demo, I think Starbreeze have done a pretty good job on a multiplayer co-op component.

    The fact is, while the 2012 version doesn't share most of the originals gameplay mechanics, it *does* share its context; corporate espionage setting, tech research etc. Context means everything to a game like this and using the Syndicate name means the devs/pubs don't have to try and sell that context to you. If they called the game something else, we'd all be telling them how they just ripped off a classic. (which ironically is what most of the whinging sockpuppets are doing anyway)

    I played the original. It was brilliant! But i always imagined what it would be like to be inside one of those agents. I think this reboot might do a good job of that. The co-op demo, when played with friends, does an excellent job of relaying the need to always be aware of your fellow agents health and position so you can support them/heal remotely etc. For me, it totally relays the essence of what Syndicate was about; 4 agents linked together. Weak individually but strong as a unit that's *forced* to work together. Oh, and they wear black coats.

    Some people need to give the cynicism a break.
    Edited by TelexStar at 03/02/12 @ 11:00

  • Lamb #44 4 months ago

    That looks like crap! :(

    I'll stick with Metal Slug, Field Runners and my memory of the original.

  • DrStrangelove #45 4 months ago

    Am I the only one who doesn't get what's so... quite... about it?

  • JamieR #46 4 months ago

    It's a shame it wasnt developed by a british developer like i think the orignal was but still looks good.

  • Raconteur #47 4 months ago

    Ugh!

    Now if only Codies would spruce up the originals and put them on XBLA/PSN....

  • Ptarmigandalf #48 4 months ago

    Looks legit.

  • jetsetwillie #49 4 months ago

    now we need a wargasm remake

  • Architect_z #50 4 months ago

    Wow havent played Cannon Fodder for years, back when I had a megadrive I think?
    What happened with Cannon Fodder 2?

  • CaptainKid #51 4 months ago

    Pfff not even a FPS.

  • lucky_jim #52 4 months ago

    @Architect_z
    Cannon Fodder 2 came out in the mid nineties (94 or 95 I think) for the Amiga and, probably given the time period, the PC (although I'm not certain about that as I was firmly an Amiga gamer at the time).

  • lucky_jim #53 4 months ago

    Incidentally, everyone keeps saying "release the originals on XBLA", but as mouse-based games I suspect they'd work much better on the iPad.

  • Shikasama #54 4 months ago

    It's funny how the point of this article has completely failed.

  • azazel_fallenangel #55 4 months ago

    looks more like a twin stick shooter than a strategy game.

  • GAmbrose #56 4 months ago

    I do find it funny when 10+ people say "Is it just me or....?"

  • jaguarwong #57 4 months ago

    @lucky_jim
    They would work great on tablets, but they do work surprising well with a controller.

    The SNES and Gameboy Color versions that I played were excellent.

  • Rack #58 4 months ago

    I can see why Codemasters are distancing themselves from it. If anyone saw them rebooting a 90s franchise in the original genre and not turning it into a brown shooter they'd be laughed out of business faster than they could say "Sensible Soccer re-imagined as an FPS"

  • Potioninmypants #59 4 months ago

    As usual people get excited just because it has a rocking tune and explosions.

    It looks 'meh' to say the least. I agree with Clipper, it showed nothing of value only repetative run and shoot.

  • jaguarwong #60 4 months ago

    It seems you can already find it on Ebay

  • FortysixterUK #61 4 months ago

    Looked ok to me, I suspect it wouldn't wander too far up into the high price range of XBLA. 600 points I would think.

  • Snufkin #62 4 months ago

    @azazel_fallenangel - Precisely what I was gonna say. Looks ok, but the fast-paced action focus is def twin-stick shooter territory, not point n click.

  • Dangher #63 4 months ago

    @hiddenranbir Here is the translation for you.
    In order of appearance:
    1. Many various locations
    2. Daytime and nighttime locations
    3. Incredibly destructive weapons
    4. Bosses. Spider.
    5. Submarines.
    6. Train.
    7. Robot.

    Enjoy.

    D.

  • tankboi #64 4 months ago

    Am I the only one here that SIMPLY CANNOT BELIEVE why Cannon Fodder has not had an iphone release?? I mean really?

  • green_nifta #65 4 months ago

    Not sure why the article is so negative. It looks a lot like Cannon Fodder to me! The only bit that sucks is the metal soundtrack... kinda inappropriate. Gameplay looks similar!

  • MasterNameless #66 4 months ago

    @vert1go No no no, this is a more fun version, even has Jon Hare playing an... "instrument"!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLWw1OpDrpI :D

  • Moth_Pope #67 4 months ago

    Royalty free metal music is the best. Juh juh juh dun dun DWIIIW.

  • Silvervein #68 4 months ago

    Looks like original gameplay mixed with graphic facelift. Why not? Colour me interested.

  • makariel #69 4 months ago

    The Precursors was actually pretty cool. Fundamentally broken but pretty cool with a galaxy to conquer.

  • geeza2020 #70 4 months ago

    Potioninmypants - "As usual people get excited just because it has a rocking tune and explosions.

    It looks 'meh' to say the least. I agree with Clipper, it showed nothing of value only repetative run and shoot."

    This description could be attributed to just about every fps thats been released this generation, yet they sell in the gazillions. So whats the problem with this? I suppose its not in your usual CoD viewpoint so it confuses the 'Dave' gamers out there.

  • mkreku #71 4 months ago

    Deep Shadows made The Precursors and White Gold, not GFI.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #72 4 months ago

    "What happened with Cannon Fodder 2?"

    It was amazingly great.

  • TrevHead #73 4 months ago

    Ok its a mediocre looking game but its better than having nothing. That is unless the game is worse than what the trailer shows

    If the codies arnt gonna do anything with the IP then translate it to english, do the same as konami did with the latest contra on xbla. (ie slightly change the name and call it a spin off) and put it up on steam for £10

    It much better than what they are doing with Dizzy and making it a shit iphone game.
    Edited by TrevHead at 03/02/12 @ 16:43

  • Po1ymorph #74 4 months ago

    I'd buy that for a dollar...or a few hundred MS points...

    Loved Cannon Fodder back in the day.

    One to watch definitely.

  • ExcellentBenji #75 4 months ago

    Yeah, not sure why the article was so negative... I'd love to play this.

  • Kaminari #76 4 months ago

    Only Richard Joseph could save this mess... if only.

    RIP Richard!

  • the_mtfr #77 4 months ago

    Eurogamer, facts --> straight! GFI didn't work on Precursors and White Gold. Just Deep Shadows from Ukraine did. Perhaps GFI just published those in Russia.

  • chiz #78 4 months ago

    Here's the demo if anyone wants to try it: http://www.gamershell.com/download_85062.shtml

    Better brush up on your rushki.

  • Ryze #79 4 months ago

    Hey - I was half expecting them to have made a generic FPS in the style of Cannon Fodder.

    At least it's the right game type.