Tekken 3

Tekken 3
File:T3usposter.jpg
Developer(s)	Namco
Publisher(s)	Namco
Platform(s)	Arcade, PlayStation, PlayStation 2 (as a part of Tekken 5's Arcade History mode)
Release	Arcade March 1997 PlayStation JP: March 26, 1998 NA: October 1998 EU: November 1998
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Up to two players
Arcade system	Namco System 12

Tekken 3 is the third installment in the Tekken fighting game series. It was the first game released on Namco's System 12 hardware (an improvement to the original two Tekken games, which used System 11). It was the last installment of Tekken for the PlayStation. It was released for the PlayStation in 1998, and in 2005 for the PlayStation 2 as part of Tekken 5's Arcade History mode. The PlayStation version became a critical and commercial success, and is still widely regarded as one of the greatest games ever released.

Gameplay

Tekken 3 maintains the same basic fighting system as its predecessors, but brings improvements, such as significantly more detailed graphics and animation, 15 new characters added to the game's roster, and faster and more fluid gameplay. Perhaps the most noticeable change in Tekken 3 is sidestepping, allowing fighters to step "into" or "out of" the background, whereas the element of depth had been largely insignificant in previous Tekken games. Jumping was toned down in Tekken 3, no longer allowing fighters to jump to extreme heights (as was present in previous games) but keeping leaps to reasonable, realistic heights which made air combat more controllable. The improved engine allowed for quick recoveries from knock-downs, more escapes from tackles and stuns, and newly-created combo throws.
Tekken 3 was the first Tekken to feature a beat 'em up minigame called Tekken Force. Tekken Force pitted the player in various stages against enemies in a side-scrolling fashion. If the player succeeds in beating the minigame four times, Dr. Bosconovitch would be a playable character (granted that you defeat him first). This was continued in Tekken 4 and succeeded by the Devil Within minigame in Tekken 5. There is also a minigame called Tekken Ball, similar to beach volleyball, where one has to "charge" a ball (hit the ball with a powerful attack) in order to hurt the opponent.

Story

Fifteen years after the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2, Jun has been living a quiet life in Yakushima, with her young son, Jin, whom was concieved by Kazuya Mishima.

Heihachi Mishima, meanwhile, has established the Tekken Force, a force dedicated to the protection of the Mishima Zaibatsu. Using the company's influence, Heihachi is responsible for many events that have ultimately led to world peace. However, one day, while on an excavation in Mexico, a squadron of Heihachi's Tekken Forces is attacked and vanquished by a mysterious force. The only surving soldier manages to relay a brief message to Heihachi, describing the perpetrator as an "Ogre" or a "Fighting God". Heihachi and a team of soldiers investigate, and Heihachi manages to catch a glimpse of the culprit. Indeed, it looks very much like an Ogre, and Heihachi's long dormant dream of world domination is reawakened. He seeks to capture Ogre, and use him for this goal.

Soon after, various martial arts masters begin disappearing from all over the world, and Heihachi is convinced that this is Ogre's doing. In Yakushima, Jun starts to feel the presence of Ogre approaching them. Knowing that she has become a target, Jun tells Jin about this, and instructs him to go straight to Heihachi should anything happen. Sometime after Jin's fifteenth birthday, Ogre does indeed attack. Against Jun's wishes, Jin valiantly tries to fight Ogre off, but Ogre brushes him aside and knocks him unconscious. When Jin reawakens, he finds that the house has been burned to the ground, and that Jun is missing and most likely dead.

Driven by revenge, Jin goes to Heihachi and tells him everything. Jin begs Heihachi to train him to become strong enough to face Ogre again and avenge Jun, and Heihachi accepts.

Four years later, Jin has grown into an impressive fighter and master of Mishima Style Karate. On Jin's nineteenth birthday, the King of Iron Fist Tournament 3 is announced, and Jin prepares for his upcoming battle against Ogre, unaware that Heihachi is merely using him and the rest of the competitors as bait to lure Ogre out in order to capture him.

Eventually, the tournament leads to the final confrontation between Jin and Ogre in Ogre's temple, the latter in his final and true form. The battle rages for hours, until Jin finally emerges the victor and Ogre completely dissolves. Moments later, Jin is gunned down by a squadron of Tekken Forces, led by Heihachi, who, no longer needing Jin, finishes the job personally by firing a final shot into his grandson's head.

However, Jin, revived by the Devil Gene within him (which he inherited from Kazuya), reawakens and makes quick work of the soldiers, turning his attention to Heihachi and literally smashing him through the wall of the temple. Heihachi survives the long fall, but Jin, in mid-air, suddenly sprouts black, feathery wings and strikes Heihachi one last time. He then flies off into the night, leaving his bewildered grandfather staring after him.

Character Roster

Returning Characters

• Paul Phoenix
• Nina Williams
• Yoshimitsu
• Lei Wulong
• Anna Williams (unlockable)
• Heihachi Mishima (unlockable)

New Characters

• King II
• Jin Kazama
• Ling Xiaoyu
• Hwoarang
• Eddy Gordo
• Forrest Law
• Kuma Jr. (unlockable)
• Panda (unlockable)
• Julia Chang (unlockable)
• Bryan Fury (unlockable)
• Gun Jack (unlockable)
• Mokujin (unlockable)
• Ogre (unlockable)
• True Ogre (unlockable)
• Tiger (unlockable, Eddy Gordo's alter ego)

Bonus Characters (PlayStation version)

• Gon (unlockable)
• Doctor Boskonovitch (unlockable)

The Arcade version of Tekken 3 features Anna Williams as an easter egg for Nina. She shares the same moves, stance and voice. Her character portrait is similar to that of Tekken 2, but with slight 3D touches.

The Arcade version focused on Yoshimitsu's new 'space armor' style. For any attack involving infliction of weapon damage, a laser-like sound replaced that of a sword chop in order to fit his space theme (he is equipped with a light saber, rather than a sword). The "sword chop" fx returned to the console version, however.

Ports

Tekken 3 was originally ported to the PlayStation with two new characters. The PlayStation version features Tekken Force and Tekken Ball.

The PlayStation version of Tekken 3 was later emulated for the Sega Dreamcast with improved graphics. However, the game came out at the end of the Dreamcast's lifespan and due to lawsuits, very few stores sold the game making the Dreamcast version rare, even on places such as Amazon and eBay.

The PlayStation 2 release of Tekken 5 features the Arcade version of Tekken 3.

Reception

Tekken 3 is considered by many to be the pinnacle of the series as well as the best fighting game for the PlayStation. Critics consider Tekken 3 to be one of the greatest video games of all time. It became the first game in three years to receive a 10 from a reviewer from Electronic Gaming Monthly, with three of the four reviewers giving it the highest possible score (Tekken 3 was the first game to score a 10 under EGM's revised review scale in that a game no longer needed to be "perfect" to receive a 10; the last game to receive a 10 from the magazine was Sonic & Knuckles). The only holdout was the magazine's enigmatic fighting game review guru, Sushi-X, who said that "no game that rewards newbies for button-mashing will ever be tops in my book", giving the game 9 out of 10. In December 2006 it was ranked tenth on GameSpot's top ten list. In September 2004 it ranked #10 on PSM's "Final PlayStation Top 10" in honor of the PlayStation selling 100 million units. As of February 2008, the game is listed as the eighth-highest-rated game of all time on the review compiling site Game Rankings.

Reviews

Publication	Score
IGN	9.3 out of 10
GameSpot	9.9 out of 10
Electronic Gaming Monthly	10/10/10/9.0 out of 10
GamePro	5 out of 5
PSM	5 out of 5
Gaming Age	97 out of 100
Famitsu	39 out of 40
Edge Magazine	9/10

External links

• Tekken 3 at MobyGames