DESCRIPTION

Tekken 3 is the third installment of Namco's premier 3D fighting game franchise. Converted from the arcade to the PlayStation, Tekken 3 ran on the technology called the System 12 board. It is a step better than Namco's System 11 board, which is nearly identical to the PlayStation. The trick was to pull off a conversion to fit with the console's architecture and technology, and they did just that.

Tekken 3's fighting styles range from street fighting to beautiful ancient oriental fighting styles. Each of the 20-plus characters features a different style (Kung Fu, Capoeira), some of which must be mastered before using adequately. At first, you have 10 fighters to choose from but as you complete the individual story/arcade modes, you will unlock that person's counterpart. Their story is represented by various intro and ending cinematic sequences.

As in the previous Tekken titles, each character has an abundance of moves he or she can perform. They consist of throws (for up close battle), punches and jabs, and kicks (both aerial and on the ground). To help players get used to controlling the game, each fighter's move list can be accessed at any time via a pause menu.

Players are given quite a few options of gameplay styles to choose from: Arcade, Versus, Team Battle, Time Attack, Tekken Force, Practice and a hidden Beach Ball mode (a competition to see who can keep the ball from touching the sand). The arcade version is simply that and the team battle mode allows you or a friend to choose a team of fighters and go into battle one by one. New to the series is the Tekken Force mode — a Final Fight inspired side-scrolling action game. It contains four levels and after you complete them, you are given a counter. When you finish it a certain amount of times, a special character is introduced and unlocked. ~ Adam Ziegler, All Game Guide