Tekken 3 (Japan, TET1-VER.E1) Review by: Jamal999 - 9.5/10
K.O.!What a shame! No one wrote a single line of review for this masterpiece? We must remedy! XD (I know You were too busy playing the game, so I wrote this review for all Vizzed members ;) ).
(Uhmmm...A bit laggy, but still fun!)
-Genre: Fighting
-Developer and Publisher: Namco
-Year: 1997 (arcade) - 1998/2011 (Playstation/Playstation Network)
-Players: single/multiplayer (Vs)
-In a fistful of words: Together with Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, this game is on the pinnacle of the fighting games cathedral, one of the first 3D fighting games.
Introduction:
A glorious and long history, five official sequels and several spin-offs, lots of characters and fun...And the priceless pleasure of hearing the announcer voice shouting "K.O.!" when You beat the enemy on the ground! This is the game that made me (and millions of players) love this genre and this saga because of the good difficulty balance, the wide selection of moves, the different endings, the good graphics and sounds...
Plot:
Tekken means "Iron Fist" in Japanese. This is the name of the international martial arts tournament founded by Heihachi Mishima, the leader of Mishima Zaibatsu Corporation. A rich and corrupted corporation... If You don't know the origins of the saga, the winner of the tournament will rule the Corporation and the main storyline involves Heihachi, his son Kazuya and other Heihachi family members, trying to kill each others. When you say "One big happy family" or "Business is business"... Heihachi lost the first tournament (and Kazuya wins), but Heihachi wins the second and now he's defending his role, with the help of his own paramilitary organisation "Tekken Force". This organisation is searching for the greatest fighter in the world, because Heihachi wants to improve his power and safety. The Tekken Force find this fighter, the terrible Ogre, a monster living in an ancient Aztec temple. They try to capture their enormous prey, but they fail, and the Ogre obtain a good lunch. Heihachi sees everything and now decides to announces the third "King of Iron Fist Tournament", trying to lure the Aztec Ogre. But he doesn't know that another fighter is searching for the Ogre: Jin Kazama, the son of Kazuya. He wants revenge for the death of his mother, perpetrated by the Ogre. In this time several martial artists tried to beat the ogre, but no one succeeded. Who will be the next King of the Iron Fist Tournament?
Aesthetics:
A good level for its times, a very good game for both graphics and sound.
Graphics:
3D polygons: who doesn't love them? They've got a sort of poetry, reminding us the old times and making us better appreciate the contemporary high resolution games. But leaving nostalgia behind us, the real poetic of this old 3d texture is deeply established in the particular Tekken aesthetics. This game hasn't got a "cartoon" or "realistic" style, but precisely, it has got a "Tekken style"! I'm not playing around, think about it: if I say "Mortal Kombat", You close your eyes and see blood, brains and scorpion's harpoon. When I say Street Fighter You see Chun Li's legs ( <3), 2D backgrounds and...Hadouken! When I say Tekken, You feel the sound and vibration of every single blow, a colorful 3D large Polygons world and Jin Kazama and the devil whitin... It's a matter of facts XD Perhaps You will feel something else, but You will always sense the difference. Every stage is well designed upon the respective character, You can say that the stage is the soul of the character. So, in other words, great Graphics...
Sound:
Perfect fighting sounds, every stage has got a different and proper music (Gordo has got a nice tribal capoeira base, just to mention it...). I love the way your opponent "sounds" when You hit him (but I don't like to beat women characters...My fault XD). Yeah, like a punching bag: "Sock! Bang! Tang! Pow! Sdeng!". You'll taste this delight too for sure!
Gameplay:
This is the arcade game so (Why, why, why?!!! [cit. Agent Smith]) no special features: no Tekken ball, no training, no different modalities, no Tekken Force mingame, NO GON ( :'( ) and Dr. Boskonovitch . But this "details" (details what?!) doesn't affect the magnetic attraction of this masterpiece. The only game mode is the "story" one. Select Your character and rush into the Iron Fist Tournament challenge. Defeat all your enemies, Kick Heihachi Mishima's hind end and beat the Ogre. Enjoy the ending. I rate the Story 9 because of the very different endings and the good plot. But the former reason is the most important: it guarantees a looong lasting gaming experience, multiplied for all the well defined characters. The in-game controls are really simple, but avoid the "smash-em-to-death-stuff". As in every good fighting game, this strategy will fail, even because Your opponent will try to learn your fighting style and predict your moves. So, don't smash the buttons like a fool: be unpredictable and try all the possible combos with intelligence and following martial arts philosophy! Jump when You need to jump, block when You need to block and kick and punch meanwhile XD . An don't forget that You can retreat, advance and run in all directions, and if You go down, hit an attack button to roll over your enemy and kick him in the shins!
Here is the list of the playable characters:
(PLAYABLE)
-Anna Williams: The junior sister and sworn rival of Nina. And what a babe! (Highlight Nina and than push start to play with her)
-Lei Wulong: Police officer...and what a Shaolin martial artist.
-Nina Williams: A deadly Irish assassin. This blondie is an assassin?! Yeah my boy, of course. Oh, women, You are traps...
-Paul Phoenix: The bad boy biker with the eraserhead styled hair;
-Yoshimitsu: the "light of happiness" (translation of "Yoshimitsu") samurai. And look at his movements! He's really funny! Not like Mokujin or Kuma, but still fun when he wins or loses or just poses XD (Yes, I love this character...).
-King II: The wrestler with the roaring jaguar mask (You can hear the roar when You defeat an enemy!)
-Jin Kazama: The...devil within, the iconic character of the saga.
-Ling Xiaoyu: Who shouted Chun Li's sister?!
-Hwoarang: Punishing Tae Kwon Do kick combos straight out of Korea!
-Eddy Gordo/Tiger Jackson: C'mon, feel the capoeira Rhythm!
-Forest Law: You want to play like Bruce Lee? This is your best choice!
(UNLOCKABLE)
-Heihachi Mishima: Old dirty bastard owner of Mishima Zaibatsu Corporation.
-Kuma II/Panda): Adorable beeeear...Chubby and powerful. Heihachi Mishima's pet...Wait what?!
-Julia Chang: What a piece of an American Indian. Wait, she's an American Native and They called her "Julia Chang"? Never mind...
-Bryan Fury: Nasty and very strong, an ex Interpol agent and my favourite character, with a well balanced fighting style.
-Gun Jack: The really IRON FISTS Cyborg!
-Mokujin: POETIC. I MEAN INFINITELY POETIC, speaking in Zen words, he's delicate, light, perfect because of his styles and his story. He randomly adopts the style of a character at the start of his journey.
-Ogre/True Ogre: Beat this Aztec demon, if You dare!
Nothing else to say...
Conclusions:
Concentrate...take your iron fist gloves...a deep breath...and FIGHT!
Your newbie-newbie reviewer, Jamal999
Graphics
9 Sound
9 Addictive
10 Depth
7 Story
9 Difficulty
7