Overview
Battle Arena Toshinden 3, sometimes known in-game as Battle Arena Toshinden 3: The Final Battle, is a 3D fighting game developed by Tamsoft and published by Takara (Playmates in North America) for the Sony PlayStation in Japan on December 27, 1996, in North America on March 31, 1997, and in Europe sometime after.
The third installment of the Battle Arena Toshinden (Franchise) series (and the last in the series to be released in North America), Battle Arena Toshinden 3 radically changes the gameplay of its predecessor, mostly by introducing predefined combo chains and enclosed arenas (making the game more juggle heavy and eliminating ring outs).
Set after the second tournament and the destruction of the Secret Society, a new mysterious organization (known only as "The Organization") sponsors a third tournament while targeting numerous fighters for diabolical purposes.
Along with introducing a wide variety of new (and mostly unlockable) characters, nearly doubling the total roster to 32, the game features a unique Arcade Mode where opponents are based on the faction chosen, along with optional English voice acting (of varying quality) and the option to sacrifice graphical quality for a doubled framerate.
The Japanese version was later digitally re-released by Tamsoft for some platforms as a PSone Classics (Concept) title on November 22, 2016.
Characters
Battle Arena Toshinden 3 includes 14 playable characters from the start, four of whom are newcomers. Out of all the characters from the game's predecessor, only Uranus and Master (Character) do not appear, with Fo Fai (Character) relegated to a secret costume (for his successor, the ape Bayhou (Character)).
In addition, the game includes 14 unlockable "rival" characters (all of which are new additions, excluding Vermilion (Character)) that serve as the opponents for the protagonists in Arcade Mode. The fighting styles and movelists for each rival are usually based on their corresponding protagonist, almost playing like a mirror match. When playing as them in Arcade Mode, all of their opponents are from the protagonist faction.
Each side also has a final boss and secret boss (all of whom are unlockable). This totals the roster to 32 fighters. Each rival is locked until players complete the game with their protagonist counterpart.
New Characters
- David (Character) - A teenage British orphan who was kidnapped by the Organization for their ritual, only to escape with a raged fury. He wields a long chainsaw in combat. His rival is Judgement (Character), a mute chainsaw-wielding serial killer from England who bears a significant resemblance to Jason Voorhees (Character).
- Shizuku Fuji (Character) - A Japanese gambler who came to David's aid after his escape from the Organization. She wields a long smoking pipe as a blunt instrument. Her rival is Miss Til (Character), a fortune teller from Malaysia (Location) and a high-ranking member of the Organization who wields a large flute as a blunt instrument.
- Bayhou (Character) - A Chinese ape from the mountains who was trained by sadistic assassin Fo Fai (Character) as his successor. He wields Fo's pair of large claws in combat and fights in his style from previous games. His rival is Cuiling (Character), a young assassin from Hong Kong (Location) with similar iron claws who also trained under Fo.
- Nagisa Iwashiro (Character) - A Japanese detective investigating the Organization. He wields a large handgun and nightstick in combat. His rival is Vermilion (Character), a mysterious gunslinger and the Organization's second-in-command who wields both a golden shotgun and a golden revolver in combat. Nagisa and Vermilion serve as the first sub-boss for the antagonist and protagonist factions respectively. Vermilion is the only fighter in the faction to have returned from the previous installment.
- Abel - The leader of the Organization, who organized the tournament in an effort to complete a sacrificial ritual to resurrect Agon Teos, the God of Fighting. He is the only fighter to fight weapon-less, using his bare fists in combat. He is the final boss for the protagonist faction, and is unlockable after completing the game with Sho at the hardest difficulty.
- Veil (Character) - An entity of destruction sealed up within Abel after the Organization's ritual failed. Essentially a powered-up version of Abel (who wields energy arm blades), he is a secret boss for the protagonist faction, and is unlockable after completing Arcade Mode with Abel at the hardest difficulty.
- Naru Amoh (Character) - A young British girl and the adopted daughter of Kayin, who wields his sword "Caliburn" in battle. She is a secret boss for the antagonist faction, and is unlockable after completing Arcade Mode with Veil at the hardest difficulty.
Returning Characters
- Eiji Shinjo - The series' main protagonist and a famed Japanese swordsman, fighting with his signature "White Tiger Fang" sword. His rival is Leon, a cutlass-wielding criminal from the United States who fancies himself as a modern-day pirate and seeks revenge against Eiji for an earlier defeat.
- Kayin Amoh - A British bounty hunter with a friendly rivalry to Eiji, fighting with his sword "Caliburn". His rival is Ten Count (Character), an aristocratic rapier-wielding assassin from England (Location) who bears a significant resemblance to the late Michael Jackson (Person).
- Sofia - A Russian agent with a shrouded past, fights with a whip. Her rival is Zola, an opera singer and assassin from Austria who bears a significant resemblance to Catwoman (Character) and wields a whip with a bladed tip.
- Rungo Iron - An American miner who fights with a large iron club. His rival is Adam, a hulking bipedal robot (wielding an arm cannon that's used like a club).
- Mondo - A Japanese spy and descendant of a secret clan of ninjas, who fights with a spear. His rival is Toujin (Character), a high-profile assassin from Japan who resembles a tengu and fights with a tri-tipped spear.
- Duke B. Rambert - A French knight who fights with a longsword. His rival is Balga (Character), a knight from Norway (Location) who seeks to put a bloody end to his family's long-running feud with the Ramberts and wields both a sword and a shield in combat.
- Ellis - A circus acrobat and Gaia's daughter, who fights with a pair of daggers. Her rival is Atahua (Character), a young tribesman from Peru (Location) and the adopted son of Tau, who fights with twin blowguns and seeks to restore his fallen tribe's ancient empire.
- Gaia - A Japanese warrior monk and a former executive of the Secret Society, who fights with a large zanbato. His rival is Tau (Character), a tribesman from Brazil (Location) who wields a broadsword and seeks to restore his fallen tribe's ancient empire.
- Tracy (Character) - A notorious American cop who fights with a a pair of electric tonfas. Her rival is Rachael (Character), Tracy's long-lost older sister and a mercenary who fights with a pair of double-tonfas.
- Chaos - A mentally-unstable Sri Lankan fighter who fights with a large scythe. His rival is Schultz (Character), an occultist from Germany (Location) and the Organization's master ritualist who fights with a large sickle.
- Sho Shinjo - Eiji's older brother and a master swordsman. He is the final boss for the antagonist faction and a sub-boss for the protagonist faction, and is unlockable after unlocking all 14 Rivals and then completing Arcade Mode again on medium or harder difficulty.