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I heard so much about Tekken 2 being the greatest fighting game of all time back in the day, so I got it. It was definitely different to say the least. I had never ever played a game with so much depth in all of my life, and Tekken 3 picks up with an incredible sequal. The ongoing Iron Fist tournament has been upgraded to a whole new level...

No "copy characters". Tekken 2 had something like 26 fighters in total, but a lot of 'em where just mixes of other characters. This was a bit of a cheap way of getting tons of characters in the game, without working very hard on 'em. Not this time though. All of the 21 (10 main, 9 unlockable, and 2 secret) charcters has his own distinct style of play, and are all full of hundreds of original moves and combos.

It was thought when the arcade version was first released that the game could never be fully ported to the PSX. Well, aside from the slightly smaller charcters (only noticable on side by side comparison), the odd mising frame, and a very rare amount of slowdown, this is an exact port of the arcade original. This game has the prettiest graphics I've ever seen in a PSX fighting game to date. Some of the motion captured animation (particularly with Eddy and Hwoarang) is simply astounding.

The best thing about this game though, is it's gameplay. I don't know, but I don't think it's possible to ever completely master this game. It has so much depth, it's astounding. Every time I play, I figure out a new strategy, or notice a new way to evolve a combo. There really isn't any one game in the entire world (including Tetris) that I can think of with this much replay value.

Individual CG endings, tons of play modes, and fast loading top off this masterpiece.

First off, Paul is way too strong. He's just the obvious choice if you wanna win. Other than that, most of the charcters are balanced evenly.

Even though most of the play options like Arcade, Versus, Time Attack, and Survival are a lot of fun, there's two extras that really don't add much to the game. Tekken Ball Mode (kinda like volly-ball with an explosive for a ball) isn't that bad, but gets broring quick. Tekken Force Mode is a stinker though. It's sort of like Final Fight, but with Tekken charcters. At first it seems like an awesome idea, but it just isn't executed properly. There's tons of money plays, and the enemies are super cheap. Avoid it.

My biggest complaint would have to be the music though. Tekken 2 had some of the best tunes ever in a video game, and I was really looking forward to more of the same with Tekken 3. No such luck though. It's all really badly done techno-industrial sort of music, and it isn't inspiring, or even fitting for the game. (Oh, and if anyone has some Tekken 2 mp3s, please email me). The music however, can be turned off, and you can just throw a CD into your stereo, so that's no big deal really. The sound of bone crunching is pretty cool though (although a bit disturbing).

Probably my personal favorite PSX game to date, with Gran Turismo in a close second. If you're into fighting games, even just a bit, this is your number one option. There's nothing else that really even compares on a console system.