Tekken 3 is a fighting game developed by Namco for the Namco System 12 arcade board. It first appeared in a limited Japanese release on 28 November 1996, with a wide rollout in March 1997, and reached North American arcades on 18 March 1997. Composer Nobuyoshi Sano gave the soundtrack a slower big beat style.
Namco initially said a PlayStation conversion was not possible, but the port took eight months. The PlayStation version came out in Japan on 26 March 1998 and sold over one million copies there on its first day; North America and Europe followed in May and September 1998. It was the first PlayStation Tekken to support the DualShock controller, for vibration only, and the last in the series on the original PlayStation.
Katsuhiro Harada put total PlayStation sales at 8.36 million copies. Tekken 3 was also among the 20 games on the 2018 PlayStation Classic.12
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | Tekken 3 | Arcade | Mar 18, 1997 | Namco | 1 |
| NA | Tekken 3 | PlayStation | May 1, 1998 | Namco Hometek | 1 |
| JP | 鉄拳3Limited location test release; wide release March 1997 (Namco System 12) | Arcade | Nov 28, 1996 | Namco | 1 |
| JP | 鉄拳3 | PlayStation | Mar 26, 1998 | Namco | 1 |
| EU | Tekken 3 | PlayStation | Sep 12, 1998 | Sony Computer Entertainment | 1 |
| JP | 鉄拳5Arcade version included in Tekken 5's Arcade History mode, together with Tekken and Tekken 2 | PlayStation 2 | Mar 31, 2005 | Namco | 2 |
| WW | Tekken 3One of 20 games on the PlayStation Classic | PlayStation | Dec 3, 2018 | Sony Interactive Entertainment | 1 |
| WW | Tekken 3Added to PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Store for PS4 and PS5 | PlayStation 4 | Oct 21, 2025 | Bandai Namco | 1 |
Also known as: 鉄拳3 JP1
Box art by region
NA Tekken 3 
EU Tekken 3 
JP 鉄拳3
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.
Version differences
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ContentPS1
The PlayStation version adds two hidden fighters, Dr. Bosconovitch and Gon, and turns Anna Williams from a palette swap of Nina into a separate character with her own moves, voice and ending.1
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GameplayPS1
The home version adds the Tekken Force beat-'em-up mode and the Tekken Ball volleyball mode, along with extra endings and color variations.2
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GraphicsPS1
To fit the weaker hardware, the PlayStation version uses flat panoramic backgrounds, slightly simpler character models and a lower resolution.1
Reception
Tekken 3 holds 96 on Metacritic. The PlayStation version sold 8.36 million copies, 1.4 million of them in Japan, and the arcade board was the highest-grossing arcade PCB of 1997 in Japan.1
In lists
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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