Summary
Unfortunately,Tekken 3, the critically-acclaimed fighting game that is in fact the 23rd highest-rated game of all time, is still trapped on the PS1, for all intents and purposes.Tekken 3first hit arcades in 1997 before making its way to PlayStation 1 in 1998. The PS1 version ofTekken 3is remembered fondly to this day, but actually playing it is a difficult prospect.
The PS1 version ofTekken 3remains trapped on the original PlayStation and its PlayStation Classic variant. The arcade version ofTekken 3is technically playable throughTekken 5on PS2, but the PS1 version of the game is hard to come by unless one wants to buy thedivisive PS1 Classic consoleor track down an old copy of the game to play on a PS1, PS2, or PS3. It would be preferable and far more convenient forTekken 3to be made available on modern platforms like the PS5 in some capacity, but that still hasn’t happened at the time of this writing.
What makes the lack ofTekken 3on modern consoles especially frustrating is that there are multiple old-schoolTekkengames readily available to play on PS5 right now. The PS5’s backward compatibility means that it can play the PS4Tekkengames, plus the PS3-eraTekken 6is available through PS Plus Premium. Not only that, butTekken 2is on PS Plus Premium as well, and it’s even available as a standalone purchase on PS4 and PS5. The originalTekken, also highly-regarded, has not been added to PS Plus Premium yet, let alone the belovedTekken 3. However, the originalTekkenis at least available on PS3 as a PS1 Classic, as isTekken 2, thoughTekken 3was never afforded the same courtesy.
Tekken 3 Deserves to Be Playable on Modern Consoles
It’s unclear exactly whyTekken 3has remained trapped on the PS1, but there is at least some hope that it will eventually get the re-release it deserves. While the originalTekkengame has not been added to PS Plus Premium yet,Tekken 2has, and so one has to imagine that there has at least been some discussion about bringing the otherPS1Tekkengamesto the platform as well. Plus, the fact thatTekken 3is on the PS1 Classic console does show that Bandai Namco can be convinced to dosomethingwith the classic game.
Of course,Tekken 3isn’t the onlyTekkentrapped on older hardware. And with 2025 marking the 30th anniversary of theTekkenserieson PlayStation consoles, it seems like the perfect opportunity for Bandai Namco to give fans the chance to play all the classic games,Tekken 3included. Even if that doesn’t happen, though, fans can at least look forward to new content for the latest entry in the series,Tekken 8.
Tekken 3
WHERE TO PLAY
An ancient evil force has reawakened, attacking in secret and feeding on the souls of mighty warriors. To lure it out of hiding will take the greatest fighting contest the world has ever seen… Tekken 3! Some are fighting for revenge, some for honor. Ultimately, all are fighting for their lives and the fate of all mankind.
