Street Fighter III: Third Strike
(LAST UPDATE: 6/20/08)

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General: Capcom's latest (last?) installment to their epic SF3 series brings back the classic SF veteran, Chun Li, and adds some interesting new characters. The veteran SF3 characters have been given new moves, new outfit colors, new stages, and of course new cocky and funny win quotes. The Street Fighter 3 series is known for it's amazing 2D animation and rock solid gameplay... And Third Strike doesn't disappoint. Third Strike builds upon the already great gameplay system, and makes for one of the best 2D fighting game experiences you can possibly have.

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   The main focus here is on the "parrying" system, which is a fancy way to block your opponents incoming attacks by tapping forward instead of back to block. By parrying, you can easily and quickly counter attack your opponent. The fluid animation also makes it easy to see moves coming (if you have good timing of course)... You can parry low attacks by tapping down; and also parry in the air, with more punishable outcomes since you're not pushed back like in New Generation.

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   Parrying adds power to your super meter bar, which of course lets you perform a devastating super move (or two) against your opponent. Your super meter bar can also be used to "enhance" your regular special moves by making them faster or more damaging, like in Second Impact. The gameplay is definitely faster and fiercer than ever, but that's not all that's changed.
  
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   Third Strike has a solid soundtrack, with a mix of rap and techno for the intro and character selection screen. An odd, yet interesting choice; but I'll just say I'm glad there's no "lyrics" during the fight. Stage BGMs are well done, as well as the stages themselves, and are completely new to the SF series. The character voices have also changed for returning characters, most of which are pretty good; but I actually prefer 2nd Impact's voice acting over Third Strikes. These are just cosmetic nitpicks that I have, and don't effect the gameplay or presentation much at all.

Manufacturer: Capcom
Platforms: Arcade, Dreamcast, Playstation 2 (Street Fighter: Anniversary Collection), Xbox (Street Fighter: Anniversary Collection)
Release: 1999
Characters: Ryu, Ken, Dudley, Alex, Yun, Yang, Ibuki, Necro, Sean, Oro, Elena, Hugo, Urien, Remy, Chun-Li, Makoto, Q, Twelve, Akuma, Gill
Related Games: Street Fighter, Street Fighter 2, Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition, Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter 2, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo: Revival, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix, Street Fighter 3: New Generation, Street Fighter 3: Second Impact, Street Fighter 4, Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Street Fighter Alpha 3, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max, Street Fighter Alpha: Anthology, Street Fighter Anniversary Collection, Street Fighter EX, Street Fighter EX 2, Street Fighter EX 3, Street Fighter: The Movie, Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix, Pocket Fighter
 
Gameplay Engine
10 / 10
Story / Theme
9 / 10
Overall Graphics
10 / 10
Animation
10 / 10
Music / Sound Effects
8 / 10
Innovation / Creativity
8 / 10
Customization / Options
 9 / 10
Intro / Presentation
8.5 / 10
Replayability / Fun
 9.5 / 10
"Ouch" Factor
10 / 10
Characters
9 / 10
Overall Score
9.5 / 10

Closing Comment: As far as traditional 2D fighting games go, It really doesn't get much better than Street Fighter III: Third Strike... My words can't really do this game justice, you just have to play it. Flawless animation, awesome characters, and breathtaking martial arts action! ...The gameplay and parry system is what really counts, and it's dead on. ~F.Yagami, Webmaster of TFG