"Better than the last, but still room for improvement."

Bloody Roar 3 is the latest in Hudson's series, featuring anthropomorphic fighting. The game should be a must-buy for fans of the series. I've liked the series since the beginning, and this game is definately an improvement.

Graphics / Visual Stimuli - 8
The character models are top-notch. They're more detailed and have better animations than the ones used in SF:EX3. The fighters are big, their movements are fluid, and the moves have smiley-particle effects out the wazzoo. The newer sleek look that the artwork has is a vast improvement over the carnal 'beasty' look of the previous game in the series. The only problem with the visuals is that some of the backgrounds seem bare. SOME. Several of the backgrounds feature breathtaking visuals (a jet taking off from a carrier), yet others are just blocks or your stereotypical asian temple. Don't get me wrong, the backgrounds LOOK great, it's just that some of them are without detail.

Sounds / Audio Stimuli - 9
I've heard people complain about Bloody Roar's use of Japanese, synthesized, faux-heavy metal. Well, it's in this game too. However, many of the battle arenas use music that closely resembles Darren Emerson, Sasha-esque electronica. The intro movie's soundtrack is forgettable, but the stages more than make up for it. The sound effects are crisp and clear, and the hard hits have enough bass to actually warrant cranking cranking the volume up while you play.

Gameplay / Mental Stimuli - 8
The fighting engine is the same that the past games have featured. 2-D fighting in a 3-D arena. The good news: they actually built side-stepping into the game! The past games had to have it unlocked or used only in a special mode,... NO MORE! Not only can you side-step, but if you hold the shoulder button you'll dance around your opponent! This greatly livens up the fighting. My greatest gripe towards this fine game (and what dropped its score from 9) is that they have still not brought back the breakable walls from the first title. In this game you can break the walls at the match's end, but you still can't break them mid-fight for a 'ring out' victory. To the game's credit, you can break through certain walls mid-fight, but it only leads to a new arena. I like this idea, but I hearken back to days when you could send your opponent flying back through a wall, and then play side-step footsie next round, trying not to put your back to the now exposed hole.

Overall - 8 A good, solid fighter. Better for versus than arcade play, but what fighter isn't?

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/02/01, Updated 07/02/01