is the sequel to 1994's Virtua Fighter 2 and the third fighting game in the Virtua Fighter series, developed by Sega AM2 and published by Sega in 1996. It was the first arcade game to run on the Sega Model 3 system board. Like its predecessors, Virtua Fighter 3 was a major hit in arcades, selling 30,000 arcade cabinets worldwide. In Japan, it was the fourth highest-grossing arcade game of 1996 and the overall highest-grossing arcade game of 1997. A port for the Sega Saturn was announced but ultimately cancelled. However, the game eventually reached home consoles in the form of a conversion for the Dreamcast. Gameplay This iteration is the first in the series to have undulation in the stages, such as a staircase in the Great Wall stage, a stage set on top of a sloping roof and a raft constructed of individually moving elements on a bobbing water surface. A fourth button, the Dodge, was added (the series had previously used only three - Kick, Punch and Guard). Pressing the button with the joystick in neutral or held up makes the character move into the screen (i.e. away from the viewer), while pressing the button with the joystick held down makes the character move out of the screen (i.e. towards the viewer). This 'evasion' technique enables players to dodge incoming attacks, creating opportunities to counter-attack almost immediately. Characters Returning characters are: Akira Yuki, Pai Chan, Lau Chan, Wolf Hawkfield, Jeffry McWild, Kage-Maru, Sarah Bryant, Jacky Bryant, Shun Di, Lion Rafale, Dural. Two new Japanese characters were added to the roster of fighters: Aoi Umenokoji, a beautiful Japanese woman and a childhood friend of Akira Yuki who used a nimble form of aiki-jujutsu as her fighting style of choice, and Taka-Arashi, a sumo wrestler from Japan. Taka Arashi would not make another appearance in the Virtua Fighter series until Virtua Fighter 5 R; the series' producer Hiroshi Kataoka explained that the removal of Taka in subsequent installments was due to the technical implications of having a substantially larger character. Taka had in fact nearly been cut from Virtua Fighter 3 due to difficulties with his jumping moves. Plot Judgement 6, an organization seeking global domination, are hosting a third fighting tournament. The characters all enter to achieve their personal goals. Some wish to challenge Judgement 6 and uncover the group's secrets. Kage-Maru won the tournament. whose actual specialty