20 Best PS3 Fighting Games

Xenoverse is the first Dragon Ball game Dimps made with full 3D battles, the style Spike had used in its own Dragon Ball games. It started life as the Dragon Ball New Project, and it got its real name at E3 2014. The story messes with Dragon Ball history itself: the first change shows up during Bardock's assault on Frieza's forces, and you are sent back in time to put things right.

It came out in 2015, when most people had already moved on to the PS4, so the PS3 version is easy to miss. One player called it "easily the most complete" of the Dragon Ball games on the console. A sequel, Xenoverse 2, followed in 2016. If you only want one Dragon Ball game on the PS3, this is the safe pick.

Midway made this crossover for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and it came out on November 16, 2008. It was the first Mortal Kombat made only for that generation of consoles. It was also the last one Midway made before the company went bankrupt in 2009 and sold the series to Warner Bros.

The plot merges the two worlds, each side blames the other, and the fighting goes on until Raiden and Superman are the last ones standing. Reviewers liked how it used the DC license but missed the unlockables, and the finishing moves were toned down. Superman was never going to rip anyone's spine out, and the game knows it. It is still a fun fighter, and it has a cast you will never see together anywhere else.

Spike made Raging Blast 2 for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and it came out at the start of November 2010, a year after the first one. It became the second-best-selling game in Japan for that November.

Critics were tougher on it. They went after the repetitive AI and the missing story mode, and the PS3 version got an aggregated score of 60 out of 100 on Metacritic. Players who grew up on it do not care much about that, and they still recommend it. A big roster and fights that wreck the scenery do a lot of heavy lifting. If you want to throw energy blasts across a canyon with a friend, it does the job well.

The King of Fighters XIII reached the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2011, and the ports have more in them than the arcade original, with new characters and stages. Director Kei Yamamoto wanted to bring back parts of older King of Fighters games and fix what went wrong in XII. Out went the Critical Counter and the zooming camera. In came the Drive Cancel, which opens up new combo possibilities.

It sold over 300,000 copies in its first year, which is good going for a series that lives mostly in arcades. Fans of 2D fighters still recommend it. The hand-drawn sprites are some of the best looking of the whole generation, and the team fights reward you for knowing three characters well.

Spike developed Raging Blast for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and it came out in Japan, North America, Europe and Australia in the second week of November 2009. It was one of the first Dragon Ball games Namco Bandai published in North America, after the company took over the license from Atari that July. The capsule system from older games came back, so you can customize your fighters.

The game was met with mixed reviews for its story mode and its controls. Players still recommend it. It plays a lot like the Budokai Tenkaichi games from the PS2, with free movement in 3D and fights that go from the ground to the sky in a second. The sequel smoothed things out, but this is where the PS3 run of Dragon Ball started.

Ultimax went to arcades first and reached the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2014. It is a direct sequel to Persona 4 Arena, and it was made to close the story the first game started. The main staff of Arena came back, with the gameplay being refined based on feedback.

It sold over 280,000 units worldwide, and many critics called the fighting better than the first game's. Players still recommend it next to the original. Play the first one for its story, then come here for the better fighting. You can skip straight to this one if you only care about the matches.

Sega released Virtua Fighter 5 in arcades in July 2006 on its Lindbergh board, and the PS3 and Xbox 360 ports came in 2007. Final Showdown followed in 2010, and it was ported to home systems in 2012. The Clash System lets a well-timed throw cancel out an attack, which leaves both fighters back at neutral. A real-time commentary feature was implemented for both English and Japanese.

Players still recommend it, often in its Final Showdown version. This is the most technical 3D fighter on the list. It is all footwork and timing, and it does not care whether you are having fun in your first hour. Give it a weekend and it starts to click. Akira players will tell you it takes longer than that.

Street Fighter III is the sequel to Street Fighter II, and it dropped every old character except Ryu and Ken. Third Strike is the version people remember. Its big idea is the parry: you cannot block in the air like in the Street Fighter Alpha games, and parrying takes its place. You can also cancel a special move into a Super Art, a technique borrowed from Street Fighter EX.

The Online Edition brought it to the PS3 as a download in 2011. Players still recommend it as one of the best fighters you can play on the console. It is harder to get into than Street Fighter IV and much less forgiving. The sprite work holds up beautifully, though, and the parry makes every round feel like a game of nerves.

The story of SoulCalibur V follows Patroklos, whom Siegfried entrusts with Soul Calibur, the only weapon capable of saving his sister and stopping Nightmare. The fighting has an updated Critical Edge system, where you fill a meter and let loose a big special attack.

Reviews were positive, and critics praised the gameplay and the character creation. They also criticized the removal of fan-favorite characters and the story mode. Players still recommend it. The creation mode is the best in the series, and plenty of people spent more time making characters than fighting with them. If you can live with a cast that lost some old friends, it is the best-playing SoulCalibur on the PS3.

Street Fighter X Tekken was made by Capcom, with Namco mostly involved in licensing the Tekken cast. So it plays like 2D Street Fighter, fireballs and all. You build up a three-sectioned meter called the Cross Gauge as the fight goes on and spend it on things like EX Attacks and Super Arts. Some pairs, like Ryu and Ken or Kazuya and Nina, get their own story scenes.

The game was well received, and critics liked the roster and the deep mechanics. It still fell short of Capcom's sales hopes, and the company got criticism for charging for characters that were already on the disc. Players still recommend it anyway. Yes, really. Without the DLC drama it is a fun tag fighter with a roster nobody else could put together.

Persona 4 Arena was the first game in the Persona series outside the role-playing genre. Development began in 2010 after Atlus approached Arc System Works about a fighting game based on Persona 4. Atlus did not leave it to Arc System Works alone, and asked the two studios to co-develop the game. The story is a strange tournament that pulls in the whole Investigation Team.

Reviews were positive, and critics liked the gameplay and graphics. The success of Arena led to Ultimax and to spin-offs like Persona 4: Dancing All Night. Players still recommend it. It is a friendly first fighter for RPG fans, and the cast alone is worth the price if you loved Persona 4.

Dead or Alive 5 is the fifth main entry in the series, and it was the series' first installment that was released for the PlayStation 3. Ultimate came to home consoles in 2013, and a final version called Last Round followed in 2015. The game has guest characters from the Virtua Fighter series, and two of them, Akira and Pai, only speak in Japanese.

It received generally favorable reviews. By mid-2015, all versions of the game together had sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. Players still recommend it. It is the easiest 3D fighter on the list to pick up, and it is a lot of fun once the counters start to make sense.

SoulCalibur IV introduced an all-new Critical Finish system. Guest characters have their own Force Meter. The Character Creation mode has a wide array of new equipment pieces, and you can now pick a voice and adjust its pitch. You can even take the regular cast and dress them in your own costumes.

The game received mainly positive reviews. It was followed by Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny on the PSP in 2009 and by Soulcalibur V in 2012. Players still recommend it. The creation mode alone has eaten whole weekends.

Injustice was directed by Ed Boon, and it is the first installment in the Injustice series, set in the world of DC Comics. It came out in April 2013 in North America, Europe and Australia, and in June 2013 in Japan. An expanded version, the Ultimate Edition, came out in November 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and other systems. A prequel comic book series of the same name, written by Tom Taylor, started in January 2013.

The game received positive reviews, and critics praised its story and its use of the DC license. Players still recommend it. The DC cast is the big draw, and the story mode is one of the best in any fighter of the time.

Capcom and Eighting made Marvel vs. Capcom 3, and it came out for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in February 2011. It was the first game in the series to use 3D character models instead of 2D sprites. Less than a year after release, Capcom announced an updated version called Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

Reviews were generally positive. Critics praised the gameplay and the roster and criticized the online part and the lack of modes. Players still recommend it. Matches are loud and over before you can read the combo counter. Learn three characters and a few assists, and you will see why so many players still pick it.

Tekken 6 came to arcades in November 2007 as the first game running on the PlayStation 3-based System 357 arcade board. A home version based on its Bloodline Rebellion update came to the PS3 and Xbox 360 in October 2009. It was the first time a main Tekken was made for a console Sony did not make. It was also the first Tekken with Harada as producer.

It received generally positive reviews. Critics praised the visuals and the new fight mechanics but had mixed opinions about the Scenario Campaign, a beat 'em up mode about a soldier named Lars Alexandersson. Players still recommend it. It has a huge cast, and every fighter has more moves than you will ever need, which is part of the fun.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 came to arcades in September 2011, and the PS3 and Xbox 360 version came out in September 2012. Its engine allows up to four characters on screen at the same time, and the tag mechanics allow extended tag combos and combined moves. Unlike the first Tekken Tag, it has a storyline, although it is not part of the series' canon.

It earned review scores of 82 to 83 percent and several fighting game of the year awards. It also sold at a historic low for the main series, which hurt the budgets of the games after it. Players still recommend it, and it ranks above every other Tekken on this list. If you want the biggest Tekken on the PS3, this is it.

Street Fighter IV was designed for the Taito Type X2 arcade hardware, and it was ported with additional features to the PlayStation 3 in 2009. It added Focus Attacks and Ultra Moves to the classic formula. Super Street Fighter IV followed in 2010, and the updates kept coming until Ultra Street Fighter IV in 2014.

It received universal critical acclaim, and it is often cited as one of the greatest games of all time. All versions of Street Fighter IV have sold over 9 million units across all platforms. Players recommend every version, from Arcade Edition to Ultra. If you buy one fighting game to learn properly, this is the one with the most help out there.

Development of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale began in 2009 under the working title Title Fight. It was one of the first games in Sony's cross-buy program, so buying it for PlayStation 3 got you the PlayStation Vita port for free. Your attacks build AP for supers. Level 1 supers are cheap and short range, while Level 3 supers cost a lot and can take out several opponents.

Critics praised the multiplayer and how true it stayed to each series, but they criticized the lack of content and the presentation. Players do not mind. They recommend it more than any PS3 fighter except one. Sony's mascots fighting each other is something you can only see here, and with friends on the couch it is still a riot.

Mortal Kombat was developed by NetherRealm Studios, and it is the ninth main installment in the series and a soft reboot. The plot goes back to the events of the first three games, as Raiden tries to change the Armageddon ending by contacting his past self. It came out for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in April 2011, and Komplete Edition followed in February 2012. Fill the meter all the way and you can pull off an X-ray move.

It received very positive reviews and won several fighting game of the year awards. It sold one million copies in its first month alone. In Australia it was banned until an R18 rating came in, and it was finally released there in May 2013. Players recommend it more than any other PS3 fighting game, and by a wide margin.