Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike – Fight for the Future is the final and most revered installment of the SFIII trilogy. Released in 1999 on the CPS3 arcade hardware, it is celebrated for its deep parry system and high-tier animation. 

The story of Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is set roughly a year after the events of the previous SFIII titles and acts as the chronological conclusion to the series before the events of Street Fighter 6. 

Unlike earlier entries, it focuses less on a single grand tournament and more on individual fighters’ personal journeys and crossing paths across the globe. 

Core Conflict: The Illuminati and the G-Project 

The overarching threat is the Illuminati (or Secret Society), a mysterious organization that has manipulated world events for over 2,000 years to create a “utopia”. 

• Gill: The self-proclaimed emperor of the Illuminati and the game’s final boss. He seeks to find worthy warriors to repopulate the earth after a prophesied apocalypse.
• Urien: Gill’s younger brother, who resents Gill’s promotion to Emperor and seeks to “punish” him. He currently serves as the President of the organization while overseeing the G-Project, a series of genetic experiments. 

Key Character Arcs

• Alex (The Protagonist): Originally entered the tournament to avenge his mentor, Tom, who was hospitalized by Gill. By 3rd Strike, his rage has subsided, and he travels the world to find strong opponents, becoming obsessed with a rematch against Ryu after a humbling defeat.
• Ryu & Ken: Ryu continues his wandering quest for self-improvement and is eventually sought out by Alex. He also has a friendly but intense rematch with Ken, narrowly defeating him.
• Chun-Li: Having retired from the police force, she returns to action to rescue a young orphan (Li-Fen) kidnapped by Urien’s agents.
• Necro & Twelve: Necro, a victim of the G-Project, is on the run from the organization with his companion Effie. Twelve, a shape-shifting bioweapon, is sent by the Illuminati to hunt them down.
• Makoto: A young girl fighting to restore the reputation of her late father’s failing karate dojo.
• Remy: A French fighter with a deep hatred for all martial artists, blaming the “path of the warrior” for his father abandoning his family.
• Q: A mysterious, masked figure seen at various disaster and murder sites. His true identity and motives remain one of the series’ greatest unsolved mysteries. 

Ending Canon

While most character endings are considered canon, the primary outcome is that Alex wins the Third World Warrior tournament by defeating Gill, though he chooses not to kill him. Despite the defeat, the Illuminati remains active and continues its shadow operations into the future.