is a 2021 action-adventure game developed and published by Grasshopper Manufacture for the Nintendo Switch. Marvelous published the game in Japan. It is the fourth installment in the No More Heroes series and is the third mainline entry in the series. Set eleven years after the events of No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle (2010), the game stars professional assassin Travis Touchdown and follows his return to the fictional city of Santa Destroy, as he must defend the world from a powerful army of alien invaders led by the galactic overlord prince FU and his nine soldiers who adopt the façade of galactic superheroes.
Production began during the final development stages of the spinoff prequel Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes (2019). Series creator and director Goichi Suda had received many fan requests to make a third mainline entry in the franchise after the release of the second game, but development of a new entry was postponed for many years due to Grasshopper Manufacture working on other projects. Upon the studio being shown the Nintendo Switch, Suda was inspired to return to the series, believing the games would be a fit for the console's audience and allow for a return to the series' staple motion control combat via the Joy-Con controllers. Much like previous entries in the series, the game pays homage to and parodies pop culture media, taking inspiration from works such as Rocky III, Kamen Rider, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the filmography of Takashi Miike. Suda has described the game as the conclusion of Travis Touchdown's story.
No More Heroes III was announced at E3 2019 with a planned 2020 release, but was delayed into 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic slowing down development. Upon its initial Nintendo Switch release on August 27, 2021, the game was met with generally favorable reviews. Additional versions of the game with enhanced visuals and performance were released in October 2022 for PlayStation, Xbox, and Windows platforms, published by Marvelous in Japan and Xseed Games in North America.
Gameplay
No More Heroes III is a third-person action-adventure game where the player assumes the role of the professional assassin Travis Touchdown, who must climb to the top of the Galactic Superhero Rankings. The game marks a return to the series' open world format last seen in the first game and has the player explore a man-made archipelago, taking on various side activities such as part-time job minigames, and defense missions where the player must battle waves of enemies. In a new addition to the series, the open world is split into five unique islands. The player can traverse around and between the islands with Travis' new modified motorcycle; the "Demzamtiger". Travel between islands can also be expedited via a fast travel system. To progress in the game, the player must accrue enough money from missions to pay an entry-fee to a ranked battle. The player must then face off against one of the Rankings' top contenders in a unique boss battle.
Combat plays out as a hack-and-slash game in real-time. Similar to the previous mainline games, the combat is predominantly centered around Travis' signature "Beam Katana"; a sword with a blade composed of energy. The player can perform various light and heavy combos with the sword. Successful strikes power up the player's "Tension Gauge" whereas taking damage depletes it, higher tension leads to longer and more damaging combos. When an enemy has had their health sufficiently depleted, the player is given a directional prompt to execute a "Killer Slash"; an unstoppable attack with large range that does heavy damage to adjacent enemies. Upon successful execution of enemies, the player activates the "Slash Reel"; a slot machine which gives the random chance of a currency bonus or a power-up. At times the player may lock swords with melee-based enemies, upon which they must perform rotation motions to counter the enemy.
The Beam Katana runs on power represented by a battery that gets depleted during attacks. When fully exhausted, the player is left vulnerable and must manually recharge it. The player is able to perform a variety of professional-wrestling techniques on stunned or diverted enemies to deal greater damage and instantly recharge the Beam Katana's battery. Defensive maneuvers exist in the form of blocking and dodging. Dodging an oncoming attack right before it connects initiates a Perfect Dodge, causing enemies to enter a slow-motion state and leaving them susceptible to a flurry of attacks. If the player falls in battle, they are given a random chance of a stat boost upon retrying.
New additions to the series' staple combat mechanics include the "Death Glove" carried over from Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes. The Death Glove allows the player to perform a teleporting dropkick. An additional three unique skills are obtained that can aid in combat, which include the ability to perform psychokinetic throws, the ability to set up a sentry that automatically fire projectiles at enemies in a radius, and the ability to set down a field that slows down enemies within the radius. All skills operate on a cooldown timer. If the player rolls a jackpot on the Slash Reel (represented by a triple seven) the player is able to activate one of two "Full Armor" modes, which boost the player's attack options and allows them to fire projectiles. A third form of the Full Armor is employed for shooting defense missions, a new side activity which take the form of shoot 'em up mecha battles where the player must defend the planet from large scale aliens.
The player can return to Travis' motel in between missions to upgrade various stats such as their health and weaponry. Unlike previous entries in the series, character upgrades employ a separate currency from the one that is used to purchase items and enter ranked battles. Scrap parts derived from battle missions can be sold off for additional currency or used at the motel to construct Death Glove chips that provide various unique stat modifiers, and the player can also order consumable items in the form of sushi that give players stat boosts in battle, such as increased damage or cooldown reduction on Death Glove abilities. At the motel, the player can also play minigames with Travis' cat, customize his wearable attire, collect capsule toys from a gashapon machine, engage in a combat tutorial room, or use a time machine to revisit past bosses.
Story Setting No More Heroes III takes place in a contemporary setting and is mainly set in the fictional location of Santa Destroy, California; a seedy small town bordering Mexico which has served as the central setting of the series. Since the events of the previous entries the town has undergone urban redevelopment, with high-rise apartment complexes and businesses having spread throughout the town. The redevelopment brought a shift in economy and the construction of an adjacent man-made archipelago collectively named Utopiland. The entire island group is controlled by the megacorporation Utopinia, which has its headquarters stationed in the centermost island at Damon Tower. Alongside Santa Destroy, the neighboring islands of Utopiland consist of Perfect World, a peaceful Americana-influenced suburb; Thunderdome, a salt pan wasteland featuring a Japantown-styled red light district; Call of Battle, a war-torn battlefield; and Neo Brazil, a futuristic cityscape.
Characters Travis Touchdown returns to the role as protagonist, a presently 39-year old otaku and hitman who describes himself as a passing assassin. He takes residence in Santa Destroy as an occupant of the titular No More Heroes motel, living together with his pet cat Jeane who also serves as Travis' navigator. The main antagonist of the game is FU, an alien prince who is royally recognized on his home planet as Jess-Baptiste VI. His companions consist of the strongest aliens from other planets that FU has conquered and make up the Galactic Superhero Rankings. From lowest to highest in ranking they consist of Mr. Blackhole, a wormhole bandit; Gold Joe, a space-ore dealer; Black Night Direction, an alien kidnapper; Vanishing Point, a memory thief; Velvet Chair Girl, a "gastro cannon"; Midori Midorikawa, a dark-world princess; Sniping Lee, a galactic sniper champion; Sonic Juice, a demon god; and Paradox Bandit, an explosions master.
Returning characters from old games include Sylvia Christel, Travis' wife and secretary for Utopinia, who helps set up the ranked battles for Travis. Shinobu Jacobs, Bad Girl, and Dr. Naomi return as Travis' allies, who have taken residence in the No More Heroes motel. Characters that return from Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes include Badman, a reluctant ally to Travis and father of Bad Girl; Dr. Juvenile, Naomi's sister and former adversary of Travis who has now become a virtual companion; Bishop, a close friend of Travis' who owns a video game store; Kamui Uehara, an observer and friend of Travis' with mysterious powers; and Damon Ricotello, FU's childhood friend and the CEO of Utopinia who has personal history with Travis. Among new characters are Native Dancer, a mysterious assassin claiming to be from the future; and Notorious, a masked wrestling champion who is also a superhero.
Plot In 2001, a young Damon Ricotello discovers a crash site in the woods, encountering FU as a small injured alien larva. Damon decides to take care of FU while hiding him from government agents. The two become friends while searching for a way to return FU to his planet. After discovering a piece of alien technology left at FU's crash site, Damon is imbued with alien powers and assists FU in building a space ship. They say goodbye to each other and FU departs, promising to return in 20 years.
Twenty years later (two years after the events of Travis Strikes Again), an adult Damon manages Utopinia as its CEO, utilizing FU's alien abilities and technology to prosper and become a wealthy business magnate. An adult FU returns to Earth in a large spaceship, alongside nine additional aliens, and reveals to Damon that he became a prince after returning to his home world, only to be exiled to an intergalactic prison for destroying a neighboring planet. He announces their intention to team up with Damon and take over Earth by employing the popular trend of superheroism. Travis Touchdown, who had returned to Santa Destroy following years of self-imposed exile, awakes to the city being invaded and fends off waves of aliens together with fellow assassins Shinobu and Bad Girl. He successfully stops the invasion by killing its commander Mr. Blackhole, the first of FU's companions.
After executing the President of the United States on live television, FU announces the establishment of the Galactic Superhero Rankings; a ranked ladder with himself at the top, serving as an open invitation to the strongest fighters to determine the fate of the planet. Still aggrieved by Blackhole's death, FU accosts Travis and his friends at the No More Heroes motel. In the ensuing skirmish, FU incapacitates Travis before dismembering Shinobu and killing Badman when he arrived to her aid. The battle leaves Shinobu in a coma and Bad Girl devastated over her father's death, compelling Travis to enter the rankings to fight his way to number one and stop FU. During Travis' ascent, the rankings are infiltrated by Native Dancer, who prematurely kills Black Night Direction. He grants Travis new Death Glove abilities, and is instinctually spared by Travis after they battle. Travis later crosses paths with a grown-up Kimmy Howell after she is found having killed Vanishing Point, still seeking a fight to the death with Travis following their previous encounter in Desperate Struggle. Expressing remorse over having to fight a non-ranking opponent, Travis kills her in the ensuing battle.