Soulcalibur III is a 2005 fighting game developed and published by Namco as a sequel to Soulcalibur II (2002) and the fourth installment in the Soulcalibur series. It was originally released for the PlayStation 2 and was followed by an improved arcade version, subtitled Arcade Edition, in 2006. It was the last Soulcalibur game to receive an arcade version and was also the last to be released by Namco as an independent company. Soulcalibur III received a mainly positive reception, and it was followed by a sequel under Namco Bandai Games, Soulcalibur IV (2008).