Golden Axe 3 Walkthrought
Let’s kick off the run right at the doors of stage one: Golden Axe III—aka Golden Axe 3, sometimes just “GA3”—starts throwing route splits at you from the early areas. Right after the first ruins, hug the top edge of the screen: that’s where food and magic vials spawn more often, and enemies trickle in one by one. Lure the first couple of bruisers to the cliff and yeet them off—ring-outs here save more HP than any flask. Don’t blow your magic yet: a mini-boss with a long club is coming, and his swing is nasty. Work the diagonal approach, wall pin, and finishers—classic beat ’em up fundamentals never fail.
Forest, ruins, and the port: taking the upper route
If you pick the upper path on the map, you’ll hit a shady forest with stone idols. In the narrow “room” between two altars, don’t smack the statues early—some spring to life, so it’s better to pull regular goons into the choke where grabs and shoulder tosses are easy. Next is a little bridge: be careful with your run-up—enemies love slide-kicking you off the side. Stick to the center planks and, the moment a raptor rider shows up, knock them off and saddle up yourself—mounts in Golden Axe 3 (fans call them “Bizarrians”) shred tight corridors with tail whips or fire spit.
The port is a string of short “rooms”: docks, a barrel warehouse, then the ship’s deck. In the warehouse, don’t smash every barrel at once—leave one to break the shield knight’s rhythm; he loves to counter, and the barrel desyncs his timing. On deck, play above the mast: rails are close, and two sea thugs love to toss you overboard. The ship’s mini-boss arrives as a duo—think “captain and mate.” The split-and-pick strategy works: lure one, stagger with quick jabs into a throw, roll up, take the second. In co-op it’s even easier—one locks the stance, the other watches the flank. Still no need to spend magic—there’s a fork ahead and caves with real “meat.”
Caves and lava: the lower route for risk-takers
The lower path opens with a run of lava halls. The first room is a masterclass in “how to clear Golden Axe 3 without bleeding”: hold guard, bait a jump from the platform, sidestep—enjoy the lava bath. The second room is trickier: a narrow bridge with two spearmen on the sides. Inch forward to bait the poke, then instantly counter with an overhead throw—they’ll sail off. If you nab a raptor with a strong tail, don’t swing it on the bridge—carry it to the next pad where you can safely tail-spin groups.
Before the cave boss there’s a hall with dripping stalactites: the drip sound is your step cue. Lots of thief elves here; tag them fast—magic vials and meat spill out. The boss is a heavy knight with a wide sword plus an acrobat “bodyguard.” Simple rule: don’t let them stack. Stay on the same horizontal with the heavy, herd him to the right wall, two hits—throw—back out. Intercept the acrobat with a meeting strike or a slide when he commits to a jump. Save magic for when both get stuck in one corner—that’s the secret sauce that turns a messy pair into a controlled cleanup.
Forks, secrets, and thief camps
After each big “room,” watch the map arrows—alternate routes change up mini-bosses and loot. The “green” branch throws more thief camps at you: night, a campfire, a few nimble blues—tag them cleanly and scoop the magic in a straight line. On the “sandy” branch, there’s an abandoned plaza with a fountain: to the right behind the column is a cache—strike the “empty” spot to pop an invisible chest with food. Small level secrets, but they decide castle fights.
If you’re in co-op, agree on lanes: “top/bottom” wins tight corridors. One holds the upper line and threatens ring-outs, the other safely sweeps low. For combos, grabs, and combat nuances, refresh your memory at /gameplay/—here we’re pushing the GA3 walkthrough without drowning you in rules.
City blocks and the castle assault
Before the castle you’ve got a stretch of urban “rooms”: storefronts, arcades, stairways to the roof. Shield-bearers and dagger punks love to lurk in the arcades. The route is simple: clear the far lane first, then squeeze the near lane into a wall. Don’t overcommit on rooftops—the “wind” is basically enemy shoves, and they’ll bump you off. You’ll soon find a mount with a strong frontal—stash it for the castle’s first hall.
The castle comes in three big chunks. In the statue hall, two “stone” knights only wake if you touch them. Cut through diagonally without brushing them and clear the living enemies first. Then, if needed, wake them one at a time—their startup lag lets you intercept. In the stained-glass gallery, mind the shadows: assassins step out with rapid strings. Best play is a step back into a counter-throw, dropping them to the lower edge of the screen where their aggression sputters.
The lift hall before the throne is a long “room” with no pits but waves of heavy “generals.” This is where banked magic pays off: wait until three line up and slice them in one cast. Low on magic? Run the isolation game: pull the first, clinch at the wall, disengage, scoop the second. Don’t camp one corner—switching sides breaks the group’s AI.
Final corridors and the boss
There’s a short carpeted corridor before the throne room: there’s meat at the start, but don’t grab it—clear the incoming knights, then backtrack to heal. In the throne room, cash in what you’ve saved: the final enemy loves long strings and teleports (a dash with a trailing blur—veterans of the Golden Axe 3 walkthrough will know the tell). In phase one, play on counter-hit: step across his approach, two hits—throw—reset. When adds get summoned, don’t get greedy—delete them fast or the boss will pin you in a corner. Hold your magic for when he’s alone and trapped by the left column—it’s much easier to land full AoE and waste nothing.
If you took the “forest” branch, you’ll usually reach the finale with more vials and food; the “lava” branch makes the boss patterns feel familiar thanks to all those heavy knights on the way. Either way, Golden Axe 3 rewards a clean route: pick your forks smartly, don’t waste mounts in tight lanes, and remember the stashes. This spoiler‑light walkthrough keeps focus on rooms and micro, while the story and context wait at /history/—we’ve walked you to the GA3 finish; now polish a couple of inputs and claim that well‑earned victory.