Attack Titan 3 wants to retell the story through trauma
Attack on Titan 3 revisits the anime’s full storyline through an original soldier who must recover from trauma after a mission goes wrong. Producer Hideo…
Producer Hideo Suzuki said Attack Titan 3 wants to tell the anime’s story from beginning to end through a new soldier’s experience of trauma and recovery. The game follows the same overall storyline, but it is not a direct retelling of the anime.
The player starts as a squad leader whose first mission ends with the squad wiped out. Their character is too traumatized and afraid of fighting Titans to continue as a frontline soldier, so the story instead puts them to work as an engineer and trainer.
Attack Titan 3 wants a different starting point
Suzuki said the opening setback was deliberate. The developers wanted to establish the Titans as humanity’s enemy, then show the character returning to the fight with stronger resolve.
“The reason that we had that kind of story in the beginning is we needed to establish that the Titans are the humans’ enemy,” Suzuki said. He described the player character as a senior to Eren and other familiar figures, but said making that character powerful from the outset would leave little room for a story of growth.
The character becomes a mentor to Eren and the others, while also working alongside them as they recover from trauma and develop. It is a less typical role for a game: the central character begins as someone forced to step away from the work they once excelled at.
The game also asks players to create their own character. After that, they join the 104th cadets as an instructor, helping train Eren Jaeger, Armin Arlett and Mikasa Ackerman. Another instructor, Keith, shares the job of preparing the recruits for military life.
A retelling, not a direct sequel
Attack on Titan 3 follows the same broad storyline as the anime, rather than picking up as a straightforward continuation. Suzuki said the team chose to cover the story from beginning to end because the anime was still ongoing when they began discussing the game that followed Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle.
“Right after the previous game, we already had started talking about the sequel, but at the time the anime series was still ongoing,” Suzuki said. The developers considered focusing on newer parts of the anime, but decided that material would not be enough for a standalone game.
The result combines familiar story beats with the original character’s personal arc. The player’s role as trainer also brings them into scenes with established characters, including a moment when Eren questions why the soldiers are not taking more scouting missions or retaking the walls.
Combat is designed to offer something for more experienced players, while the stretches between major battles provide space for character interactions. The opening loss remains the premise that shapes the player’s role: the character’s squad is wiped out on their first mission.
