Get ready for the next review Tekken 8. It’s a fight to the finish and this time, the loser won’t get thrown into an active volcano … .your country will now be leveled like Kuma’s love life.
Stage 1: What is a Tekken?
Tekken 8 is a 3-D Fighter developed by Bandai Namco and has been around for what seems like 30 years now. Being a Fighting game, it had to stand out from the many competitors they have throughout the years. Their answer to something like this was having a linear story, wacky side stories that I wish were canon, and their both wacky and well-thought-out character roster.
And when I mean wacky, I mean who thought of a kangaroo with boxing gloves being part of the character roster…with a rival being a reanimated velociraptor who also comes with boxing gloves. Oh and let’s not forget King, the Mexican Luchador who wears a jaguar head as a mask and only speaks in jaguar…and people understand him just fine?!
Stage 2: Looking Good, Jin!
When you’re playing the story mode labeled “The Dark Awakens”, it starts as Jin Kazama reaching New York to put a stop to his father Kazuya Mishima’s havoc to lure his own son in. After a few close calls and some cutscenes with QTEs, Kazuya pulls out all the stops and cranks his evil powers from a 6 to a 10, just to show everyone that he means business. Once he is done with that, he announces to the world that he will start The King of Iron Fist Tournament.
Which will help him decide which country will be a part of his new world and who’s going to bite the dust under his power. And for those who know where this is going, then good on you. You’ll get a waffle buffet later.
Stage 3: Inner Devil Genes
Now, I’m going to cover 3 different story modes you’ll get to enjoy when playing Tekken 8. The first being The Dark Awakens I mentioned earlier. The story in this is canon to the whole Tekken universe. They even offer new and returning players the chance to relearn the lore with a ink-brush art style with Heihachi Mishima retelling us with what transpired in each of the Tekken games from 1 all the way to 7. But, if you want a retrospect of the history of Tekken, I recommend watching Maxamillion’s youtube videos covering it and many other fighting games.
The second story mode in Tekken 8 we’ll cover is the Character Episodes. These are the “what if?” or what I consider the essence of what makes Tekken, Tekken. You’ll get to choose from the 36 character roster to go through an original King of Iron Fist Tournament. Where the winner becomes the head of the Mishima Zaibatsu. Each character has some pretty in character endings, but if I can convince you on one thing when doing these episodes, it’s to do Kazuya’s last. Trust me, it’ll be worth the wait.
The last one will be Arcade Quest. This one allows you to create your own avatar to represent you and you’ll work your way to be the best Tekken player in the world. I really enjoyed playing this story mode because of the fact that it refreshed my knowledge of how I play Tekken and to also teach players of their new mechanics as well. You’ll also collect items that you could equip to your avatar from fighting avatars with a chest icon above their names. You’ll even see the many different customized fighters people would have on their main fighters.
Through your journey visiting arcades, beating other Tekken players to rise up in the ranks to hit the big stage. This whole story just reminds me of the days before the internet, where players who play any arcade game in a tournament style had to go there and meet people in their community and create not only memories, but rivalries and memories that’ll last years.
Semi-finals: Online Matches and Combos
Tekken 8’s Fight Lounge really covers their bases with not only having our avatars from Arcade Quest being used in this as well, but allowing players to fight people that appear in the lobby they’re assigned, but you can actually join lobbies in any other country with no issue. You can control if you want to fight anyone in the world and choose the type of connection strength you and your opponent must have to even have a fight happen.
Bandai Namco did fill the Fight Lounge with a lot to do as well. If you’re not in the mood to fight, you can hit the Customization shop to add more pizzazz to your avatar. Don’t want to do that, you can also practice with your fighter in the Tekken Dojo to get those combos just right before a match. You can even hit up the Beach Area to get a few rounds of Tekken Ball with others.
Final Stage: Being Tekken
My experience so far after hours of playing on my fightstick, repairing said fightstick after a few sweaty palm matches, has made me fall back in love with fighting games. The beauty and the details crafted for not only the fighters, but the many parts of the world we visit and made into a ring for a first to 3 match. Playing through The Dark Awakens, the various OSTs playing kept me rejuvenated in each fight and especially the final fight for the story.
It came close to giving me that same feeling of excitement and chills that the OST for Tekken 7’s fight with Kazuya and his father Heihachi, which ended, but escalated when Akuma showed up and the music would go from a 10 to 20 out of nowhere. Experiencing that musical genius again in Tekken 8 was a true blessing to me.
With the endless replayability this game has with its Tekken Fight Lounge, having a working rollback netcode and with a community that has been with them since the beginning, I know that this would last just as long as Tekken 7 has if not longer.
The King of Iron Fist Tournament Champion!
Tekken 8 has not lost its touch when it came to the innovations placed for everyone to enjoy. The game is great for any veteran to series and to newcomers. To the people who want to have fun playing a bear wearing a jean vest with a tiger print in the back, to even the serious EVO players who appreciate the series for being as fun and creative would enjoy this game.
It might awaken another EVO champ from somewhere no one expected, or become a hobby for those who want to make their own fightstick or hitbox for either the love of the genre or for the love of the game. And just remember to have fun, try every fighter until you find one you’ll enjoy and that this is just a game…unless it’s a money match, then unleash your in devil and go all Kazuya on them.
Tekken 8 Trailer
Written by Ruddy Celestial
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