Highlights

  • Tekken 8's long-awaited release brings added pressure to appease its fan base after the longest gap in the series' history.
  • The game will focus on aggressive play, rewarding players who take risks with the new 'Heat' mechanic for powered-up attacks.
  • Tekken 8 offers a variety of gameplay modes, including a larger story mode with QTEs and a revamped Arcade Mode with customization options.

Tekken 8 has been a long time coming. With its first entry coming in 1994, the popular fighting series is one of the oldest in the genre, and the wait for this next title has been even longer than usual. The almost nine-year gap between Tekken 7 and 8 represents the longest period the series has ever gone without releasing a new game. Understandably then, there is even more pressure than usual on Tekken 8 to appease its fan base when it finally bursts onto the scene on 26 January. A playable demo has already given players a taste of what to expect, and with a plethora of new features, game modes, and characters, Tekken 8 is primed to deliver a knockout blow.

Tekken 8 is set to continue the story of the Mishima family, and the devastating consequences of their ongoing feud. With family patriarch Heihachi Mishima seemingly dead, his son, the evil Kazuya Mishima, and grandson Jin Kazama, are left to finally settle their long-standing grudge in his wake. The opening segment of the game sees Kazuya, believing the world has gotten soft, setting up the newest installment of Tekken's famous King of Iron Fist Tournament, in the hopes of finding any remaining warriors Earth may have left.

Tekken 8 - Playstyle - Heat Smash
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Tekken 8 Will Start 2024 With a Bang

Tekken's gameplay has always been pretty fast-paced, with an emphasis on keeping opponents in the air for as long as possible by stringing combos together. Tekken 8 is set to take things a step further by really focusing on aggressive play and rewarding players who take risks by favoring attack over defense. This is a bold new direction for the series and one that will be heavily influenced by its new 'Heat' mechanic. This Heat will be represented by a second bar underneath the player's health gauge. Each character can trigger their Heat bar once per battle, and doing so will see them enter a powered-up state where attacks do more damage. It's a risk-reward gamble though, as they can also take greater damage when in this state, meaning defending players who are feeling confident can try to use this to their advantage.

Tekken 8 Will Offer Several Ways to Play

Tekken 8's story mode is supposedly much bigger than 7's, and the immersive inclusion of QTEs (Quick Time Events), which are said to impact the narrative, is a first for the series. As well as the Story Mode, Tekken 8 will feature several other modes, both offline and online, including the completely revamped Arcade Mode, which allows players to build a customized Avatar and traverse interactive arcade settings seeking new challengers to fight against. Arcade Mode will also allow players to heavily customize their favorite fighters using a wide variety of props and costumes.

Tekken's Mishima family aren't the only ones who are set to return, with the game having a huge roster of characters to choose from, including old favorites such as Paul Phoenix and Nina Williams and even a couple of new characters. The roster also includes the returning Jun Kazama, Jin's mother who has been absent from the series and presumed dead since Tekken 2. Her inclusion in the story should add a whole new dynamic to Jin and Kazuya's bitter rivalry. A total of 32 fighters make up the game's roster on release, and these will no doubt be added to in the months after it launches, with DLC already confirmed.

Tekken 8: All New Characters Confirmed

  • Azucena
  • Victor Chevalier
  • Reina

Azucena is a coffee farmer who hails from Peru, and is described as a fast and tricky fighter who excels in mixed martial arts. Victor Chevalier is a suave, elegant super-spy who is of French descent and goes by the code name Phantom Raven. Of Tekken 8's new characters, Reina is undoubtedly the most mysterious. Aside from the fact that she is a student at Mishima Polytechnical School, her background is a complete mystery, but the fact that she seems to use a variation of Mishima-style fighting karate seems to indicate she may have some ties to the Mishima family, and could even be an illegitimate daughter of either Kazuya or Heihachi.

Mishima Family- Heihachi Kazuya Jin Reina
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Tekken 8 Post Launch Support

Part of the reason for such a long gap between entries is the incredibly impressive post-launch support given to Tekken 7. A total of 15 additional fighters, six stages and two new modes were gradually released during a span of four years since the game launched in 2017. These were broken up into four Season Passes that could be purchased individually or as a whole. This tactic, which has also been used to great effect by heavyweights such as Super Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, has helped to greatly prolong the game's shelf-life, and there's no doubt that Tekken 8 will take the same approach.

It has already been confirmed that Tekken 8's Deluxe and Ultimate Editions will include the Year 1 DLC Pass, which will see four new as-yet-unnamed fighters joining the roster over the course of 2024. Exactly who these fighters are remains a mystery at present, although recent leaks indicate that Tekken 8's first batch of DLC characters could include the likes of Armor King and Eddy Gordo.

Fans can expect to be kept busy for years following Tekken 8's launch. Tekken's main rivals in the genre, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, both managed to enjoy successful launches this year with their newest games. Tekken may be the last one at the party, but it will still be hoping to eclipse its rival's success by ensuring it gets 2024 off to a flying start.