Tekken 8: Best Punish Characters

Highlights

Punish attacks in Tekken 8 are crucial for gaining the upper hand, as they can swing the momentum in a player's favor.
Certain characters, such as Paul and Bryan, have strong punish moves that can deal tremendous damage and start devastating combos.
Characters like Dragunov and Lee excel at punishing opponents for mistimed attacks or blocks, while King is a master of throws and grabs that can quickly turn the tide of a round.

The art of punishing opponents in Tekken 8 revolves around players’ knowledge of which of their character's moves that can be executed faster than their opponents during the course of a match. Punish attacks can be used offensively or defensively, and each character has their corresponding punish moves that they can throw out against opponents. If they manage to land a counter-hit, they will swing the momentum to their side, and hopefully ride it all the way to a win.

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Some characters have better punish moves than others, however. From characters with amazing throwing game, to punch-loving heavy-hitters, here are some of the best characters with overwhelming punishment built into their play style.

10 Paul

Mr. Steal-The-Round

Paul is an honest, hardy fighter who has a knack of stealing rounds thanks to his explosive punish attacks. Most Paul matches typically see him spamming his iconic Phoenix Smasher, which deals tremendous damage when it counter-hits an opponent.

Outside of his punish game, Paul has some deceptively quick attacks and deadly strings that he can use to launch or follow up his punish moves. This includes his df2, arguably one of the best launchers in the game, his quick Shoulder Smash, and his popular Demolition Man string, which players can utilize to wall carry enemies, and line them up for the decisive Phoenix Smasher when they wake up.

9 Bryan

Unorthodox Mayhem

The kickboxing cyborg Bryan continues to become a punishing menace in Tekken 8. He has excellent punish moves, from his Mach Breaker, to his quick strings, like Vulcan Cannon and Chopping Elbow, that can start his devastating combos.

His iconic Taunt is notorious, since it gives Bryan the advantage if it hits his opponent, and his follow-up Jet Upper launches opponents for massively damaging combo strings that can easily wall carry. In the hands of Bryan Fury mains, he is a deadly foe to face.

8 Dragunov

Silent Assassin

Dragunov is a deceptive fighter who revels in rushing into opponents and punishing them for guessing the wrong timing to attack or block. His Russian Hook is his go-to move to close the gap on his opponent, and this leaves enemies susceptible to his plethora of damaging high and mid attacks that need to be blocked, such as Blizzard Hammer, or they'll eat tons of damage.

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Once he’s close to his opponent, Dragunov has some sneaky moves that can bait enemies to turtle and be left open to command grabs. Tekken 8 gave him a devastating wall grab that he can link to his standard wall combo to deal insane amounts of damage to enemies. Dragunov is a freight train that can be unstoppable once the momentum is on his side.

7 Lee

Beware The Hitman Stance

Lee’s moveset started out as a mix of Paul and Law during the early Tekken games. From Tekken 4 onwards, Lee has carved out his fighting style by mixing a bevy of martial arts techniques that demand frame-perfect execution for his combo strings.

He also excels as an annoying punish character thanks to his Hitman Stance. Once Lee enters Hitman stance, it is up to the opponent to press a button that can outpace Lee’s attacks, which few characters in the game have. Hitman Stance doubles as a taunt, visually, since the animation sees Lee goading his opponent to come close and try their luck pushing buttons.

6 King

PhD In Throws And Grabs

King is Tekken 8’s master of throws and grabs. As a wrestler, he is proficient at highly-damaging throws that can quickly turn the tide of a round if his opponents do not have their throw-break game ready. Given that most throws in the game erase recoverable health, King players should have his command grab like Giant Swing, Tijuana Twister, and Muscle Buster locked and loaded on top of his chain grabs like his infamous Rolling Death Cradle.

King’s punish moves also grant him a tremendous advantage. His Stomach Smash can catch crouching enemies from a good distance, and some of his command normals string into throws, like his Chupacabra to Olympia Slam or Palm Strike Uppercut to Suplex, which will keep enemies guessing whether to keep blocking, or try to duck out of a sneaky throw.

5 Kazuya

The Devil

Kazuya in Tekken 8 is the de facto villain. He has steeled his conviction to become the most powerful in the world, even if it means embracing the Devil Gene that courses through his veins. As a fighter, he has the iconic Electric Wind God Fist uppercut that hits quickly, especially when players manage to pull off its Perfect, just-frame version.

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He also has his Demon God Fist, a lightning-fast-while-rising 2 that crumples enemies when it counter-hits. Adding to his already hard-hitting moveset is his Devil form: when Kazuya transforms into the Devil, he gains access to more devastating attacks. Kazuya mains usually spend hours in Practice Mode to get his punish strings memorized, since they demand hard reads and precise execution to get maximum damage.

4 Azucena

Coffee-Fueled Flurry

Azucena is a fun new character that has a good rush down game and punish moves that are easy to execute. She can get up-close to her opponent with Sumatra Back Knuckle, and continue the pressure with her Libertador Stance and the variety of punish moves locked within it, such as her Hell Sweep, launcher, and quick combo strings.

Speaking of stances, when in Libertador, Azucena can auto-parry high and low attacks, which can be devastating against players who panic-mash their buttons when she is close to them. Her Back-Turned Stance also has great low crushes and makes her elusive. Azucena’s attacks let her transition to either stance, which makes her deadly in the hands of a seasoned player who’s mastered her arsenal of moves.

3 Leroy

Deadly Wing Chun Master

The terror of Tekken 7, Leroy returns to the latest installment still oozing with style and power. His mastery of Wing Chun allows him to stop and punish enemies with lightning-quick strikes similar to Ip Man that also eat away chunks of the enemy's health.

His Hermit Stance is notorious since it auto-parries low attacks, while also giving him access to debilitating combo strings and guaranteed damage. Most of his command normals have built-in defensive tools that punish opponents who want to steal their turn back by foolishly letting out a jab while Leroy is still attacking, such as Enter the Dragon. For players who want to style on their opponents by countering their attacks seemingly with the greatest of ease, Leroy is the character to choose.

2 Steve

Machine Gun-Punching Assault

Steve is the game’s boxer, and he can be played as a rush down pugilist, or a counter-punching heavy-hitter. If players choose to play him as a counter-puncher, Steve has some sneaky punish moves that can make opponents think twice when trying to hit back.

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He has a lot of stances that flow into one another, and seasoned Steve players can link them seamlessly and oppress their opponents by peppering them with combo string after combo string. If they think it’s their turn to jab while Steve is still bobbing and weaving, chances are they’ll get punished by one of his strings and be down for the count under his unrelenting flurries of punches.

1 Devil Jin

Offense Cranked To Eleven

For players who want to focus on sheer offense, Devil Jin is the punish character for them. Devil Jin eschews defense by having moves that allow him to blitz towards enemies and grind them to dust with devastating follow-ups. He has the Electric Wind God Fist, similar to Kazuya, albeit a slower version, as well as his trademark Laser Cannon string that now deals chip damage. Devil Jin also has some variations of other Mishima-style moves, like the Dragon Uppercut and Hell Sweep which he can link with a downward stomp or laser attack.

Infernal Shackle is a new move in Tekken 8, and has Devil Jin send a semi-projectile across a good distance. If it hits an enemy, he immediately goes into Mourning Crow stance that lets him fly towards them, leaving them susceptible to his oppressive attack strings. To balance his highly-damaging moveset, players need to have excellent execution on top of good Tekken fundamentals to make Devil Jin work for them.