Tekken 8 has tantalized fans with its gameplay changes, expanded Rage mechanics, and new designs for classic characters. But one of its biggest surprises thus far has been the return of Jun Kazama, who hasn’t appeared in the games since 2011's Tekken Tag Tournament 2, nor in a canon game since her debut in 1995’s Tekken 2.
People who have dabbled in the games may be familiar with the basics about her: she’s Jin’s mom following her pursuit of Kazuya Mishima in Tekken 2 and preceded her niece Asuka as Tekken’s ju-jitsu fighter. But there’s more to her and the Kazama family than meets the eye. Here is some trivia about Jun Kazama that lore fans should know.
7 She’s A Nature Lover
Like Michelle and Julia Chang, Jun Kazama loves nature. She grew up on Yakushima, an island off the Kagoshima coast in Kyushu, Japan. The place is famous for its evergreen forests and wildlife conservation. It’s both an Important Bird Area to Birdlife International and a UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Reserve.
Considering this claim to fame, it’s no surprise Jun would become a wildlife conservationist, working for the WWWC, Tekken's version of the World Wildlife Fund. It was this job that led her into the King of Iron Fist tournament, as she had to investigate the Mishima Zaibatsu’s alleged animal smuggling and experimentation, which produced Roger and Alex. In other words, if it weren’t for the boxing kangaroo and dinosaur, Jin Kazama wouldn’t have been born.
6 She Has Special Powers
Actually, that might be giving the animals a little too much credit. They gave her a reason to look into the Zaibatsu and enter the tournament. However, it was her Kazama blood that drew her towards the Cold-Blooded Oppressor. It gave Jun a low-level form of telepathy that allowed her to commune with animals and the surrounding nature.
She could also detect the supernatural, as her late father appeared to her as a ghost and showed her how to use her powers. Through it, she was able to detect a mysterious force around Kazuya Mishima that held him in its grasp. On top of arresting him for his animal smuggling, Jun wanted to free him from this malign influence and save his soul.
5 She Can Nullify The Devil Gene
Jun might be able to do this too, even though her first attempt didn’t go so well. The Kazama bloodline has an inherent ability to purify evil spirits. For example, when Kazuya was completely possessed by the Devil Gene at the end of Tekken 4, he regained control of his body and devil powers permanently after he touched Jin. His Kazama blood nullified Devil so much that he went from being his own character to a mid-game transformation for Kazuya.
Soon afterward, Jin stopped himself from killing Heihachi when he saw a vision of his mother. When he flew away in Devil form, he left behind some white feathers, perhaps suggesting his Kazama blood could purify him too. Then, while non-canon, it’s hard to ignore Asuka’s Tekken 5 ending, which saw her inadvertently bring her cousin back to human form with a touch. If anything can stop the Devil Gene, it’ll likely be a Kazama family member.
4 She Taught Jin Before Heihachi
Just as she was taught the family ju-jitsu style in Yakushima, Jun did the same for her son Jin when she moved back to the island after Tekken 2, as seen in Netflix’s Tekken: Bloodline. He would later adapt Mishima-style Karate for Tekken 3, though he would have a few of his mother’s moves dotted in his set, like the Can-Can Kick, Tooth Fairy uppercut, Attack Reversal, and White Mountain Throw.
Fans back in 2001 would’ve thought he’d go back to the Kazama style to combat the Mishimas. Instead, he adopted a new kyokushinkai karate style that replaced much of the Kazama moves alongside the Mishima ones. Aside from it being more aggressive, it made him the most broken character in Tekken 4 and left the style free for Asuka to use in Tekken 5.
3 She Nearly Made It into Tekken 3
Despite being an important character in the lore, Jun Kazama’s long absence was due to her lack of popularity. Few people used her on average when they played Tekken 2, so she was placed on the chopping block next to Bruce, Baek, Wang, and the others. Only those characters at least got to return in Tekken 5 and 6 as well as TTT2. However, if players hacked into Tekken 3’s Arcade ROM, they’d find data suggesting Namco planned her return.
Not that there is much to see. If it's activated with MAME cheats, it'll produce Nina’s model with Jin’s move set, but with Jun’s voice and portrait from Tekken 2. They’ll also find “Sake,” a Yoshimitsu model with Jin’s move set that was originally going to be a giant salmon Kuma would use as a weapon. To think the fish would make a comeback before Jun via Kuma's Tekken 7 Rage Art.
2 Unknown Was Meant To Be Her Sister
When the first Tekken Tag Tournament was released, it had an odd final boss. Instead of a devil, ogre, or horn-headed billionaire, it was a goop-covered woman possessed by a wolf spirit. She mimicked other characters like Mokujin, except she could swap between their move sets mid-combat. Her ending was the only one that used FMV in the game and showed her breaking free from the spirit.
Yet it never revealed who or what she was. She was just as her name suggested: Unknown. The game wasn’t canon, so there wasn’t a reason to worry about it. Aside from early plans that suggested she was Jun’s sister. This would get retconned, yet traces of this plan remain in the game as she always starts rounds using Jun’s moves. TTT2 would simplify things by making Jun herself the new “Unknown,” complete with a new and unique move set.
1 She Never Died And May Have Been Working Behind The Scenes
The in-lore reason for her absence was her fight against Ogre pre-Tekken 3. Jun fought him off to protect her son, only for the two to disappear. While Ogre returned for the game, Jun remained missing, presumed dead. Fans wondered what happened to her. Some claimed she was the head Ogre holds aloft in the Tekken 3 Arcade intro (note: it’s likely not even an actual head, let alone Jun's) or that she was a ghost-like in Jin’s Tekken 4 vision.
But according to Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada, she never died, lamenting that he had explained that “for more than a quarter of a century.” Then he joked that not even Kazuya believed him when he was shocked at seeing her in Tekken 8. Some think she’s been working with Claudio’s Archers of Sirius based on the symbols on her outfit. For now, all fans have is speculation. All that’s known for sure is that she’s going to leave an impact in the full game.
Tekken 8 is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.