I’m not confident I will best the reaper in Iron Fist combat.
It would be rad.
But will we playTekken 8?
Or roll back toTekken 7?
Let’s find out.
Tekken 8 is an angry, nonsensicalfighting game.
Nonsensical in its flavour, you understand, its personality.
In function, it is very sensical.
Those acquainted with this long-running fury fest will recognize the one-button-per-limb controls with a kind of comfortable tension.
You punch, you kick, you grab.
What makes this instalment different is the addition of a “Heat” meter.
There are other benefits to the effervescent fury.
Blocking a move in Tekken is usually safe and straightforward - no hit, no hurt.
This makes the fights somewhat angrier than in Tekken 7.
It does feel, in my hands at least, more pacy and pressurised.
But do I like that?
Well, I’m not sure yet.
My body memory is upset with Tekken 8 on more than this account.
I like to “play slow”.
Which is a Tekken player’s way of saying “my hands get sore before my head does”.
There’s less of that dance here.
You’ve got to pile on the lashes and keep lashing.
I’m also one of the unlucky souls who lost all their favourite characters in the Great Ensequelizing.
(For now, that is.
I am forced to learn new characters.
The new faces are sound, though.
They’re neat additions in their own way.
Eddy Gordo freaks will be likewise disappointed.
I’ll tell you who won’t be sad though.
Battles often come with gimmicks attached.
A monstrous unblockable move you must endure and overcome.
A multi-step brawl against faceless guards and robotic Jack units.
Quicktime prompts politely ask that you Press A To Not Deny Your Comrades And Your Bonds.
In short, story mode feels made for diehards.
To its credit, it plays with Jin’s mechanics as a character in some interesting ways.
Setpiece fights contract and expand his moveset in unexpected directions.
For long-lost Tekkenistas or fresh-faced fisticuffers, the actually helpful mode is Arcade Quest.
You play a legally distinct Mii dressed in Tekken-branded t-shirts and trainers.
Tekken 8 stands by that tradition, and I approve.
As far as online battles go, server time was limited during review.
Which is a shame, considering this is where most of everyone’s time will be spent.
I squeezed in a bunch of battles against the same few opponents.
I’m not overly worried.
The developers have taken obvious measures to make things frictionless.
When the final fist lands, I have found myself less excited by Tekken 8 than I expected.
I feel like an outlier here.
My point is: YOUR favourites are probably still here.
And if they are, you’ll be content to kick and/or punch.
There isn’t anything revolutionary happening aside from the Heat meter and all that it entails.
But a lot of the quality of life improvements and subtle design tweaks stack up.
For pros, streamers and rank-chasers, the transfer to this sequel is therefore a no-brainer.
So when I face Death, I guess Tekken 8 it is.
He’ll be pleased Panda is on the roster.
This review is based on a review build of the game provided by developers and publishers Bandai Namco.
