Tekken 8 is a strong next step for one of the most iconic 3D fighting franchises. The gameplay is intense and exciting, while the breadth of content harkens back to the pre-microtransaction age of fighting games.
Tekken 8
Developer: Bandai Namco Studios
Price: $70
Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC
MonsterVine was supplied with a PS5 code for review
Tekken is probably the major fighting game franchise that I have the least experience with. Outside of dabbling in Tekken Tag Tournament 2, I’ve never really delved into any games from the series. Though I struggle to sync with 3D fighters more than with the 2D sort that I’m accustomed to, Tekken 8 makes me wish I’d jumped in much sooner.
I’m quite fond of how combos feel in Tekken 8. Stringing together punches, kicks, and special moves is a thrill, with each character having a wide variety of hard-hitting combinations to learn. Though it took me a bit of time to get accustomed to timing hits to pull off strings, it felt incredibly satisfying to play with others and utilize my newly learned techniques. I enjoyed running through the roster and messing with each character, as they were all incredibly diverse in both playstyle and design.
I found online to be a consistent and pleasant experience, with minimal connection issues or lag. Ethernet’s certainly preferred, but wifi warriors likely aren’t in for an awful time, either. Note that you’ll want to change your rollback to “Prioritize Response” in the game’s settings for the best experience, though.
“There’s a wide range of content available in Tekken 8 – a pleasant change from how relentlessly monetized fighting games are.“
The main story mode of Tekken 8 is, in a word, insane. I watched the handy little videos that summarize Tekken 1-7 that are included in the game, but was still hardly prepared for the enjoyably ridiculous nonsense of this game’s narrative. Every cliche and trope is turned up to 11, with characters duking it out with wild powers and flashy imagery. For the four or so hours it took to complete, I had a blast, even with limited knowledge of the series.
The Arcade Quest story, on the other hand, feels like a waste of time for the most part. The convenient and quick tutorials sprinkled throughout help you get acquainted with the controls, but the story itself is a boring and straightforward tale of a group of plucky friends trying to become the best at Tekken. It’s about two or three hours long, but it’s a dull few hours that serves little purpose beyond being somewhat useful training wheels.
Customization is a lot of fun, as you’ve probably already gathered from the many licensed characters that people are making in the game. There are a lot of different clothing items to mess around with, so you can make anything from your favorite Jujutsu Kaisen characters to Yakuza’s own Kiryu – if Sega isn’t too interested in adding him, you might as well do it yourself. I’ve always loved making dumb characters in games like Soul Calibur, so it’s certainly a welcome feature.
There’s a wide range of content available in Tekken 8 – a pleasant change from how relentlessly monetized fighting games are. Tekken Ball is a goofy little side mode that combines volleyball with combat for a nice breather between battles, while Character Episodes provide fun little arcade endings for fans to take in. Each character in the roster even comes ready with different costumes to use from the get-go using currency that is quickly earned through any mode. I know there will surely be more microtransactions to come in the future, but the content available from the start here is certainly appreciated as a refreshing – if temporary – change of pace.
The Final Word
Tekken 8 is a blast to play thanks to its strong core gameplay and welcome breadth of content. If you’re essentially a Tekken beginner like me or a returning series regular, there’s lots to do and enjoy in every corner of Tekken 8.
MonsterVine Rating: 4.5 out of 5 – Great
