tekken
Latest
'Tekken 8' will arrive on January 26th, 2024
Tekken 8 at last has a release date. Bandai Namco announced at Gamescom 2023 that it will hit PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on January 26th, 2024. A new single-player mode has been unveiled too.
It’s a good time to be a fighting-game fan
While fighting games may never have the same mass-market appeal they did in the '90s, 2023 is proving to be a mini-rennaisance for the genre. We've already had Street Fighter 6, Mortal Kombat 1 is arriving this fall, and there's Tekken 8 still to come.
Netflix’s animated ‘Tekken: Bloodline’ series will arrive on August 18th
The streaming service has released its official trailer for the show.
Netflix will release a Tekken animated series later this year
Having helped bring properties like DotA 2 and Castlevania to TV, Netflix is once again turning to a historic gaming franchise to add to its content library.
The next 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate' fighter is Kazuya from Tekken
But will you get to chuck your opponents into a volcano?
The esports elders defying their age
For most people, the phrase 'esports athlete' conjures an image of a teenager or twenty-something hunched over a keyboard, controller or fighting stick. That generalization holds some weight: tune into the next Overwatch League fixture, for instance, and you'll see few competitors in their forties. In almost every esport, though, there's at least one player that bucks the norm; a slightly older professional that can easily compete with and, frequently, overcome their younger foe. Like Roger Federer, a 38-year-old tennis legend that still ranks in the world top five, these people seem to defy their age and the notion that only the young have the mental and physical agility required to compete at the highest level. None of them are truly old, of course. Not to the average person on the street, anyway. Inside their respective gaming communities, however, they're old-timers, veterans, part of the 'I can't believe they haven't retired yet' club. Collectively, you could think of them as the esports elders.
Negan from 'The Walking Dead' is coming to 'Tekken 7'
Negan might be tied up in the latest season of The Walking Dead, but that doesn't mean he can't bash a few skulls in the latest Tekken video game. That's right, the iconic Saviors leader (and archenemy of Rick Grimes and company) is coming to Tekken 7 as part of the game's season two DLC pass. Bandai Namco revealed the character in a teaser video released during the annual EVO fighting game tournament. There was no gameplay, though, just a hint of Negan's leather jacket, red scarf and lethal baseball bat, Lucille, as well as a few lines delivered by actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
The latest ‘BlazBlue’ reminds me how impenetrable fighting games can be
Fighting games aren't for the faint-hearted. There's no relaxation or light entertainment in the breakneck world of kill-or-be-killed beat 'em ups. Long before home consoles and internet connections, these kind of games fostered serious competitive scenes around arcade cabinets. The term eSports is now common parlance, and yet the biggest fighting game franchises are struggling, only really appealing to their loyal fanbases. But for the developers behind these titles, it's a catch-22. It's after playing BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle -- which has only recently come to the PC, PS4 and Switch in Europe -- that I'm reminded why. Fighting games can be extremely rewarding, but only as a result of being fundamentally difficult and alienating to begin with.
Fighting classic 'Tekken' debuts on mobile
Fighting game Tekken is coming to your smartphone screens, joining the likes of Final Fantasy, The Legend of Zelda, South Park and some Sega Genesis titles in the ring. Maker Bandai Namco announced the Tekken Mobile game is open for pre-registration today via its newly launched website, and iOS users in Canada can already try out a preview.
'Tekken 7' is built for spectacle and spectators
The Tekken series has now reached its seventh major iteration. It's already in arcades, but at E3 2016, Bandai Namco confirmed an early 2017 launch date for both Xbox One, PS4 and PC. The game has evolved to include a gentler learning curve, more cinematic scenes blended into the story mode, as well as adding slow-down to those nail-biting final moments to make them all the sweeter. Oh, and a certain street fighter called Akuma. We asked Katsuhiro Harada, the outspoken producer of Tekken to explain the changes -- as well as the challenges of combining a pedigree fighting series with virtual reality.
'Tekken X Street Fighter' is on hold for now
There's a chance Tekken X Street Fighter will never see the light of day. Or it could, but not anytime soon. In a recent interview with GameSpot, Tekken's game director Katsuhiro Harada revealed that development for the highly anticipated crossover is on hold until further notice. "When we develop fighting games, we try to keep the core community in mind as well as the wider audience that wants to play these games," he explained the circumstances behind the decision.
Tekken 7 may allow two characters to fight from the same side
In a recent tweet, Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada revealed a new feature being tested for Bandai Namco's upcoming 3D fighter Tekken 7. "BETA TESTING NOW> New Rendering Camera System "Both players can play on LEFT SIDE (or RIGHT SIDE) for TEKKEN7," Harada tweeted. Initially this idea seems confusing, but the image Harada included - which can be seen, in part, above - makes the new feature clear. Harada's team has linked two Tekken 7 arcade cabinets and programmed the game to rendered mirrored images centering on the two fighters for each display. The effect is that both players are fighting from the same side in the same, real-time match with data being shared between the two cabinets, hopefully with very little lag. However, the utility of this feature is questionable, especially for anyone outside of Japan. Players who prefer to fight from one side or the other may embrace the option (assuming it makes its way successfully through beta testing), but as the system requires an elaborate grafting of two undoubtedly pricey Tekken 7 arcade machines it will only appear in larger, well-funded arcades. Given the collapse of the arcade market in the West, this effectively renders the mirrored system exclusive to Japan and a few locations scattered throughout North America that might buy the system purely for its novelty. [Image: @Harada_Tekken]
Blame the Internet: Tekken 7's cat girl won't visit America
Apparently a human woman dressed in pink cat accessories is too outre for fans of a fighting franchise that stars both a cybernetic Robin Hood and a kangaroo wearing boxing gloves, as the developers behind Tekken 7 have responded to Internet outrage at the game's latest fighter by claiming that she won't appear in American versions of the game. The character, named "Lucky Chloe," was revealed during a recent livestream celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Tekken franchise. Shortly after, series producer Katsuhiro Harada was alerted to a thread on NeoGAF where a number of commenters slam the character design. "God I hate her already," reads a typical comment. Frustrated by the backlash, Harada tweeted, "Are you 'Western' only one bulletin board? Hello small world. I'll make muscular & skinhead character for you," in reference to the stereotypical American love for overtly muscular beefcake male characters. He then stated that American fans don't need to be so upset because Chloe is only one of the game's many characters, and she wasn't included to appeal to Western sensibilities anyway. He then noted that Chloe will be "exclusive" to Europe and East Asian territories. Tweets are not guarantees of future plans, though, especially when made in the heat of the moment. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Tekken montage honors 20 years of the Iron Fist Tournament
You can cite bombastic graphics or Bandai Namco's fluid take on 3D, hand-to-hand combat, but let's be honest: People have been playing Tekken for two decades because you just won't see an alcoholic Mexican priest turned jaguar-faced luchador powerbomb a genetically-engineered velociraptor in other fighting games. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Tekken team's Project Morpheus demo is voyeuristic
Bandai Namco Director Katsuhiro Harada and the team behind the Tekken series put together a demo for Sony's VR hardware, Project Morpheus, though it's just about the furthest from a fighting game you can get. The demo is called Summer Lesson and it's an interactive tour through a Japanese schoolgirl's bedroom, schoolgirl included. In the introductory video, we see players look around the sunny room, nod yes or no to the girl's questions, and make her pull back in discomfort when the viewing angle gets too invasive. Yes, really. See a video of the demo (from the Sony Computer Entertainment Japan & Asia event) below (skip to the 55:40 mark). Summer Lesson will be playable at Tokyo Game Show, which kicks off on September 18. [Image: SCEJ]
Pokken Tournament won't star Tekken fighters
Pokken Tournament, the Tekken-style fighting game starring Pokemon characters, will not feature Tekken fighters, Bandai Namco Director Katsuhiro Harada said on Twitter (translation by Eventhubs). "Nope, Tekken characters will not be making an appearance," Harada said. "As we're making a Pokemon fighting action battle game, I've already touched on this while on the livestream, but in this game there will not be a high/mid/low guard system mechanic. Instead, we're planning to include a new type of [mechanic]." Harada also noted that Pokken Tournament supports all kinds of Pokemon types, not only the humanoid fighters we've seen so far. In terms of adding Pokemon trainers, Harada said, "Worry not." Pokken Tournament is scheduled to launch in Japanese arcades in 2015 as a collaboration between Nintendo and Bandai Namco. [Image: Bandai Namco]
'Pokken Tournament' is the Pokémon brawler you've been dreaming of
It used to be that if you wanted to make two Pokémon really wail on each other, you'd have to fire up a fan-made game like Pokémon: Type Wild. At long last, those days are over: after a bit of teasing last year, The Pokémon Company and Namco confirmed today that Pokken Tournament is an honest-to-goodness, button-mashing brawler that'll see the light of day next year. Beyond the thrill of watching a Machamp just going to town on a Lucario, Pokken's arrival is yet another example of Nintendo's new openness towards using game mechanic mashups to liven up long-running franchises. Hyrule Warriors, anyone? What's next, a Punch-Out boxing manager sim? A Fire Emblem RTS? (Please make that one, Nintendo!) Anyway, Pokken is slated to hit Japanese arcades some time in 2015, but given the sad state of arcades in the US, we'll have just to pray for an international console release down the road.
Harada: Tekken X Street Fighter 'still in development'
Remember Tekken X Street Fighter, Bandai Namco's crossover fighter that was announced in 2010? Tekken series producer Katsuhiro Harada sure does, because it's still in development! Also, because he's probably bombarded with questions from fans concerned it's becoming the next The Last Guardian. Thankfully, it doesn't sound like that's the case, as Harada stated during a San Deigo Comic-Con panel that TxSF is "proceeding" and "still in development," according to a report from Polygon. Harada explained that between Tekken 7, Rise of Incarnates and the ongoing free-to-play efforts Tekken Revolution and Soulcalibur: Lost Swords, finding space for TxSF is a matter of timing. Maybe you just had a flashback to August 2013, when Harada said that Bandai Namco was "looking for the right time" to release TxSF while reassuring us it was still in development. In the 2013 statement, Harada noted the recent release of Street Fighter X Tekken, Capcom's take on the series crossover project, as a reason we hadn't heard much about TxSF. Considering how similar the titles are conceptually and in name, that makes plenty of sense. With 11 months between this statement and the last however, it's tough to still consider SFxT a recent release, so hopefully we can catch a glimpse of a new trailer or something soon. You know, after Bandai Namco finishes everything else it's working on. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Tekken 7 coming, uses Unreal Engine 4 [update: confirmed, trailer]
Update: A Bandai Namco press release rolled out on Monday morning confirmed Tekken 7 is in development using Unreal Engine 4. Meanwhile, the YouTube description on the newly published teaser trailer (which you can watch below the break) says we can expect more details at the San Diego Comic Con, which takes place later this month. Additionally, a quote from Game Director and Executive Producer Katsuhiro Harada points towards a release on the new generation of systems. "The power and flexibility means that we can focus our efforts on making Tekken 7 the best possible game without worrying about spending time creating a stand-alone graphic engine," said Harada. "With Unreal Engine 4, we could rapidly achieve visual quality expected on next-gen platform[s] and go beyond it. Not only is Unreal Engine 4 powerful and easy to use, but it allows us to immediately bring Tekken 7 to any platform we desire."
Tekken, Soul Calibur teams let loose ancient fighters in Rise of Incarnates
Rise of Incarnates comes from Bandai Namco and the creators of the Soul Calibur and Tekken franchises – and it looks absolutely insane. Rise of Incarnates is a free, 2v2 fighter that takes place in real-life cities ravaged by massive cold fronts and geological shifts across the planet. The incarnates are humans able to draw power from gods, demons and monsters of ancient mythology, and they're each on their own mission to "defeat the Sovereign of this era." Each incarnate thinks this message means something different – hence the fighting. The incarnates revealed so far are Dr. Gasper Watteau (grim reaper), Terrence Blake (Ares), Mireia Valentin (Lilith) and Jedrek Tyler (Mephistopheles). See a rundown of their abilities and personalities here. Sign up for the alpha via the same site, with the box in the bottom-left corner. Rise of Incarnates is due out in late 2014 for PC in the Americas. [Images: Bandai Namco]
