If I had to say, Tekken is probably my favorite fighting game franchise. For a lot of reasons, whether it be for the fun gameplay, the incredible music, and especially for the story and characters. I know that's a weird thing, liking the story and characters of a fighting game more than other aspects of it, but that's just how I feel about some fighting game series, and especially Tekken which has my favorite story content in a fighting game.
Been playing Tekken since Tekken 4 back on the PS2, which I know is considered the black sheep of the franchise and did not do as well as the prior titles. But I have many fond memories of that game as my entry to the series, especially in regard to its story, atmosphere, and music. I had a lot of fun playing through the various' characters story routes and learning about their backgrounds and history. Of course, I was only about 7 or 8 at the time, so I couldn't really understand some of their stories (Most likely the whole Devil Gene thing probably went over my head, seeing as how genetics wasn't something I was learning as a 1st or 2nd grader lmao). But I was just so fascinated by the fun gameplay, presentation and storytelling that I fell in love with the series. So when I get older, I ended up looking more into the other games---their stories, and everything just clicked with me about the premise of a generational blood feud. Sure, it can be kind of nonsensical at times, but I mean, that's what's so good and interesting about it imo. I just love that premise so much, and also the interconnected or separate stories of the other characters as well.
With the announcement of Tekken 8, I was both excited yet a little worried. I had played Tekken 7, and while I enjoyed the game itself, the story really disappointed me aside from a few good things that I liked here or there. And the treatment of other characters made me really worried about Tekken going forward. So while I was absolutely pumped for Tekken 8, I was still worried about how the story would be done. I honestly just wanted the story to be just okay, or even just a bit better than 7's. But... to my surprise, it exceeded my expectations wholeheartedly. I now see the Harada vision... lmao, because he really went all out with the story for this game. Getting to see so many characters I've grown to love play even just a small part was incredible, and of course, that final segment is probably one of my favorite final segments in not just fighting games, but possibly video games in general. It's definitely up there for me with how it was constructed in terms of its bombastic and emotional impact. I was very happy, and truly pleased with how the story ended up, and it honestly makes me want to play parts of it again as I'm writing this, haha. The music also in this game I also think is really good---not my favorite Tekken OST, but I think there are definitely a lot of standout tracks in this, whether it be Storm Rising, Time Will Reveal, and my favorite Liberation. I didn't think Solitude could be beaten as my favorite Tekken menu theme, but Liberation just fits the vibe of this game so well. I can't describe exactly why, but it just strikes a chord with me so hard tbh. Also the Jukebox is once again a wonderful addition tht should be in Tekken forever lmao. Love the option of being able to set my own tracks for the menus and stages, just like back in Tekken 7.
Now as for the gameplay itself, I'm not really a... Tekken expert lmao. I've played the games a good bit, but I'm no competitive player or anything (though it would be nice to be at least middle of the pack in terms of being good lmao). But everything in the game feels just as good as other Tekken games I've really liked such as 7 or Tag 2. I think the heat system in this game is really cool, and I love all the different features they give you in terms of learning how to play the game, even a feature that's dedicated to punishing training which is really cool. The presentation of this game is absolutely stunning with how amazing the characters, stages, and visual effects look in game, alongside the awesome camera angles during rage arts, activating heat, and other things as well. It's funny how back when 7 was the new game, I couldn't see them topping the visuals of that one, but now with 8 being out, it makes 7 look like it came out ages ago, and like, 7 is still a really good looking game imo lmao. I also really appreciate the special characters interactions that occur at the beginning of a battle between characters as well, I feel like that was a really nice addition. It may be rather problematic to be a fan of this, but... I just want Kazuya and Jun to live a happy life together lmao. Maybe they can use the Vegeta clause for Kazuya to be redeemed in some possible way, but idk, lmao. Truthfully, I'm very biased towards Kazuya as he's my favorite character in the series, for his nuance and how there could still be potential humanity left in him, despite him being so dickish and comically evil almost all of the time. His relationship with Jun is also one of my favorite aspects of the series, and I hope we get to see more of that going forward as I feel Jun may perhaps be the only person in Kazuya's life who he actually cares about. The only thing I guess I wish this game had was Team Battle. It's one of my favorite modes in Tekken, and it's a shame it seems to be absent in this game like it was in Tekken 7. Hopefully it could be added via an update or DLC, alongside more offline modes as well. It's cool how they even went out of their way to add an "adventure mode" sort of thing with your own avatar in order to learn the game and stuff. Like, they didn't have to add something like that, but it's really cool that they did so honestly.
Really happy and satisfied with how much Tekken 8 really exceeded my expectations. It's an important series for me, and I'm really glad that it ended up being one of my favorite games of this year, especially with how much I was anticipating it as well. Also Lili de Rochefort is absolutely amazing, and I love her, and I just feel like that's just an important fact that needs to be shared. She is a very ho---precious ojou-sama (insert flushed face lmao).
Been playing Tekken since Tekken 4 back on the PS2, which I know is considered the black sheep of the franchise and did not do as well as the prior titles. But I have many fond memories of that game as my entry to the series, especially in regard to its story, atmosphere, and music. I had a lot of fun playing through the various' characters story routes and learning about their backgrounds and history. Of course, I was only about 7 or 8 at the time, so I couldn't really understand some of their stories (Most likely the whole Devil Gene thing probably went over my head, seeing as how genetics wasn't something I was learning as a 1st or 2nd grader lmao). But I was just so fascinated by the fun gameplay, presentation and storytelling that I fell in love with the series. So when I get older, I ended up looking more into the other games---their stories, and everything just clicked with me about the premise of a generational blood feud. Sure, it can be kind of nonsensical at times, but I mean, that's what's so good and interesting about it imo. I just love that premise so much, and also the interconnected or separate stories of the other characters as well.
With the announcement of Tekken 8, I was both excited yet a little worried. I had played Tekken 7, and while I enjoyed the game itself, the story really disappointed me aside from a few good things that I liked here or there. And the treatment of other characters made me really worried about Tekken going forward. So while I was absolutely pumped for Tekken 8, I was still worried about how the story would be done. I honestly just wanted the story to be just okay, or even just a bit better than 7's. But... to my surprise, it exceeded my expectations wholeheartedly. I now see the Harada vision... lmao, because he really went all out with the story for this game. Getting to see so many characters I've grown to love play even just a small part was incredible, and of course, that final segment is probably one of my favorite final segments in not just fighting games, but possibly video games in general. It's definitely up there for me with how it was constructed in terms of its bombastic and emotional impact. I was very happy, and truly pleased with how the story ended up, and it honestly makes me want to play parts of it again as I'm writing this, haha. The music also in this game I also think is really good---not my favorite Tekken OST, but I think there are definitely a lot of standout tracks in this, whether it be Storm Rising, Time Will Reveal, and my favorite Liberation. I didn't think Solitude could be beaten as my favorite Tekken menu theme, but Liberation just fits the vibe of this game so well. I can't describe exactly why, but it just strikes a chord with me so hard tbh. Also the Jukebox is once again a wonderful addition tht should be in Tekken forever lmao. Love the option of being able to set my own tracks for the menus and stages, just like back in Tekken 7.
Now as for the gameplay itself, I'm not really a... Tekken expert lmao. I've played the games a good bit, but I'm no competitive player or anything (though it would be nice to be at least middle of the pack in terms of being good lmao). But everything in the game feels just as good as other Tekken games I've really liked such as 7 or Tag 2. I think the heat system in this game is really cool, and I love all the different features they give you in terms of learning how to play the game, even a feature that's dedicated to punishing training which is really cool. The presentation of this game is absolutely stunning with how amazing the characters, stages, and visual effects look in game, alongside the awesome camera angles during rage arts, activating heat, and other things as well. It's funny how back when 7 was the new game, I couldn't see them topping the visuals of that one, but now with 8 being out, it makes 7 look like it came out ages ago, and like, 7 is still a really good looking game imo lmao. I also really appreciate the special characters interactions that occur at the beginning of a battle between characters as well, I feel like that was a really nice addition. It may be rather problematic to be a fan of this, but... I just want Kazuya and Jun to live a happy life together lmao. Maybe they can use the Vegeta clause for Kazuya to be redeemed in some possible way, but idk, lmao. Truthfully, I'm very biased towards Kazuya as he's my favorite character in the series, for his nuance and how there could still be potential humanity left in him, despite him being so dickish and comically evil almost all of the time. His relationship with Jun is also one of my favorite aspects of the series, and I hope we get to see more of that going forward as I feel Jun may perhaps be the only person in Kazuya's life who he actually cares about. The only thing I guess I wish this game had was Team Battle. It's one of my favorite modes in Tekken, and it's a shame it seems to be absent in this game like it was in Tekken 7. Hopefully it could be added via an update or DLC, alongside more offline modes as well. It's cool how they even went out of their way to add an "adventure mode" sort of thing with your own avatar in order to learn the game and stuff. Like, they didn't have to add something like that, but it's really cool that they did so honestly.
Really happy and satisfied with how much Tekken 8 really exceeded my expectations. It's an important series for me, and I'm really glad that it ended up being one of my favorite games of this year, especially with how much I was anticipating it as well. Also Lili de Rochefort is absolutely amazing, and I love her, and I just feel like that's just an important fact that needs to be shared. She is a very ho---precious ojou-sama (insert flushed face lmao).