Between Street Fighter 6 and Mortal Kombat 1 alone, 2023 has been a stellar year for fighting games. Bandai Namco might have sweetened the deal at the end with a rollback beta for Dragon Ball FighterZ (finally) too, meaning 2024’s fighting games have a lot to live up to. After getting hands-on with Tekken 8 at a preview event a few weeks ago, it’s safe to say that 2024 is looking pretty good indeed.
From a gameplay perspective, Tekken 8 was always going to be in safe hands, as anyone who’s put time into Tekken 7 will find a lot of similarities here. This is the same fast-paced, “easy to play but incredibly deep if you’re willing to learn” game that Tekken has always been, but there’s a few new wrinkles introduced into the formula to make it even more interesting, and I’m not just talking about the new characters. That said, newcomers Reina and Victor already feel busted, and I love it.
Stage interactables have been improved upon compared to Tekken 7, with stage transitions and boundary breaks still here, but there’s now the addition of explosive walls on certain arenas, which can allow skilled players to extend their combos even further. In truth, Tekken 8 feels a bit more like Dead Or Alive than DOA has in the past decade, which is certainly no bad thing. You don’t have to scroll too far into FGC Twitter to see DOA hype clips of characters being thrown off buildings, so in the absence of a new DOA title, Tekken 8’s cinematic moments will fill that gap nicely.
The other big change is the brand new Heat System, which is designed to reward aggression above all else. Players can use a Heat Burst, triggered by pressing R1, or through hitting certain attacks, which will enter them into a more powerful state, unlocking access to new moves in the process. Along with already established tools like Rage Arts, Heat should be another layer in an already complex game, making Tekken 8 even more interesting at a higher level.
While the gameplay is on point, what could help ensure Tekken 8 is among the best fighting games out there is the range of modes the game will be launching with. For starters, Story mode is a massive improvement over T7’s, even after just playing the first couple of chapters. Granted, that might be because there’s no faceless narrator inserted into half the story, but there also seems to be no random jobber battles against hordes of Jack robots or Tekken Force soldiers. Sure, there’s some sparring “fight for the sake of it” chapters, but there’s so much less filler, even in the early going. More happens in that first chapter of Tekken 8 than in most of Tekken 7, so I’m definitely excited to see where the rest of the story goes.
If you’re looking for a mode that’s a bit meatier, Arcade Quest feels like an evolution of Virtua Fighter 4 and 5’s Quest Mode, emulating the feeling of real life arcades, tournaments and the esports scene at large. Players travel from different arcade venues, defeating AI ghost opponents and entering tournaments in order to make their way to the top of the Tekken 8 scene. There’s an avatar creation tied to it, which is pretty cute compared to Street Fighter 6’s more realistic proportions, though time will tell how well avatars are implemented in Tekken 8’s online modes.
Those looking to get better at the game will also find plenty to love in the replay and tips section. Players can watch their own matches, and at certain moments, the game will suggest optimal combos and punish options to improve your decision-making in future matches. It’s a cool system in theory, though we didn’t get enough time to really put it through its paces. Most of the tips are just “here’s a combo” or “duck the high”, while some tips for ideal pressuring tools, mix ups and spacing would be fantastic.
After a few hours with Tekken 8, there’s a lot of potential here for Bandai Namco’s latest to stake its claim as fighting game of the year only a month into 2024. With other fighting games on the landscape like Project, a new Fatal Fury and more, the next twelve months might be just as good as the past 12.
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