Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Tekken 8 is a very angry game. That's probably unsurprising for a series that has spent the last three decades letting players pummel each other with a variety of bizarre characters – think kangaroos, pandas, space ninjas, and wooden training dolls, alongside the fighting game genre's usual mix of martial artists – but for this latest entry, aggressive play is really at the heart of the experience.
The epitome of this is the new Heat gauge system, a secondary bar under your character's health that puts you into Heat State when activated, giving you a brief window of enhanced power to – ideally – beat the tar out of your opponent. This isn't meant to be used judiciously; you start each round with a full bar of Heat ready to unleash, and one of the first things the game teaches you is how to launch an enemy into the air to then land an unblockable Heat-powered strike. Tekken 8 is all about fast, furious play, but that isn’t without its drawbacks.
The problem with the Heat system, and the focus on aggressive play in a broader sense, is that it leaves the roster feeling slighting imbalanced. Characters who've long stood as power players get even more unstoppable, leaving characters whose best attributes have traditionally been in speed or skill to be rapidly overwhelmed with the slightest misstep. That can become more than a little frustrating, especially if you favour a character who doesn't 'feel' like a brute force fighter.
Tekken 8 may be the most feature-packed entry in the series' history.
Perhaps to mitigate this, Tekken 8 also introduces a simplified 'Special Style' control scheme. While default controls retain the series' long-standing approach of one face button controlling one limb for punches and kicks, Special Style streamlines combos and special moves to a single button press. It's entirely optional – fear not, purists – and can't hope to map the plethora of attacks a typical Tekken fighter has access to, but may help players as they get to grips with the new flow of the game. It's also great for onboarding new players, or returning ones who may need time to re-learn the game.
While Heat incentivises aggression, it's also not without tactical application. While Heat is active, you gain a variety of benefits, including inflicting potentially match-deciding chip damage when your foe is blocking. Other tweaks to the fighting system, including the ability to regain health, allow some room for skill to re-emerge over raw power, and it'll be fascinating to see how the competitive scene evolves with the changes Tekken 8 brings.
For solo players though, there's a mountain of material to keep you occupied while mastering the intricacies of the game. A hugely cinematic story mode is one of the series' longest and most ambitious yet, bringing the inter-generational conflict between Kazuya Mishima and his son Jin Kazama to a climax. It's a saga packed with stunning moments, both visually – this is the first Tekken to use Unreal Engine 5, and looks phenomenal for it – and narratively, channelling the relentless ethos of Tekken 8's approach to combat throughout.
Beyond the Mishima family drama, every single character in the game's 32-strong launch roster also gets a dedicated 'episode' detailing their background and stakes in the latest tournament. Although these are short – five fights each, with a unique finale – they do a great job of expanding the increasingly bonkers storyline. Think of it as a self-contained 'Tekken Cinematic Universe', with the character-focused shorts the streaming series to the main story's IMAX experience.
One of the strangest new modes for Tekken 8 is Arcade Quest, which feels like a take on Street Fighter 6's World Tour mode. Like that, you'll create an avatar and travel the world to become the greatest fighter, but in an especially meta twist, here you're travelling between video game arcades to become the world's best Tekken 8 player. While it largely serves as a glorified, extended tutorial, Arcade Quest is a solid companion mode in its own right, with a reasonably lengthy campaign to complete and plenty of avatar customisation cosmetics to unlock along the way. Unfortunately, a total departure from the game's visual style here – avatars and supporting characters are reminiscent of Nintendo's simple Mii figures – is jarring, especially when you're rapidly switching between the realistic Tekken 8 battles and cartoonish arcades. Thankfully, a more conventional arcade mode is also available.
With a return of fan-favourite mini-game Tekken Ball – think volleyball, adapted into a contact sport – and robust online play, Tekken 8 may be the most feature-packed entry in the series' history. It all hinges on that new Heat system and emphasis on aggression, though, which despite broadly being a step forward, may take more getting used to than expected for returning players, while feeling a touch too unforgiving for complete newcomers.