Tekken 8doesn’t have a definite release date yet, but it seems to be coming out soon due to the various developer updates and character reveals that Bandai Namco has been putting out in recent months. This has fans excited about what the new sequel can do to one-up its predecessor. Directors Katsuhiro Harada and Kohei Ikeda gave the players exactly what they wanted when they gave a glimpse ofTekken 8’s new gameplay mechanics in a YouTube video early this year. It showed demos of the four defining features of the game: the new Rage system, Recovery gauge, Heat system, and new control formats.
The latest sequel has a lot to live up to and make up for sinceTekken 7continues to be a polarizing game in the fighting game community. As it stands, it’s arguably one of the top 3D fighting games in terms of mechanics. However, the game has also suffered from bad balance patches andoverpoweredTekkencharacters like Akuma. Apart from balance changes,Tekken 8will introduce fresh mechanics that will usher in a new meta, so players need to get up to speed with them.
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Tekken 8 Gives Rage Arts an Update
Tekken’s Rage Systemhas been a staple in the game sinceTekken 6, and the developers continue to make significant improvements to it with every sequel. For those new to the franchise, Rage increases the player character’s damage when they’re low on health. This is indicated by a red aura that radiates from the fighter and their health bar. The mechanic gives players a chance to make a comeback, or at least gives them the confidence to fight until the end of the round.
InTekken 7, Rage Arts and Rage Drives were introduced. These are super and special attacks that deal more damage, and they’re activated when the fighter is in a state of Rage, with each character having different commands for their Rage Art. ThebestTekken 7fighters for beginners, like Paul, often had great Rage Arts. InTekken 8, the direction and button combination for Rage Art will be the same for all characters. Players only need to do a forward diagonal down and press both punches on the stick or R2 on pad. This is an excellent quality-of-life change for players who use multiple fighters, as they already have their favorite characters’ exhaustive movesets and combos to think about, so having a unified Rage Art command makes their lives easier without sacrificing competitive integrity.
A Look into Tekken 8’s Newest Core Mechanic: The Heat System
Tekken 8’s core mechanic, according to Harada, is the Heat System. Ikeda further explained that “Heat” has the fighter go into a state of awakening for 10 seconds, letting them create opportunities for aggressive attacks.Tekken 8’s Heat Systemactivation is visualized by blue flames emanating from the fighter and a fast-depleting gauge under the health bar. Players can activate heat while setting up a slam (R1), which is called a Heat Burst. This gives them a slight advantage on hits, even when the opponent blocks.
Players can also activate Heat through special moves called “Heat Engagers.” When fighters hit this, their character automatically runs to the staggered opponent, giving them a huge advantage in hittingcomplexTekkencombosand supers. In a heated state, the player can also do a Heat Smash, and the command for this is R1, which consumes all heat energy to deliver significant damage to the enemy. The player can keep their heat gauge up by hitting the enemy. It even replenishes on blocked attacks.
It only depletes when the timer runs out, the enemy gets into a downed state, the heated fighter gets downed by the enemy, or if the player uses the aforementioned Heat Smash. As such, players can continue piling the pressure on their enemies until they release a hard-hitting, Heat-powered attack.
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Introducing Tekken 8’s Special Style: A New Way to Play the Game
It seems like the biggest fighting games are looking to enhance the new player experience with more accessible control methods. According to the Bandai Namco website,Tekken 8’s Special Styleintegrates the Assist and Easy Combo features from the previous game. In the sequel, players can choose a recommended move and combo for every button. The moves change according to the state of the fighter (normal, heat, or rage).
The designers and developers stated that they want players to feel like they’re playing one of thebest action gamesrather than a fighting game when using Special Style. Players don’t have to spend time and effort memorizing and practicing commands, so they can just focus on trying out each character to see which they like most. They can also toggle Special Style on and off mid-match if they want to try doing traditional commands. Considering these factors, Special Style is likely best reserved for casual play.
Special Style may be available during online play, so some veterans are upset at the prospect of facing auto-comboing players in the lobby when they’ve honed their commands and combos for years. This is similar to the sentiments ofStreet Fighter 6players about the game’s Modern Mode. Like Special Style,Street Fighter 6’s Modern Modelets players pull off combos, supers, and specials without complicated motion inputs, and it’s also allowed in online play. Whether this new control scheme will put newcomers on the same playing field as pros will be determined when the game is tested in competitions and ranked matches.
Offense is the Best Defense: Tekken 8’s Recoverable Gauge
Tekken 8’s new recoverable gauge mechanic is simple - every time a player’s attack hits or gets blocked, they earn a gauge that will slowly recover their health. This system, coupled with Heat and Rage, incentivizes fast and aggressive play. It will lead to explosive matches in ranked battles andtournaments like Evo 2023, and it’s these cool plays that will get players old and new excited enough to buy the game.
Tekken 8is currently in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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