The next iteration of Tekken has arrived with Tekken 8, and fans are buzzing with excitement. After spending an entire console generation with Tekken 7, many players are ready for a change. Tekken 8 intends to deliver with some of the best-looking fighting game action possible on modern hardware. The game’s first trailer was somewhat vague and lackluster, but a surprise appearance leading a State of Play presentation has the fighting game community desperate for more. With the confirmation of Kazuya and Jin's conflict coming into a climactic focus, there's a lot to look forward to in this new martial arts experience from Bandai Namco.
Apart from the confirmation of Jin Kazama, Kazuya Mishima, a stage with dynamic background elements, a story mode, and the usual great Tekken music, not much is known about Tekken 8. A lot of elements go into making a fighting game successful, and Tekken 8 trailers that show off exactly what’s coming to the new game are probably several months away. With The Game Awards at the end of the year and the next Tekken World Tour Global Finals in early 2023, there are still plenty of places where more footage of Tekken 8 could manifest. There’s no rush, especially considering that this game will need a lot of care and effort to compete in the increasingly competitive fighting game space.
Rollback Netcode
The first request on many Tekken 7 players' minds is high-functioning rollback netcode. Tekken 7 technically has rollback netcode already, but the way it's implemented makes it difficult to notice and essentially useless. It's a testament to how many players enjoy the game that its online modes are still populated even after all this time. Still, with rollback becoming ubiquitous in modern fighting games, Tekken 8 would be a joke without it. With any luck, good online play and even crossplay should be in Tekken's future.
Matchmaking and Lobbies
Building off of that, getting into fights quickly should be a focus. This is something a lot of fighting games have to juggle as transitions into matches are often good places for loading and flashy cinematics. As iconic as Tekken's “Get Ready For The Next Battle” video is, it could do with being cut down a few seconds. In addition, more attention paid to in-game lobbies would be nice. Tekken's existing solution of searching for opponents works and should be kept, but the option to load into a lobby environment will draw in some players looking for a social experience. This could be as in-depth as Street Fighter 6’s Battle Hub or use a simplified art style like Arc System Works’ lobbies, but a place to show off a player's custom fashion would be nice.
Singleplayer Content
Speaking of which, Tekken 8 needs to pay close attention to enhancing its singleplayer experience. The story mode had high enough high points to justify refinement, hopefully with some new features and possibly even an exploration element. Bringing back segments that play out like Tekken 6's Scenario Campaign story mode wouldn't be bad, and could add a lot of replay value to players not interested in competition. Tekken 7’s deep character customization and modes feeding into unlocking cosmetics should also be kept, and Arcade Mode should return to being a distinct entity from other modes with its own story content and animated scenes. This would all appeal to casual players, which is vital for any fighting game.
Training Features and Frame Data
Some tools to help out the competitive side would also be appreciated. Tekken 8 should make sure to deliver a dynamic and rich training mode to players of all types, and should include some requested features. For one, frame data should no longer be paid DLC, and adding a hitbox viewer in as compensation would be greatly appreciated. The Tekken franchise is notoriously opaque, and giving players the tools to unravel its mysteries should help developers and competitors alike. In addition to improving Training Mode, Tekken 8 should be the first mainline Tekken with an expansive tutorial. Many important quirks with the franchise go unexplained, and players even had to make an app to teach throw breaks. Vital knowledge like that needs to be in the game somewhere.
A Good Tekken Roster
It wouldn't be a Tekken game without a Tekken roster, and it's expected that many series regulars will return once again in Tekken 8. It's difficult to make any requests after the expansive rosters of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and Tekken 7, but some exciting guest characters certainly wouldn't be out of line. At least one should be worked into Tekken 8's launch roster like Akuma was in Tekken 7, especially if there's a chance for them to show up in the story.
Also, the idea of custom characters made like Soul Calibur 6’s Create-A-Soul would work great with Tekken's existing costume customization. Item moves could even be expanded to allow for partial moveset replacements in casual play. And, if at all possible, every character should have an animated arcade ending growing their lore like they did in past Tekken games. Tekken 7’s lackluster character stories were a total letdown, and T8 should make up for them.
Fun Gameplay Additions
It's unnecessary touches like animated endings that really make Tekken entries memorable, and something like Tekken Ball or Tekken Bowling would have a lot of appeal in Tekken 8. On top of that, the gameplay reveal trailer implied that there would be more cinematic elements to Tekken 8’s fights, which is a good direction. The way Tekken 7 slowed down potentially match-ending trades was great, and Tekken 8 leaning into that in the middle of fights would be exciting. Cinematic angles off of hard knockdowns might be too much, but would keep pace with Guilty Gear Strive’s wall breaks. Finally, a small new offensive or defensive mechanic could keep the gameplay fresh and would definitely help players recognize that they are playing a whole new game with Tekken 8.
Tekken 8 is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.