Tekken

This article is about the video game series. For the first game in the series, seeTekken(video game).For other uses, seeTekken (disambiguation).

Tekken(Japanese:Thiết quyền(てつけん),meaning "Iron Fist" )is a Japanesemedia franchisecentered on a series offighting gamesdeveloped and published byBandai Namco Entertainment(formerlyNamco). The franchise also includes film and print adaptations.

Tekken
Logo used sinceTekken 8
Genre(s)	Fighting Beat 'em up
Developer(s)	Bandai Namco Studios Namco
Publisher(s)	Bandai Namco Entertainment Namco Sony Computer Entertainment
Creator(s)	Seiichi Ishii
Composer(s)	Yoshie Arakawa Yoshie Takayanagi Shinji Hosoe Nobuyoshi Sano Keiichi Okabe Akitaka Tohyama Yuu Miyake Taku Inoue Yusuke Yamauchi
Platform(s)	Android Arcade Game Boy Advance iOS Microsoft Windows Nintendo 3DS PlayStation PlayStation 2 PlayStation 3 PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5 PlayStation Portable Wii U Xbox 360 Xbox One Xbox Series X/S
First release	Tekken December 1994(1994-12)
Latest release	Tekken 8 January 26, 2024(2024-01-26)

The main games in the series follow the events of the King of Iron Fist Tournament, hosted by theMishima Zaibatsu,where players control a plethora of characters to win the tournament and gain control of the company; the conflict between the Mishima family serves as the main focus of the series' plot, while players explore other characters' motivations in aiming to control theZaibatsu.

Gameplay focuses on hand-to-hand combat with an opponent, with the gameplay system including blocks, throws, escapes, and ground fighting. The series later introduced combos and special moves, with characters also able to stage break arenas.Tekkenis noted as being one of the first fighting games at the time to use 3D animation.

Japanese video game developerNamcobegan the series in 1994, with the release of theself-titled first entry.As of 2017, it has nine additional entries, eight spin-off games, and has been adapted into three feature films and other media.Tekken 2,as well as the third gameTekken 3,are considered landmark titles; they received critical acclaim for their gameplay and more immersive experience. Subsequent titles have followed this concept and received generally positive critical responses. It has been mentioned as early as 2015 by theGuinness Book of World Recordsas the longest running story in video games without reboots, retcons, or revisions. The Mishima saga covering the first ten games untilTekken 8was described as a story revolving around the Iron Fist Tournament and a family aiming to destroy each other.

The series has been universally acclaimed and commercially successful, having shipped over 58 million copies by 2024, making it the thirdbest-selling fighting game franchise.The main series has been widely credited by critics and video game publications for raising the standards of fighting games and praised for its gameplay mechanics and replay value.

Games

See also:List ofTekkenmedia

All major installments of the series are originallyarcade games,and theboardsused to run them have traditionally been based onPlayStationhardware. Following their release in arcades, home releases in the series have mainly been for consoles in the PlayStation line.

Year	Title	Arcade board	Home release
1994	Tekken	Namco System 11	PlayStation
1995	Tekken 2
1997	Tekken 3	Namco System 12
1999	Tekken Tag Tournament		PlayStation 2
2001	Tekken 4	Namco System 246
2004	Tekken 5	Namco System 256
2005	Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection		PlayStation 3,PlayStation Portable
2007	Tekken 6	Namco System 357	PlayStation 3,PlayStation Portable,Xbox 360
2011	Tekken Tag Tournament 2	Namco System 369	PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,Wii U
2015	Tekken 7	Namco System ES3	PlayStation 4,Xbox One,Microsoft Windows
2024	Tekken 8	N/A	PlayStation 5,Xbox Series,Microsoft Windows

1994–1997: Original trilogy

Tekken

Main article:Tekken(video game)

The first game in the series,Tekken,was released in 1994, first as anarcade gameand as a port for thePlayStationin 1995.The game features eight playable characters, each with their own sub- Boss. The PlayStation version features remixes of the stage themes and also made the sub- Boss es playable for a total of eighteen characters, including a costume swap for Kazuya (Devil Kazuya). In addition, a cutscene is unlocked when the player finishes arcade mode with each of the original eight characters. The canon ending of the game consists ofKazuyaexacting revenge on his fatherHeihachi Mishima,beating him in the tournament and tossing him off the same cliff that he was thrown off by Heihachi.

Tekken 2

Main article:Tekken 2

Tekken 2was released in 1995 in arcades and in 1996 for the PlayStation. A port was also made several years later forZeebo.There are ten playable characters as well as fifteen to unlock, for a total of twenty-five characters. The home version features four new modes that would become staples to the series, which were Survival, Team Battle, Time Attack, and Practice. The game features remixes of the arcade versions' characters' themes, and a cutscene unlocked once the player completes the arcade mode. The canon ending of this game consists of Heihachi surviving the fall, entering the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2 and defeating Kazuya, throwing him into an erupting volcano and reclaiming the MishimaZaibatsu.During the events of the second King of Iron First Tournament, Kazuya andJun Kazamawere mysteriously drawn to one another and became intimate.

Tekken 3

Tekken 3arcade cabinet

Main article:Tekken 3

Tekken 3was released in arcades and for the PlayStation in 1997 and 1998, respectively. Due to the 19-year storyline span between the game and its predecessor, the game largely features a new cast of characters, including the debut of staple main characterJin Kazama,the child of Kazuya and Jun, as well as now-staple charactersLing XiaoyuandHwoarang,with a total of twenty-three characters. The home version includes a mode calledTekkenForce, as well as the bonusTekken Ballmode, and also includes remixes to the characters' themes from the arcade version.The canon ending ofTekken 3consists ofPaul PhoenixdefeatingOgreand leaving victorious. After its defeat, Ogre transforms into a monstrous creature, "True Ogre". Jin Kazama faces True Ogre and defeats him, avenging his mother. With Ogre out of the way, Jin's grandfather Heihachi shoots him, leaving him for dead. However, Jin survives, being revived by theDevil Genehe inherited from his father.

1999–2004: Debut of team-battle oriented games

Tekken Tag Tournament

Main article:Tekken Tag Tournament

Tekken Tag Tournamentwas released in 1999 in arcades and as alaunch titlefor the PlayStation 2 in 2000.Tekken Tag Tournamentfeatures tag battles and includes almost all of theTekkencharacters in the series up until that point in time, for a total of 34 characters. The game ran on the same arcade board with an updatedTekken 3engine, and thus saw major graphical upgrades when ported to the PlayStation 2. The home version features remixes of the characters' themes from the arcade version, and also features a bonusTekkenBowl mode. A remastered version of the game,Tekken Tag Tournament HD,is included in the 2011 collectionTekken Hybrid,which also contained a playable demo ofTekken Tag Tournament 2and the filmTekken: Blood Vengeance.

Tekken 4

Main article:Tekken 4

Tekken 4is the fifth installment of the series, released in 2001 in arcades and 2002 for the PlayStation 2. The home version includes a new Story mode that unlocks cutscenes when played, in contrast to previous installments in which such cutscenes were unlocked from playing the Arcade Mode. Gameplay revisions include the ability for the player to move about before the round begins, as well as walled-stages. For the first time, the themes used in the arcade mode are the same ones put into the home version. There are 23 characters to choose from. The story reveals that Kazuya survived the fall into the volcano from 20 years prior, and enters the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4 to take back the Mishima Zaibatsu. In the canonical ending, Kazuya and Heihachi are both defeated by Jin. Jin unwillingly transforms into his Devil form, but after glimpsing a vision of his mother, Jun (whom he had not seen in six years), he refrains from executing Heihachi.

Tekken 5

Main article:Tekken 5

Tekken 5was released in arcades in 2004 and 2005 for thePlayStation 2,with a short period of time of transition from arcade to PlayStation, of two months in North America and four months in Japan.There are 32 characters to choose from, including staple newcomers Devil Jin andOsaka'sAsuka Kazama.Many of the characters who were removed inTekken 3returned inTekken 5.The home version includes a mode known as Devil Within, a variant of theTekkenForce mode introduced inTekken 3.In the canonical ending, Jin Kazama defeats his great-grandfatherJinpachi Mishima(who took over the Mishima Zaibatsu shortly after the ending events ofTekken 4), and inherits the MishimaZaibatsu.

2005–present: Expansion and other projects

Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection

Main article:Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection

AlthoughTekkengames normally saw updates to the arcade versions,Tekken 5was the first installment in the series that had a revision significant enough that it was rereleased, with the subtitleDark Resurrectionin 2005. The game was ported to thePlayStation Portablein 2006 and features two new characters:Emilie "Lili" De Rochefortand Sergei Dragunov. Armor King was also reintroduced as a playable character in this revision. The game also introduces a ranking system to the series. The home version featured new modes, such as Ghost Mode,TekkenDojo Mode, and the two bonus modes, Gold Rush mode, and a revised version of theTekkenBowl mode introduced inTekken Tag Tournament.The Devil Within mode from the PlayStation 2 version however, was absent. Namco Bandai saw the fan demand for a console version and a port for thePlayStation 3via thePlayStation Networkwas released in 2007, in full1080p HD.The PlayStation 3 version also saw an update and was retitledTekken 5: Dark Resurrection ONLINE,marking the first time in the series that online play was featured. The PlayStation 3 version also made Jinpachi Mishima playable (but not online).

Tekken 6

Main article:Tekken 6

Tekken 6was originally released in arcades in 2007, followed by an updated version in 2008 titledTekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion.The home version was based onBloodline Rebellionand was released for the PlayStation 3 andXbox 360,marking the first time in the series that a game was multiplatform.The game features a Scenario Campaign mode, which follows gameplay from previousTekkenForce modes, which was playable online alongside standard versus. In the Scenario Campaign ending, after being defeated by Heihachi's illegitimate sonLars Alexandersson(who suffered amnesia at one point during the Scenario Campaign), Jin Kazama is revealed to have wreaked havoc and waged war on the world to fill it with negative energy and generate a physical manifestation of Azazel, so that he himself can face and kill him, as he believed that killing Azazel may purge Jin himself from the Devil Gene inside his body. After the battle, Jin's body is found byRaven,and the Devil Gene is still intact in his body.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2

Main article:Tekken Tag Tournament 2

Tekken Tag Tournament 2was released in Japanese arcades in 2011.Its console version was released the next year and is based on the updated arcade version calledTekken Tag Tournament 2 Unlimitedthat contained new features.TheWii Uversion, which served as a launch title for the console, includes a revised version of theTekkenBall mode fromTekken 3and exclusiveNintendothemed costumes for each character, as well as a new mode that makes use of the mushrooms from theSuper Mario Bros.franchise. Like the previous iteration,Tekken Tag Tournament 2includes nearly every character up to that point and a few exclusive characters. Lili's butler Sebastian,Eddy Gordo’s disco-oriented alter ego Tiger Jackson, a new female wrestler character named Jaycee, who is actuallyJulia Changin disguise but was made to differentiate the play style of Julia and her motherMichelle Chang,and Slim Bob a slender version of Bob. A demo version ofTekken Tag Tournament 2was released as part ofTekken Hybridincluding exclusive designs for Devil andDevil Jinfrom the filmTekken: Blood Vengeance.American rapperSnoop Doggwas featured in the game with his own stage and an original song by the rapper titled “Knocc ‘em Down”.

Tekken 7

Promotion atNexon Arenain 2015

Main article:Tekken 7

In early 2014,Katsuhiro Haradaexpressed interest in continuing the series onPlayStation 4.Tekken 7was released in Japanese and Korean arcades in 2015. It is the first game in the series to be powered by theUnreal Engine.The game received an update, subtitledFated Retributionand released to arcades on July 5, 2016, and featured the series' second, third, fourth and fifth guest characters, the guest characters appearing areAkumafrom theStreet Fighterfranchise byCapcom,Geese HowardfromSNK's fighting game franchises,Noctis Lucis Caelumfrom theFinal Fantasyfranchise bySquare EnixandNegan SmithfromThe Walking Deadfranchise. The PlayStation 4 version was confirmed atParis Games Week 2015,and features exclusive content as well asvirtual realitysupport. TheXbox OneandMicrosoft Windowsversions were released on June 2, 2017, alongside the PlayStation 4 version, and are based on theFated Retribution.In the canonical ending, considered the conclusion of the Mishima saga, Heihachi takes control of the Zaibatsu, and attempts to expose Kazuya of the Devil Gene, after a failed attempt on capturing a missing Jin, who was found safely by his uncles Lars and Lee. In their final battle, Kazuya permanently kills Heihachi and throws him into an erupting volcano, whereas Jin, who recovered from his coma thanks to Lars and Lee, declares that he must kill Kazuya to end the cursed Mishima bloodline. It was also revealed that Heihachi killed his wifeKazumiin self-defense because of her possession of the Devil Gene and the fact that she had gained a split personality because of it, shortly after Kazuya was born. Few side playable characters’ storylines have their endings fromTekken Tag Tournament 2ties to this game.

Tekken 8

Main article:Tekken 8

A teaser for a new mainline entry in the series was shown duringTekken 7's tournament atEVO 2022,before being formally announced on September 13, 2022 during Sony'sState of Playpresentation. It was released on thePlayStation 5,Xbox Series X/S,and PC throughSteamon January 26, 2024. As a continuation from the seventh mainline game, it focuses on a conclusion of Kazuya and Jin's enmity.In contrast to the seventh mainline game's utility of Unreal Engine 4,Tekken 8will utilize Unreal Engine 5, making it the first fighting game to do so.This game was announced on January 6, 2023 to be co-developed withArika,who also handles the recent patch(es) forTekken 7.

Spin-off and crossover games

Release timeline

1994	Tekken
1995	Tekken 2
1996
1997	Tekken 3
1998
1999	Tekken Card Challenge
	Tekken Tag Tournament
2000
2001	Tekken 4
	Tekken Advance
2002–2003
2004	Tekken 5
2005	Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection
	Death by Degrees
2006
2007	Tekken 6
2008	Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion
2009
2010	Tekken Resolute
2011	Tekken Hybrid
	Tekken Tag Tournament 2
	Tekken Bowl
2012	Tekken 3D: Prime Edition
	Street Fighter X Tekken
2013	Tekken Revolution
	Tekken Card Tournament
	Tekken Arena
2014
2015	Tekken 7
	Pokkén Tournament
	Galaga: TEKKEN Edition
2016	Tekken 7: Fated Retribution
2017	Pokkén Tournament DX
2018	Tekken Mobile
2019	Tekken 7: FR: Round 2
2020–2023
2024	Tekken 8

Tekken 3was also ported to theGame Boy AdvanceasTekken Advancein 2001.Tekken 6-basedTekken 3D: Prime Editionwas released for theNintendo 3DSin 2012. A free to play version ofTekkenwas released in 2013 for PSN asTekken Revolution.Tekken Card Challengewas released on theWonderSwan,a Japan-exclusive handheld, in 1999.A spin-offaction adventure gamefeaturing series' characterNina Williamsas the protagonist,Death by Degrees,released for the PS2 in 2005.Two mobileTekkenspin-off games were released in 2011: a 2D fighting gameTekken Resolute,which was the first game not to include Heihachi Mishima,andTekken Bowl,the bowling mini-game fromTekken Tag Tournament,for theiOSoperating system.Tekken Bowlwas first game not to include Yoshimitsu, Nina Williams, Paul Phoenix, or King.In 2013, a third mobile game titledTekken Card Tournamentwas released by Namco Bandai to theApp StoreforiOSandGoogle Play StoreonAndroid.That same year, Namco Bandai also releasedTekken Arenato the Google Play Store on Android.On April 30, 2015, Namco releasedGalaga: Tekken 20th Anniversary Edition,a mobile game variant ofGalagafeaturing characters from the franchise. It was originally announced onApril 1,2015.

Namco andCapcomagreed to createcrossovergames of theTekkenandStreet Fighterfranchises. In 2012,Street Fighter X Tekkenwas released, which was developed by Capcom and includes 2D gameplay mechanics as seen inStreet Fighter IV.Namco was also developingTekken X Street Fighter,which would feature gameplay mechanics similar toTekken Tag Tournament 2,but it was placed on hold indefinitely in 2016.

Pokkén Tournamentwas announced in August 2014, as a spin-off of the franchise set within thePokémonfranchise. It was initially released in Japan as an arcade game, but was released internationally onWii Uin 2016, and is also ported toNintendo Switch.

Tekken Mobile,another spinoff, was released on March 1, 2018.Although it had a mixed reception from critics,it was well received by the public and exceeded one million downloads.

Development

ProducerKatsuhiro Harada

Tekkenwas not originally conceived as a fighting game. The project began as an internalNamcotest casefor animating3Dcharacter models, and eventually incorporatedtexture mappingsimilar to that found in Namco's 1993 racing gameRidge Racer.Directed byVirtua FighterdesignerSeiichi Ishii,Tekkenwas intended to be a fundamentally similar title, with the addition of detailed textures that were not blocky on the characters likeVirtua Fighter 2and twice theframe rate.It was the first 3D fighting game to use the modern 60 fps standard.

Gameplay

An example of a fight inTekken 5which uses the series' common 3D design

As with many fighting games,playerschoose a character from a lineup and engage inhand-to-handcombat with an opponent. Traditional fighting games are usually played with buttons which correspond to the strength of the attack, such as strong punch or weak kick.Tekken,however, dedicates a button to each of the four limbs of the fighter.The gameplay system includes blocks, throws, escapes, and ground fighting.

In the originalTekken,players could only block attacks manually. From then on, starting withTekken 2,characters automatically block while not moving forward or performing actions, a feature called "neutral guard." Standing or retreating characters will block high and middle attacks with no input from the player, while crouching characters will duck high attacks and block low ones. Normal middle attacks will hit crouching players, but some special mid-attacks can be blocked by both stand and crouching neutral guards. Meanwhile, pressing backwards will give the player an "active guard" that can withstand certain combo attacks that would normally penetrate the neutral guard. Some characters are equipped with parries and reversals that act like traditional "press button to block" systems.

Tekken 3introduced several gameplay possibilities that were retained in later games, including the ability to sidestep into the foreground or background.Tekken 3and later games also reduced recovery time after being knocked down and gave characters rolls to recover instantly after hitting the ground, allowing the player to get back into the fight more quickly at the risk of being hit while rolling.

Tekken 4was another leap, and gave characters even greater mobility by adding true3Dmovement inside geometrically complex arenas with uneven ground, obstacles, and walls. The 3D gameplay allows damaging side and back throws as a reward for outmaneuvering the opponent, as well as evasive attacks that develop directly from a sidestep.Tekken 4received mixed feedback to the point of being considered by some as one of the worst installments in the series which led to major changes starting withTekken 5.This was done thanks to the new engine provided by Namco.In retrospect, Harada believesTekken 5,andTekken 6,managed to attract a new group of fans, somethingTekken 4did not largely do. However, the game has significantly grown in acclaim after some years due to its realism in gameplay and gritty story arcs.Harada has even improved his thoughts on the game and has gone on to call it the best game or peak in the series during an interview for the new Tekken 8. According to Harada, the innovation went "the other way" or reverted to more conservatism beginning Tekken 5. Much of the positive changes and reviews were not focused on in Tekken 4, and instead Harada focused only on the negative reviews against it, which in hindsight was not the proper way to make a fighting game starting with Tekken 5. Thus, he felt the game could have been even better, despite the eventual huge success upon its debut in late 2004.Tekken 5also saw a combination of walled and infinite arenas, while discarding uneven ground and terrain to allow more juggling.

Tekken 6retains much of the design fromTekken 5,but it also includes a "Rage" mode, which activates when a character is near the end of his vitality bar and earns a damage multiplier. "Bound" (later known as "Ground Bound" ) hits were also added, in which a player connected with an airborne opponent will place him in an inescapable grounded state, allowing combo extensions.Tekken 6also has destructible floors and walls that allow the fighters to blast through to new fighting areas when broken.Tekken Tag Tournament 2retains these elements while also adding a new kind of stage break ( "balcony breaks", which is a combination of floor and wall breaks where characters will go through a breakable wall and fall to a lower level in the same sequence).Tag 2specific features include Tag Assaults (cooperative combos triggered by hitting a Bound and a tag at the same time) and Tag Crashes (an emergency tag occurring when downed and the partner is currently in Rage).

Tekken 7introduces some movement changes to theTekkenformula. The back walk animation is now similar toTekken Revolution,featuring a more fluid movement away from the opponent as opposed to a slower shuffle. Regular back rolling from a grounded state has been removed and instead replaced with new rising animation and performing an "ankle kick" (kicking the standing opponent while laying face up on the ground) is now accompanied by a new back roll to help create separation. Balcony breaks fromTag Tournament 2are present and function similarly to how they did in solo play. New features include "Power Crushes" (an attack that cannot be interrupted by regular attacks once the animation has begun) and "Rage Arts" (a super move attack that can only be used when your character has hit a Raged state near the end of their vitality meter, sacrificing the Rage mode to perform the attack). Bound has been mostly removed save for specific situations (certain moves can cause a Ground Bound if not combo-ed into and all low parries will cause a Ground Bound effect, similar toTekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion;floor breaks now result in an effect similar to a Tag Assault inTag 2rather than a standard Ground Bound) and instead, characters now have more frequent access to an "Aerial Tailspin" effect (an attack that throws an opponent backward onto their head as opposed to straight downwards, although it is still inescapable once triggered which means the combo can continue). LaterTekken 7updates eventually add "Rage Drive" (also cost Rage mode, and is an equivalent of EX and lower level super moves) as ofTekken 7: Fated Retribution,with the console ports' post-Season 1 adds two new damage properties which were originally existed in previous characters and still can only work against an opponent while they are on the ground.Tekken 7Season 2 adds "Wall Bound" mechanic, which bounces opponents from the wall to nearby them to an airborne state with a knockdown attack, originally used by both NANCY-MI847J inTekken 6and a guest character Geese Howard prior to Season 2. However, currently, only a guest character Negan Smith can utilize Wall Bounce against an airborne opponent via one of his Rage Drives. The last update patch ofTekken 7Season 4 adds "Wall Stun", which causes opponents to be bounced from the wall and entered a downed hit stun, whether they were being hit by or blocked their attacking opponents' attack.

Tekken 8introduced a new heat mode making the game oriented toward offensive play and creates more opportunities to turn the tide of a fight.

Characters

The conflict between the Mishima family serves as the main focus of the series' plot.As seen from left to right:Jinpachi Mishima,Heihachi Mishima,Kazuya MishimaandJin Kazama.

Further information:Characters of the Tekken series

Players can choose from a diverse cast that hails from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and fighting styles. A few characters have supernatural origin, such as Devil,Alisa Bosconovitch,Angel,Mokujin,OgreandAzazel,while animal characters likeKuma,Panda,theRogerfamily, andAlexprovidecomic relief.In the story mode of the game, each character generally has their own personal reasons for entering the tournament and competing for the prize.

The protagonist of the series has varied between installments; the character ending of each canon game determines the protagonist of each.Kazuya Mishimawas the protagonist in the original game andTekken 7,his fatherHeihachi Mishimawas the protagonist ofTekken 2,andJin Kazamahas been one of the central protagonists since his debut inTekken 3with Kazuya and Heihachi sharing the mantle inTekken 7.The conflict between the Mishima family within multiple generations serves as the main conflict to the series' plot or at least the Mishima saga according to Katsuhiro Harada, who describes it as a simple struggle of the three men aiming to destroy one another and the devil gene.AlthoughLars Alexanderssonamong other characters are not fully related to them, they serve as major characters withinTekken 6where Jin serves as the main antagonist instead of his relatives.

Characters with background connections in the story typically have styles or moves in common. For example, Heihachi and Kazuya Mishima, by virtues of familial connection and studying under the same Advanced Mishima Style Fighting Karate discipline, have very similar moves and a signature "crouch dash" stance for pretty much their entire appearances in the series.Jin Kazama,when he debuted, also had the same Mishima fighting style, though he mixed this with Kazama Style Traditional Martial Arts as practiced by his mother,Jun Kazama.For storyline reasons, starting onTekken 4,he forwent this in favor of Traditional Karate, a completely different discipline that technically made him an entirely different character, while his old movelist was given to his demonic form, Devil Jin. Meanwhile, there are some characters who were formerly clones of each other before they diverged and gained unique moves, such as Lee Chaolan (a clone of Marshall Law), Anna Williams (a clone of her sister, Nina), and Armor King (a clone of King).Still further, there are also characters who are replacements or "successors" of older characters; this happened principally inTekken 3due to the significant time skip, though some older characters later returned alongside their successors anyway. Examples includeJulia Chang(replacing her adoptive mother,Michelle),Hwoarang(replacing his mentor, Baek Doo San, who later returned) and as mentioned above, Jin Kazama (replacing both of his parents, Kazuya and Jun, the former of whom later returned, while the latter was replaced byAsuka Kazama). Another example of two characters sharing a moveset can be seen withEddy Gordo,a Brazilian representing the dance fighting martial art known asCapoeira.He shares these dance fighting moves with his mentee,Christie Monteiro.

SomeTekkencharacters have been featured as guest characters in other video games, such asAnna Kournikova's Smash Court Tennis,Digimon World Re:Digitize,Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2,Pac-Man Fever,PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale,Ridge Racer 6,Smash Court Tennis Pro Tournament 2,Soulcalibur II,Super Smash Bros. Ultimate,Brawlhalla,andUrban Reign,as well as in some crossover role-playing video games, includingCross Edge,Namco × Capcom,Project X Zone,Project X Zone 2,Queen's Gate: Spiral ChaosandThe King of Fighters All Star.

Adaptations

Anime series

Tekken: Bloodline,astreaming televisionanime series, was announced byNetflixin March 2022.It loosely adapts the events ofTekken 3and was released on August 18, 2022.

Animated films

Tekken: The Motion Picture,a two-partOVAanime series, was released in Japan in 1998. It was developed byStudio Deenand directed byKunihisa Sugishima.Its story followsKazuya Mishima's revenge against his fatherHeihachiin the King of Iron Fist Tournament.

Tekken: Blood Vengeance,a full-length animated film inDigital 3Ddirected by Youichi Mouri, premiered in the United States in 2011 and was released in Japan two months later that same year.Digital Frontierdeveloped and Bandai Entertainment distributed the film.Blood Vengeanceis an alternate retelling between the events ofTekken 5andTekken 6.It was released in Japan in December 2011 as a part of theTekken Hybridcollection.

Live-action films

Tekkenis a live-action film directed byDwight Littleand starringJon Foo,Ian Anthony DaleandKelly Overton.It was released at theAFI Film Festivalon November 5, 2009, and in Japan on March 20, 2010, throughWarner Bros.The film focuses onJin Kazamawho enters into the King of Iron Fist Tournament after his mother's death.Katsuhiro Harada, director of theTekkenvideo game series, has panned the film.

A prequel to the 2009 film titledTekken 2: Kazuya's Revengewas releaseddirect-to-DVDon August 12, 2014. It is directed byWych Kaosayanandaand starsKane KosugiandKelly Wenham,withCary-Hiroyuki TagawaandGary Danielsreturning from the first film.Variety reports that Paul Stevens will produce a Tekken remake with China's company Financing City Network.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2,a live-action short film by Wild Stunt Europe, was released on Namco Bandai Games Europe'sYouTubechannel on October 19, 2012.

Other media

There have been five printed adaptations of theTekkengames. Knightstone Comics published bothTekken SagaandTekken 2,released in October 1997 and September 1998 respectively. Both comics were written by John Kim and illustrated by Walter McDaniel.Tekken Forever,a comic book by Dave Chi, illustrated by Paco Diaz, and published byImage Comicsin December 2001, features a story that focused on the Kazama family and also theUnknowncharacter fromTekken Tag Tournament.Tekken: Tatakai no Kanatani(Thiết quyền: Đấu い の bỉ phương に,lit. "Tekken: The Other Side of Battle" )is a manga written byKeiichi Suzukiand published byShogakukan,which was collected in twotankōbonvolumes with the first one on December 5, 2000, and the second one on April 5, 2001.Tekken Comicis a manga illustrated by Rui Takato and published byUltra Egg Jumpin 2009. Although the story leads up to the King of Iron Fist Tournament 6, it is non-canonical to the main video game series. In October 2016,Titan Comicsannounced a newTekkencomic book, a four-issue mini-series byCavan Scott,illustrated byAndie Tong,and published in mid-2017. The series takes place betweenTekken 6and7,and deals with Jin struggling against the Devil within him.

Characters and settings from the series also appear in the collectible card gameUniversal Fighting SystembyFantasy Flight Gamesand inEpic BattlesbyScore Entertainment.

Reception

Aggregate review scores
As of March 09, 2024.

Game	GameRankings	Metacritic	OpenCritic
Tekken	75%	–	–
Tekken 2	93%	89	–
Tekken 3	95%	96	–
Tekken Tag Tournament	86%	85	–
Tekken 4	81%	79	–
Tekken 5	89%	88	–
Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection	(PSP) 89% (PS3) 82%	(PSP) 88 (PS3) 82	–
Tekken 6	(PSP) 83% (X360) 81% (PS3) 80%	(PSP) 82 (360) 80 (PS3) 79	–
Tekken Tag Tournament 2	(PS3) 82% (360) 83% (Wii U) 83%	(PS3) 82 (360) 83 (Wii U) 83	–
Tekken 7	(PC) 83% (PS4) 81% (XONE) 82%	(PC) 82 (PS4) 82 (XONE) 81	83% recommend
Tekken 8	–	(PC) 92 (PS5) 90 (XSXS) 89	99% recommend

Critical reception to the games has been positive, with the series arguably peaking with the release ofTekken 3that received an average of 96% atMetacriticandGameRankings,and to this day considered one of the greatest fighting games of all time. Other candidate games have beenTekken 2,Tekken Tag Tournament,andTekken 8.

In 1999,Next Generationlisted theTekkenseries as number 12 on their "Top 50 Games of All Time", commenting that, "In the transition from 16-bit to 32-bit,Tekkenstole the crown fromStreet Fighteras the king of modern brawlers with addictive fighting in its rawest form. "

Developers of non-Tekkengames have commented on the series in various ways.Ed Boon,the co-creator ofMortal Kombat,revealed in one of his interviews withGameProthat his favorite fighting game out of his competitors isTekken.BothSegaand Namco have shown interest in a possible crossover betweenVirtua FighterandTekken,which came in the form ofProject X Zoneandits sequelfor the3DS.Tekkenis known to have been heavily inspired byVirtua Fighterand the series has often been labelled as a "rival" toVirtua Fighteras they became two of the most famous 3D fighting game series along withSoulcaliburandDead or Alive.On the other hand,Tomonobu Itagaki,designer of theDead or Aliveseries, expressed dislike for theTekkenfranchise due toNamcorunning radio commercial ads insulting hisDead or Aliveseries, prompting Itagaki to place it as one of his most disliked games.

In2004'sShaun of the Dead,characters Pete, Shaun, and Ed "stayed up all night, drinking apple schnapps and playingTekken 2."Tekken 3is considered one of thegreatest games of all time.

In 2012,ComplexrankedTekkenat number 11 on the list of the best video game franchises, commenting: "Just when we thought that theStreet Fighterfranchise was going to be the epitome of fighting games,Tekkencame to make it share its portion of the knuckle-busting pie.Tekkenhas cult-like fans who live and breathe the moves and storylines. "

Sales

As of March 2023, theTekkenfranchise had sold over 58 million copies worldwide.Tekken 7is the highest-selling game in the franchise, selling over12 millioncopies as of August 2024.

Legacy

Yes, we have developed it [for] PlayStation 1, 2, and now 3, so it is true that we have really grown with the PlayStation brand - we have a lot of fond memories, and we worked very closely withMr. Kutaragias well, so we had a really good relationship. We love the platform.

– Katsuhiro Harada, addressingTekken's multiplatform debut

Since the series has a long history of being exclusive toPlayStationalong with the arcade cabinets running on PlayStation hardware,Tekkenhas been associated closely with the PlayStation brand.Katsuhiro Harada has stated that PlayStation remains the main platform of development forTekken.

The first game in the series was the first PlayStation game to sell over a million units,which earned it aGuinness World Records Gamer's Editionaward in 2008, among other awards including "First Fighting Game To Feature Simulated 3D", and a record for the entire series, "The Best Selling Fighting Series for PlayStation Consoles."Tekken Tag Tournamentwas one of the most popular launch titles for the PlayStation 2.

Another game developed by Namco,Soulcalibur II,included exclusive characters for different console versions and featuredHeihachi Mishima,a character that has been in allTekkengames and the protagonist ofTekken 2,exclusive to thePlayStation 2version.He was also playable inPlayStation All-Stars Battle Royaleand is Harada's favorite character in the series.

Tekken 7's PlayStation 4 announcement trailer featured a retrospective celebration of "20 Years ofTekken",and the PlayStation 4 version of the game features exclusive content from previous titles in the series, including character costumes and musical tracks.The PlayStation 4 version was the best selling version of the game, and provided a 6% boost in hardware sales in Japan.WhilePlayStation Classicwas not well received by the public,Tekken 3was included in the preloaded collection.Tekken 3is also available in all regions.

Astro's Playroom,a2020video game released as a launch title forPlayStation 5,included a homage to theTekkenseries.The inclusion was supervised by Harada as well.The successor,2024'sAstro Bot,also including a reference toTekken.Closed network testing ofTekken 8was available first exclusively to PlayStation 5,as well as a demo.While Windows became the most popular platform forTekken 8,sales on the PlayStation 5 version were significantly higher than theXbox SeriesX/S's.

In May 2012, Namco Bandai opened Tekken Museum inOsaka,Japan.The museum showcases goods, action figures, artworks, life-size statues ofTekkencharacters, and various merchandise. The items on display are rotated regularly so that the museum is worth multiple visits.

External links

• Official website
• Official website(in Japanese)