TEKKEN 7
PlayStation’s legacy fighter is out for fresh blood on PlayStation 4
Forget all about Street Fighter: it’s this 3D, four-button brawling series that’s PlayStation’s true heritage. Once an exhilarating, spiky jumble of fists and polygons ported from arcade to PS1, the original Tekken laid the very groundwork of our favourite console series’ fighting history. 22 years later, despite the huge visual overhaul it’s been given for PS4, our latest hands-on reminds us Tekken’s still got that old soul. A lot of the old-school feel is down to the roster, fluttering out before us in a fan of familiar faces. Kazuya Mishima; Marshall Law; Nina Williams; Paul Phoenix; Ling Xiaoyu; yes, even the furry mugs of King and Kuma. For dedicated followers of the series, it’s thrilling to see the old guard playable in the latest entry. We immediately hover the selector over icecold, ice-blonde Irish assassin Nina, of course, keen to see if she’s still packing those killer pressure tools from Tekken Tag Tournament 2.
That classic line sears onto the screen – ‘get ready for the next battle’ – and we’re soon dropped into our first round of Arcade mode. Our cool girl’s up against Chinese martial artist Feng Wei. Despite the series veteran looking as fearsome as a fair number of tigers, we’re secretly pleased. If Feng’s still as much of a highly defensive ‘turtle’ character as he ever was, he’ll be the perfect guinea pig. The round starts, and we’re soon wrapping our heads and thumbsticks around another classic element we’d
“THE OLD-SCHOOL FEEL IS DOWN TO THE ROSTER OF FAMILIAR FACES.”
almost forgotten: the 3D arena movement style. Fail to block in 2D fighters, and you’re almost certainly toast. Praise the sidestep, friends, for it is just as glorious as we remember. Neatly dodging Feng’s latest flurry of punches and punishing the whiff at close-range with some chained blows of our own feels ultra-satisfying.
Once we’ve taken firm hold of the fight’s momentum, new Nina’s offence burns as brightly as old Nina’s, something we’re delighted by. Pure, raw, hand-to-hand, foot-to-face combat – it’s wonderfully familiar, retaining the spirit of those PS1 polygons despite its flawless Unreal Engine 4 makeover. Tekken, just how it’s always felt… only this time, Nina’s trademark pokey kicks are being unleashed from under a wedding gown.
RED WEDDING
Our hero’s surprisingly silky new battle armour still has yet to be explained (we’re desperate to have a beefier hands-on with the story mode after our small sample at last year’s E3) but it’s fittingly symbolic of Tekken 7’s unexpected twists on its tried-and-true formula. It’s something old, something new: the latest instalment takes all that nostalgia fuel and sets it aflame with fresh mechanics. The most significant new addition? Rage Arts. Get beaten down to the last chunk of your health bar, and you’ll burn an angry red – ready to unleash a powerful move that’ll wipe out about the third of your opponent’s HP. Ouch. Despite its beastly match-winning potential, though, it’s simple to pull off. Although inputs differ for each character, they’re often as easy as hitting two punch or two kick buttons, making Tekken 7 very accessible.
With the fiddly bits removed, and all Rage Arts able to be blocked and punished with the right reactions, the real meat of Tekken 7 is all in the mind games. Your opponent can see you’re ready to Rage – should you try to go for the KO? Hold onto the attack for the psych-out edge? Or use the meter to execute a more complex Rage Drive combo, opening up your options?
CRUSH ON YOU
It’s flexible and friendly. But there’s plenty of depth on show for veterans, too. Characters have built-in armour via the Power Crush mechanic. When we get bullied into a corner by returning bruiser Bob in the next round, we use it to absorb damage from his mid-level punches until we’re ready to counterattack our way out of trouble.
And Tekken 7 just keeps catching us off-guard. A breakdancing, pink-pawed, cat-eared cosplayer named Lucky Chloe; Gigas, the humanoid cybernetic tentacle monster; even the Street Fighter series’ Satsui no Hado master Akuma, whose vicious cross-ups and hadokens we face down in the Arcade mode’s final round. There’s no doubt that this is classic Tekken – expect your typical familymembers-thrown-into-volcanos-tier madness. But with so many accessible mechanical refreshes, a roster sparkling with old faces made new and new faces made thrilling, and even a mysterious PS VR-compatible mode to come? It’s clear the latest Tekken is looking for some new challengers. And we’re itching to start fighting.
“THE MEAT IS IN THE MIND GAMES. GO FOR THE KO? HOLD ONTO THE RAGE ART? OR USE THE RAGE DRIVE?”