Summary
A slew of newTekken 8information was just revealed during Gamescom 2023’s Opening Night, including its release date, a new game mode, and some pre-order bonuses. The latest installment of Bandai Namco’s 3D fighting game series was formally announced last September, following an ominous teaser trailer at EVO 2022. Since then, details aboutTekken 8have been slowly coming to the surface, with director Katsuhiro Haradapromising a much more “aggressive” experiencethanks to the game’s new “Heat” gauge system.
Story-wise,Tekken 8will mark a brand-new chapter in the legendary Mishima family feud, with longtimeTekkenarchvillain Heihachi Mishima now dead and remaining members Jin Kazama and Kazuya Mishima left to continue their battle in his wake. Over the past few months, Bandai Namco Studios has revealed severalcharacters who will be returning inTekken 8alongside a host of new and refined gameplay mechanics likeTekken 8’s new Special Style and the returning Rage system. However, the developer has remained tight-lipped on when players should expect to playTekken 8, at least until Gamescom 2023.
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LongtimeTekkendirector Katsuhiro Harada and producer Michael Murray joined Gamescom 2023 host Geoff Keighley onstage during the Opening Night livestream to discussTekken 8and reveal a wealth of new information about the upcoming fighting game blockbuster. Harada announced thatTekken 8will have a brand-new game mode, one that will focus on the player themselves as they navigate a virtual arcade that aims to recreate the classic feel of playingTekkenat a mall. This mode, called Arcade Quest, was briefly shown during a subsequentTekken 8trailer and appears to have players create a custom avatar and compete against AI opponents.
Arcade Quest wasn’t the only new thing shown off in the latestTekken 8gameplay trailer, as viewers were treated with more glimpses into the game’s story androster of 32 unique playable characters. While many of these characters were already revealed before Gamescom, some returning fan favorites were unveiled for the very first time, such as the eccentric samurai warrior Yoshimitsu.
Finally,Tekken 8’s release date of June 11, 2025 was revealed at long last, with pre-orders being available on August 22. Those who order oneof Tekken 8’s three editions ahead of time will be rewarded with an Arcade Questcostume modeled after Paul Phoenix, with another pair based on Mokujin and Tetsujin being exclusive to PlayStation users.
Fans have been waiting a long time to find out whenTekken 8will launch, and while it is a few more months away at least it will no longer be released in the already crowded 2023 fighting game landscape. Arcade Quest also looks like an interesting addition toTekken 8, and players will likely get more clues about how it enhances the overallTekkenexperience in the run-up to January.
Tekken 8will launch on June 16, 2025 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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