Tekken (1994)

I decided to play all the Tekkens because I really only played 3 back in the day, which was legendary and amazing and everyone I knew played it for years. Then I tried 4 for a bit before I moved abroad and left my Playstation2 behind, but it’s time to turn back the clock and give the other entries their proper due. The fighters all feel different enough with fast or slow kicks and punches, as well as throws/grapples, aerial attacks and special combos. Law and Kazuya are quicker and handles a bit more agile than for example Jack or Paul who feels heavier.

King wears a little tie in this.

I finished the game with all 8 characters and the cut scenes are just total horseradish, not only in terms of quality, graphics and design, but some of them are even kind of fucked up. Nina slaps the shit out of Michelle for accusing her of stealing her shoe - just to reveal that she actually did?? What an asshole. Yoshimitsu is just hauling ass on his horse through some village throwing cash at peasants, leaving them scrambling in the dust. These terrible little films where the only reason I wanted to beat it with all eight fighters. I know, I could've gone on youtube and watched them, but anyway. The stages are fine but lack any objects or detail and the music is bland and forgettable. Nothing that holds up or evokes emotion.

Are those Nike's?

Now don’t forget, this is an Arcade game, so after Round 4 or so the difficulty becomes rigged, ruthless and ridiculous. I’ve had kicks go right through my opponent, I’ve had insane galaxy defying NPC back-from-the-dead comebacks that you would not even believe if I showed you. The Japanese government has to owe its citizens some kind of reparations for putting this game out. No way this is actually legal? I sometimes laughed-cried and angrily googled “Tekken is Rigged” and looked up programmers names to an old game from 1994 so I could curse them with what little black magic I have left…Think about that…That’s madness. That’s Tekken it too far.

Ok I’m going to bed thanks for listening.

[2.1] / [5]

I respect the game, and when It was released in a time where 3D fighting games were still finding their footing, but this is literally outdated by 1996 standards.

Graphics and presentation has aged absolutely horribly. like, did you see the cutscenes? Law's facial expression had my rolling. the UI felt like I was playing a Demo while the real game was still in development. The in-game graphics did not look great and even for it's time. Virtua Fighter Remix was released around the same time and had better looking graphics.

Then you try to actually play and you realize that the most complex 2D fighting game from that time is easier to perform combos in them. I've read the manual, checked movesets online and I'm still somehow performing combos randomly. I could be having a hard time in a fight and then somehow perform the sickest combo imaginable in the game.

This game is bizarrely bad, and funny simultaneously. The worst part is Tekken 2 was released less than a year later on the Playstation 1. Literally, a "Glorified Demo".

Tekken is a good game that, in its foundation, is a tournament fighter like many others at the time. What sets it apart, however, is its excellent story with brutal plot that was kind of dark at the time.

It all evolves around Kazuya Mishima, the most iconic and memorable fighter of the series, who is tossed off a cliff as a five-year-old because his old papa, Heihachi Mishima, the leader of the Mishima Zaibatsu family and clan, wanted to test if his son is strong enough to lead the family. Perfectly normal way to determine one’s strength if you ask me. Kazuya survives but is heavily scarred. Filled with hate and a thirst for revenge, he climbs back up the mountainside. To humiliate (and motivate) Kazuya more, Heihachi adopts an orphan called Lee Chaolan and trains him to be Kazuya’s biggest rival.

When Kazuya fell, he literally released his inner demon, a gene that grants him unbelievable strength, fed by rage and hate. He now travels the world, training and competing in various martial arts contests and becoming one of the best fighters alive. Heihachi sees his son develop and wants to test him in the ultimate contest, the King of Iron Fist Tournament. Kazuya blasts his way through the opponents and faces his old man in the final battle. He crushes him and, in an ultimate act of revenge, picks up his knocked-out body and throws him off the same cliff he did twenty-one years ago. Just epic.

The principle of Tekken is simple. Pick one of the eight fighters and start beating people up. You face different fighters throughout seven stages, then a sub-boss, who are clones of your character (but stronger and with slightly different moves), followed by the great Heihachi himself. If you beat the game with each of the eight original characters, a cutscene unlocks and you have access to seventeen playable characters, including Devil, Kazuya’s alter ego. This is basically a costume for Kazuya himself.

The graphics in Tekken are all right for the time. The game is old, but I felt that a little more detail could be added to the fighters, even for the time. Mainly because this is the only aspect on screen to focus on. The historical accurate locations in the background, however, are greatly done. The animations are a little slow and stiff, but hits on your opponent’s land where they need to and are overall not bad.

There is no music, but the sound effects are nicely done. Hits and grunts are on point and satisfying. The final blow sound is epic when you yeet your opponent to the ground.

Although still a simple game, Tekken features a lot of content and for the completionists among us, offers you the satisfaction of unlocking many more characters then the original eight the game begins with. This is a game from the good old days, in which you actually need to work for your content instead of it just being there.

In the end, Tekken is a great game with a solid story and a lot of content. I must admit that it did not age that well because of its slow and stiff movement, but this is because of the time period back then.

It is still a great classic and, of course, the foundation for a great series. Definitely recommend this blast from the past.

I tried... As I was a big fan of Tekken 3, I wanted to give a go to the pioneer of the Tekken series. The music is unfortunately horrible and the character facial expressions are even worse. The roster is thin, and looking at this game, makes me appreciate TEKKEN 3 that I played back in the days, even more. Surprisingly, both games were released on the same game system but differ so much.