Are Tekken 8’s Combos Too Long? Yes, Say Devs

Tekken 8 is coming. When? That’s uncertain. However, there’s a lot of hype surrounding the fighting game due to its super-detailed graphical style, new Heat system, and (optional) simplified controls.

At Evolution Championship Series 2023, I spoke with Bandai Namco’s Katsuhiro Harada (game director and producer) and Michael Murray (producer and translator) about the upcoming title. The responses are translated from Japanese to English, and lightly edited for clarity. The interview was conducted before Bandai Namco revealed Tekken 8’s new characters, Azucena and Raven.

PCMag: One of biggest new features in Tekken 8 is the Heat system. What kind of reception has it received?

Bandai Namco: So, there are a few changes that we wanted to make after people played the Control Network Test (CNT). Many people said they felt the combos were too long. So to address that, we plan to make some changes to the Heat system because it was what caused combos to be a little bit long at times. We think we can alleviate some of this by addressing when you go directly into the Heat system with the Heat Burst. Maybe give it another method to be used, too. For example, rather than just putting in an aerial juggle, maybe we’d add Power Crush properties to it. So rather than just using it to continue combos, you can use it to change the tide of battle when someone’s attacking. That’s one way we’re thinking of to shorten combos a bit.

Were players simply trading long combos?

Right. Normally, you’d launch an opponent, do some techniques, then finish it. Now, you launch an opponent, do some hits, do a Heat Burst, do a Heat Dash, finish.

I watched a lot of CNT footage and it appeared as though people were so focused on rushing in that there was less sidestepping.

That’s a good observation. Perhaps it’s due to the Heat gauge when you’re rushing down your opponent. It stops depleting when you hit an opponent or make them block. Maybe if the defending player is successful in blocking, they should be rewarded. Perhaps we don’t stop the Heat countdown. That would mean less time in that rushdown state, and maybe more opportunities to read your opponent and adjust.

There’s also the Recoverable gauge, the white portion of the health gauge. We noticed during the CNT, more than intended sometimes, that there’s a lot of white damage due to certain moves being stronger in the Heat state. Defending players aren’t necessarily aware of what’s causing the light damage. Maybe reducing the amount of gauge eaten by those Heat moves would solve some problems, and lead to more of that back-and-forth that people like about Tekken.

(Credit: Bandai Namco)

Tekken 8 certainly feels aggressive. In fact, the new crop of fighting games as a whole feels focused on going in hard.

Maybe many people might feel that way due to the cinematics. The way that things are portrayed in fighting games have gone in that direction.

So it’s more the presentation?

Yeah. When you’re doing something over the top, it just makes it look like you’re destroying your opponent because it stops time, moves the camera, and has flashy effects. So it’s more like an emotional reaction that might give that impression to people.

If you look at games as a whole, even the Street Fighter or the Virtua Fighter series, you could rush down your opponent or force a ring out. So, it’s always been like that in fighting games. Blocking and defense are strong, so it feels like you do a lot of damage when you’re able to open up your opponent. The basic flow of fighting games hasn’t really changed. It’s probably just that presentation has evolved. Also, moves are easier to do. Now with Street Fighter 6‘s Modern Controls and Tekken 8’s Special Style, you take away the execution barrier.

Do you have any data from the CNT about Special Style use? 

We’re still analyzing it because in Tekken 8, you can switch back and forth between control types during the match. If a player switches and doesn’t use it two seconds in, was it a mistake? Or are they using it in certain instances? There are a lot of possibilities, and we still have to parse the data to see exactly what it means.

Just from the perspective of looking at people play matches during the CNT, the adoption was more or less what we expected. More advanced players didn’t mind it. Sometimes they would want to use it. They didn’t have any negative opinions, perhaps like players would with another game.

Tekken is a 3D fighter, so it’s not just about being able to use the strongest move whenever you like. It’s also distance. It’s nuanced. So we found, at least for Tekken 8, that there weren’t as many complaints about losing to someone that you shouldn’t.

(Credit: Bandai Namco)

What was the motivation for adding mid-match switching with Special Style?

We don’t want just modest players to use it, it’s great for other players. We wanted something that intermediate and advanced players could enjoy, as well.

Each character has, let’s say, around 100 moves right? Special Style removes some moves but gives you the best moves for that character. So being able to change it up mid-match means that you can play with a character’s major moves. Gradually, as you learn how the character is played, you probably won’t need Special Style at all.

We’ve been targeting intermediate and advanced players not because they need help with the game. With 16 characters in the CNT, it’s hard to find someone that can play all characters, right? But maybe they want to try someone other than their main character. So rather than just scrolling through the move list, you just turn on Special Style to get a feeling for how a character plays.

For more, check out The Best Fighting Games and The 7 Best Super Smash Bros. Alternatives.