While its release date has not been announced yet, Tekken 8 is the subject of a new video detailing some of the upcoming fighting game's mechanics. It has been 8 years since the release of Tekken 7, which first appeared in arcades back in 2015, followed by its arrival on consoles and PC in 2017. Tekken 7 has not been ported to the new generation of consoles, but is available thanks to backwards compatibility features on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
The Tekken series has had its fair share of new mechanics in its long history. For example, Tekken 7 introduced Rage Arts, which are powerful and cinematic attacks that can be unleashed when a player's character health is low. While new mechanics have proven to be divisive in some games, Tekken creator Katsuhiro Harada and his team seem to be very particular about the changes they make, taking care to ensure that it enhances the player's experience when playing the game they have created rather than alienating longtime fans. Tekken remains one of the most popular fighting franchises in history thanks to this design philosophy.
In a new keynote, Tekken 8 executive director Katsuhiro Harada and game director Kohei Ikeda spoke about some of the new features fans can expect to be featured in the upcoming game. The pair detailed changes to the existing Rage system, such as the removal of Rage Drive techniques, as well as the unification of the Rage Art command across all characters. The next detail they discussed was the new Recovery Gauge, which according to Harada is quite similar to a mechanic that featured in Tekken Tag Tournament. This new feature will allow for a portion of health to be regained if the player successfully blocks a big move from their opponent. To recover this health, the player must go on the offensive and either damage their opponent or cause them to block.
The next new mechanic for Tekken 8 is the Heat System, which is designed to be overwhelmingly beneficial to the attacker. It features a dedicated Heat Gauge that gives the player 10 seconds to pummel their opponent, which can be extended through attacking. The Heat condition also enhances certain moves and combos, and also enables the player to unleash a devastating Heat Smash attack.
Finally, Harada and Ikeda discussed the new Special Controller Style, which is intended to make Tekken 8 combos and assists more accessible for casual players. This controller style can be used without restrictions, even in competitive play, however its benefits have an upper limit. According to Harada, you will inevitably "hit a wall" with this controller style, and a skilled player who is familiar with the Arcade Controller Style will likely still have an advantage in Tekken 8.
Tekken 8 is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.