Editing Tekken (universe)

{{Title|''Tekken'' (universe)}}

|caption          = [[File:TekkenSymbol.svg|50px|class=invert-dark]]

|latestinstallment = ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken 8}}'' (2024)

The '''''Tekken universe''''' ({{ja|鉄拳|Tekken}}, ''Iron Fist''), sometimes stylized as '''TEKKEN''', refers to the ''{{b|Super Smash Bros.|series}}'' series' collection of characters, stages, and properties hailing from the long-running series of fighting games created and owned by [[Bandai Namco]] (formerly Namco). Originating in 1994 for arcades, the series centers around a feud among the members of the Mishima family surrounding the inheritance of [[Heihachi Mishima]], a recurring antagonist in the series. One of Bandai Namco's flagship franchises and its best-selling one, the ''Tekken'' series has sold more than 50 million copies worldwide during its lifespan and is considered a pioneer in the fighting game genre, being one of the first to utilize 3D animation and CGI in its gameplay, unheard of for the genre at the time. The series was originally represented in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]'' through a [[downloadable content]] costume for Mii Brawlers based on Heihachi Mishima, while joining the roster with [[Kazuya Mishima]] in [[Fighters Pass Vol. 2]] of ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''.  

The earliest version of ''Tekken'' can be traced back to an internal test case at [[Namco]] in the early 1990s. The purpose of this test was to experiment with the animation of 3D character models, which was a new trend at the time. The team for this test later started playing with texture mapping, which the company had worked on with the 1993 arcade game ''{{iw|wikipedia|Ridge Racer}}''. As the project slowly morphed into a fighting game, {{iw|wikipedia|Seiichi Ishii}}, former designer for {{uv|Virtua Fighter}} was brought on to direct the project. While this new game, called '''Rave War''' at the time, would be fundamentally similar to Ishii's previous work, there would be some fundamental differences. ''Virtua Fighter'' used small stages with the "ring out" system of a fighter instantly losing if they step out of bounds and a 3 button control scheme: punch, kick, and defense. ''Tekken'' experimented with infinite stages that had no boundaries and a 4 button control scheme: left arm, right arm, left leg, and right leg. Other minor differences include more detailed textures and a higher frame rate. The name was eventually changed to ''Tekken'' late in development. The ''Tekken'' series holds the world record of being the longest-running story in a video game, with ''Tekken 8'' being the latest game in the plot's length in the span of 30 years.

Another sequel, ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken 3}}'', was released in arcades in 1997, this time on the new System 12 arcade board, and in 1998 on PlayStation. This game is the first entry [[Katsuhiro Harada]] got to direct, and he would later become the main director of the franchise going forward. The game featured a roster of mostly new fighters, with only six returning from the previous game—the game marked the first inclusion of a guest character, being Gon from the [[wikipedia:Gon (manga)|titular manga series]]. This game is notable as the first in the series to allow side stepping, a technique that would become a staple in not just the rest of the franchise, but the 3D fighting game sub-genre as a whole. The PlayStation port also included new modes that expanded upon the gameplay: Tekken Force, a stage-based beat-'em-up game, and Tekken Ball, in which players fight by hitting a ball back and forth and damage is determined by whether one of the players can hit the ball back or not. At 8.36 million copies sold, ''Tekken 3'' was the single best-selling entry in the series and held that title for 14 years.

The next entry, ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken 6}}'', released on the System 257 arcade board in 2007. Most of the characters from ''Tekken 5'' returned, as well as several new characters. The game expanded on the functionality of walls and added the ability to break them, as well as introduce breakable floors, which served as combo extenders. This was done to preemptively remove most potential infinite combos that walls enabled in previous entries. This necessitated bigger stages, which led to the innovation of portions of the stage next to or below the initial area sectioned off at the start of the match, only opening when the corresponding wall or floor was broken. The game also introduced the Rage system, which increases a character's damage output when low on health. While not given as favorable a response or selling as well as the previous entry, the game is still seen as an excellent entry in the series. The game received a major update in 2008, titled ''Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion'', which introduced new characters, stages, items and customization option. This version of the game was ported to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PlayStation Portable in 2009. The game is notable for being the first multi-platform entry on consoles. As of this game, future ''Tekken'' console launches use their updated arcade title versions.

The franchise next released a slew of spin-off titles. The first was the 2010 Java mobile game ''Tekken Mobile'', later renamed to ''Tekken Resolute''. The game is the first proper 2D Tekken fighting game and is notable among mobile games at the time for offering local wireless multiplayer via Bluetooth. This was followed up by the 2011 PlayStation 3 title ''Tekken Hybrid'', which contains the feature film ''Tekken: Blood Vengeance'', an HD remaster of ''Tekken Tag Tournament'', and a demo called ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Prologue''—the demo was for the then-upcoming ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken Tag Tournament 2}}'', which released on the System 369 arcade board in 2011 and on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 later that year. A [[Wii U]] version was released after, based on the arcade update ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Unlimited'', and included exclusive content such as costumes based on [[Nintendo]] characters. Next was ''Tekken Bowl'', a free mobile app released in 2011 based on the side mode introduced in ''Tekken Tag Tournament''. Afterwards came ''Tekken 3D: Prime Edition'', a stripped down port of ''Tekken 6'' for [[Nintendo 3DS]] in 2012. While the game was praised for functioning very well for the system it was on, it was criticized for its overall lack of content. Next came ''{{iw|wikipedia|Street Fighter X Tekken}}'', a crossover game with the {{uv|Street Fighter}} universe. While the ''Tekken'' team had little involvement with this entry, 25 of their characters did appear in this game. Another game titled ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken X Street Fighter}}'' was in the early stages at the same time, but was indefinitely shelved after the lukewarm reception and disappointing sales of its sister title, with it still being on hold in 2021 <ref>https://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1sro0br</ref>. Next was ''Tekken Revolution'', a modified version of ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'' released on the PlayStation Store in 2013. The game received mixed reviews, with many agreeing that it was simply a watered down version of an already existing game and was criticized for the prominent microtransactions creating a "pay-to-win" culture. The game was pulled from the European store in 2016 and support officially ended in 2017. Soon after was ''Tekken Card Tournament'', a digital trading card game similar to ''Tekken Card Challenge'', with turn-based mechanics. Finally, there was ''Tekken Arena'', a mobile MMORPG in 2013, where the player made their own avatar with special stats to defeat bosses and other players.

The next mainline entry, ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken 7}}'', released on the System ES3 arcade board in 2015 and runs with {{iw|wikipedia|Unreal Engine 4}}. Most of the characters who last appeared in ''Tekken 6'' return, as well as several new characters. This game is notable for being the first mainline entry to introduce true guest characters—though ''Tekken 3'' had Gon, ''Tekken 7'' introduced Akuma from {{uv|Street Fighter}} as a significant part of the story, and characters from {{uv|Fatal Fury|The King of Fighters}}-related series (namely ''Fatal Fury'' shared universe series, and the titular ''KOF'' tournament series), {{uv|Final Fantasy}}, and even ''{{iw|wikipedia|The Walking Dead|franchise}}'' were later added in as DLC and additional contents for post-console release Arcade updates (the latter guest series is excluded from the arcade updates). There were also crossovers with Bandai Namco's other IPs such as {{uvm3|Taiko no Tatsujin}}, and {{uv|Pac-Man}} as it happened during the franchise's 40th anniversary. The game also introduced several new mechanics, including an expansion to the "Rage" family of systems like Rage Art and Rage Drive, which are special moves only accessible when low on health. The game received an update titled ''Tekken 7: Fated Retribution'' in 2016, which introduced new characters, stages and mechanics. This version provided the basis for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows versions in 2017. In June of 2022, the game was confirmed to have surpassed 9 million copies sold, surpassing ''Tekken 3'' as the single best selling entry in the series.

The ''Tekken'' team has also collaborated with {{iw|bulbapedia|The Pokémon Company}} to develop ''{{iw|bulbapedia|Pokkén Tournament}}'', which released in arcades in 2015 and on Wii U in 2016. The game is notable for having different stages and characters between both versions, and using the same compatible memory card on both versions can unlock the missing content in both. The game received an enhanced port titled ''Pokkén Tournament DX'' on [[Nintendo Switch]] in 2017, which combined the content in the arcade and Wii U version and added new content. Aside from a ''Tekken'' skin created for ''Galaga'', ''Tekken Mobile'', released for mobile devices in 2018, used touch screen inputs to use the fighter and has gacha elements known as Waza cards, which did have unique effects. As of February 15, 2019 the game was no longer playable likely because of the negative reception of the game's expensive prices, and lack of revenue on the game's part. Four years later and after continuous updates for ''Tekken 7'', a Netflix animated series of the franchise titled ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken: Bloodline}}'' was revealed, and premiered in 2022. This series focuses on Jin Kazama's plot during the storyline of the franchise.

At [[EVO]] 2022, a new entry had been confirmed for the franchise. It shows Kazuya's ending cutscene from ''Tekken'', before switching to a higher quality model of himself, smirking at the camera, and the phrase "Get ready" appearing next to him. It was then at the opening of Sony's State of Play of September 13, 2022 that confirmed the untitled ''Tekken'' game shown at EVO 2022 was in fact the next mainline entry, ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tekken 8}}''. The existence of the game was previously leaked in November 2021, as part of a list of games leaked from Nvidia, but was officially announced in the State of Play. The game runs on {{iw|wikipedia|Unreal Engine 5}}, with more depth on the gameplay and the stages' environments rendered in real-time thanks to the engine's power. The game released on January 26, 2024 PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X & S, and PC. Plot-wise, it focuses on the conflict between Kazuya and Jin after the events of ''Tekken 7''. The game mostly consists of characters from ''Tekken 7'' with a few newcomers. The new gameplay innovation is a replacement of Rage Drive moves called the heat system, which can be activated to boost certain abilities depending on the character and use some exclusive techniques, and can end with a super move during the heat state, further expanding gameplay diversity between players. Additionally, the voice overs of this game are solely provided by the current voice actors, rather than reusing voice archives from the previous games.