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The King of the” Iron fist tournament” is back with its first outing on new gen. So it’s been six long years since “Tekken Tag 2”, and here we are with “Tekken 7”, and it’s been one hell of a wait. I’ve followed the professional players in the tournaments and sat in awe due to their skill, now my time has come to pick up a controller and face the next challenger it what just might be the best fighting game ever created.

Tekken’s story is the best attempt so far bringing the Mishima war to a close, packed with challenging fights and some bad-ass cut-scenes; even Street Fighter’s Akuma makes an appearance and oddly fits quite well into the game. In a weird change, the Arcade mode no longer gives you a cutscene when you beat it with a specific character, these individual stories are now played as single matches, which is great. However, I don’t understand the change, why not just keep it how it used to be. It made Arcade mode more viable to play. None the less it’s a solid attempt at expanding on Tekken’s storytelling.

Tekken 7’s visuals look great (the “Tekken” series has come a long way since the PS1 days).

“Tekken 7” truly shines with its combat. As you can spend hours with one character learning intricate moves and button presses. The skill level differs from character to character. So those who are patient enough could do some serious damage with the likes of King, hitting those combos and mixing them up with powerful grapples. Pulling off a 10 hit combo takes an enormous amount of patience and timing, hitting that hop kick then delivering a punishing jungle into a wall can end matches in seconds. However, there is a new feature that can change the pace of matches and that’s “Rage Arts“.

When you’re low on health, you can go into Rage, which gives you access to a couple of special attacks than can turn the tide of battle. Furthermore, Rage arts can deliver s successive special combo with high damage as well as looking cool as hell. There are some nice little features such as when players are low on health things go into slow-motion as the final blows are delivered making for some truly epic moments.

However, there are a few niggling disappointments that stops “Tekken 7” from reaching perfection. My major gripe is the lack of Lei Wulong (Aka Jackie Chan) from the roster, as Wulong is one of my favorite characters of all time. In fact, there are a few other fan favourites admitted from the game as well (such as Roger, Armor King and Mokujin). There are also other little things that irked me as well. Like the fact that there are no unlockable characters (which always added something for when you beat Arcade mode).

The story mode is rather short, but it’s very good. So I’m quite sure that most of the fans will enjoy it as much as I did.

In terms of content “Tekken 7” boasts 36 characters, 18 stages and a whole ordeal of content (which includes everything from the entire back catalogue of music from all the games to all the cut scenes from every “Tekken” that came before). Furthermore, you can also vastly customize your character to your liking boasting hundreds of unlockable items that can be purchased with in-game money or found during treasure hunts.

“Tekken 7” also has a little bonus for PlayStation owners, because you can experience the game in virtual reality on the PS4. So, now your probably wondering if the VR version of “Tekken 7” was any good right? No, it isn’t, and to be honest. I don’t get why Bandai Namco even bothered to include VR support into the final version of the game. Sure, you can view character customization in VR and play fights against the A.I in a VR space (which is incredibly bland). Nevertheless, it doesn’t do anything interesting or cool, in the matter of fact. I experienced everything it had to offer in less than five minutes. So truth be told, I would much rather have seen “Galaga” as a mini game then anything VR-related (at least the kind of VR that was included with this game).

The Roster is solid, but a few fan favourites are missing.

Of course when you’re not playing couch Co-Op, you can take the fight online with a variety of modes (you can play ranked, tournament and even watch other fighters). However, I should point out that the “quick match” mode has had a few issues since the game launched. In my case, I was just faced with constant messages telling me how I had been disconnected. So it wasn’t until I joined a lobby that things got better. So I must admit it’s been a long bloody time since I faced off to a stranger in “Tekken”. So everything that I practiced in the Dojo went out the window. Anyways, I usually played with Hwoarang, and normally I could pull of a few solid combos. Sadly enough though, I got my ass handed to me in a few close matches. Nevertheless, that feeling you get when fight in “Tekken 7” is something which I haven’t felt in neither “Injustice 2” or “Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2“. As it’s a mix of nostalgia and adrenaline, what I’m trying to say there’s nothing quite like it.

There are currently 36 fighters in “Tekken 7”, and Lucky Chloe is indeed a part of the roster in the West (not so long ago there were rumors that Chloe wouldn’t make it to the West).

Even so, “Tekken 7” isn’t without flaws, but these are minor quibbles in the grand scheme of things. In other words, you will gladly spend hours of your time perfecting your skills and then taking the fight online, that feeling of coming back from two rounds down to win is euphoric. The story mode is pretty darn fun and there’s plenty to unlock within the game with your fight money. However, when it comes down to it the “fighting” is what “Tekken” does best, it’s done it well for years but this is the best so far. Moreover, if you’re really serious about being a “Tekken Master” then get a fight stick, you won’t regret it.

Pros:
+ The best fighter to date
+ Lots of classic content
+ Good story mode

Cons:
– No Lei Wulong
– VR bonus is rubbish
– Quick match needs work

Gameplay: 5/5
Graphics: 5/5
Sound/music: 5/5
Controls: 5/5
Replay value: 5/5

tgg grade 5 out of 5

Verdict: 5/5
Despite a few character qualms, “Tekken7” is the best fighting game on the market. Yes, there is no equal to Tekken 7, because it really is the King of fighters, period.

Title: Tekken 7
Developer: Bandai Namco Studios
Format: PS4
Genre: Fighter
Resolution: 1080p
Release date: 02/06/17
Difficulty: Easy to go to hell Akuma.
Spent time: +9 Hours
Average grade internationally: 90.00% Gamerankings.com
PEGI age rating: 16+
Price: £49.99