Tekken

"An instant classic which started an epic platform of video games."

Soon after the Super Nintendo console was released, developers created an elaborate game series called Street Fighter. A basic game where you have two characters fighting each other until one character gets knocked out. A little bit after that platform started, another game call Mortal Kombat took place in that console generation. It had the same basic concept as Street Fighter, but with a little more blood and guts seeping out of the wounds. These two games were, for a while, the dominating games in the fighting game genre.

When the next generation of consoles arrived, Tekken was released both as a Playstation game, and an arcade game. What made Tekken so different from Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat was that each limb was assigned to a button. The fight moves in Tekken were a lot more realistic than the ones in Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. This gave gamers the opportunity to use more technique in the matches, and less throwing fire balls and using annoying throw moves. This all sums up why Tekken became an instant classic which started a epic platform of outstanding installments.

Gameplay Quality: 7/10

Given that this is a Playstation game made in 1995, I am not going to be too critical on the ratings. (This review was written in early 2009.) The game offers two modes: Arcade Mode, and a two- Player Mode. Arcade Mode takes you through 9 different battles. In each battle, you fight another character on a two-dimentional view. Damage is done to the person by receiving kicks, punches, and other melee attacks from his/her opponent. Damage decreases the health meter by a certain amount depending on what attack is used. You can block by moving backward, crouching, or a combination of the two. You cannot block while in the middle of an attack. The looser is declared when that persons health bar runs out completely. Two-player mode is the same thing as Arcade Mode, except without the certain amount of stages, and without the hiding in your basement by yourself while not making any social interaction.

The game starts you out with 8 different characters. Each character can unlock a hidden character when used to beat Arcade Mode. The AI programing was well put together. The only thing I didn't like about the AI was the times when one character would be using a combo move that doesn't stop until you stop blocking. Those moments were repetitive, and incredibly annoying. Another thing I did not like was that no matter what difficulty you choose in the options menu, the AI's still seem to progressively get more difficult as the stages move on in Arcade Mode. Lastly, once you actually unlock all the characters, playing Arcade Mode again is basically pointless. The replay value is terrible at that point, and you get nothing out of beating the game again. The good thing about unlocking all the characters is the variety of choices when playing on two-player mode. Difficulty settings may make Arcade Mode a little more exciting after the down cycle has happened, but it still gets old really quickly.

Graphics: 6/10

Namco still could have done a much better job at the character designs. The concepts of the characters were okay, but the graphics looked like total crap. The Playstation was way more capable of delivering more than this. The levels are basically a giant, never ending pixelated square with a non-realistic background. The levels were crap. Aside from the looks, the use of physics engines and real-time movements for the characters worked out very well for that game. The cutscenes were rather decent for a Playstation game, but they were not terrible either.

Sound: 7/10

The music was nicely put together with the environment, and was not some repetitive tune that made me want to kill myself every time I heard it. The sounds that came out of the characters were a bit repetitive, but did not really hurt the game at all. The sound effects were timed well, and nothing seemed to be terribly out of line.

Overall: 7/10

The gameplay and the graphics quality could have been improved, but given the time that this came out, the game was pretty good. The concept gave us a nice and different view on the fighting game genre, along with starting an epic saga of games. This includes other installments of Tekken, the Soul Calibur series, and all other great fighting games that were inspired by Tekken. I enjoyed this game very much (until I unlocked all the characters.) If you are looking for a really good fighting game for the PS1, then get Tekken 3. It offered a lot more possibilities and variety, and is a lot more fun to play with other people. But if you are a collector of classic games, than add the first Tekken to your list if it has not been added already. Thank you for reading this review.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 02/03/09

Game Release: Tekken (US, 11/08/95)