Tekken 6 review

With a veritable army of characters, has the flashy fighter become too big?

12DOVE Verdict

Pros

  • +

    Fast and furious fighting

  • +

    Rage gauge is good equalizer

  • +

    New characters are cool

Cons

  • -

    Design is archaic in 2009

  • -

    Starting to become bloated

  • -

    Lame brawler mode

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Balance is a delicate thing, so easily lost. Tekken is a series that thrives on it – on striking a balance between fulfilling its remit as the ‘accessible’ 3D fighting game (button-mashing will get you further here than in most fighters) and offering a system substantial and even enough to allow the hardcore fans to battle at a competitive level. Tekken 5 managed this balance with aplomb, but while Tekken 6 is ostensibly little more than a high-def update, its revisions (of which, to its credit, there are many) are likely to result in it receiving a rather lukewarm reception, from players both old and new.

More info

GenreFighting
DescriptionTekken 6 isn’t trying to masquerade behind a mask. This is Tekken, and it’s for the Tekken fans. Namco Bandai has put a console fighting game on a handheld, and it’s every bit as good. If only the devs could have snuck in an online infrastructure fighting mode. If only.
Platform"PSP","PS3","Xbox 360"
US censor rating"Teen","Teen","Teen"
UK censor rating"16+","16+","16+"
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
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