Tekken And Its Reach On The Fighting Game Genre

While the anniversary of beloved franchise and fighting game Tekken has come and gone, let’s look at what made the Bandai Namco developed series so special. 

The first Tekken was originally released in arcades in 1994 before being rereleased for the first PlayStation console in 1995. Despite this, Street Fighter had already been out for almost a decade, and had released three games by the time the first “Tekken” was introduced on console. 

The release of Tekken 2 saw a huge improvement to the series. Released in 1996, one year after the first one, the sequel sold over 4 million more copies than its predecessor.

Tekken 3 came two years later, and opened to huge praise. 

“The developers took a bit more time to finish this project, and the result was exceptional,” wrote DashFight.com. “Many consider it the best Tekken game ever and even more - the best fighting game of all time.” 

Tekken 3 cover for PlayStation 2.

Tekken 3 was also the last game to be released on the PlayStation. While the PlayStation 2 was released in 2000, Namco developers wouldn’t release another Tekken game until 2002. 

The installation of the fourth game in the series was the first time Tekken saw a drop in sales from recent releases. Namco went from selling 8 million copies for Tekken 3, to selling closer to 2 million with Tekken 4. 

While this wasn’t considered a colossal failure, it was enough for Namco developers to reconsider what made “Tekken 3” so successful (and “Tekken 4” exponentially less so). 

In 2005, Namco released “Tekken 5” for the PlayStation 2. 

“It was a return to roots after rather defensive ‘Tekken 4.’” wrote DashFight. “Many fans of the series consider the fifth installment the most balanced one.”

True to form, this game became one of the most beloved of the series (and one of the most nostalgic for new players). 

“Fans delighted in the return of a proper Tekken game,” wrote Kenneth Richardson in 2010.  

“The significant game-play changes returned Tekken to the glorious strategic combat established in Tekken 3.”

Tekken 5 was a return to what made the original games successful in more ways than one, as the copies sold reached around 8 million (the same feat that Tekken 3 was able to achieve 7 years earlier). 

In 2009 the sixth installment was released, debuting a huge variety of playable characters and leaning into the quirkiness that was present in Tekken 5. While the sixth game’s sales did not reach the same that Tekken 3 and 5 did, this game was mostly seen as a continuation of the game before it. 

Last (but not least), Tekken 7 was released in 2017. This game was widely acclaimed, and felt like a great addition to the franchise. However, this game was released around the same time as Street Fighter V, meaning that Namco and Capcom were competing for a player base. 

And while Street Fighter was around for a lot longer than Tekken, it seemed that Tekken was showing more growth over a shorter period of time - and the sales reflected that. 

Tekken 7 would outperform Street Fighter, and continue to do so. As of April, Tekken 7 has sold over 7 million copies, with Street Fighter V bringing in around 5.5 million copies. 

The seventh game in this franchise is also still retaining a consistent player base, with audiences participating in officially sponsored esports tournaments as recently as this month.

A huge part of what made the Tekken franchise so critical to the fighting game genre was how easily it invited new players to learn. This was a franchise that was able to create their game mechanics for both dedicated and new players, something that seemed difficult to replicate. 

While Tekken will continue to impact fighting games, the future of the franchise is yet to be seen. Most recently one of the key producers for Tekken 7 left Namco, and there has not been any talk of a sequel. 

However, if there is one thing that you take from this article, it is that Tekken may be down… but it is never out.