Tekken Hybrid Review

Tekken Hybrid is the latest collection to be released exclusively onto the PlayStation 3. Namco and Sony have teamed up to offer a re-mastered version of the ten year old original Tekken Tag Tournament, a preview of Tag Tournament 2 and the Tekken CG film Tekken: Blood Vengeance all on one Blu Ray disk. Combining different medias to provide a complete action packed Tekken experience will it make players want to be tagged in? Or will it leave players not wanting to continue?

Let’s find out and kick off the HOTs and NOTs.

HOTs

Concept
Sony has become the king of collections and High Definition remakes but Tekken Hybrid goes a step further and combines the two concepts. With plenty of movie tie in games being deemed as just above useless it would be a great feature to see film related titles coming with the film they are based upon. If the latest film comes out and you have the option to get it with one of the latest games in a special bundle like this I think more movie based titles would be purchased and importantly enjoyed. Also Tekken Hybrid has a genius feature enabling people to play the game on the PlayStation 3 but watch the film using a Blu Ray player or a PlayStation 3.

Presentation
While the graphics by no means reach the levels present in Tekken VI, for those who can’t stand awful out dated graphics but enjoy older games this update is great for you. The visuals are definitely not bad and are reasonably nice on the eye. The animations and the game sounds are what have always made a Tekken title so strong and impactful. This is no different in Tekken Hybrid and when players land that final knockout blow it looks, sounds and also feels great.

Tekken Bowl
Tekken Bowl has to be the world’s most intriguing mini game I have ever encountered. Think of Tekken and you will definitely not see Tekken Bowl coming. It makes the Tekken combatants take up ten pin bowling. It does take some getting used, not only because it is a rather uncanny use of the Tekken characters but also due to the spin and power system. This being said Tekken Bowl is an oddly entertaining mini game despite it being nothing to do with fighting genre players will buy the game for.

Practise and demonstrations
Practise mode is something that a lot of games seem to overlook when developers believe the game is either easy enough or just doesn’t need one. Thankfully Tekken Hybrid has one. The mode simply allows players to practice against an AI character who won’t fight back. While it sounds like a waste of time when you could be just playing endless stages in fact it is rather beneficial. Practise mode also has a rather useful feature which demos how a move is performed allowing players to then copy the correct starting stance, movement and button combination, to pull off the move. This will enable novices to move away from being a button basher to a combo professional and learn timings and characters’ unique moves along the way.

Tekken Tag Tournament HD Stages
The part all Tekken fans love has been kept firmly to the winning formula, which the tag team games were originally developed with. Whilst anyone who has played a relatively modern fighting game will know the basics the game is built upon, Tekken has that unique feel and edge to it that makes the game unique. Each stage offers a new distinctive challenge that provides endless hours of exhilarating fun gameplay. With plenty of tag team combinations the stages are always kept fresh which often in results in hard fought match ups which are full of adrenalin rushes. The impacts of the fight all come from the unique Tekken style which doesn’t wane for a second.

A Glimpse Of Tag Tournament 2
The worst part about the preview of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is that unfortunately players only get to try out a small sample of the final game. However, it’s nice to see where the developers are taking the series. From the preview alone it is clear that they are bringing in a lot of improvements including updated character models and new gameplay mechanics including cross over attacks between tag team partners. It is at best to be taken as an extremely early demo and this is why the gameplay does seem a little rough in comparison to the original. Based on what the prologue shows it seems that Tag Tournament 2 will eclipse almost everything seen in Tekken VI but only time will tell if this is truly the case.

NOTs

Button mashers can win
While it is only fair everyone has a chance in all videogames it does still seem those players who are truly skilful at the game, who know the moves and button combinations, can still be beaten by relatively lucky button mashers. While I don’t know what would actually fix this, it would be nice to see somewhat of a progression where better players would be able to win more due to them acquiring some skill at the game.

No Online
With plenty of games selling just for the multiplayer component alone it is surprising that Namco decided not test out a rough multiplayer element. Tekken Hybrid is thoroughly enjoyable when playing on your own but when other players join the mix via a second controller the competitive edge becomes a lot more motivating. Online play would only further this thrill, taking on others from all around the world.

Verdict

Overall the Tekken fighting style is the game’s biggest selling point but following closely in second is the concept of the disk. Offering gamers the CG film Tekken: Blood Vengeance, a HD remake of the original Tekken Tag Tournament and a bonus preview of Tag Tournament 2 more games should follow in Tekken’s footsteps and be released with the relevant film. Tekken Tag Tournament HD is the basis of the bundle and is a solid rock to build the disk’s content from, as it will captivate players with its exhilarating and fun gameplay.

[Editor’s Note: Tekken Hybrid was reviewed on the PlayStation 3 hardware. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]