"Heihachi Mishima
is dead", Or so the opening scenes of TEKKEN 5 would have you believe. But not to worry; you're in for a (weak) "surprise" as the antagonist and mascot of the famed Sony PlayStation fighting series, rises from the grave (literally) almost as immediately as he's (supposedly) assassinated.
The latest iteration of the Tekken franchise gets back to its "roots" Namco have proudly and loudly stated. The truth is, Namco, the game's developer & publisher, has made a quick and cowardly retreat from the new and exciting territory it explored in TEKKEN 4. The result is sadly unfortunate, because where as TEKKEN 4 felt new and fresh with it's multi-tiered & asymmetrical environments, wall-tech, position change and balanced damage levels, TEKKEN 5 basically plays as an updated TEKKEN 3 (1997).
By removing many of the superfluous characters in TEKKEN 4 and adding a few new faces, the game felt like a much needed ground-up revision of a series that, though great, previously demonstrated little in the way of innovation. And then there were the interactive environments. The "Garage" stage sticks out in my mind, where the combatants attempt manoeuvres on each other against a car or cement pillar for a damaging combo and win.
But hey, that's all gone now. The stages of TEKKEN 5 are completely flat, symmetrical, bland uninspired plains, just as they were at the beginning of the series back in "TEKKEN" (1994). Apparently, some of Tekken's older, newer and less experienced fans prefer the unornamented environs. I say they're either heavily retarded, boring or simply lack the gaming skills (and grey matter) to adapt and appreciate the complexity of navigating and battling within interactive multi-tiered asymmetrical environments.
Then there's the reintroduction of what can only be thought of as complete & utter nonsense. Remember Roger, the boxing kangaroo from TEKKEN 2? Or Mokujin the fighting tree of TEKKEN 3? Well, they're back as unlock-able characters which the player must earn, to which I ask a resounding "Why?". The minimalist approach of TEKKEN 4 as with TEKKEN 3 before it, with its smaller cast, has also been done away with in favor of bringing back just about everyone ever featured in the TEKKEN series, albeit Dr. Boskonovitch and Kunimitsu. Yes, even those who were supposedly killed (Baek Doo San) or were long thought of as dead (Wang Jinrei). I suppose it's hard to argue against a bevy of selectable characters, but it feels extremely overdone...like a very badly unorganized and unnecessary school reunion.
The mitigating factor behind all of my gripes against TEKKEN 5 is that the game for what it is, is actually enjoyable. I mean, come on it's TEKKEN! Personally, I would have preferred the series to follow and continue along the trail blazed by the previous game (TEKKEN 4), but hey, whatever. TEKKEN 5 is more of the same the way that every 'Nightmare on Elm Street' or 'Friday the 13th' is more of the same. When you get right down to it, the gameplay is fun. If you've either never really bothered with the previous Tekken games, you will most likely find favor with TEKKEN 5, probably in part due it's over simplification since the previous installment...erm...uh...sorry, I mean - designed to be more "accessible" and "user friendly" for 'new/general gamers' and PlayStation2 owners alike.
Some of the returning cast absent in TEKKEN 4 (Ganryu, JACK-5, Bruce) are more than welcome back. And maybe somebody out there actually likes trying to win using (a mockery of a character) the kangaroo in boxing gloves?
To be fair, it's not all old hat. TEKKEN 5 introduces three totally new characters, one of which is Blade. Oops! Did I say "Blade"?! I meant "Raven", the complete and utter rip-off of Blade, the anti-hero played by actor Wesley Snipes, in the movie of the same name. We can forgive this borderline copyright infringement as Raven is totally hip, just like Blade, therefore awesome. Without a doubt, he's the slickest black video game character to date, who has fortunately been spared the type of horribly typical (Japanese) stereotype that's befallen black video game characters of other fighting games, past and present. (Mohawk hair or Boxer's, anybody?)
Also new on the scene is the infuriating final boss, Jinpachi Mishima (whom makes his first ever appearance in the intro), the supposedly long dead father of Heihachi Mishima. Jinpachi is uber cheap - if he decides HE wants to win, well, there's really not a lot you can do in the way of dissuasion. It's a non-negotiable situation. Just bite down on something hard, It'll be over soon.....and then press start to continue, and try again.
Fortunately, Jinpachi's Achilles heel turns out also to be the very cheapness that makes him reviled. The battles against him are not actual fights ; but in fact are experiments to discover your selected character's few strategies Jinpachi can't seem to avoid or block.
TEKKEN 5 also comes with an "Arcade History" mode which contains TEKKEN (1994), TEKKEN 2 (1996), TEKKEN 3 (1997) in complete playable arcade perfection! A nice bonus for those not familiar with TEKKEN's rich history and former glory days.
The side game included with TEKKEN 5, named "Devil Within", is nothing short of an utter waste of time. Where as previous mini side games found on TEKKEN 5's predecessors (TEKKEN Ball, TEKKEN Bowl and TEKKEN Force) where short, fun and to the point; Devil Within is - painful, repetitive, overly-long and NOT fun in any way shape or form. A complete chor with absolutely no replay value.
Costume/Character customization is a neat idea (ripped off from Virtua Fighter 4:Evolution), but as to why the purchasable items are so few in number and limited to particular outfits only is a completely mystery.
Anyway...just know that TEKKEN 5 is good for what ails you, especially if you didn't like TEKKEN 4.
