Summary
Tekken 8marked the triumphant return of the fighting game series, witha colorful rosterof returning and debuting fighters. New stories and battles go on to build the Mishima family lore, as well as the world ofTekken, allowing characters to progress and evolve.
This, of course, leads to changes in each character’s moves, attitude, style, and, of course, their looks. To celebrate this, here are 10 of the best new designs in Tekken 8, ranked. To make things fair, this list will only count default attires, and not any of the alternate attires.
10Kuma
Kuma’s new attire is simple but amazingly effective; adapting the style and ability of Heihachi, Kuma has seemingly become the one true successor ofthe Mishima Zaibatsuwith his style. It’s cute, it’s funny, and honestly, it’s just cool.
Kuma’s new outfit leads to him wearing Heihachi’s classic black vest, even fitted with the roaring tiger logo on the back, while also wearing a bright red headband. It’s a simple change but adds a lot of character to Kuma’s presence.
9Dragunov
The elusive and mysterious Dragunov returns in Tekken 8, now sporting a much more casual and gritty look than his more formal Tekken 7 uniform. Clad in a new, well-detailed jacket and shirt, Dragunov’s more laid-back design is still just as threatening.
Despite seeming like a simple design, the look is filled with great design features, such as a variety of unique layers and textures. Small details, such as the skull-clad belt buckle and heavy black and red combat boots, also add a lot more personality.
8Leroy Smith
Fan favorite Leroy Smith has more charm and style than ever, as the Grandmaster’s drip remains immaculate as usual. The fighter has replaced the red in his attire with black and has adopted a sleeker, more nimble attire.
While his jacket is still white and gold, the dragons are replaced by an intricate new gold pattern, black rolled-up sleeves, and a black, detailed vest. Leroy’s gold chains, gold boots, and shiny black pants create an extravagant new design.
7Zafina
Zafina’s new design is all about details and style, adding on to the somewhat simplistic attire from Tekken 7. The host of Azazel retains the blue theme but adds highlights of purple, gold, and red to create a more detailed outfit.
The hood and tattered cape work well with Zafina’s now demonic hand and purple hair, creating a look that stands out far more than her previous designs. It’s a massive improvement that manages to immediately catch any player’s eye.
6King
Tekken’sresident pro-wrestling legendand legacy character, King II, has new gear, one that embraces Mexican pro-wrestling roots and expands upon them. The luchador has shiny new tights with brand-new logos and a sleek texture.
Alongside the shiny new boots and knee pads, King has an array of fantastic necklaces and intricate details that create a unique and brilliant design. Most fascinating is the feathery cape, acting as a reference to Aztec warfare and lucha libre history.
5Jin Kazama
Jin Kazama has returned to his heroic roots, transforming himself into the bold main protagonist of Tekken 8. Jin seeks to adopt his mother’s balanced mindset, and the resulting attire manages to blend Jun’s black and white color scheme with red accents of his own.
The details, such as the contrasting red accents on Jin’s jacket and the straps on his black combat pants, manage to stand out so well. Tekken 7 wasn’t at all a bad design, but this is not only the logical next step in Jin’s journey, it just looks nicer too.
4Nina Williams
Tekken 7 decided to make the interesting decision of having Nina’s wedding dress, which she donned during a mission that is showcased in her character episode, her default attire. Tekken 8 still has Nina wearing a dress, but the colors, textures, and tactical prowess of her new dress are far different.
Alongside a leather jacket and sunglasses, this look for Nina has that killer assassin quality her predecessor lacked, thanks to details like her thigh knife and gauntlets. The purple and gold also stand out and shine thanks to the overall darker outfit.
3Yoshimitsu
Yoshimitsu has had a variety of designs,some forgettable and uninteresting, others fantastic and striking. This look fits into the latter, as this cosmic blue and red alien robot Yoshimitsu is a great step up from Tekken 7’s tentacle Yoshimitsu.
Contrasting against the cool metallic blue armor is bright, almost neon-red highlights that glow bright. The overall design is both unique and intimidating but manages to still represent the core aspects of the iconic sword-wielding fighter.
2Hwoarang
Grungy eyepatch Hwoarang is no more, as Tekken 8 marks the dawn of a sleeker, charming new design for the fighter. Returning to his more classic (and preferred) Tekken 3 roots, Hwoarang’s new design oozes charisma.
With longer tied-back hair, orange gloves, and a black-and-white color scheme, Hwoarang’s new design showcases his laid-back charm and mastery in a much more genuine light. It’s nothing too flamboyant, but sometimes, simple changes can be the most effective and authentic.
1Kazuya Mishima
Never before has Kazuya had such an incredible final boss aura to him, one that compliments his profession, wealth, and taste so well. The suit combines elements of Kazuya’s Tekken 2, Tekken Tag Tournament 1, Tekken 6, and 7 looks to create the ultimate villain.
The leather snakeskin purple jacket creates a haunting silhouette. The suit underneath showcases a sense of class, but the classic Kazuya gloves imply that he is always prepared to fight. The colors are dark and intimidating, and the overall outfit screams that this battle is beneath Kazuya Mishima.
