Bandia Namco Games has unleashed Tekken 8 Season 2, which comes with the addition of Anna Williams as a playable DLC character and an absolute truckload of balance changes across the board. One of the key changes with Season 2 is the addition of entering a crouching state after a Heat Engager to expand mix-up utility, as well as altering Ki-Charge so that it now deals more damage on the first hit rather than inflicting counter hit status.
Beyond that, all characters have received at least 3-4 new attacks each, with some major nerfs added to top tiers. In addition, Rank Match has seen some major adjustments; player rank has had a soft reset, and the point gains/losses have been tweaked. Matchmaking is now much more balanced to boot. You can read the Tekken 8 Update 2.000.001 patch notes below.
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Downloadable Content (Paid DLC)
Playable Character “Anna Williams”
The character “Anna” will be available on each platform store starting from the following dates:
1) Early Access
[CEST] Tuesday, April 1st at around 1:00 AM
[PDT] Monday, March 31st at around 4:00 PM
Note:
Early access (72 hours) is available by purchasing one of the following bundles released on the above date:
For those who own the base game of “TEKKEN 8”:
- “TEKKEN 8 Season 2 Character & Stage Pass”
- “TEKKEN 8 Season 2 Character Pass”
For those who do not own the base game of “TEKKEN 8”:
- “TEKKEN 8 Season 2 Ultimate Edition”
- “TEKKEN 8 Season 2 Deluxe Edition”
2) General Access
[CEST] Friday, April 4th at around 1:00 AM
[PDT] Thursday, April 3rd at around 4:00 PM
Note:
General access becomes available by purchasing the “Anna” downloadable content released on the above date.
“TEKKEN SHOP”
Added “TEKKEN FIGHT PASS -ROUND 5-“
- Complete missions during the period to level up and earn various items
- “PREMIUM” grants more items than “FREE”
- “FREE” allows up to 100 TEKKEN COINS to be earned
- In addition to the 100 coins from “FREE,” “PREMIUM” grants up to 600 more, for a total of 700 TEKKEN COINS
Added Avatar Skin “Anna”
- An avatar skin usable in “TEKKEN FIGHT LOUNGE”
- To celebrate Anna’s release, it is available at a limited-time sale price of 75% OFF (100 TEKKEN COINS)
“TEKKEN SPECIAL DEAL” Event Held
- Selected items are available at special prices during the event
“TEKKEN FIGHT LOUNGE”
Five Special Ghosts Appearing with Obtainable Character Panels
- Talk to and defeat them to obtain one character panel each
- Character panels are fan art works submitted through the “TEKKEN FANDOM Campaign”
- Special Ghosts will appear in the lobby until the next update scheduled for May
- They will be replaced with new Special Ghosts in the next update
“TEKKEN BALL”
- Adjusted ball return behavior for certain moves in “TEKKEN BALL” mode
“RANKED MATCH”
[① Matching has been changed so that players can battle others with a closer skill level]
Matchmaking System Changes in Ranked Match
- Matchmaking based on “Tekken Prowess” has been removed
- Matchmaking now considers the rank of the character currently in use and the player’s highest rank among all used characters
Sub-Character Rank Inheritance System Adjustments
- Changed the timing and target rank for sub-character rank inheritance
- When the highest reached rank among all characters is updated, rank inheritance will be applied
Search Criteria Changes
- Added “Same Rank Only” to Rank Restrictions
- Changed “±1 Preferred”, “±2 Preferred”, and “±3 Preferred” to “±1 or lower”, “±2 or lower”, and “±3 or lower”
Note: These changes make it less likely to match with opponents whose rank is outside the selected range
New Ranks Added Beyond “Destruction God”
- Eight new ranks added after “Destruction God”:
God of Destruction I / II / III / IV / V / VI / VII / ∞ (Ouroboros)
Note:
The difficulty of ranking up increases significantly in the ranks beyond “Destruction God”
Rank Reset Implemented
- At the start of Season 2, ranks are determined based on the highest rank achieved in Season 1
- Special Titles will be awarded based on the highest rank achieved in Season 1 as part of the rank reset process
[② The following changes have been made to create a more competitive and satisfying point system]
Point Gain/Loss System Adjustments
- The higher your opponent’s rank, the more points you earn for a win
- The lower your opponent’s rank, the more points you lose for a defeat
(Examples)
1) Lower-Ranked Match
You: “Fujin” (Rank 21) vs Opponent: “Battle Ruler” (Rank 20)
> Win: +720pt / Loss: -1280pt
2) Same-Rank Match
You: “Fujin” (Rank 21) vs Opponent: “Fujin” (Rank 21)
> Win: +1000pt / Loss: -1000pt
3) Higher-Ranked Match
You: “Fujin” (Rank 21) vs Opponent: “Raijin” (Rank 22)
> Win: +1280pt / Loss: -720pt
- Promotion bonus points are now only awarded once upon reaching a new highest rank
- The system that caused a significant point drop after 3 consecutive losses has been removed
- The win streak bonus system has been adjusted:
- Bonus points for win streaks are now only available up to “Tenryu” (Rank 17)
- For ranks “Tenryu” and below, bonus points start applying after 3 consecutive wins
- For ranks “Tenryu” and below, the more wins in a row, the greater the additional points earned
“RANKED MATCH”, “QUICK MATCH”, “VERSUS”, “PLAYER MATCH”
Added “In-Battle Status”
- Now displays combo count and combo damage in actual battles, just like in “Practice” mode
- New indicators added: “PUNISH”, “CLEAN”, “COUNTER”, “TORNADO”
- To turn the display OFF, go to OPTIONS > “Screen Settings” > “In-Battle Status Settings” > toggle ON/OFF
- In “PRACTICE” and “MY REPLAY & TIPS”, you can toggle it from the “Display Settings” in the pause menu
Note:
- In line with Season 2’s balance adjustment direction of “more accessible and clearer battles,” key elements from the fast-paced exchanges have been selected and visualized during matches
- This feature is designed not only for players, but also to help spectators and commentators better understand and follow what’s happening in battle
“PRACTICE”
Added a Special Practice-Only Stage
- A practice-only stage with a wall distance of approximately 500m is now available
- Select “Practice Stage” under “Restart Settings” and press [Touchpad/View button/V] + [×/A/J] (normal restart method) to switch to the practice stage
- You can also switch to the practice stage by pressing [Touchpad/View button/V] + [↑]
- To return to the original stage after switching with [Touchpad/View button/V] + [↑], press [Touchpad/View button/V] + [×/A/J]
New Items Added to the Reversal Move List
- The following CPU actions can now be set:
Heat Burst / Heat Burst (Cancel) / Standing Block / Crouching Block
Low Parry / Dash / Back Dash / Sidestep (Into Background)
Side Walk (Into Background) / Sidestep (Into Foreground) / Side Walk (Into Foreground)
Added “Action After Ukemi” to Practice Settings
- The following CPU actions can now be set after a tech roll:
Standing / Standing Block / Stand and Approach / Crouching
Crouching Block / Crouch and Follow / Block All / Random Block
Jump / Mimic / Sidestep (Left) / Sidestep (Right) / Side Walk (Left)
Side Walk (Right) / Back Dash/Move (Auto-switch) / Punish
Note:
- Combining with reversal settings allows configurations like “attack after tech roll” or “sidestep after tech roll”
- From side tech rolls, CPU performs reversals from crouching; from back tech rolls, from standing
Added “Move (Auto-switch)” to “Action After a Hit or Block” and “Action After Ukemi”
- The following five movements cycle in sequence:
Sidestep (Left) > Sidestep (Right) > Side Walk (Left) > Side Walk (Right) > Back Dash
Note:
This makes it easier to test which direction your moves can be evaded.
“OPTIONS”
Added “V-Sync” Setting
- “V-Sync” settings are now available on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S
- Can be toggled ON/OFF via Options > Graphics Settings > V-Sync
Note:
- V-Sync is a feature that prevents screen tearing when images are displayed
- Turning it OFF slightly improves the response time between key input and character action
- When OFF, minor screen tearing may occur, but it does not affect gameplay progression
- V-Sync settings have been available on the Steam version since ver.2.00.01 and earlier
Added Features to Tournament Settings
- Two new presets added, enabling the following bulk settings:
Default: Only “Disable Intro/Outro Skipping” is OFF
Preset 1: All settings ON (same as previous “Preset”)
Preset 2: “Disable Intro/Outro Skipping” and “V-Sync” are OFF
Preset 3: Only “V-Sync” is OFF
Custom: Each item can be customized freely
Note:
– For Steam users, V-Sync behavior in tournament settings may differ from v1.13, so please check your settings again.
“LEADERBOARDS”
Now Reflects Season 2 Stats
- Season 1 leaderboards have been reset
- Online ranking data from Season 2 is now viewable
Note: Future updates may allow viewing of Season 1 leaderboards
“PLAY DATA”
Now Reflects Season 2 Stats
- Season 1 stats have been reset in the following categories:
BATTLE (ONLINE), OTHER (ONLINE section only), PLAYSTATS, CHARACTER DATA (ONLINE) - Newly accumulated stats from Season 2 are now displayed
Note: Future updates may allow access to some Season 1 play data
For a list of character balancing and major changes for Tekken 8 Season 2, see here.