“Get ready for the next battle”
Launching the next chapter of the longest-running saga in the history of video games – one of the most iconic, eagerly-awaited games that happened to be a childhood favourite of mine – doesn’t happen every day.
The challenge:
For their European launch, almost 10 years after the release of the previous opus, Bandai Namco wanted to make a strong comeback by targeting the common gamers who were not familiar with Tekken, and potentially did not care.
Gamers on average buy one or two games a year, and this year, it needed be Tekken: a niche style of game, with a vast lore that's hardly exploitable aside from fan service. And the icing on the cake: "it's a fighting game, but we're not very comfortable with the idea of showing violence", clients said... right.
(Yes… it’s the mountain from GoT…)
The strategic response:
Versus fighting is a niche, yes, but there's nothing more approachable than versus fighting: instantly easy to get to grips with and highly rewarding.
Pick up the controller, press down everywhere, see the colours, the moves, win... you don't understand how, but you're as excited as you are surprised.
The essence of versus fighting is a gigantic invitation to make spectacular combos in a giant party. The pre-fight excitement perfectly embodies this universal thrill, that moment when nothing happens but the adrenaline of the moment to come is already present and shared by all.
The work
Why I think it’s cool
Because it's one of my favourite games and I'm the best Yoshimitsu you'll ever see.