In fighting games, patches, balancing updates, and the addition of new characters often impact the competitive gaming scene. However, nothing creates a complete reset like the release of an entirely new installment in the series, where everything starts fresh.
Tekken 7 may have had a few unprecedented balance issues, as for Tekken 8, it's too early to say definitively, but we can take a look at the tier list of the initial roster in the game, which we've compiled based on our experiences with the game so far and input from professional players who participated in closed-beta testing.
Tekken 8 tier list
Take a look at our Tekken 8 tier list below to see how your favourite characters rank at the very beginning of the brand-new Tekken game.
S Tier Characters in Tekken 8
Best of the best, characters that have proven to be the best so far for both beginners and top-tier players:
· Kazuya
· Jun
· Hwoarang
· Claudio
· Law
· Devil Jin
· Reina
A Tier Characters in Tekken 8
Characters that fall a little short of being S rank but are still a very good choice:
· Jin
· King
· Paul
· Asuka
· Lili
· Bryan
· Lars
· Alisa
· Lee
· Raven
B Tier Characters in Tekken 8
Best described as MID, these characters can still be good, but only in the hands of professional players:
· Yoshimitsu
· Steve
· Shaheen
· Victor
· Azucena
· Dragunov
· Leroy
· Xiaoyu
C Tier Characters in Tekken 8
Characters best to avoid, at least for now:
· Nina
· Zafina
· Jack-8
· Feng
· Kuma
· Panda
· Leo
Our tier list is, of course, our opinion, when Tekken 8 is officially released on 26 January, your tier list may look different - and also our ranking may change depending on later updates and DLC.
Currently, Tekken 8 features 32 playable characters that we had the opportunity to test and rank. Additionally, 4 DLC characters have been announced and will be added periodically until the end of the year. The first addition will be the long-time fan favourite, Eddy Gordo. We will find out where the Capoeira master ranks on the tier list when the DLC is released this spring.