New Tekken 8 Update Adds Ghost Showdown, New Skins, and More

Over the weekend, Bandai Namco revealed a roadmap and a whole lot of details about the future of Tekken 8. The first major update on the roadmap is now live, adding new features, new skins, and the first of several planned Balance Adjustments for the fighting game. It’s hard to say right now just how far reaching these changes will be, but the developers are clearly looking to fix a lot of the issues that have come about since the start of Season 2. Basically, Bandai Namco is trying to fix the “attack-heavy balance” as quickly as possible and get the game back to where fans are happiest.

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Players will be happy to learn that Bandai Namco is also banning a number of accounts, including those who cheat, intentionally disconnect to avoid losing, and those using “inappropriate skins” along with names and messages that don’t fit with the standards set by the development team. Full patch notes can be found below:

# TEKKEN SHOP
* New “Vigilante Tech Pack” Added
– A common costume pack containing the following items:
　- Vigilante Tech Jacket (Upper Body)
　- Vigilante Tech Pants (Lower Body)
　- Vigilante Tech Shoes (Shoes)
　- Vigilante Tech Cap (Headgear)
　- Vigilante Tech Mask (Glasses)

* New “Cyber Phantom Pack” Added
– A common costume pack containing the following items:
　- Cyber Phantom Jacket (Upper Body)
　- Cyber Phantom Pants (Lower Body)
　- Cyber Phantom Boots (Shoes)
　- Cyber Phantom Mask (Mouthpiece)

* “TEKKEN SPECIAL DEAL” Event
– During the event period, selected items will be available at special prices.

# TEKKEN FIGHT LOUNGE
* New Feature “TEKKEN GHOST SHOWDOWN” Added to the Entrance
– Speak to Max at the entrance of the “TEKKEN GHOST SHOWDOWN” to access new features such as enabling/disabling AI learning and deleting previous AI learning data.
– By sitting at the dedicated “TEKKEN GHOST SHOWDOWN” terminal, players can engage in real-time Ghost vs Ghost battles.

Note: What is a Ghost?
– A player’s AI-controlled avatar that evolves based on battle behavior.

* Five Special Ghosts with Character Panels Appear
– Defeat each special ghost to earn a unique character panel.
– The character panels are fan art submissions from the “TEKKEN FANDOM Campaign.”
– The special ghosts will be available in the lobby until the next update scheduled for June.
– New special ghosts will be added in the next update.

# PLAY DATA / LEADERBOARDS
* Viewing Some “Season 1” Data Now Available
– By selecting “Season 1” from the “Filter” function, some data will now be viewable.

# Balance Adjustment Policy for Ver.2.01

In TEKKEN 8 Ver. 2.01, additional adjustments have been made to address the game’s attack-heavy balance.

Alongside the previously implemented fixes for “issues that could be addressed quickly,” this update also begins to tackle longer-term issues—such as reducing air combo damage and reworking Heat Burst performance—which were raised frequently by players and required more time to evaluate.
* The patch notes for Ver.2.01 are scheduled to be released on [PDT] Monday, May 12, 6:30 PM / [CEST] Tuesday, May 13, 3:30 AM.

1) Gradual Adjustment of Moves with Excessive Return
Following the previous update, balance adjustments have been made with a focus on the following points:

– Adjustment of moves where the return is disproportionately high relative to the risk involved
– Adjustment of high-performance moves that easily create consecutive advantageous situations and lead to one-sided developments

Through these adjustments, the goal is to achieve a more balanced playing field across all characters and foster an environment where diverse strategies can thrive.
Additionally, moves not targeted in this update will continue to be reviewed based on player trends and feedback, with further adjustments implemented as necessary.

2) Reduction of Aerial Combo Damage
In consideration of the current trend of increasing overall combo damage, adjustments have been made to the damage of moves that contribute significantly to particularly powerful aerial combos across all characters.
These changes are intended to increase the opportunities for offense, defense, and tactical exchanges, while also addressing the excessive disparity in damage potential between characters.
Aerial combos will continue to be closely monitored, and if instances of excessive damage are identified, additional measures will be considered as appropriate.

3) Adjustment to Heat Burst Performance
In light of the fact that, during exchanges surrounding Heat Burst activation, it was often difficult for the defending player to evade the move with sidesteps even when anticipating the activation, the overall tracking performance of Heat Burst against lateral movement has been reduced.
This adjustment is intended to make it easier for the defending side to respond through movement or evasion, thereby enabling more interactive mind games that reward defensive techniques.

4) Reduction of Chip Damage from Heat Smash
Given that the increase to maximum health has already lessened the impact of chip damage overall, this update limits adjustments specifically to Heat Smash, reducing its chip damage output.
Rather than implementing a broad revision to chip damage at this stage, we have opted for a targeted response. Moving forward, we will continue to monitor match environments and player behavior, and consider additional adjustments to chip damage as necessary.

# Future Adjustments
The next update (Ver. 2.02) is scheduled for release in June 3rd.
This update will include adjustments to certain character-specific moves that consume remaining Heat Timer duration, as well as balance improvements through targeted character tweaks.
Building on the outcomes of the previous and current updates, we will continue our efforts to enhance the overall battle balance and ensure a more refined and competitive gameplay environment.

Changes to the individual fighters can be found at Tekken 8‘s official website right here. For those hoping to see additional adjustments, Balance Adjustment #2 is less than a month away; Bandai Namco has already confirmed that it will be released on June 3rd. That same day will also see some new content released, including a collaboration with Karate Kid: Legends. Following that, a third balance adjustment is planned for sometime this summer.

How do you feel about today’s big Tekken 8 update? Do you think this will help improve the game? Share your thoughts with me directly on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!