Bandai Namco recently held a Tekken 8 livestream where game director Katsuhiro Harada and other developers discussed the post-launch plans for the game. Apart from elaborating on the first DLC character, Eddy Gordo, who will arrive this season, Harada confirmed that all DLC characters will get free story mode expansions that build upon the game’s main campaign, ‘The Dark Awakens.’
Speaking on Twitter/X, Harada clarified that DLC characters will still have to be purchased if players want to use them in Tekken 8‘s other modes like Arcade, Practice and online/offline battles. However, players will receive each DLC fighter’s expanded storyline for free that ties directly into the events of The Dark Awakens.
“While the original Tekken characters that will be added as DLC will be described in terms of how they relate to the main storyline, they will not be in the form of separate episodes for each character, but rather as expansion packs for the main storyline (the main storyline can’t be broken up into smaller pieces for each character),” said Harada on Twitter/X. “Of course these will be offered for free as story mode expansions that can be enjoyed without having to purchase DLC characters, etc.”
There is a slight misunderstanding about this —->“DLC characters will have their own Story mode.” <—-
Rather than adding a story mode for each character, we are going to add a story mode for each of the additional characters, including Eddy, in the summer time after May, to show… https://t.co/lvnZBOwSRH
— Katsuhiro Harada (@Harada_TEKKEN) February 20, 2024
Basically, players will be able to access the new Tekken 8 DLC characters via these free story mode expansions that explain what they were doing during the events of The Dark Awakens. This will be an excellent incentive for players to try out the new fighters without having to spend any money on them.
Bandai Namco also revealed that the game’s Tekken Shop will be updated once or twice a month with cosmetic items like classic costumes and avatars, so the microtransactions don’t seem too bad and nothing to be alarmed about. A photo mode and game quit button will also be added to the game in future updates. Finally, characters on the main menu will be changed to the latest DLC characters but Bandai Namco is planning on letting players display their own specific characters soon.
Tekken 8 is available for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Source: Katsuhiro Harada
