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Tekken 8 is a love letter to those fans who have been playing the series since 1994. The game features many callbacks, Tekken 2, 3, and 5 OST remixes in the related narrative scenes, and an epic story to wrap up the Mishima family’s conflicts for a while. However, there’s a Tekken 9 tease in the Tekken 8 story ending, giving us a clue of where the franchise is heading next.
Kazuya Becomes The Threat He Always Wanted
After the events of Tekken 7, Kazuya Mishima succeeds in defeating his father, thus overpowering mankind with his devil gene. However, the devil gene also runs through another vessel’s veins: Jin Kazama.
Jin is regarded as the protagonist of Tekken 8, as he tries to fight his father, Kazuya, in a Mishima-fashion family reunion. Jin’s devil powers are strong, but Kazuya plans to gain more strength by absorbing the might of Azazel, who was previously the main boss of Tekken 6.
This is a plan that Kazuya succeeds in Tekken 8‘s story, becoming a much more powerful villain in the end. For Jin, however, he has to defeat this overpowered devil dad by revisiting his mother’s hometown/island. Zafina warns Jin about this task and tells him that going back there means he must face many difficulties, such as fighting his own devil side and controlling it.
Jin and Ling Xiaoyu go back to where he used to train with his mother. After sparring, Jin hears his mother’s voice, going unconscious to deal with his devil. Moments later, Kazuya invades the place, taking down Lars and all the other Jin’s allies. This is while Kazama returns from dreams to turn into an angel.
Tekken 8 Ending and Tekken 9 Possible Story
The whole point of the Kazama family’s fighting style is defending and protecting. This is what Jun Kazama, Jin’s mother, had taught him as a child. So, he takes advantage of this lesson, turning himself into an angel who can purify both his and his father’s devil powers.
In an epic battle, Jin finally defeats Kazuya, putting him down for good. But, there are two important post-credit cutscenes that indicate the future stories of the Tekken franchise:
1. Jun Kazama Returns: Jin’s mother is back in Tekken 8, but she only shows up briefly as a cameo at the end of the story. After Jin defeats his father, Kazuya falls on the floor, where Jun shows up to rescue him. Jun Kazama is expected to make a big return in Tekken 9, where she’ll probably heal and cleanse Kazuya of his evil.
2. Reina’s Revenge: Kazuya might be safe in Jun’s hands, but not for long. Reina, the secret daughter of Heihachi Mishima, gains devil powers by the end of the Tekken 8 story, swearing revenge on his father. This means that in the upcoming Tekken games, she’ll be in control of the Mishima Zaibatsu, seeking war against whoever had a hand in his father’s death.
In fact, it might take a while for another epic confrontation, like Reina killing off Kazuya or Jin fighting Reina to cleanse her devil form. Judging by previous Tekken games’ release dates, the story needs a well-written setup before Reina turns into the final boss of a King of The Iron Fist tournament.
Tekken 8 is currently available to play on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
