Tekken Hybrid Review

It's hard not to feel kind of sorry for Tekken. With the likes of Marvel Vs Capcom 3, BlazBlue and Street Fighter IV able to stay very much in the limelight by coming out with new versions or questionably priced DLC pretty much every fortnight and tempting new fighters likeSoulCalibur V, Street Fighter X Tekken and Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown just around the corner, the Iron Fist tournament in its purest form (read: not overrun by fireball-tossing, dragon punching maniacs) has slipped some way down the pecking order of late.

Despite being probably the best in the series so far, Tekken 6's juggle-heavy form of pugilism just didn't seem to pull in the crowds like the franchise used to, so in a bid to remind the world what's so good about Tekken beyond the fact that you can make kangaroos punch out bears, Namco Bandai has come up with Hybrid – a three-hit multimedia combo that lovingly combines the past, present and future of the series in a package that no fan will want to be without.

Still, it's an odd package and no mistake. Comprising two installable games and a feature-length Blu-ray movie, Hybrid is quite a tricky thing to critique without breaking it down into its component parts, so we'll do exactly that.

First up is an updated version of popular PlayStation 2 brawler Tekken Tag Tournament, the largest departure from the usual Tekken formula in the sense that the purity of one-on-one bouts is sacrificed in order to offer the same kind of explosive tag team thrills that have made everything from Dead Or Alive 2 to the recent influx of crossover fighters such a joy to behold.

Given that the game is a decade old, it still feels remarkably capable as a beat-'em-up and while those that only got into the series at or after the fourth game might find that their favourite character hasn't been introduced to the Tekken timeline at this point, there's still a decent-sized roster on offer with plenty of styles and faces that later games forgot about for whatever reason.

It's a solid HD port as well, with characters looking surprisingly good even if backgrounds really don't, but the fluidity of the combat makes it hard to complain – it's up there with the best upscaling jobs the recent spat of HD remakes has served up, for sure.

In the wake of the six-man lunacy of Marvel Vs Capcom 3, however, this early version of a tag team mechanic can feel a little underwhelming.

Blood Vengeance is, at the very least, an insanely good looking CGI film.

Simple tag throws are generally pretty basic, meaning that the best stuff is only found when you team up a pair of characters who thematically work together but even then, there's little way to know which moves can be extended beyond a few hours of trial-and-error in the admittedly awesome Practice mode.

Certain moves also offer a tag opportunity for an extended juggle combo but again, experimentation is the only way to discover these – don't expect anything as useful as Street Fighter IV's Trials or Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution's comprehensive set of training modes.

The defensive side of tagging out holds up far better today. A well-timed tag as you hit the ground after being juggled, for instance, leads to an Ukemi Tag, where your partner dashes in to replace the downed fighter and prevent or even interrupt extended combos. 

If upscaled history lessons aren't your thing, chances are the second of the two games will be more to your liking. If you can really call it a game, that is.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Prologue is a bizarre first, effectively a PS3 demo of an arcade game that hasn't even been announced for a home release yet.

We can but hope, though, that this inclusion is an indication that the coin-op sequel will be getting a console release, as this is the highlight of the package despite its meagre offerings.

With just four characters to choose from (all of whom feature in the Tekken Blood Vengeance movie, the third part of Hybrid which we'll get to shortly) and just a brief Arcade mode and local multiplayer on offer, there's really not a great deal on show.

It woudn't be Tekken without Yoshimitsu's insane moves.

But what is there, it must be said, is pretty damn spectacular. Tag Tournament 2 builds on the solid foundations of the original but cranks everything to 11 in order to compete with the over-the-top rucks of other popular tag fighters.

New features like the Tag Assault and improved tag throws and combos, in tandem with the gorgeous visuals, make each bout a spectacle in its own right – if only there was a little more on show. 

Last up is Blood Vengeance, a lavish and predictably ridiculous 3D CG movie worth watching for its stunning action scenes alone – think of it as a PlayStation 4 tech demo and you'll enjoy it a lot more.

It's an oddly focused little story and one that could use a few more cameos but it's entertaining enough in its own right, not to mention essential viewing if you want any chance of understanding Kazuya and Devil Jin's frankly nonsensical Tag Tournament 2 outfits.

With none of its component parts being entirely without merit, Hybrid is a great reminder of what Tekken has been, is and will be again, though if you're not already a converted Tekkenite, this certainly won't be the game to change your mind.

Fingers crossed for that Tag Tournament 2 announcement, then, because that clearly would give even the most sceptical of combatants good reason to return to the King Of Iron Fist tournament…