The fighting game Tekken 8 was quite popular at launch, but with the start of Season 2 in early April 2025, the community was so angered that players turned to Steam and even professionals considered quitting. Now, the game is causing dissatisfaction with a new announcement.
What is the situation? The mood in the Tekken 8 community is at a low point: With the start of Season 2, the game received an even more aggressive focus, making defensive playstyles nearly useless and, according to some players, encouraging wild button-mashing. On Steam, criticism poured in and even professionals considered quitting Tekken 8.
With a hype-laden trailer, Bandai Namco announced the upcoming content for Season 2 on May 11, 2025, at EVO Japan 2025, but if they hoped to salvage the mood with it, they were sorely mistaken.
Tekken 8 brings back unpopular DLC character from its predecessor
Where is the problem? According to the trailer, Tekken 8 does not seem to be addressing any of the issues plaguing Season 2. Instead, new problems might arise. At the end of the trailer, the Muay Thai fighter Fahkumram is revealed as the latest member of the Character Pass.
Fahkumram debuted as a DLC character in Tekken 7 and was extremely unpopular there because he was simply far too overpowered – which is particularly frustrating for the community in the case of a paid character.
Some players believe: his aggressive playstyle was ahead of its time in Tekken 7. In the already aggressive meta of Tekken 8, Fahkumram could fit in wonderfully, but players are afraid that he could become even more broken to adapt to the new baseline.
How is this being discussed? A thread about the trailer in the subreddit r/gaming has over 1,200 upvotes and 260 comments (as of May 11, 2025, 14:45). The players seem to largely agree that the choice of Fahkumram as a DLC character for Tekken 8 could hardly have been worse.
Many fans are unhappy that old DLCs from Tekken 7 are simply being “reheated” and sold again. However, if they are already bringing back old characters, they would likely have preferred the return of Bruce Irvin, who is also a Muay Thai fighter.
A video in the Tekken subreddit shows two and a half minutes of disappointed reactions from streamers about the game:
Although players understand that decisions about upcoming content are made long in advance, they feel ignored by Bandai Namco. The poster himself writes: “I can’t help but admire the unfailingly terrible timing of this announcement. There could not have been a worse time for the game.” (via Reddit)
Another user states: “Fahkumram?? I understand he was planned a long time ago, but the timing is slowly becoming comedy gold. I don’t even hate him, but come on, read the mood, Bandai.”
On Steam, a new wave of negative reviews followed the announcement:
- Purple_Bizarre states: “I’ve never seen a developer/publisher so fixated on destroying the goodwill built on decades of quality content and the great launch of this game. This is a generational decline that needs to be investigated […]”
- LaggyBuggy mocks: “The Tekken developers are tearing defeat from the jaws of victory […]”
- 102w writes in his negative review simply: “Fahkumram”
What else is in the trailer? In addition to the return of Fahkumram, a collaboration with the upcoming movie Karate Kid: Legends was also announced, which will include matching cosmetics. On the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the franchise, there will also be a special stage in the style of Pac-Man.
Furthermore, a new mode, as well as costumes and general balance updates, have been announced. In the fall, a well-known fighter will return to the Character Pass, before a “new challenger” joins in the winter. However, it remains to be seen whether these announcements will be enough to turn the tide again.
Much better received was the announcement in early April to add perhaps the cutest “coach” in Tekken history to the game. What it was all about, you can find out here on MeinMMO: Player uses his dog as a coach at Tekken 8 tournament, Tekken boss promises: “I will add him to the game”
