Tekken 8, the latest installment in the iconic fighting game series, which gained a lot of popularity recently due to not coming out as a money-hungry, microtransaction-laced, horrible game (Hi Street Fighter 6 & Mortal Kombat 1) introduced a new feature that has stirred up quite a storm among its fanbase – the Tekken 8 battle pass… Yep, the other shoe has dropped.
The Tekken 8 battle pass system, called the Fight Pass, is similar to those you commonly find in Games As A Service/Live Service games. It pushes people to earn exclusive rewards by completing daily and weekly missions during a specified period. Besides the free track, there will be the obviously paid track offering even more luxurious items and the ability to unlock Tekken Coins for use in the in-game store… Aka via your wallet.
Bandai Namco has not revealed specific details about the items players can earn through this system. But given that customization has been a huge part of Tekken in recent years, it’s easy to assume that custom items will be the main drive for people to use/buy this Fight Pass.
Game Director Katsuro Harada has spoken out about the decision to add the Tekken 8 battle pass during the recent “Tekken Talk Live” special that you can view above, highlighting the changing landscape of game development and the increasing costs associated with creating and maintaining a game like Tekken 8. Harada explained that the development costs for Tekken 8 were nearly three times higher than its predecessor, Tekken 7, emphasizing the need for ongoing support and updates to keep the game running smoothly. (Let’s ignore that Tekken 7 was one of Bandai-Namco’s biggest-selling games in recent years and the profits were used as the budget for Tekken 8)
The introduction of the Tekken 8 Fight Pass could be seen as a way for Bandai Namco to generate revenue to support the game’s longevity and ongoing updates… But we all know that is 100% bullshit and Harada is just towing the company line. Battle Pass systems are designed to make a profit for the executives at Bandai-Namco, keeping payers (We’re no longer players, we’re payers to these companies) locked into cheaply made or previously locked pieces of digital data using FOMO to drive excess sales.
Given that Tekken 8 is planned to have multiple high-priced DLC Season Passes, seeing them add a Battle Pass system is sad. Where Tekken 8 was looking to be the outlier in the current over-microtransactioning of the fighting games market, it seems they have joined the dark side, and will go down the same path as Street Fighter 6 & Mortal Kombat 1 where its transactions over the content.
Writer note: If this was announced when Tekken 8 launched, then it would have been reflected in the review and the game would have gone from a 4.5 star rating to a 3.5 star rating. AAA gaming needs to die…
