Following the heels of the launch of the newest installment Virtua Fighter, the one title that could legitimately challenge Tekken’s claim of fighting game supremacy, Tekken 4 arrives with much hype and anticipation. Much of it is deserved, but ultimately, while the game delivers excellent graphics and the trademark characters that made the Tekken series so popular, it does not live up to the expectations of what should happen when such an excellent franchise such as Tekken 4 is brought to such a powerful machine as the Playstation 2.

I’ve always found it puzzling that the makers of fighting games feel the need to provide a plot to justify the existence of the game. Sure, personal motivation for each character is one thing, but having an overall reason for a tournament to be held, for example, always seemed to me kind of silly. There are martial arts tournaments and competitions in the real world, and they exist for no more reason then the fact that people want to see them happen and martial artists want to compete in them. Not because the fighters want to solve the riddle of their existence, or wreak vengeance on an enemy, two popular reasons in fighting games. Regardless of my thoughts on the matter, Tekken 4 provides both types of plot aplenty.

The summarized plot of the game goes something like this: Heihachi is still up to his evil ways, and is trying to find a way to utilize the genetic samples of Ogre he collected from the last King of the Iron Fist Tournament. His research tells him he needs to find someone with the “Devil Gene” in order to succeed with his research. Heihachi knows of two people who possess said Gene, his son and grandson. Unfortunately, being the font of paternal warmth that he is, Heihachi threw his son Kazuya down a live volcano 20 years ago, and later shot his grandson Jin, which was the catalyst for Jin’s Devil transformation. A little detective work allows Heihachi to discover that a biotech firm known as G Corporation is in possession of Kazuya’s remains. Heihachi sends a squad of his Tekken Force commandos to retrieve his son’s remains, only to have those same commandos obliterated by Kazuya himself, who is now sporting a very Terminator-style visage with a glowing red eye and a bad attitude. Now that he knows that both his son and grandson are alive, Heihachi decides that it is time for another King of the Iron Fist tournament, the prize being his enormous corporation Mishima Zaibatsu. Both Kazuya and Jin, as well as most of the other fighters from the past tournament as well as a few new ones, leap at the chance to once again compete and settle some old scores.

Some of this plot is portrayed in a spectacular opening sequence that really gets you pumped for the game itself. And indeed, in the graphics and sound departments, the game is very solid. I have heard a lot of talk about how visually impressive the game is, but in my opinion only when you compare it to Tekken 3. When compared to other Playstation 2 fighting games, Tekken 4 is as good, but not phenomenal. The characters do look great, having been modeled very realistically. However, what I found disappointing was the lack of development in the realism of the fighting itself. Being a martial artist myself, I was looking for a game that displayed a high degree of realism, and considering how far Tekken 3 had advanced the genre in this department, I thought Tekken 4 would continue to do so. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

Most of the fighters have one or two new moves, but are otherwise the same fighters as they were in the previous title. Two notable exceptions to this are Kuma, who has learned more new moves then the rest, and Steve Fox, a boxer (who looks way more like a kickboxer in style of attack) who utilizes a unique duck and weave technique for dodging. Game play is nearly identical to Tekken 3, with no changes in the standard controller set up. Not surprising, considering the PS2 DualShock II is nearly identical to the original PSX controller. This is probably a plus for all of those gamers who spent months acquiring the skills necessary to be a Tekken master. I personally feel that improvements could have been made rather then leaving things the way they are.

What bothered me more then this however were other unrealistic aspects to the game, like certain techniques that defy the laws of physics, and the “floating” affect that occurs when you hit a character multiple times in the air. I have no problem with techniques that involve lightning and fireballs, but when it’s just a matter of a simple sweep that would be impossible to execute in the normal world, I think it detracts from the quality of the game.

Tekken does go in a different direction to increase the realism of the fighting game. Three new factors are included. The environment is now a factor in the battle, with things like multiple levels, columns and walls being something that needs to be accounted for. Especially the walls. They provide a very easy method to trap your opponent and pummel him. Some of the environment is also breakable, though all in all, the environment is not nearly as dynamic as a game like Powerstone. Still, it’s nice to have more then merely a floor that breaks after a few minutes of gameplay and does indeed lend a new aspect of strategy to the game. The improved side to side movement is also a nice touch, as it does go a great way towards making the game more realistic while still keeping it fun. It is now possible to circle an opponent easily, waiting for the best moment to strike.

To compliment both of these additions to game play, another new technique is the ability to switch your stance. Once again, this is a crucial aspect of real martial arts combat, and now how you are standing affects the techniques that you throw. This is especially important when your opponent has just circled around to your left side, for example. All of which of course means more time spent trying to master this game, but hey, that’s the fun, right? Other games have dabbled in this feature, but none with the depth of Tekken 4.

The game contains the usual assortment of modes, including Arcade, Story Battle, Practice, Tekken Force, Team Battle, Time Attack, Vs Battle and Training. Two are worth note: One is Training, which is similar to the usual practice mode that allows you to perfect moves against a non-aggressive opponent. But in Training the game actually instructs you on the moves you are working on, and you need to master one to move on to another. The other is Tekken Force, which was always my favorite mode in Tekken 3, and it is now new and improved. If you are unfamiliar with Tekken Force, it is basically a game within the game where you play as any of the characters in a linear/semi-3D action game. A multitude of enemies comes at you, and you must use your martial arts skills to defeat them. Each character retains his or her particular style and moves, and each end boss is another character from the game. I like this so much because it is so similar to an action movie, with one lone fighter taking on hordes of evil minions. And the fact that you can still perform the multitude of techniques makes the gameplay varied, as well as highly entertaining. Wiping out three opponents at once with a spinning hook kick is something that I never get tired of.

Ultimately, Tekken 4 disappoints merely for its lack of dramatic improvements over the previous game. While Tekken 3 was a superb video game, merely upgrading the graphics and adding a few new bells and whistles falls short of what such a good game deserves. The “if its not broke don’t fix it” metaphor can certainly be applied in the game’s defense, but I counter that by using the example of the Gran Tourismo series. GT 2 did indeed merely enhance the original genius of GT with more cars and other options. And the same could have been done with GT3 when it was released for the PS2. Instead, we got a game that was improved on all levels, and far superior to the original. That’s what I was expecting from Tekken 4, and why I was disappointed in the result. Hopefully the people at Namco are working on Tekken 5 right now, and it will deliver on the type of innovations that we have come to expect from the franchise.