Mainstay character Yoshimitsu highlighted in latest Tekken 8 trailer

Bandai Namco is continuing with their Tekken 8 character highlight trailers, this time putting the spotlight on the enigmatic Yoshimitsu.

Fun fact (not really), I never really got into the Tekken series, but whenever I did play, it was either using Mokujin (if available) or Yoshimitsu. That’s largely because Bandai Namco has a Yoshimitsu in the Soul Calibur series. They may or may not be the same guy. I’m not really up on my lore.

This trailer is so rad. One part of it harkens back to Yoshimitsu’s victory cinematic against Bryan Fury. There are probably other references in there, but as I said, I’m a dilettante. Most of the trailer focuses on a demonstration of the Manji Ninjitsu fighting style, as well as the thirsty Cursed Blade Yoshimitsu. The trailer also caps off with his rage art, as is customary in these trailers.

Yoshimitsu’s design changes heavily in each Tekken game. While the theme is always cyborg ninja, he varies from being more samurai or buglike with each iteration. This time around, we got a good mix with some cosmic highlights. The armor is obviously Japanese-inspired but has a very chitinous look to it. Even with the new design, the over-the-top chivalry and weird goofiness are intact.

While this trailer is a deep dive into the character, we already knew that Yoshimitsu would be in Tekken 8. Truly, it would be strange if he wasn’t. He’s part of a pretty hefty cast of 32 characters in the base game.

Tekken 8 releases on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on January 26, 2024. The PS5 demo arrives on December 14, 2023, followed by PC and Xbox on December 21, 2023.