Just in time for the end of Namco Bandai's second quarter, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 launched with an impressive 840,000 SKUs moved within the two week period of September. Realistically, the game has moved a lot more than that but we won't know for sure until Namco Bandai's third quarter results.

According to Siliconera, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 moved close to a million SKUs between September 11th and September 30th. The game had to face off against some stiff competition from Tecmo Koei's Dead or Alive 6, which also launched on the same day and date as Tekken Tag Tournament 2.

Those numbers aren't too bad considering that Street Fighter X Tekken launched in March without much of any direct competition from other fighting games and managed to move 1.4 million units over the course of a few months. Will Namco be able to beat that? With the game's continued presence on the Xbox 360 and PS3, I don't doubt it, and it's likely to move a few hundred thousand units once Tekken Tag Tournament 2 launches with the Wii U later this month.

What's more is that Namco Bandai also cleaned up on their mobile releases as well as Soul Calibur V and Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations, both of which have surpassed the one million mark in total units shipped. Very impressive.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 received the patch 1.03 update this week for both consoles in most regions. Harada confirmed on Twitter that all regions have now been updated and are able to download the patch upon launching the game.

This fixes a few glitches, removes "all" from the Saudi Arabia stage and has a ton of online improvements.
Changed “RANK MATCH” search conditions:
• Removed “Rank ±5 only”, added “Rank ±2 only”
• • By selecting “Rank ±3 preferred”, “Rank ±2 only”, or “Rank ±3 only”, it’s now easier to be matched with players near your rank.
• When setting a win limit in “PLAYER MATCH”, the player who reaches the win limit is now moved to the end of the match queue.
• When entering the WORLD ARENA lobby, the period for the next TOURNAMENT is displayed. (Not displayed during an active TOURNAMENT period)
• When requesting a free battle in WORLD ARENA, and when finding an opponent in RANDOM MATCH ZONE, a distinct alert noise sounds.
• When downloading replay data from TEKKEN CHANNEL and LEADERBOARDS, the download number is now displayed.

Changed the following in-game content:
• Adjusted Alisa and JACK-6 tag throw throw escape.
• Adjusted the behavior of Alisa’s “Hertz Blade Aegis” when used in an juggle combo.
• Changed the wall hit damage for P.JACK’s item move “Claw Crane” (u+1+4).
• Changed the behavior of Sebastian’s Stone Garden (d/b+4, b+1) when used during a Tag Assault.
• The use of "Allah" in the Saudi Arabia stage has presumably been removed.

During a pre-Tokyo Game Show event at Namco Bandai's headquarters in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Katsuhiro Harada the producer of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 demonstrated a few of the Wii U's touch screen cuts. Similar to how other games are such as Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Street Fighter X Tekken on the PS Vita or Super Street Fighter 4 on the 3DS where you tap the screen to get certain moves to come out.

Harada noted that some moves such as the Electric Wind Godfist will not be executable as shortcuts though.

It is also being reported that the Wii U version also is having distinct frame rate issues that were easily noticible during the matches. It's uncertain if this will be in the final build of the game however.

The tournament organizers for Final Round XVI, Northeast Championships 13 and East Coast Throwdown 5 announced some good news for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 competitors recently, with an east coast circuit of events.

It's been a long time coming, but TEKKEN TAG TOURNAMENT 2 is finally here and ready for tournament play! Whether you're a veteran of the TEKKEN franchise or a new player altogether, the TEKKEN community is always welcoming players of all walks of life into their ranks. TEKKEN has long since been a part of tournaments across the country, especially here on the east coast.

It's for that very reason that we're very proud to announce the TEKKEN TAG TOURNAMENT 2 Circuit! This circuit will bring the winners of the TEKKEN TAG TOURNAMENT 2 tournaments from Northeast Championships in Philadelphia, PA, to FINAL ROUND XVI in Atlanta, GA, to East Coast Throwdown 5 in Morristown, NJ, all the way out to the EVOLUTION 2012 World Finals tournament.




The east coast is a huge place when you really think about it. Not everyone is able to travel up and down from Pennsylvania to Georgia then back up to New Jersey, especially if they come from states nowhere near these three. That's why we want to reward our winners with not only the prize money they've earned, but with the opportunity to go to a part of the country they may not have been able to see and compete in before.

The rules to this tournament circuit are simple. If you win the TEKKEN TAG TOURNAMENT 2 tournament at Northeast Championships 13 in Philadelphia, then you will be awarded a plane ticket to FINAL ROUND XVI. If you win FINAL ROUND XVI, you will be flown to East Coast Throwdown 5. If you win ECT5, you will be flown to Evolution in Vegas. Following NorthEast Championships The following TOP 8 at each event will be seeded for the following tournament and the rest of the entries will be seeded by region at Final Round XVI and for East Coast Throwdown 5. This promotes people to attend more than one event to make sure they are properly seeded in this circuit. Here's the following point system as listed below;

1st place 10 points
2nd place 7 points
3rd place 5 points
4th place 3 points
5th place 2 points
7th place 1 point

If you're local to any of these tournaments that you've won a trip to, we will pay for your hotel room instead of the flight. The four of us from Big E Gaming, FINAL ROUND LLC, and East Coast Throwdown want to make sure TTT2 is the most memorable TEKKEN for you guys yet, and what better way than to fly you around the country to represent your home turf?!

P.S.- Before you assume anything we at FINAL ROUND LLC, BigE Gaming, or ECT don't know what the official games will be for Evo2k13. We are offering these trip's to help the community travel to 4 great events in the fighting game community.

Now that that's all said and done, get your pads and sticks out and GET READY FOR THE NEXT BATTLE!

Check out the official Facebook pages of each event for more updates at:

FINAL ROUND XVI: http://www.facebook.com/FinalRoundAtl

NEC13: http://bigegaming.com/

ECT5: http://www.facebook.com/ecthrowdown

(PRWEB UK) 18 September 2012
Its a dog-eat-dog world, but Bio-Synergy and Tekken are offering anyone the chance to toughen up their bite.
Renowned sports nutrition suppliers Bio-Synergy have developed a special release of their fat-busting and muscle-pumping Performance Range for the upcoming release of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 on September 14th and are offering customers the chance to win an ultimate Gaming Den.
The special release Performance Range will enable any aspiring student the opportunity to develop the body and moves of a martial arts master. With fat-torching Thermogen, strength-boosting Creatine Plus Phase One and Two, and the most powerful whey protein Whey Better, the elite training supplementation of Bio-Synergy can transform any zero to hero.

Whats more, Bio-Synergy and Tekken will give one lucky winner the royal treatment for their gaming experience so theyll develop the hand and eye skills of a Master Warrior. One winner will take home a 46 LED flatscreen TV, a PS3 Slim Console with 160GB HDD, 2 sumptuous gaming chairs, and a mini-fridge. With such a decked-out temple of training, developing the elite moves of a master warrior will be a cinch.
Aspiring kung-fu masters need only head to the Bio-Synergy Facebook Page to enter the competition and begin the first step of their journey to bringing their mind and body to elite levels of performance. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will be released on Sept. 14th on both PS3 and Xbox360 and follows up the popular original release of the title in 1999.
Thermogen
A highly effective fat-burner made from Bio-Synergys proprietary herbal blend for optimum results. Thermogen will help you burn fat and build toned muscle. As part of a concerted workout regime, Thermogen can help you burn fat to reveal your lean and toned muscles.
Creatine Plus Phase One and Two
Each serving provides pure creatine monohydrate, which is the most researched and popular performance supplement on the planet. Creatine Plus has been scientifically formulated in two phases to take you to the next level in your training program.
Whey Better
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Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Wii U Edition will be available on 30th November in the UK, developer Namco has confirmed. That's Wii U release day.

Three other Namco games will also make Nintendo's big launch, including Japanese blaster Tank! Tank! Tank! and cartoon tie-in Ben 10: Omniverse.

Then there's colon-challenged mini-game compilation Family Party: 30 Great Games: Obstacle Arcade.

The four supplement the seven retail titles Nintendo previously announced for the Wii U launch: Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, FIFA 13, Mass Effect 3: Special Edition, New Super Mario Bros. U, Nintendo Land, Rayman Legends and ZombiU.

Downloadable titles Trine 2: Director's Cut, Toki Tori 2 and Nano Assault Neo will also be available.

Namco recently revealed that you'll be able to dress as Mario and Zelda in Tekken Tag Tournament for Wii U.

Players who pick up Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Edition will be able to dress up their characters as both Mario and Luigi, according to Eurogamer. In addition to these beloved heroes, fight game enthusiasts will be able to stuff their brawler into Bowser, Link, and Zelda costumes. Since these industry icons are exclusive to Nintendo’s consoles, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 owners probably shouldn’t hold their breaths.


CVG reports that the latest installment in the Tekken franchise will also feature Nintendo-oriented power-ups — keep an eye out for Mario’s magic mushrooms during showdowns — which are exclusive to this particular version of the game.

Although the idea of seeing your favorite Tekken characters dressed up as Mario and Luigi may sound appealing, early reviews of the mode haven’t been overwhelmingly positive. Shack News writer Andrew Yoon described his experience with the exclusive mode as follows:

“Perhaps my biggest gripe with Mushroom Battle Mode is that the fights are much too short. Given how absurdly powerful some of these characters can become, fights can be over as soon as they start. Also, there’s no tagging in this mode, meaning fights are (essentially) half as long as they could be.”

Of course, the Wii U isn’t the only console with exclusive content. According to Gamenguide, those who pre-ordered Tekken Tag Tournament 2 were given access to “The Snoop Dogg Stage” and “The Big Bikini Bundle”. As of this writing, these additions haven’t been announced for the Wii U. Then again, console owners are getting Mario and Luigi costumes, so, chances are, they’re not crying too much over missing out on Snoop Dogg’s arena.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Edition is scheduled to arrive for the console sometime after November 18. Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 owners, meanwhile, can pick up their copies of the fighter right now. The trailer for the title has been embedded below.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is filled with more. More characters. More in-match participants. More button smashing.

More lunacy.

The sequel to 1999’s Tekken Tag Tournament is a noncanonical sidestep in the constant battle that is Namco Bandai’s bare-knuckle 3D fighting franchise. So this 55-combatant (not including downloadable entrants), storyline-cracking free-for-all is technically nothing but an illusive blip on an already convoluted Tekken timeline — and a figment of chief producer Katsuhiro Harada’s already insane imagination.

But after stuffing myself with repeated trips to this buffet of brawls, I’m left wondering if Namco’s more friendly approach is the best direction for the series.

WHAT YOU’LL LIKE

Become the ultimate Don Armor King

In TT2’s fantasy world, you can put on the dream fights you’ve always wanted to see. You have a ridiculously dense (and in some cases, just plain ridiculous) roster of ruffians to rumble with, either solo or in tag teams. The franchise’s warring Mishima and Kazama clans are at your disposal, along with pretty much every other mainstay from Tekkens No. 1 through 6.

Gameplay is as tight as Nina Williams’ outfit

Tekken’s responsive and fast-paced controls are in full effect here. Fights are as frantic and fun as you would expect. The core mechanics introduced in the last Tekken release are back with a tag-team focused twist. Destructible, multitiered environments return, as well, making combat especially dynamic and dangerous.

Fight Lab is a useful, albeit bizarre new addition

Series newcomers and veterans alike can benefit from the Fight Lab. The all-new mode is a glorified tutorial, complete with a wacky storyline featuring Violet, the millionaire philanderer alter ego of playable pugilist Lee Chaolan. As you progress through the Lab’s brief campaign, you’ll help Violet program his prototype Combot. Each chapter highlights a specific gameplay mechanic, culminating with a boss battle.

By the end of the experience, you’ll have worked on offensive and defensive basics while learning essential tag-team techniques. And you’ll probably have scratched your head a few times at the completely random narrative interludes. As a bonus, you’ll be able to program the Combot for customized training sessions.

Flying sumo wrestlers are surprisingly charming
The King of Iron Fist Tournament has always had its quirky undertones, and the latest edition is no exception. After all, you can pair a boxing-glove wearing velociraptor with a living, breathing block of wood. And the goofiness doesn’t stop there. The aforementioned Fight Lab mode includes challenges that involve avoiding scud-missile-like flying clones of sumo wrestler Ganryu and defeating a giant, loincloth-wearing version of kung-fu fighter Feng Wei.

You’ll even see a few silly and not-so-subtle tributes to a certain 2D fighting series that I’ll refrain from naming. All of these lighthearted touches are quintessentially Tekken, and I’m glad to see the developers having so much fun with their work.

And who doesn’t love getting to fight in Santa’s Village?



WHAT YOU WON’T LIKE



New challengers might have trouble getting ready for their next battle
TTT 2 is for the hardcore Tekken fan. I’m talking about a person who’s debated the superiority of Japanese-style arcade sticks and scoured message boards for animation frame data to gain an edge. If you don’t have an opinion on such matters, then you might never end up playing Tekken Tag 2 at a high level because it requires that much dedication to master.

In traditional Tekken releases, you fight in a straightforward, 1-on-1 matchup. For most players, that’s hard enough. TTT 2 throws in the tagging mechanic, which adds an additional layer of complexity to the proceedings. Each fighter has specific launcher moves and bound hits that help extend combos and initiate tag-team focused salvos, which means a whole new set of timing-based maneuvers to memorize.

While most fighting-game fans love this type of depth, it leads to a somewhat steep learning curve for less experienced contenders.


You’ve probably played through most of this before
The sheer number of online and offline fighting modes — along with the brand new World Tekken Federation community-centered website — might seem intimidating at first, but after some hands-on experience, most of the options prove to be pedestrian and somewhat shallow endeavors. And many of them are familiar to fighting-game fanatics like the typical arcade and ghost battles, ranked and non-ranked online fights, time trials, and so forth.

Surprisingly enjoyable pursuits like the beat-em-up inspired Tekken Force are absent here, replaced with the less developed Fight Lab. And, unlike in previous years, you won’t find offbeat time killers like Tekken Bowling.

CONCLUSION

While Namco Bandai went out of its way to pack Tekken Tag Tournament 2 with an impressive number of characters and features, I came away from the game with a somewhat indifferent feeling. This is the Tekken I fell in love with, the Tekken that conditioned my thumbs as a teenager, and the Tekken that continues to put a smile on my face. But this is also the same Tekken I’ve played over and over again, even with the tag wrinkle taken into consideration.

I just feel the experience needs reinvention. And I’m not talking about more exclusive Snoop Dogg (or Snoop Lion) tracks and swimsuit costume packs.

Tekken doesn’t need more stuff. It needs more focus. Like the archetypical weathered warrior, the franchise needs to look within to find inspiration.

Score: 78/100 C
Good