Fighting games must include a button-mashing element to sell well, according to Tekken creator Katsuhiro Harada.

“The game needs to give players the sense that they can beat the higher-level players at least some of the time. It’s a game, so it has got to be entertaining, said Harada.

“It’s important that [new players] at least feel that they have the chance of winning. If they feel that they can’t beat someone, they’re not even going to try the game at all. There are actually characters in the game designed with that in mind. Those elements are left in the game on purpose because it’s necessary as a whole.”

However, making a game for just the hardcore crowd was a simpler proposition, because designers were aware of the elements those players wanted, he said.

“One of them is balanced characters, another is tech/skill – technique and controls. Another is knowledge of the game – if you know the game well you’ll be able to succeed and beat your opponent – and another is quick reflexes.

“If you make a game where if you’re good at all these elements, where you’ll win consistently as a high level player, that group would highly rate that game. That doesn’t mean it will be popular among the mass, though.”

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is coming to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on September 10.

-via Joystiq-

Good news, everyone! Half of the PC versions of Street Fighter X Tekken have reached DLC parity with their console brethren. Granted, there are only two PC versions of SFxT, and the one that got the DLC first is the Games for Windows Live version, but at this point we're sure the PC fighting game community is grateful for pretty much whatever they can get.

DLC for the Steam version of SFxT was originally planned to launch simultaneously with the GFWL release, but an "unforeseen error with the Valve submission process" has caused it to be delayed into "early next week," according to an update on Capcom Unity.

Namco Bandai Games Europe has revealed two new gameplay trailers for the forthcomingTekken Tag Tournament 2. Set for release later this year, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is currently in development for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and is also set to release on Wii U at a later date.

These two new videos are delivered with some rather odd titles, known as the ‘Jawbreaking Promo Trailer’ and the ‘Item Moves Special Trailer’ respectively. Both trailers are available below, and Thetekkenplace will keep you updated with all the latest details on Tekken Tag Tournament 2.

Street Fighter X Tekken's DLC was delayed on Steam today due to an "unforeseen error" but should be available next week, a representative from publisher Capcom announced today on the Capcom-Unity blog.

"To those who have been eagerly awaiting today's DLC release for Street Fighter X Tekken on Games for Windows Live and Steam, it is our unfortunate duty to report a bit of bad news," community liaison GregaMan wrote. "While the GFWL DLC is in fact now live, an unforeseen error with the Valve submission process has caused a delay on Steam, preventing a timely release of the DLC on that service.

"The ETA for the Steam version is now early next week. We deeply apologize for the delay, and ask for the continued patience of Steam users while we work through this error. Thank you all."

The DLC was scheduled to launch simultaneously for Games for Windows Live and Steam with a combination of paid and free content, including a "replay analyzer, gem capacity expansion and extra colors, as well as a deluge of new gems and alternate costumes for all released characters," according to a previous post on Capcom-Unity.

The downloadable content for PC is not to be confused with the add-on pack that will add 12 new characters and is scheduled for release on consoles on July 31st. Capcom estimates those additional characters will be released on PC two months later.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 isn't above adding a few gimmicks to sell more copies – some may even call its tactics "fanservice" – but with the Wii U, its additions feel a little more innocent. Tekken leader Katsuhiro Harada describes one Wii U-specific mode for Tag Tournament 2 to Gamesradar:

"There are going to be some modes that will be interesting, because they are very Nintendo-like," Harada says. "Some of this was shown at E3, where a mushroom drops down and Heihachi eats it and gets bigger. You know Nintendo fans hearing and seeing that just exploded with excitement."

Harada can't go into more specifics about other Nintendo modes, but he describes the Snoop Dogg and swimsuit inclusions as "hooks," ways to appeal to new crowds.

"We tried to add several different kinds of hooks," Harada says. "One of them was Snoop Dogg, to appeal to people who wouldn't normally play Tekken – a more casual audience – and we got the desired affect with that. The swimsuits were just another hook to appeal to a different crowd. From the Japanese standpoint, it's an interesting costume that a lot of people would be interested in. We didn't know about the Western market that much."

Apparently the American offices were confused by the swimsuit DLC at first, but the reaction to its trailer at Comic-Con convinced them it was just fine. As long as the swimsuits are an equal-species option, of course.

"We do have swimsuits for the bears actually. Even True Ogre has a swimsuit," Harada says.

Capcom has revealed the European release date for its epic clash of the titans, Street Fighter X Tekken, on PS Vita.

We found out last week that the 3D brawler mash-up was headed for our shores some time in October. Since then we've launched a flurry of combos on the ace developer until, with only a sliver of health left, it revealed the precise date: October 19.

Round 1: FIGHT!

The game pitches key characters from the two rival franchises into a single glorious punch-up, with the combat engine based more on the Street Fighter side. That means quarter-circle movements and ranged attacks-a-plenty.

Everything we've heard so far suggests that Street Fighter X Tekken will be the ultimate version. Capcom tells us that we can expect "all the content from the home console version plus exclusive new features."

Given that the home console version has been extremely well received, and that it's already bursting at the seams with content, you'll forgive us for unleashing a small dragon punch (forward/down/diagonal-forward/light-punch) of delight.

The Vita version will make use of the handheld's in-built camera with an Augmented Reality feature, allowing you to take snaps of your favourite character and place them in real life pictures.

Round 2: FIGHT!

More importantly to the fighting action, you'll be able to create custom move buttons on the front or rear touchscreen. Speaking of which, the menus are all now fully touch-compatible.

In addition to the console roster of 43 characters (which includes the five bonus characters from the PS3 version), the Vita version will come with a free download code to add the 12 subsequently released playable characters. All you need to know is that these include Blanka.

Add in the ability to take on PS3 players in cross-platform play - whether Ad-Hoc or online - and you're looking at one formidible package.

Street Fighter X Tekken Producer Tomoyaki Ayano has confirmed that the Sony-exclusive Pac-Man and Mega Man characters, currently only available in the PS3 and PS Vita versions of the fighting game crossover, will never make it over to the Xbox 360 versino of the Capcom game.

Capcom announced earlier this month that the twelve characters exclusive to the PS Vita version woudl be hitting the PS3 and Xbox 360 as DLC. But it looks like Mega Man and Pac-Man, who are available in the PS Vita and PS3 versions, aren't included in that bunch.

Enterprising Xbox 360 users have reportedly reached into the game's code and made the characters available on Microsoft's platform, but it's not possible for the average user to do so on a not-hacked console, and Ayano says Capcom "never intended" to release the characters on all systems.

"Every game has data on it that is unused," he said.

Are these characters that you'd have liked to use on the Xbox 360 version? Or are they just cheap gimmicks thrown in to make one group of gamers feel superior?
Tell us in Twitter or in the comments below!

Perhaps the biggest reason to own a PS2 at launch? Tekken Tag Tournament. It was quite the phenomenon when it hit Sony’s new console back in 2000; the combination of the already-gigantic Tekken following and the arrival of a new PlayStation made TTT an instant classic. And now, the sequel is finally slated to drop nearly 12 years later, much to the delight of hardcore franchise fans everywhere. And with over 50 characters, one-on-one combat, and the patented tag-team battles, it’s destined to deliver.

You’ve got Pair Play mode, which lets four players into the action; each will control one character and it’s bound to be a hot option for parties. And it’s great to get more people involved because TTT2 is all about personalizing your approach; it’s not about locating the combos that everyone can do, or the cheesy attacks that let even the worst button-mashers win a bunch of matches. This is going to be about engaging in a flexible, continually evolving mechanic that is begging to be explored and experimented with. So what’s your style?

One of the biggest additions is the Fight Lab, which is great for the newbies. This time around, Namco’s goal is to allow for more accessibility, and that will require some training in the Lab. You will control the Combot and Violet will instruct you in the ways of battle; you’ll learn everything from the basics like simple attacks and guarding, to longer chains, juggling, and the intricacies of timing and execution. They’re gonna make this fun, too, as the first enemy you face is a golden knight who drops coins as you land blows, and a successful bound smackdown destroys his armor.

NahomysDrawings has uploaded a video that says the "Top 3 Fat Guys from Video Games".
Bob, from Tekken 6, is in it. 
What do you think of the video? 

During San Diego Comic-Con, lots of news has been announced. Earlier this week, Katsuhiro Harada said that he wants to keep downloadable content free of charge. He even went as far as saying if he was given "the choice to include paid DLC or quit Namco, I would maybe quit."

"When you look at DLC, whether paid or free, a lot of titles have it on the disc, it's not that unusual. I've been saying that, at least for Tekken, regarding techniques, characters and stages, these three things won't be charged for, even if they are DLC."

"Saying that, if someone has a particular character they've downloaded and they play someone who doesn't have that character, it might take five minutes for the person to then download the data to play against this person. This wouldn't be very realistic and wouldn't give a very favourable impression, so we do plan to address these issues. So some content may be on the disc, some might not. But since it's free it shouldn't be an issue."

If there's something that's not necessary, if it just enhances the entertainment value..." Harada begins to explain. "For example, a lot of fans have been asking for previous soundtracks. Fans have said they'd want to buy that. So maybe if we make those available, or some of the past ending movies... These are ideas that aren't essential to enjoy the game, and might be available for purchase."

And if his bosses said that wasn't enough? "If I was given the choice to include paid DLC or quit Namco, I would maybe quit... Or maybe I would just say 'get someone else to deal with this',"

Video: Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Pre-Order Bonus: Over 100 Swimsuit Costumes

It seems as though, so far, he's sticking to that promise. At Comic-Con, the developers announced the pre-order bonus for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 would be over 100 swimsuit costumes.

Harada promises swimsuits for every character. Yes, this includes the animals and the guys. Harada said the team working on the game included some school swimsuits, since they think they would be appreciated and even asked for by Japanese players. "Japanese players"?! I think even us North American players appreciate them.