Tekken 8 Matchmaking Changes Seem to Be Causing Some Problems

The developers of Tekken 8 have recently made some changes to online matchmaking, and players are reportedly having problems afterward. Earlier this year, Tekken 8 exploded onto the fighting game scene with a more “aggressive” gameplay style and a new story that continued the saga of Jin Kazama as he sought redemption by taking down his father, Kazuya Mishima. Initial reviews for Tekken 8 were overwhelmingly positive, and it quickly topped sales charts less than a month after its release.

However, things soon changed for Tekken 8 after Bandai Namco added a Battle Pass and in-game shop and started cracking down on videos of fan-made mods. Users upset by these actions proceeded to flood Tekken 8’s Steam page with negative reviews, until the game’s recent review score dropped into the “Mostly Negative” range. Despite this new wave of negativity, Namco Bandai has continued to make updates to Tekken 8, though a recent, initially unannounced change might have opened a new can of worms for the now-troubled fighting game.

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Some social media users have claimed that Tekken 8’s online matchmaking has been altered for the worse. At first, Tekken 8 would pair players with opponents of a similar rank, though this would sometimes result in said players facing higher-level opponents due to said opponents having different characters set at different ranks. However, a handful of Reddit users on r/Tekken have noticed that the game now goes by overall battle experience rather than the rank of an individual character. While this might seem like a good solution, players like ChimerXD say that the new matchmaking system has pitted them against the same opponent repeatedly for over an hour.

Tekken 8’s Online Matchmaking Changes Spark Controversy

Other users have filed similar complaints about the altered Tekken 8 matchmaking system, with Reddit user GrouchyAppearance146 pointing out a large drop in players on Steam since the changes were supposedly implemented at the start of April. Bandai Namco eventually confirmed on Twitter that it indeed made changes to Tekken 8’s online matchmaking to address difficulties players have had with ranked matches and quick matches in the past. The company then stated that it is continuing to monitor player feedback and adjust the matchmaking system further as needed.

The developers behind Tekken 8 probably had good intentions for changing the game’s online matchmaking, as the new system is meant to decrease the likelihood of a lower-level player being matched up against a more experienced opponent. However, it has also made things more difficult for players who have leveled up multiple Tekken 8 characters by failing to consider those who might not stick to one fighter while playing online.

Tekken 8

Bandai Namco’s Tekken 8 will be the franchise’s debut entry on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and the fighting game is built in Unreal Engine 5. The story revolves around Kazuya Mishima and Jin Kazama’s relationship.

Released

January 26, 2024

Genre(s)

Fighting

Multiplayer

Local Multiplayer , Online Multiplayer

Engine

Unreal Engine 5