Tekken 8 Cheats and Tips
Bread and Butter Combos
Before you move on to the big, extensive combos, you’ll want to master the bread-and-butter combos first. These are combos which you can execute confidently at a moment’s notice. Reina’s Right Punch combo is a good example – keep pressing Triangle and chaining hits for a solid four-hit combo. These combos are something to fall back on when trying new strategies or incorporating new combos that you’re still learning. Be careful not to use them continuously, lest your opponent punishes you.
Frame Data in Training
Frame data is available in Training mode (no DLC purchase required), but if not automatically enabled, you should do so when jumping in. It will provide information on attack startup frames and frame advantages. However, it’s worth paying attention to status since it denotes when you or your opponent is crouching, airborne, etc, allowing further combo optimization.
Learn to Love Launchers
Tekken is all about those juggles, and Tekken 8 is no different. Launchers will enable some of the best combos in the game, and it’s worth learning all the options a character has. Use the best ones depending on the situation, but keep an eye on your opponent and learn to avoid their launchers. It’s a tall ask due to the sheer range of the roster, but it can save you down the line.
Check All Techniques
When you load into Training and check the Move List, there are two tabs – All Techniques and Main Techniques. The latter summarizes the combos and specialty skills that define a character. However, you’ll want to check All Techniques since it can highlight certain combos and Heat Moves that wouldn’t be mentioned otherwise. It’s useful for mixing up your strategies while diving more in-depth into a character.
Practice, Practice, Practice Combos
There are Sample Combos and Combo Challenges to complete in Training and you’ll likely fail them repeatedly. Demos in the latter help when understanding how certain combos work, but you should be comfortable enough to perform them without seeing the commands on screen. Once you’ve mastered that, try implementing them in your regular gameplay and then return to Training. Practice makes perfect, after all.
Punishment Training
Pulling off combos is great, but how about defending and punishing different characters? Punishment Training is the ticket and provides two settings – Normal and Hard – for different punishment scenarios. The former will see the CPU performing a basic attack or combo and showcasing the ideal punishment to execute. Do it correctly, and you move on to the next scenario. Hard difficulty doesn’t tell you the best punishment – you need to figure it out. Both require abject timing for punishes and are indispensable for countering.
Special Style Tips
Special Style is a new addition and maps several commands, like air combos and low attacks, to the face buttons, which can change based on the directions held. It allows for performing complex combos and signature moves, but you shouldn’t keep mashing a single button and/or direction. Mix things up and toss in other button inputs, if for no other reason than to keep your opponent guessing.