As a New Tekken Player, I'm Honestly Confused by the Fanbase's Constant Complaints

New player here. I've been playing Tekken for about a year now, and honestly, it's been a ton of fun. But during that time, I've watched the fanbase with increasing curiosity — and, to be honest, a fair bit of confusion.

I've been gaming for over a while — mostly into titles like FIFA, Call of Duty, and other mainstream games. I was never a fighting game guy, apart from the occasional dabble in Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat. But early last year, I got tired of the FIFA grind. You know how it goes: same gameplay every year, new skins, and a game model that’s more about who spends the most money than who has actual skill.

FIFA turned into a pay-to-win circus — super versions of players released every few weeks, gameplay locked behind coins or grindy challenges, and the meta shifting based on money, not mechanics.

That’s what made Tekken feel so refreshing to me.

I didn’t need to buy DLC characters to compete. Every character in the roster was viable. The core gameplay loop was pure — it boiled down to how well you played, not what you spent.

So you can imagine my surprise when I started following the community and saw constant complaints. Every patch? “The game is broken.” Every new mechanic? “It’s ruining Tekken.” Every tournament? “This character is too strong.” The level of negativity is honestly wild.

Let’s talk about this “balance” debate. Of course, characters have strengths and weaknesses. But this idea that everything needs to be balanced is honestly unrealistic — and kind of silly. It’s a fighting game, not a chess match. If there were one perfect strategy or one perfect character, we'd see them dominate every tournament, every time. But we don’t.

You see pros winning with Shaheen, Dragunov, Zafina, Jack-8, Victor, even Kuma. That alone tells you that skill expression trumps tier lists. Different players use the same characters in completely different ways. That’s the beauty of this game — it's not about the character alone, but about how you pilot them.

“I’ve played Tekken for 30 years.” That’s awesome — but do you expect to play the same Tekken for the next 30? Things change. Audiences change. A newer generation is coming in, and we may not see Tekken through the same lens. That’s not a bad thing.

As a new player, I like the aggression. I like the mind games. I like that the same option doesn’t work every time. Tekken is fun because it’s unpredictable — because it rewards creativity, reads, adaptation.

Yes, some mechanics may be a little out there. Maybe chip damage on throw breaks isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. But let’s play it out. Let’s see what happens. Let’s not write off an entire patch or system change because it doesn’t align with how Tekken “used to be.”

You don’t like the new mechanics? That’s fair. But don’t act like the game’s doomed because it’s trying something different.

The only consistent factor in every match is you. How you play. How you adapt. How you learn.

So please — let’s just enjoy the damn game. Let it evolve. Let’s give feedback, sure, but let’s also have fun while we’re at it.

It’s a fighting game. Let’s fight.