Review of Tekken 5 – Dark Resurrection For PS3
Namco’s Tekken has long been the gold standard of fighting games for the Playstation console, since the first Tekken game rolled out in those first months of its lifespan. Since then, there have been four sequels, all of them golden entries in the 3D fighting game genre. Tekken 5: Resurrection for the Playstation 3, released on March 1st is a revamp of the latest entry in the series for the Playstation 2, ported from its arcade edition. As a downloadable title in the Playstation store, it’s a great pickup, but is it better than games like Virtua Fighter 5.
As an upgrade of the Playstation 2’s Tekken 5 release from 2 years ago, Dark Resurrection looks like a massively beefed up Playstation 2 game. It does take advantage of 1080i output though and in that mode, looks absolutely amazing, if not up to par for a Playstation 3 title. Clearly touting the game’s arcade upgrades, it’s incredible that you can download and play such a good looking game. Of course, because of its size, all of the extra features that made Tekken 5 so amazing, the collectibles and extra game modes are gone, leaving you with only fighting action.
Sound wise, the game is extremely well crafted, complete with specific bone-crunching detail and explosion and the detailed sounds of battle, more so than the standard crashing and bashing of most fighting games. Music is exciting and reminiscent of the arcade, and characters all speak in their native tongues, realistically, not voiced over with corny voice acting.
But, it’s Tekken, and that fighting action is still some of the best around. With three game modes, Arcade, Vs., and Ghost, you aren’t left with a lot of features. Story mode from Tekken 5 is gone, replaced with the 9 match Arcade mode. There are three new playable characters, Lili, Dragonuv, and Jinpachi, a great addition to a massive roster already.
Otherwise, you’re playing the standard Tekken game style, complete with combos and pitch perfect damage levels. The multiplayer is intact, though online play would have been a great addition as well. I can’t say enough though how enjoyable the game is on a basic level, which is essentially all you’re getting with Dark Resurrection.
Tekken has always been one of the truly great fighting franchises available. Sony has pared down their Tekken 5 to its most basic parts and offered it in a massive 555 MB download via their online store, for essentially the same cost as Tekken 5 alone, but it does have great new characters and looks incredible on the right output. Of course, for those that already own Tekken 5 for their Playstation 2, there’s little to no reason to go out and buy another game that’s almost the same with fewer features. But for those that haven’t yet played Tekken 5 or don’t own a copy, this is an amazing game that looks incredible and the price is fair.
