Amidst all the blood, sweat, and tears shed at the EVO championship series tournament at the Westgate Las Vegas Hotel and Resort, Bandai Namco took the opportunity to announce Tekken 7, the first main series entry in the Tekken franchise since 2007. In the announcement, it was revealed that Tekken 7 will run on the Unreal Engine 4, with Tekken series game director Katsuhiro Harada saying “the power and flexibility means we can focus our efforts on making Tekken 7 the best possible game without worrying about spending time creating a stand-alone graphic engine.”
In using this new engine, Harada and the Tekken team will be able to “achieve visual quality expected on next-gen platform and go beyond it” and “immediately bring Tekken 7 to any platform we desire.”
The gorgeous trailer doesn’t reveal much about the game itself, it shows Kazumi Mishima, wife of series villain Heihachi, praying in a temple, when a dark figure enters and Kazumi says “You’re here. That must mean the time has come.” Then a quick cut to Heihachi and the same dark figure staring one another down in what looks like a volcano. Not really much substance, but it certainly will have fans salivating.
Taka Kawasaki, studio head at Epic Games Japan, who is teaming up with Bandai Namco on the game, says “the most powerful engine in gaming along with one of the most enduring brands in fighting games. We have no doubt that these forces coming together will yield fantastic results.”
There’s no word yet on release timing or even which platforms the game is coming to, but Bandai Namco intends to reveal more on July 25 during a panel at San Diego Comic Con.
