Rules with an Iron Fist- Tekken 6 Review

It’s a significant accomplishment when a portable game approximates the core mechanics of its console brethren. Tekken 6 for the PSP is an astonishing achievement- the title is a near-facsimile of the home version, blemishes and all. While players will have to forgo the story-based Campaign Scenario, the omission is inconsequential- the mode wasn’t particularly gratifying. More important is the transition of 40 fighters onto the smaller screen, along with a few fresh methods of delivering the skirmishes.

The title’s Arcade Mode has players tacking an ever-increasingly demanding string of challengers, culminating in two boss battles. Like its console inspiration, rounds against CPU opponents are a warm-up for a sharp difficultly spike against your final foes. Tekken 6’s gameplay is decidedly juggle-heavy, meaning bosses with send players cascading from a successive string of hits. This can be frustrating as it often takes as long to vanquish the last enemy as it does to eliminate its predecessors. Fortunately, every match rewards players with a generous amount of currency that can be used to purchase and modify each characters appearance.

Aesthetically, Tekken 6 is a benchmark PSP title. Each character is rendered skillfully and exquisitely animated. Even the most jaded gamer will smile as Alisa, the school-girl cyber assassin, presents her own volatile head to opponents. While the title’s framerate is consistently high, an occasional instance of slowdown can be observed, not unlike the console version. The game’s throbbing electronic soundtrack complements the pugilism well, and sounds wonderfully bassy when a set of headphones are plugged in.