Tekken 4 Platinum

But now we have Tekken 4, in my opinion the best game of them all. Firstly there are loads of features; tekken force, replays, arcade, story, team battle and even more. What I love about this game is the ability to dodge and counter attack your opponent at the same time.

Some of the new characters especially Steve are good, but my favourite has to be Jin Kazama (a lookalike of Dante but with black hair), this guy rules, his moves are not only powerful but stylish (and hes very deadly once you master him). The second would have to be Marshall Law (no Not Paul Phoenix but hes OK) one of my all time favourites.

If you enjoy 3D beat-em-ups this is the ultimate treat, it never gets boring and once you master a fighter, you will never stop playing.

Final Note: ever noticed how many bruce lee lookalikes we have in these types of games (Fei Long-street fighter, Liu kang- mortal kombat, marshall law-tekken 4,) incredible isn't it.

Highly Recommended for all Tekken Fans

The graphics and gameplay are brilliant, with lots of action thrown in for good measure. As you discover more and more characters (old and new) and master manoeuvres, the game gets better and better. The 3D arenas and interaction is fantastic and realisitic, with good storylines, but with some of the original Tekken series still lingering to continue the series.

However, the games limits are quite tight, and I think the game doesn't quite fully live up to it's full potential. Even though I believe it's definitely the best in the series, it still lacks that addiction factor I was looking for, although it does it's best to impress.

Generally, a worthwhile buy and a sound investment, but don't try to expect as much as you might think.

After you get past the button bashing and settle down to learning how to play the game properly and with a touch of style, you will find that there is a fair amount to learn if you want to, but you can just as easily pick it up for a short bash 'n mash session if that is what you fancy as most of the special moves do not require huge strings of complicated button presses to pull off.

Depth wise, there are not too many characters to unlock, and one or two of them you may wish you had never bothered with, although overall the characters are good. The new character 'Steve' who is supposed to be a 'British' boxer looks like a lame caricature but is surprisingly playable if you put in the time to get used to his moves. There are a fair few different modes, including the obligatory arcade and time attack, plus the Tekken Force mode which is a nice extra. All this should keep you happy for quite a long while, and seeing as this is the platinum version give you very good value for your money.

I know a lot of people will not like this, as comparisons will be made to Tekken Tag. People will comment on the lower number of characters, and the fact it is a little more adapted for arcade play. Well I think that this is a good turn. Each character is unique, whereas in Tekken Tag they all felt slighty jerky and similar, and lets not even compare graphics!

If you want a smooth, no-strings, beautifully crafted fighting game that still packs a punch, welcome to the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4, Let's Rumble.....

The main thing that differs this from the rest of the Tekken series is the ability to use the locations to your advantage or of course to your opponents (like DOA).You can pin people to a wall and kick them straight or you could even use the open space as an adantage so you can pull off a good move.

But when it comes to tastiy looking graphics, Tekken 4 has got it locked up like all the best art work in the louvre. You don't look down at the floor and say "Wow! 9 million polygons", but instead you look at the amazing reflective water, a mirrored water that's transparent close up. Not to mention how good the lighting, reflections, marble floors and yes, painted toe nails are. It's positively like a bag of jelly sweets to a 3 year old.

But hey, it's not all backgrounds and telephone boxes right? I of course mean the combatants, the way they fight and this is where Tekken 4 definatley excels. There are 25 fighters, ten to stat with and 15 to unlock. Each fighter has a distinct style of fighting, be it close puch ups, leaping and charging, powerful specials or just the constant and quick jabs. There are so many fighters you cant possibly get bored. The game has all the favourites, including Eddy, and a few newbies, 6 to be exact, who are all amazing fighters in their own way.

Fighting games aren't known to have great music but Tekken 4 mixes styles up with only a few rock squeeling guitar tunes. The sounds of the characters' pain is amazing, right from the thick, full sounds of knuckle connecting to cheek bone to bodies slamming on the floor. It just makes you want to turn the volume up when you bring about the pain.

The arenas differ in size and all give the impression of depth and a good player will utilise this. The carpark is quite restrictive and you can end up getting pinned , whereas the underground fight club is justa a tight circle of a jeering crowd. they don't make a lot of difference but can ocassionally be used to your advantage may necessitate a change in tactics.

When It comes to pulling off a move, there are no problems. Reactions are instantaneous and the majority of combos are easy enought to pull off. Calculated punches and kicks give the player a pleasing smile as your fighter whips your opponent around the ring. However, there are not many arys of defence and your best form of defence is offence. Tekken brings out the spitefulness of you when you play the game: So what if you're down? I'm not finished.

Overall, Tekken 4 is the best fighting game available with a great story, great playability, sounds, graphics and offers a chance to take after a bad day at work. Do yourslef a favour, buy this game, you owe it to yourself.

I've never played 3, so can't comment on that, but I now think I understand the reasoning behind the disappointment. I assume the feeling I have - that Tekken 4 is hardly an advancement on Tekken Tag and is therefore a disappointment - is the same as they had, the people I once thought were clearly blind to the new innovations Namco were giving us.

The first disappointment has to be the lack of characters in this game. Maybe the reason I loved Tag so much was the fact that a number of characters were clearly more than well-skilled 'people' - True Ogre, Devil/Angel, the Kangaroo/Lizard etc. These are sadly absent from T4. Steve Fox is good but he can't fly and shoot flames or lasers! And Marduk doesn't practice any kind of Vale Tudo I've seen (Takedowns, Arm-Bars, Leglocks, etc?) The characters here are graphically better, of course, and they are fluid and extremely 'playable', but it took a single evening's play for myself and the girlfriend to win all of the characters. That, together with the fact that the characters costumes were quite dull, left a sense of there being something missing from this game.

Everything in T4 is very polished, but it's all so-well put together that it gets me a little bored and glassy-eyed. For instance, in this game you don't get the magic of fighting during a heavy snowfall. The backgrounds are very well done but they're dull. The music is forgettable and definitely a step backwards from the accompanying tunes provided by Tag. These new ones lack character.

However, all of this being said, T4 is still a great game. I'm old enough to remember playing 'Yie Ar Kung Fu' (whatever) and 'Way of the Exploding Fist' on the Spectrum, so I do appreciate how far things have come along. For all of the critisicm above, the gameplay can't be faulted.

I still think, once the excitement has worn off, that T4 will go back in it's box and Tag will find it's way back onto the telly, an old friend back in from the cold.