"Just because Heihachi is back, Reina's importance won't be diminished" Harada lifts the lid on Heihachi's controversial return, and teases the future of Tekken 8

Heihachi is back from the dead. Again! In Tekken 8's upcoming update, everyone's favourite grandad has survived his trip to the lava and is in the ring yet again. But, his return brings with it a lot of questions. What's with his new moves? What's the thought process behind his return, and where does this leave Reina - his protege, of sorts - now that he's back?

To answer these questions, I sat down with Tekken series director Katsuhiro Harada, and Tekken 8 producer Michael Murray (who translated Harada's responses). I was led from a brief 10-minute session with the upcoming Tekken update to the darkened room with the pair, who peeled back the curtain a bit on Heihachi's return.

VG247: Heihachi is back! Previously you've talked about how important his "death" was in Tekken 7. Talk to me about the decision to bring him back?

Harada: For Tekken 7, we wanted to conclude the battle between Heihachi and his son Kazuya. So when I asked for something from the team, usually [when they go] 70% as far as I ask for, I'm surprised. Even I don't usually go that far! For Tekken 8, it was already decided we wanted to convey the battle between Kazuya and his son. And so I was surprised that Heihachi died as much as anyone else!

Murray: I will add that the [Tekken 8] director and I, we heard from Harada that even he needed a little convincing. So we tried to make it convincing [laughs]. So even when Harada saw it he was like, "huh! He's kinda dead!"

Harada: It was a bit challenging. First, I'd start by saying for the Tekken 8 story, we wanted to make it convincing as well. We couldn't just bring him back and throw him into the game. So while it was challenging to bring him back and make a storyline where he didn't actually die, we wanted to make it very thorough and convincing for the fans. So when you do see it in the update, it should be very entertaining. And it's available, free, for everyone!

VG247: One thing about Tekken 8's story is you can see character progression through their move list; with Jin, he goes through all the different fighting styles over the years and you can see his growth as a character. Now, Heihachi is back and he's got different moves, too. So what's your approach to showing character growth through move sets like that?

Harada: It's a good question, you're the first to ask that. That's a good point, and it's safe to say that Heihachi will have something similar [to Jin]. In the trailer, we kind of show his gameplay. But in the story mode, we will see a similar type of progression. We don't want to give too much away.

VG247: I'd like to talk about Reina; she was introduced as a new generation "passing of the torch" for Heihachi. Are you concerned that with Heihachi returning, her impact on the series will be diluted a little?

Harada: We understand where you're coming from with the question, but there's a key difference between Heihachi and Reina. Heihachi is based on the Mishima-style. Reina has some of those attributes, but she also has the backbone of Taido, which Heihachi doesn't have. She's got the spins and kicks and such. So she's quite unique already.

When we introduced her, we thought she'd be somewhat popular - but it's been beyond our expectations how much the fans have responded to the character as a whole. So we see her continuing to be a vital part of the game moving forward. Not just her move set, but also her storyline, as well. Just because Heihachi is back, her importance won't be diminished.

It's worth noting that prior to this interview, I got 10 minutes with the new version of Tekken 8. In it, when Heihachi fights Reina in the versus mode, he states outright that she'll play a large part in his plans, so the road for more story development for both characters has been laid out.

VG247: Heihachi's new moves are interesting. He's got new stances that, whilst they don't fix weaknesses in his kit, do add more options. There are more lows, more mix-ups. What was your approach to adding to Heihachi's move list? How do you keep him true to past iterations while refreshing the character in Tekken 8?

Harada: The answer starts with Tekken 8, not just with Heihachi but the whole roster. We don't talk about the balancing team much, but they're comprised of mostly pro players, former pro players, etc. But it's not just the same people for years and years, there have been the addition of younger players. Especially for Tekken 8, a lot of the younger players on the balancing team went through the whole cast and thought clearly about not just "this is Nina with her moveset she's always had", but what made each character unique. What makes them popular with their individual fanbases. How does that interact with the story, setting, etc.

Once they had a clear concept of the character, they looked at what made them powerful, what made them unique. We've been adding lots of connections with real martial arts, often through real martial artists. Either Michael Murray and his connections to martial artists, or other martial artists who know about Taido and more. Even if you say Karate, there are so many different types. Kyokushin, competition-based, or even Okinawa-style karate. But these connections to martial arts and the masters that practise them also influence how we add to movesets.

Tekken 8 is out now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Heihachi, the next DLC character, is set to release tomorrow, on October 3.