History YMMV / Tekken

* TransAudienceInterpretation: Leo. To the point that there's [[FlameWar a split]] on whether Leo is a boy with a [[CrossdressingVoices high-pitched voice]], or just a tomboy. It didn't help that the Japanese used ''gender-neutral pronouns'' (or just the character's name) when referring to Leo. (What most don't know when regarding Leo is that s/he is 19 years old, and thus an adult. The term "boy" wouldn't really apply in most countries; this is a "man" if Leo is male. Anyway, technicalities.) It was finally revealed by Harada himself that Leo is female. But now there's even MORE confusion as Leo is referred to as he on the official Tekken 7 website and even in the game itself...! Some of this could be reconciled by the possibility that Leo is, in fact, a transgender man, and when pressed on the subject Harada gave a ShrugOfGod regarding Leo's gender identity as being up to the player.

* SerialNumbersFiledOff: An early 3D fighting game with a focus on more realistic martial arts starring a stoic spikey-haired young Japanese martial artist, a perky [[AnimeChineseGirl Chinese]] ActionGirl with [[BraidsOfAction braids]] and [[CultureEqualsCostume stereotypical ethnic clothing]], a [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] blonde American with a [[AnimeHair ridiculous hairstyle]], a cocky blonde KickChick, a masked ninja from a HiddenElfVillage, an animal-themed professional wrestler, a Chinese ChefOfIron Kung-Fu master and a [[TopHeavyGuy top-heavy]] musclehead that [[HulkSpeak communicates mainly with grunts]]. Are we talking about ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'' (1993) or the original ''Tekken'' (1994) here? It's worth noting that both games had the same lead designer: Seiichi Ishii. For reference, the characters being described above fit either: Akira or Kazuya, Pai or Michelle, Jacky or Paul, Sarah or Nina, Kage-Maru or Yoshimitsu, Wolf or King, Lau or Law, Jeffry or Jack. Basic descriptions aside, these characters are still quite different from each other when it comes to either personality, morality, appearance or fighting style. The most similar characters are Nina and Sarah.

* CharacterPerceptionEvolution: Although she's had her fans during the franchise's earlier years, Anna Williams was considered by many to be an inferior version of her sister whose character was solely defined by her SiblingRivalry with Nina. This wasn't helped by how her [[MovesetClone moveset started out extremely similar to Nina's]], essentially making her a waste of a character slot that could be reserved for other fighters. As time went on, however, Anna started garnering a larger and more vocal fandom, with many citing that her charisma and FemmeFatale vibes made her a more entertaining character than her cold-blooded sister. Not only that, but both Anna's and Nina's endings often show the former as a frequent target of some misfortune at the hands of the latter, which only made Anna less of a nuisance and more of a sympathetic underdog [[TheDogBitesBack who is simply fighting back against her sister's bullying]].

* ValuesDissonance:
** In the past, Lee received a lot of dislike from Western players, as so many people perceived him as CampStraight or even MistakenForGay because of his very feminine manners and bright costumes. Such an attitude arose because of the fact that in Japan their view of men's beauty and a ChickMagnet is a rather feminine man with a gentle appearance, while the Western ideal is considered rather rude.
** Thanks due partially to society marching forward and partially to Lee himself becoming DenserAndWackier, these views have died down considerably. He's much more well-liked [[AgentPeacock because of his arrogance, style]] and [[HandsomeLech ability to attract women]], and because he's [[WhiteSheep not as screwed up as the rest of his family]].
%%** The outcome of Marduk's fight with Anna in ''Tekken 5'''s Story Mode is that he carries her unconscious body to...ahem, [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything have his way with her]]. Oh, and there's [[SoundtrackDissonance comedy music to lighten up the mood]]. A shocking turn of events already back in the day, but with modern sensibilities, the scene has aged ''very'' poorly.

* SerialNumbersFiledOff: An early 3D fighting game with a focus on more realistic martial arts starring a stoic spikey-haired young Japanese martial artist, a determined Chinese ActionGirl with [[BraidsOfAction braids]], a [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] blonde American with a [[AnimeHair ridiculous hairstyle]], a cocky blonde KickChick, a masked ninja from a HiddenElfVillage, an animal-themed professional wrestler, a Chinese ChefOfIron Kung-Fu master and a [[TheBigGuy huge]] loudmouth brute. Are we talking about ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'' (1993) or the original ''Tekken'' (1994) here? It's worth noting that both games had the same lead designer: Seiichi Ishii. For reference, the characters being described above fit either: Akira or Kazuya, Pai or Michelle, Jacky or Paul, Sarah or Nina, Kage-Maru or Yoshimitsu, Wolf or King, Lau or Law, Jeffry or Jack. Basic descriptions aside, these characters are still quite different from each other when it comes to either personality, morality, appearance or fighting style. The most similar characters are Nina and Sarah.

''Tekken Tag Tournament'' | ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'']]-]]]

''Tekken'' | ''Tekken 2'' | ''Tekken 3'' | ''YMMV/Tekken4'' | ''YMMV/Tekken5'' | ''YMMV/Tekken7'' | ''YMMV/Tekken8''\\

!!Index:
* ''YMMV/Tekken4''
* ''YMMV/Tekken5''
* ''YMMV/Tekken7''
* ''YMMV/Tekken8''
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* ReplacementScrappy

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** Jun Kazama, since her only other inclusion in Tekken since her debut in ''2'' is in the non-canon ''Tag 2''. Since WordOfGod confirms Jun to be missing and not deceased, Jun has basically been excluded from the main roster for '''23 years''' (if you don't count ''Tag 2''), and since then she had only appeared as a 'spirit' in Jin Kazama's endings as a minor character. Even as of recent times, Jun have made no effort in returning to the tournaments to continuing her role in putting a stop to the Mishima's plans in bringing ruin to themselves and the world around.

** A lot of people hate Combot for being a robotic Mokujin.
** Asuka for Jun. These two cases do seem [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap to have started reversing as of]] ''Tag 2'' as Jun finally returned (''alongside'' Asuka and complete with a side dish of DivergentCharacterEvolution, not unlike how ''Soulcalibur II'' handled Sophitia and Cassandra) and Combot no longer possesses the mimic gimmick that started with Mokujin, but is instead able to be customized to the player's preference [[AllYourPowersCombined with a comprehensive pool of moves taken from most of the collective cast]].
** Lars for Jin, at least in terms of story roles.

*** Wang Jinrei's fans are enraged against the newcomer Leroy Smith, despite how the latter's Wing Chun is a completely different style compared to the former's Xinyi Liuhe Quan.
* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: Christie was initially disliked as a replacement for Eddy in ''4'', but reception to her became much warmer when she and Eddy appeared together in ''5'' - as well as the story amping up her sympathetic qualities. It just meant that players gained a new Capoeira fighter (and Christie's moves were differentiated from Eddy so they weren't just palette swaps of each other). She also became popular both for sex appeal and her fashion choices.
** While it was more of indifferent than hate, Kunimitsu was seen as an downgraded and boring version of Yoshi in her earlier appearances. Kuni’s low popularity got her cut from the series for quite a while and she didn’t even get a successor to her fighting style for the longest time. Since coming back with a huge redesign in the second Tag game, she has become a minor fan favorite due to now having her own flashy fighting style and cool outfits. Her newfound popularity resulted in her return in the main games with T7.

** When you look past Marshall Law's ButtMonkey elements, you can't help but to feel for the guy. He used to be piss poor that only managed to get his dojo running thanks to Yoshimitsu going [[JustLikeRobinHood Robin Hood]] on the Zaibatsu... which was then wrecked thanks to said Zaibatsu. After successfully getting revenge from the man who beat his students and nearly destroyed his dojo, Marshall drops out of the martial arts life for good and becomes a profitable and wealthy businessman (explaining his disappearance in ''Tekken 3''). But come the 4th Iron Fist tournament, he must file bankruptcy and becomes broke ''at the drop of a dime.'' He sees the tournament as his last option to jumpstarting his business again and renews his determination like no other--but he fails. He can't even afford to return home from Japan so he begins illegally working there in a desperate attempt to save up enough money to get home. His son is badly injured and is in need of medical attention. Marshall tries his luck again in the 5th Iron Fist Tournament--he fails. He is eventually discovered illegally working and deported back home. The time to pay off the medical bills is running out, so he desperately comes up with a plan to team up with Paul and Steve and share the prize winnings should one of them win the 6th Iron Fist tournament--they ''all'' fail. Now, his dojo is falling apart while he's still trying to figure out a way to pay for his son's medical bills, this time entering the 7th Iron Fist tournament to see if a certain someone he hears of is worthy enough to take care of his dojo and bring back in more students. That person is [[ArrogantKungFuGuy Feng Wei]], and with that, even if it is out of desperation, [[DramaticIrony you know this won't end well for Marshall.]] Oh and said tournament? [[spoiler:Cancelled by Heihachi before he could even start fighting, so no prize money to fight on for Marshall.]] Dammit!

* HeartwarmingInHindsight: In ''Tag 2'', during Jun and Kazuya's paired victory pose, he didn't pay her any attention while she looked at him, concerned. You could have written it off as Kazuya being the asshole as usual and Jun has [[NoAccountingForTaste a horrible taste in men.]] This ends up more heartwarming after a certain reveal in ''7'': [[spoiler:When Kazumi is revealed to have prepared countermeasures to kill Kazuya in case he has the Devil Gene, Kazuya was visibly crushed when he realized that the mother he looked up to wasn't exactly as he thought and all this time, he was actually alone all along.]] This makes Jun's concern a lot more poignant because [[spoiler:even if Kazuya never realizes this or chooses not to, he DOES have someone still looking out for him: Jun (current status: [[HesJustHiding Missing, not dead]]).]]

** While it was more of indifferent than hate, Kunimitsu was seen as an downgraded and boring version of Yoshi in her earlier appearances. Kuni’s low popularity got her cut from the series for quite a while and she didn’t even get a successor to her fighting style for the longest time. Since coming back with a huge redesign in TTT2, she has become a minor fan favorite due to now having her own flashy fighting style and cool outfits. Her newfound popularity resulted in her return in the main games with T7.

** While Kunimitsu wasn't hated, a lot of people were indifferent to her and the [[https://twitter.com/Harada_TEKKEN/status/19974452652 lack of fan interest]] most likely got her removed from the series for a while. Since ''Tag 2'', her popularity has skyrocketed due to a cooler new default, flashy fighting style, beautiful animations, and turning her into her own character no longer being a clone to Yoshi. Her newfound popularity allowed her to [[https://twitter.com/Harada_TEKKEN/status/365395288652918784 make it in over Yoshi in Tekken Revolution]] and return to the main games with ''7''. She also became [[https://twitter.com/Harada_TEKKEN/status/1367331058794950657 one of the most played characters online]].

* TransAudienceInterpretation: Leo Kliesen, once Harada helped dispel some of the ViewerGenderConfusion around them by revealing that the character was born with the name of "Eleonor". It's never confirmed ''why'' Leo presents as male, with some believing that they are a [[SweetPollyOliver tomboy or a cis woman who disguised herself as male to infiltrate G Corp's activities]], but although Harada has stated that their gender identity is [[ShrugOfGod for audiences to determine]], later games referring to them as "he/him" has led to many fans interpreting them as doing so because they are a transgender man.
Leo. To the point that there's [[FlameWar a split]] on whether Leo is a boy with a [[CrossdressingVoices high-pitched voice]], or just a tomboy. It didn't help that the Japanese used ''gender-neutral pronouns'' (or just the character's name) when referring to Leo. (What most don't know when regarding Leo is that s/he is 19 years old, and thus an adult. The term "boy" wouldn't really apply in most countries; this is a "man" if Leo is male. Anyway, technicalities.) It was finally revealed by Harada himself that Leo is female. But now there's even MORE confusion as Leo is referred to as he on the official Tekken 7 website and even in the game itself...! Some of this could be reconciled by the possibility that Leo is, in fact, a transgender man, and when pressed on the subject Harada gave a ShrugOfGod regarding Leo's gender identity as being up to the player.

** Jun Kazama, since her only other inclusion in Tekken since her debut in ''2'' is in the non-canon ''Tag 2''. Since WordOfGod confirms Jun to be missing and not deceased, Jun has basically been excluded from the main roster for '''23 years''' (if you don't count ''Tag 2''), and since then she had only appeared as a 'spirit' in Jin Kazama's endings as a minor character. Even as of recent times, Jun have made no effort in returning to the tournaments to continuing her role in putting a stop to the Mishima's plans in bringing ruin to themselves and the world around them.
*** According to Harada, [[https://twitter.com/Harada_TEKKEN/status/102094335134277634 Jun was removed]] from the main games due to being unpopular. Her redesign in ''Tag 2'' seemed like an attempt to gain a lot of fan interest but unfortunately, she didn't [[https://twitter.com/Flying_Wonkey/status/935703286019059712 gain enough]] of an audience to [[https://twitter.com/Harada_TEKKEN/status/760439100813877248 warrant an inclusion in Tekken 7]] so fans would have to wait a bit longer to see her return.

* ViewerGenderConfusion: In the first ''Tekken'', Kunimitsu was nearly identical to Yoshimitsu in terms of looks, and the two even shared the same voice. Kunimitsu's Japanese profile in ''Tekken'' actually uses ''He'' when speaking of her (him?) - suggesting she could have been male originally but was retconned into being female for the sequel.

* StuckInTheirShadow: Nina's status as ''Tekken'''s poster girl seems to have been supplanted by Lili in recent years. Advertisements have put more focus on Lili than Nina, fans have put much more adoration in Lili, and Lili was one of the first characters revealed for ''Tekken 7'', while Nina had to wait until ''Fated Retribution'' until she's included. It probably helps that Lili has a far more charming tsundere personality compared to the sexy but [[IceQueen extremely cold-blooded and cruel]] Nina.

** The extreme {{Flanderization}} of some of the series' long-standing characters began in ''Tekken 3'', when the series began adding more comedic ending cutscenes to several characters. After taking a brief backseat in ''4'' due to the game's overall more serious tone, comedic endings would come back full-force in ''5'', and had stood firm with almost each iteration. This had the unfortunate side effect of watering down once-respected characters into complete jokes, with no example being more obvious than the severe BadassDecay of Paul and Law, who went from being well-respected fighters in-universe, to serving almost entirely as comic relief for most of the screentime they're given.

** The extreme {{Flanderization}} of some of the series' long-standing characters began in ''Tekken 3'', when the series began adding more comedic ending cutscenes to several characters. After a brief backseat in ''4'' due to the game's overall more serious tone, comedic endings would come back full-force in ''5'', and had stood firm with almost each iteration. This had the unfortunate side effect of this was turning once-respected characters into complete jokes, with no example being more obvious than the severe BadassDecay of Paul and Law, who went from being well-respected fighters in-universe, to serving almost entirely as comic relief for most of the screentime they're given.

** The {{Flanderization}} of some of the series' characters began in ''Tekken 3'', when the series began adding more comedic ending cutscenes to several characters. After a brief backseat in ''4'' due to the game's overall more serious tone, comedic endings would come back full-force in ''5'', and had stood firm with almost each iteration. This had the unfortunate side effect of this was turning once-respected characters into complete jokes, with no example being more obvious than the severe BadassDecay of Paul and Law, who went from being well-respected fighters in-universe, to serving almost entirely as comic relief for most of the screentime they're given.

** The {{Flanderization}} of
some of the series' characters began in ''Tekken 3'', when the series began adding more comedic ending cutscenes to several characters. After a brief backseat in ''4'' due to the game's overall more serious tone, comedic endings would come back full-force in ''5'', and had stood firm with almost each iteration. This had the unfortunate side effect of this was turning once-respected characters into complete jokes, with no example being more obvious than the severe BadassDecay of Paul and Law, who went from being well-respected fighters in-universe, to serving almost entirely as comic relief for most of the screentime they're given.

** This might be a VocalMinority talking as Lars, Alisa, and Kunimitsu (ninjutsu is real but Kuni utilizes a very fantastic style of it) are very popular among the fandom despite their fighting styles being made up as Chloe's. Not to mention that Chloe’s usage was at its highest in North America, where she initially received the most hate.

* MorePopularReplacement: Asuka Kazama is far more popular and iconic to the series than Jun, who was removed from the series due to a lack of fan interest. It makes sense since Asuka has a more well defined and colorful personality.