Tekken 8’s microtransaction model disappoints many – here’s why 

Bandai Namco’s Tekken team announced the launch of Tekken 8’s in-game shop on February 29. While many find that The Tekken Shop’s pricing is reasonable in comparison to other titles with similar monetization models, the coin system and limited-use items have not garnered a positive response. 

The Tekken Shop contains UI customization items, legacy costumes, avatar skins and effects that can be purchased using the in-game currency, Tekken Coins. New item updates are planned on a monthly basis, and the shop is currently running a UNIQLO collaboration campaign that includes free items. 

While acknowledging that Tekken 8’s store does better than that of Street Fighter 6 or Mortal Kombat in terms of skin prices, users were not happy to find out that the shop does not allow you to purchase the exact amount of currency needed for one skin. Avatar skins cost 400 Tekken Coins, but the closest Coin Pack to this is 500 coins (equivalent to $4.99), leaving you with a “leftover” 100 Coins.  

Players have deemed this a somewhat dishonest way to nudge users into making more purchases, commenting that the practice basically “turns the 4-dollar skins into 5-dollar skins.” 

Another point brought up is Fireworks – limited-use avatar effects. Fireworks can be purchased for 100 Coins and have 10 uses in them. Aside from the fact that they are limited-use even though they are paid, users have also expressed discontent with how they appear to be a way to “burn” leftover currency. 

The initial announcement of Tekken 8’s plans for monetization was, as is often the case, controversial, especially given the game’s $70-dollar price tag. However, amongst the backlash, the developers, including Tekken series director Katsuhiro Harada, spoke out to reassure players of the intentions behind the monetization, stressing that it is not a way to profit off players but a way to battle growing development costs and keep the game up to standard. While these comments did dispel some concerns, the shop’s currency system has once again caused doubts in the community. 

Tekken 8 is available for the PC (Steam), PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.