Tekken 8 Game Director breaks down "fun" Kuma & Panda origin

Tekken 8 is just around the corner, being one of the first game launches in the 2024 calendar, and while there are plenty of characters (like my personal favourite, Nina Williams) that are iconic to long-term players, a couple may not quite seem as obvious amongst the roster for those newer to the game.

Why are Kuma & Panda part of Tekken 8?

In a reply to an X post (formerly Twitter) on Tekken's official account shared by user Lunny69, they asked as a new player to Tekken as a whole why the furry bear and panda make an appearance in it.

"I'm relatively new to Tekken as a franchise. Why did you decide to just put a bear and a panda in the game? Like I love the decision. They are the best. But why" Luunny69 mused.

While they're not the only characters in the game outside of the human realm - as there's Mokujin alongside Jin and Kazuya's devil forms, it's likely certainly baffled plenty of newcomers to see the two furry titans scrapping.

In response, Game Director Katsyhiro Harada stated: "I simply thought it would be fun." before adding, "Isn't it interesting that video games allow you to do things that are hard to do in real life?

"A long time ago, there used to be a certain number of people who wanted to face a bear at least once as a martial artist."

How long have Kuma & Panda been part of the Tekken franchise?

The name Kuma has been part of Tekken since the very first game, but the Kuma in Tekken 8 is also known as Kuma II, as they're the son of the prior namesake who passed away - and this is the one that has been in the franchise since.

Panda, on the other hand, is the bodyguard of another of my long-term favourite characters, Ling Xiayou (who also makes a reappearance in Tekken 8's roster, by the way).

Either way, as someone who loves Tekken but hasn't played it in quite some time, I'll see you out there when Tekken 8 launches on January 26, 2024.