Hwoarang Spinkicks His Way Into Tekken 8

Hwoarang is the latest confirmed challenger in Tekken 8.

The trailer plays up Hwoarang’s new look, combining some elements of what we’ve seen from the character through the various games thus far. He is introduced riding his bike, but giving up that familiar biker gear for his traditional dobok (taekwondo uniform). If you do pay attention to the dobok, there are some new details that weren’t there before. Notably his ‘Blood Hawk’ moniker is now emblazoned across his gear.

On Twitter, Katsuhiro Harada revealed that this costume was designed by Hiroaki Hashimoto. Commonly referred to by his first name, Hiroaki is a veteran character designer best known for his work with SNK. He illustrated various King of Fighter key art since King of Fighters X, but has also contributed designs to Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, Godhand, and Street Fighter IV. For Street Fighter, he helped in the designs for Crimson Viper, Juri, and Hakan.

On the side, we’re hoping Namco has a good explanation for why Hwoarang had an eyepatch in Tekken 7 and just dispensed with it like nothing was wrong with him.

Visually, Hwoarang’s fighting style is now more distinctive than it has been in Tekken traditionally. Longtime Tekken players know that Hwoarang’s moveset of similar looking moves is an asset, as opponents were left guessing what moves he had planned for the mixup. We don’t know if that element of his fighting style is gone, but you can see that the animations and surrounding particle effects have changed enough so that even casual fans can easily identify moves.

The trailer plays up Hwoarang’s rivalry with Jin Kazama, and he has never been more arrogant than he has ever been. But the trailer also shows him fighting vs Nina, also one of his cast members from his original appearance in Tekken 3. Observers may have also noted this is the first time Hwoarang has tied his hair in the back into a semi topknot, instead of wearing a headband.

Lastly, the trailer shows some of the more dynamic stage interactions that will be seen in Tekken 8. He uses kicks vs Jin and Nina that slam them against the wall. In an airport hanger stage, Nina is sent flying after she hits the conetip of a plane. There were more dramatic interactions in previous Tekken games, so it will be interesting to see how much of that is brought here.

Tekken 8 is releasing in 2023 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows via Steam. You can watch the trailer below.