(LAST UPDATE: 7/26/09)
Developer(s): Namco Bandai
Publisher(s): Namco
Platform(s): PS3
Release: August
2007 (Japan), Mid August (USA)
Characters:
Asuka
Kazama, Feng Wei, Raven,
Kuma,
Panda,
Bruce,
Anna,
Jin
Kazama, Lee Chaolan, Ling
Xiaoyu, Bryan Fury, Nina
Williams, Paul Phoenix, Yoshimitsu,
Steve
Fox, Craig Marduk, Christie
Monteiro, Eddy,
Hwoarang,
Kazuya
Mishima, King,
Marshall
Law, Julia Chang, Jack,
Lei
Wulong, Armor King, Roger
Jr., Wang, Baek,
Ganryu,
Devil
Jin, Mokujin, Heihachi,
Jinpachi,
Dragunov,
Lili
Related Games:
Tekken,
Tekken
2,
Tekken 3, Tekken
Advance, Tekken Tag Tournament, Tekken
4, Tekken 5, Tekken
5: Dark Resurrection, Tekken: Dark Resurrection,
Tekken
6, Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion
Review: Namco has finally given us "Tekken-fanatics" what we've been craving for years, online Tekken battles with other players across the country (and sometimes the world)... Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection Online sports 1080p graphics for those of you with the latest HDTV sets, but also looks great on regular HDTVs that are not 1080p. And if you don't yet own an HDTV, Namco says you're out of style... Because Tekken is now in full HD, and looks ohh so pretty on optimal settings.
Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection released for the PS3 originally as a download via the Playstation Online store. It didn't feel like a "home" release as much as the PSP version did (Tekken: Dark Resurrection); simply because the PS3 version lacked endings, Story Mode, Survival Mode, Team Battle, and Practice Mode. Tekken 5: DR Online remedies a few of the missing 1-player modes by adding in Survival Mode, and the always appreciated Practice Mode. Unfortunately there is still no story mode or character endings; you'll have to go back to Tekken: Dark Resurrection for all those goodies.
So, how is
the first official online Tekken? Well, that actually depends on your connection
(and who you play against),
and if you're not playing on a really good connection, you can forget about playing
Tekken Online. So for this review, feel free to insert the phrase "when
there is NO lag" after every positive thing I say about this game.
Tekken 5: DR Online includes all the online features you'd expect... Online
rankings, battle lobbies, headset support, and in-match spectating. Basically,
you can either create a room (up to 8 people) or enter a room, where you
wait in line to play the winner. It's just like "putting your quarter up"
at an arcade machine, winner stays, loser pays... Old school.
Online match options include
Pick-up Match, Opti Match, Quick Match, Custom Match and Friend Match;
a good variety of ways to find challengers. You can of course see which of your friends are
online via your PS3 (and who's currently playing Tekken), and you can receive invitations to play
as long as your profile is "online." Even if your playing another game
on your PS3, as long as you're signed in to PSN, you can still receive
invitations to play Tekken... Pretty cool. The head-set support in this
game is also an enjoyable feature, allowing for some funny (and sometimes
not so funny) live commentary and/or trash talking. However, choosing to
create a room with headset support will increase your chances of lag, so
I usually play without it... I prefer not talking while playing anyway.
T5: DR Online is a mixed bag... Sometimes it's smooth enough to play, sometimes ( most of the time) it lags... Lag is definitely the biggest issue with Tekken 5: DR Online and of course depends on who you play against & their connection, as well as your own. Unfortunately, there's no way to tell who will lag before a match, but if you do notice someone is lagging more than usual; you can easily kick them out of your room before wasting your time. When sudden lag appears during random fights (and it will), expect to mistakenly drop your opponent after a launcher, and mess up your air combos that you usually hit 100% of the time. Missing a combo of course can change the pace of the fight, and needless to say you can very well lose the match because of lag. It comes down to who can play well with a little bit of lag; and who can't. With that said, the "Online Rankings" shouldn't really be taken too seriously, but there is some truth to the ranks. If you go up against one of the higher ranks, no doubt you're going up against a skilled opponent who knows some decent combos / tactics and such.
Players are
rewarded with and judged solely by "battle points," which are earned for
defeating opponents close to their rank or above. Players are given little
to no points for beating a much lower rank. It's a simple yet fair ranking
system, and thankfully, Namco seems to have fixed some of the annoying
disconnect glitches. Before they fixed it, disconnecting during a match
for any reason, for instance your power or internet connection goes out,
you will be penalized and lose battle points. You only get one warning,
and after any future disconnect, you can say goodbye to "1000" of
your hard earned battle points (equivalent to winning 7-10 matches). This
"penalty" for disconnecting is obviously in place to remedy those "sore
losers" who might disconnect during a battle on purpose to save themselves
from a loss... And it seems to work properly now... I think. 
"Disconnects" also show on each player's profile, which you can always
take a look at before deciding to fight someone.
Overall, Tekken
Online is about the fun of being able to play a live opponent at pretty
much any time. Unlike some people I don't whine about the lag issues so
much, because I appreciate the heart of the game and what it provides.
I've had a ton of great matches online, and have also learned quite a lot;
including more advanced combos for several characters and character tactics...
No doubt this game can improve your game overall. Tekken Online
also gives "Tekken noobs" the ability to experience what a real Tekken
battle is all about, and exposes different "playing styles" all without having to step foot inside an
arcade to meet skilled players. With the
ability to watch a live match between two skilled players, novices and mediocre players are sure
to see a lot of moves, combos, and strategies that they have never seen
or perhaps never even thought of, thus, pick up a few tips from the pros!
And remember, you're never too good to learn new combos. This "learning
experience" will surely hold true for other next-gen online fighting games
coming out in the future... "WELCOME TO THE NEXT GEN, TFG!"
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8 / 10 |
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Closing Comment: In closing, Tekken 5: DR Online is a lot of fun, when there's no lag... The intense matches, open-ended combos & strategies, and great gameplay us fans know and love is all present (even with mild lag). Some people are way too hard on T5: DRO because of the lag, and many of them don't realize it might be mainly their connection. Once again, you need a very stable, if not super fast connection to play T5: DRO smoothly; and if yours isn't that great, you should try out some different connection options... For your information, I use wireless Verizon Fios, and unless I play against someone with a completely crap connection (or from another country); Tekken Online is actually very playable and quite smooth for me most of the time.
Lag issues
aside, I appreciate the fact that one of my all time favorite fighting
game franchises has finally gone online! Why
is Tekken still one of my favorite games? Maybe because now there's
35 or so different ways to play it. Yeah, the characters are still so much
fun to use, and now with Online, players can study and learn from
each others playing styles as well as how they play their characters. It's
great to be able to play against other Tekken players that otherwise you
may never have been able to play against. Once you find some players that
you get a good connection with, it's great fun! When you mess up your air
combos and have to change your playing style too much because of lag, it
will surely frustrate even the most passive of gamers... Myself included. 
To elaborate
on my giving DR Online a 8 overall score;
first off, I was hoping for a few more extras from this "add-on" to the
home version of Tekken
5: Dark Resurrection. I do appreciate the new buyable artworks
thrown in randomly with the old ones, but some more would have been nice. The practice mode isn't bad, but
where are the cool practice stages from the PSP version? (and the awesome
practice mode BGM?!?) I was also hoping for Namco to graphically fix
a few of the stages, which are strangely at a lower resolution than others...
Nope! I even had my hopes up for the updated intro, as seen in the PSP
version; but unfortunately it's still the (shorter) arcade version,
with the new "Online" logo flying across the screen near the end. New customization
items or alternate outfits wouldn't have been a bad effort either... but
that's just asking too much I guess. 
Thankfully, and as expected, Namco didn't make any "fatal" mistakes with Tekken Online... And I do appreciate the many fundamental things that they actually did right. For example: NO Jinpachi in Online Mode, character change at continue (just the way I like it), solid 8-player battle lobbies, the ability to kick laggy players out of your room, and the relaxing music while waiting in a battle room. Namco also answered my prayers with their downloadable update on (4-17-08) by adding a sound (and vibration if you're using a Dual Shock 3) when someone enters your battle room!
At the end of the day, I do love my Tekken 5: DR Online, and still consistently play it even after the release of Soul Calibur IV, which is notably less laggy online; so Namco is improving their net code at least. I played the hell out of this game online... Below is the first time I tagged "TOP 10" and achieved Tekken Lord rank... (circa Nov. 1st, 2007).
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.
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Per request, F. Yagami's player profile... The highest rank I've achieved
online was #6. 
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Once again, I don't
take the rankings too seriously... It's all just for fun. And no I don't
consider myself to be a "Tekken God" of some sort, though the rankings say so. 
~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG
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