10 Most Popular Tekken Characters

First Appearance: Tekken

The main character of the original Tekken, Kazuya Mishima has been solely motivated by revenge against his father, Heihachi. Like his son Jin, Kazuya also has the powerful ‘Devil Gene’ inside him. This allows Kazuya to turn into ‘Devil’, the evil entity which served as the final boss of 1995’s Tekken 2.

Most major plotlines of the Tekken franchise come from one event that took place between a five year old Kazuya and his father. At a place known as the ‘Precipice of Fate’ (in 2015’s Tekken 7), Kazuya challenges his father and is ultimately defeated before being thrown from the cliff. It was this act which awoke the Devil Gene inside of Kazuya. When Kazuya enters the first King of Iron Fist Tournament, he is successful in defeating his father and throws him from a cliff in the same way.

Kazuya is one of the franchises major villains, making appearance in all main games except for 1997’s Tekken 3. The Mishima characters are often regarded as being difficult to master in the Tekken franchise, but this certainly pays off with Kazuya. In Tekken 7, Kazyua is able to transform into his Devil form during a match, which can be devastating to an unsuspecting foe. Like all the Mishima’s, Kazuya is a fan favourite, and his feud with his family keeps players coming back for each Tekken game.