Grave Gamer News & Views — pokken

Tekken + Pokemon = Pokkén? The Pokemon Company Announces Pokkén Tournament

Have you ever played Pokemon, lamented at the turn-based battles and thought to yourself, “Holy hell, why can’t this just be like Tekken?”

On the reverse spectrum, have you ever listlessly slogged through Tekken’s character select screen and groaned, “I just want to play as fictional, dog-fighting animals whose only attempt at language is shouting their own names!”

Well, good goddamn, do I have a game for you that you’ve always wanted but didn’t know how to ask for. Introducing Pokkén Tournament – a 3D arcade fighter set to the tune of Tekken’s gameplay but featuring Nintendo’s beloved Pocket Monsters.

The game is being developed by Namco Bandai Games with involvement from Soul Calibur producer Masaaki Hoshino and Tekken’s own eccentric producer Katsuhiro Harada. This is far from Namco’s first foray into Nintendo trenches – both Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS are being created by Namco Bandai teams, which is likely how they got this unusual gig (saké probably played a big part too).

Before you mod your fightstick with a custom Pikachu inlay, keep note that no North American release has been announced. Nor is there any info on Pokkén making it to home consoles. So far, the fighter is only slated for Japanese arcades in 2015.

Watch the official teaser hereabouts.