Best Tekken Fighters

Like any long-running fighting game series, Tekken’s roster has expanded dramatically over the years. The key to these titles, of course, is offering a varied range of characters of different fighter archetypes, allowing players to find someone that suits their playstyle. To keep things fresh, then, each new entry tends to introduce new characters to the mix.

That also means they've gone through a lot of tweaking and balancing. With today's era of updates and patches, the truly busted can be fixed pretty quickly. Yet others have remained consistently strong across the series, either staying close to the top of the tier list or remaining at the top across multiple entries. Ranked by strength and technique, these are the best fighters in Tekken history.

Updated February 19, 2024, by David Heath: Tekken 8 is finally out, and it has been out and about for nearly a month as of this writing. It's already sold 2 million units in that short time, rivaling Street Fighter 6 as the best fighting game for beginners and veterans alike. Its single-player content, like its cheesy but fun Story Mode, has helped pull in the casual crowd, while the online modes have largely been smooth and stable enough to please the die-hard fans.

It also has a bunch of new gameplay mechanics, which have affected its considerable character roster in one way or another. So, this list has been updated to reflect how the early days of T8 have affected things, alongside a few characters who just missed the mark the last time. So, ranked by tiers, here are more of the strongest fighters in Tekken.

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18 Bruce Irvin

Nightmare Impact

• Best Games: A-tier in Tekken 2, 6, and Tag 1.
• Worst Games: C-tier in Tekken 5 and 5DR.

The series' first Muay Thai fighter is one of the more inexplicably popular characters in the series. Bruce Irvin doesn't really have much story presence beyond being Kazuya's former right-hand man , nor much personality. The developers have tried replacing him three times, giving a lot of his moves to Bryan Fury in Tekken 3 before taking them back, then making two new kickboxers in Tekken 7's Josie Rizal and Fahkumram.

So, why is he popular? Because of his gameplay. Tekken 2 and Tekken Tag Tournament 1 made him swift and strong, with some deadly chains and feints. The High Kick in his One-Two-Low-High Kick was unblockable in T2 due to an oversight. But he was nerfed to near-oblivion on his return in Tekken 5, until he became viable again for Tekken 6 and Tekken Tag Tournament 2. Though chances are it'll take a third Tag Tournament to bring him back.

17 Paul Phoenix

Hot-Blooded Destroyer

• Best Games: A-tier in Tekken 2, 4, and 6.
• Worst Games: C-tier in Tekken 3 and Tag 1.

Paul Phoenix has been one of the series' easier characters to learn since the beginning. Players just need to get the hang of his Phoenix Smasher and throw it out. If that sounds too simple, it's still more complicated than his friends Marshall and Forest Law, whose Somersault Kicks were the spammer's delight.

That said, Paul has been a contender even at the highest levels. His hits are more powerful than Nina or Law's strikes, and he's faster than the Jack robots. He's great for getting up in opponents' faces. Even with nerfs, like his big moves being easy to sidestep and his more notorious moves, like the Falling Leaf/Demolition Man, getting more risky when blocked, he's still a force to be reckoned with.

16 Ling Xiaoyu

Dancing Phoenix

• Best Games: A-tier in Tekken 3, 4, 6, 8, and Street Fighter X Tekken.
• Worst Games: D-tier in Tekken 7.

It's understandable to see how Bruce got popular with his strong moves, and "powerhouse" may as well be Paul's middle name. However, how was Ling Xiaoyu able to match and even outdo them throughout the series? Most of her moves are delicate strikes that don't do that much damage. Her big unblockable move, Thunder Strike, does roughly the same damage as Paul's Phoenix Smasher for a much slower setup. But there are more ways to be powerful than just hitting harder.

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For Xiaoyu, it's her mobility. Her swift strikes don't hurt a lot, but they're fast enough to stop the opponent in their tracks and leave them open. Many of them lead into her stances, which can bait opponents into a combo or launcher (Back Turn), or sit low enough to avoid high or mid-strikes (Phoenix). If all else fails, she can parry attacks to leave them open, or simply spin, roll, or cartwheel out of the way. So long as she's on the move, she can be a difficult, dizzying character to encounter.

15 Jun Kazama

Light of Hope

• Best Games: S-Tier in Tekken 8.
• Worst Games: D-Tier in Tag 1.

For being one of T2's big newcomers, Jun Kazama didn't leave much of a mark. She was around A-B tier, but was left out of the sequel because fans didn't play her as much. Even when she did return to TTT1, she toppled down the tier list to being just slightly better than the jokey animal characters. With her (kind-of) niece Asuka taking over as the Kazama Ju-Jitsu representative, it seemed like Jun would be left in the Tag games.

Then Tekken 8 brought her back and made her worth the player's while. As of this writing, she's rivaling her deadly son Jin as the strongest character in the game. Jun retains her tricky mix-up chains from the past, which are simpler to get to grips with than Jin's Wavedash tactics. She can drive opponents into the wall with little fuss, and her moves track opponents well, striking them if they're not perfect with their sidesteps. Bar any future nerfs or buffs, she's the top character to try out in T8.

14 King

Anger of the Beast

• Best Games: S-tier in Tekken 8.
• Worst Games: D-tier in Tekken 4, Street Fighter X Tekken.

Being strict, the King in Tekken 1 & 2, and the one in Tekken 3, 4, 5, etc, are two different people. King II was one of the kids at the first one's orphanage. But in terms of gameplay, they're basically the same, and they've hung around the mid-to-higher tiers throughout the series. T1 King could trap opponents in constant blockstun with his elbow, while T5/T5: DR King gained the ability to throw people in midair, ending his juggles with hard-hitting slams.

The jaguar-headed luchador hit the doldrums in T4 and SFxT, and his tricks kept him mid at best in T7. But T8, as it currently stands, has given King his strongest outing in years. The game made throws stronger in general, so King's throw-heavy moveset make him a considerable threat, especially when they lead into his nasty multiparts. Plus, his long limbs give him some strong poking attacks, stuffing his opponents mid-stride. If players want to give grapplers a try, King's currently the best of the bunch.

13 Lee Chaolan

Silver-Haired Demon

• Best Games: S-tier in Tekken 6.
• Worst Games: C-tier in Tekken 2 and Tag 1.

Kazuya's foster brother, Lee Chaolan, didn't have too much going for him in the early days. He was basically Law with an infinite (but not unbeatable) hit string, and some tricky high-low mix-ups here and there. TTT1 gave him more original moves, like his Hitman stance and follow-ups, though he wasn't exactly a Mishima beater. It wasn't until T4 that he got his mojo, where he got his brother's Mist Step, with his own deadly follow-ups like his juggling Cossack Kick combo.

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Even better (or worse for his opponents), his moves were great at driving opponents into T4's new walled stages, where he could trap them consistently, if not infinitely, with his punch chains. Even when this got toned down, Lee remained a great character at carrying his foes into walls, reaching his peak in T6, but still dominant in T7. The downside is that getting to this high level requires tight input timing and more practice than the likes of Paul, Jun, or even his old relatives in the Mishima clan.

12 Bryan Fury

Harbinger of Chaos

• Best Game: S-tier in Tekken 6.
• Worst Game: D-tier in Tekken 3.

For one of the toughest fighters in lore, Bryan Fury was pretty lackluster gameplay-wise in his T3 debut. In high-level play, he was the weakest non-joke character, standing above only Kuma/Panda, Gon, and Dr. Bosconovitch, a character who couldn't even stand up straight. That all changed with the sequels.

They upped his strength and expanded his move set with hard jabs, feints, and mix-ups, including the infamous Knee Taunt to Jet Upper. As tricky as its timing is, this move could stun the opponent, and then send them flying into the air for some nasty juggles. T6 may be his highest-tier game, but he's remained around A-tier ever since TTT1, including T8.

11 Armor King

Wicked Flower

• Best Game: S-tier Tekken 6.
• Worst Game: C-tier in Tekken 7.

Technically, the Armor King from T1-TTT1 was also a different guy from the one who returned in Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection, T5's PSP update. But gameplay-wise, they're not all that different. They're both supposed to be the dark counterparts to their regular Jaguar-headed rivals. It showed in T1 where, on top of having King's blockstun-inducing elbow, he had the Mishimas' Wind and Thunder Godfists.

He lost them in TTT1 but retained the Wavedash for other tactics, like a hard clothesline, or his own multipart throws. Then his successor gained an improved poking game thanks to his extra range, and he can make his opponents regret whiffing their attacks with some hard punishes. If only they had better tracking, as his moves could be sidestepped more easily than other characters' tools.

10 Nina Williams

Silent Assassin

• Best Games: S-tier in Tekken 4, 5, 6, and Street Fighter X Tekken.
• Worst Games: C-tier in Tekken Tag 1 & Tekken 7.

The cold-blooded Irish assassin has gone from strength to strength since her T1 debut. Nina Williams is good at stuffing opponents' attacks in mid-stride with her pokes and mix-ups, making her particularly strong in mid-range. Yet getting close to her doesn't help her foes either. If her short jabs and chains don't make them pay, her long list of multipart throws will.

She requires a lot of practice to be truly effective, which can feel like an uphill struggle depending on the game. Tekken 4 saw her rival Jin in power as her Ivory Cutter could stuff a lot of her opponents' attempts to approach her. While Tekken 7 made her more average by comparison. T8 has given her back some of her old mojo, as she's putting up a decent fight in A-tier. Only time will tell if she stays there.

9 Feng Wei

God Fist

• Best Games: S-tier in Tekken 5, 5DR, and 7.
• Worst Games: C-tier in Tekken 6.

Prior to T5, the series' kung fu practitioners tended to be elaborate and technical. Xiaoyu floats like a butterfly and stings like a Q-tip. Lei Wulong has more power in his strikes and a ton of stances to study, but he wasn't exactly a tank. The Changs and Wang Jinrei were simpler but weren't that much stronger than Lei.

The developers noticed this and made Feng Wei as kung fu's proverbial tank. Conservative estimates ranked him around A-tier in T5 with his simple, fast, hard-hitting strikes. T6 overcorrected with their nerfs, but T7 brought him back to the top of the tree. He's strong in T8 too, but his moves can be sidestepped more easily than before, bringing him down to A-tier.