You’ll have your first chance to play Tekken 8 next month, as Bandai Namco has opened up registrations for the first closed beta network test.

While the network test will first open up exclusively for PlayStation 5 for a week, it’ll then also be available on Xbox and PC, provided you register before June 27.

After appearing on the Steam Database at the end of May, it’s now been confirmed by Bandai Namco that the network test starts on July 21 for PlayStation 5 players, running from 9PM BST until 8AM BST on July 22. The second test will then run for PlayStation 5, Xbox, and PC via Steam from July 28 at 9AM BST to July 21 at 8AM BST. PlayStation players who get into the first test will also get access to the second one, giving you double the time to fight.



During the test, you’ll be able to play across five stages with all 16 of the characters currently revealed: Jin, Paul, Xiaoyu, Kazuya, Lars, Jack 8, Nina, King, Asuka, Lili, Nina, Leroy, Hwoarang, Law, and Bryan, who was accidentally leaked by Bandai on its European Twitter page only a few weeks ago.

That’s only 15 characters, though. The final one was revealed in the same trailer as the network test: Claudio Serafino, making a return from his debut in Tekken 7. Claudio is one of the more out-there characters in Tekken’s canon, which is impressive considering there are bears, demons, and kangaroos, being an Italian exorcist who fights using his own special brand of sorcery.



He’s not the fastest or strongest, but his magic makes a big threat in the mid-range, and his Starburst mechanic in Tekken 7 allowed him to gain access to even wilder moves, provided he could keep on dealing damage to your opponent. The trailer for the network test only gives us a brief look at Claudio, though, so it’s hard to judge if his playstyle has been revamped majorly for his second time in the ring.

You can register for the network test through the Bandai Namco website. While you won’t need a PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold subscription to play, and the test isn’t being limited to any specific region, it is being selected on a first-come, first-served basis. You’ll likely want to get in there quick if you want a chance of taking Claudio for a spin.

The last month has been huge for fighting games, with the release of Street Fighter 6 and the announcement of Mortal Kombat 1, due for release later this year. Just yesterday, the latter had its first big gameplay showing at Summer Game Fest, confirming Kenshi and Goro are returning to commit horrific acts of violence against each other.

Posted: Jun 12, 2023 9:56 pm
Related Forum: Gaming Discussion

Source: https://www.thegamer.com/tekken-8-closed-beta-announced/