Tekken 8's director, Katsuhiro Harada, is surprised at how popular Reina has become due to her having an intentionally plain design that wouldn't make her stand out too much.

Even though there are a few missing characters like Bob and Katarina, Tekken 8 still has one of the strongest rosters the series has ever seen, which is mostly thanks to the three newcomers that it introduces - Azucena, Victor, and Reina. All three fighters have quickly become popular with fans, but Reina is without a doubt the most popular of them, and perhaps even of the whole game.

Although Reina's popularity isn't a surprise to fans considering she's the illegitimate daughter of Heihachi and has a ton of moves inspired by him, her rise to the top of Tekken 8 is one that has surprised its director, Katsuhiro Harada. As pointed out by Redditor Prestigious_Low6266, Harada has a video series called Harada's Bar where he interviews guests and reveals details about Tekken.

In one of the most recent episodes, Harada talks to a cosplayer Shioncos, who is dressed as Azucena. Although the interview mainly focuses on Azucena and reveals more detail about her, the conversation switches to Reina when Shioncos is asked who she's going to try and main in Tekken 8.

Shioncos replies by saying that she's interested in Reina, which causes Harada to point out that she's become one of the most popular characters. He then says that he thinks he made a mistake announcing Azucena first as fans instantly took more of an interest in Reina after her reveal later in 2023.

Harada then reveals that the team "intentionally" made Reina plain and that her design was purposefully meant to resemble someone who wouldn't stand out in Shibuya. Despite this intentional design choice, Reina still managed to become popular straight away, something that surprised Harada and made him think his senses were getting less sharp.

In comparison, Harada pointed out that Azucena's design was purposefully flashy and meant to stand out among the rest of the Tekken cast, something that did initially work as she went viral when she was revealed, something that then happened to Reina when she was announced. Harada wasn't the only one who was surprised, either, as he pointed out that other members of the development team expected her to be popular, but not quite as much as she is.

Posted: Feb 10, 2024 1:50 pm
Related Forum: Gaming Discussion

Source: https://www.thegamer.com/tekken-8-director-katsuhiro-harada-surprised-at-how-popular-reina-is-plain-design/