How Tekken keeps adapting, from arcades to esports

Katsuhiro Harada is synonymous with Bandai Namco’s long-running Tekken franchise, serving as producer and director (and voice actor!) at various intervals throughout the series’ 23-year history. As one of the last-remaining giants of the Japanese 3D fighting game scene, along with Street Fighter (and to a lesser extent Dead or Alive and King of Fighters), Tekken is now nearing its seventh official entry into the series.

With the fighting game scene reaching new heights in popularity thanks to highly publicized tournaments like Evo, we caught up with Harada and senior game designer Michael Murray at Bandai Namco’s headquarters during Tokyo Game Show to discuss the fighter’s continuing adaptability in the streaming era of gaming.