What I See in this Footage of Tekken Tag Tournament 2

Below is some early footage of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 in action. It mostly just showcases some of the flashier new tag moves and animations, but it does give me a little confidence in this product. The tagging system in the original TTT was fast, balanced, and because the round was over when one character died, tagging required good timing and strategy.

1. First, I'm glad tagging looks as fast as it does in the original TTT. I was worried that the enclosed 3d environments would slow down the tag system, but it looks that won't be the case.

2. The video showcases several of the special tag throws with Paul and Law and the Kings, but the usefulness of these maneuvers were always limited. They were just more damaging versions of tag throws, but there are almost always better options than tag throwing. That and these force the player to use specific character match-ups.

3. It's not surprising, but the bounding system seems to have returned from Tekken 6 -- meaning Julia's juggles will most likely still be a pain in the ass to pull off. Yay.

4. The tag combos they showed in the footage, especially the Jin/Asuka one, look sorta canned. And I hope they are, because otherwise the inputs could be very tricky. Canned combos are usually pretty useless, but I'd prefer that than having to rely on high maintenance inputs to maximize damage potential.

5. Tagging out when backed into a wall looks terribly dangerous. See how open Armor King looks after he jumps down? I don't see the possibility of a tag cancel in this situation, so I imagine the other players will get a free wall juggle of their choosing. Maybe they could give the player landing options when jumping down from a wall after a tag. Perhaps the option to land in the lying or rolling position?

6. There were no walls in the first TTT. The best fighters in Tekken 4-6 were the ones with good launchers combined with great juggle carry and strong wall enders/games. Now players can pick the fighters with the best juggle starters and tag juggle to the fighters with the best wall games. The damage potential is going to be sick.

7. Namco really needs to change the fighters' default outfits. Customization is not enough. It might sound trivial, but I think it actually affects sales. Street Fighter gets away with this because releases are few and far between, and because there is more nostalgia to the outfits.

8. Much like the costumes, if there isn't a significant change in the visual style of the models, animations, or overall look, this series is going to sell worse and worse. Namco will still make a great fighting game no doubt, but it won't be a very successful one.

9. Where my Ogres?