With the dawn of 3D fighters, there have been many contenders that are among the greats, whether it's the first 3D fighter like Virtua Fighter or the fan-service esque fighter Dead Or Alive. However, one of the most popular fighting games to date is Tekken. This is thanks to the cast of colorful and memorable characters that have graced the scene for over two decades. Since there is a large cast, it is difficult to know who to play.
For the first three Tekken games, here is every character's backstory as well as their fighting styles, which can fit any player's playstyle.
31 Kazuya Mishima
Initially the main protagonist of Tekken, he is one of the most interesting characters in his universe. Unlike main characters such as Ryu or Kyo Kusanagi from The King Of Fighters franchise, Kazuya Mishima is a man bent on revenge and is as evil as his father. This is thanks in part because Heihachi threw him off a cliff when he was younger and the devil gene that continues to course through his veins. Since then, he has become an antagonist or anti-hero who strives to gain more power.
When it comes to his playstyle, he is a strong defensive character who can deliver aggressive physical attacks. He fights almost exactly like his Tekken 1 and 2 iterations with the exception of controlling the Devil within him. One of his strongest tools is his Electric Wind Godfist which all Mishima family members share together. His style in the canon is called the Mishima Style Fighting Karate with inspirations coming from the classic style of Shotokan.
30 Heihachi Mishima
Contrasted by his son, who is capable of using the cursed Devil gene in order to get more power, Heihachi Mishima is the evil father or grandfather of the series. Also wanted immense power for himself, he was the reason why Kazuya Mishima went down the dark path in the first place. Tossing him off a cliff when he was five years old. His cruelty as a character makes him incredibly popular within the series and this is also thanks in part to his fighting style. Also using the Mishima Style Fighting Karate, his version is far more aggressive compared to his son and has some of the highest damage outputs. The high-end moves and punishes of the style makes him a foil to his son. The style itself takes inspiration from Goju-Ryu, one of the oldest forms of Karate.
29 Anna Williams
Introduced in the original Tekken, Anna Williams is the sister of Nina Williams. Similar to her blonde-haired sister, she trained to become an assassin. However, she valued an ordinary life, something that her sister Nina Williams didn't share. As such, she can be a bit more fun in her personality compared to her brooding sister. This is also highlighted within her fighting style. Although she follows the same style like her sister, having a mixture of her mother's Aikido and father's Kopojutsu, she leans towards the former. As such, she excels at aiming for vulnerable points of the body through precise strikes or joint locks.
28 Ganryu
One of the original characters from Tekken 1, Ganryu was an incredibly talented Sumo wrestler who let his attitude outside the ring get him discharged from competitions. Although he attempted to win the first King Of Iron Fist tournament, he lost to Yoshimitsu. However, his feats eventually got the attention of Kazuya Mishima who hired him as a bodyguard. One of his missions was to find Michelle Chang and gain her amulet only to fail and fall in love with her. From there he opened a sumo dojo and taught many people until once again falling in love with Chang's adoptive daughter. The story of Ganryu's life only continues to get more convoluted with the following games. As mentioned before, his fighting style is Sumo wrestling with his playstyle being deemed as balanced and surprisingly tactile. With deceptive tactics and strong pokes.
27 Jack
Jack is one of the many robots that has appeared in every single Tekken games. Including spin-offs and main series, these robots are often extremely aggressive characters who can dish out immense power. Although they don't have a lot of personalities, they are given a decent amount of compassion and empathy. Originally the first Jack was designed to eliminate Kazuya Mishima within the tournament, although every other Jack is different with distinct personalities. In terms, of their fighting styles, they are very basic. Being slow and sluggish, they make up for it for their devastating and immense power. Nonetheless, they can make up for it with their unique attack combinations.
26 King
Throughout the Tekken franchise, there are actually two distinct Kings, with the former King being prevalent within the first two games. While the latter King being around for the rest of the series starting from Tekken 3. The former King was a priest who had to take care of an orphanage, becoming a wrestler in order to gain funds for it. While the latter King was an orphan within that orphanage that took over the mantle after the other's death. Both Kings are masters of lucha libra wrestling although the second King's style is based more around shoot wrestling. Meanwhile, the first King is more based around catch wrestling. Regardless, they are both grappling juggernauts who are a threat to any opponent.
25 Armor King
The main rival to King, one of Armor King's eyes was crushed following a match with King. Determined to get revenge, the Armor King went to the King Of Iron Fist tournament in order to compete and take the wrestling scene by storm. Of course, by the second entry, they put their differences aside as Armor King went on to train King's successor. Although he died by Tekken 4, his mantle lives on through his younger brother. Both Armor Kings employ pro wrestling as their main fighting style, however, they focus on the shoot variant similar to King II. The second Armor King in particular is very pressure heavy.
24 Kuma/Panda
These two characters are interesting in that they are both some of the few animal characters within a fighting game. Both are a grizzly and polar bear respectively while also employing very similar fighting styles. Kuma is the pet bear of Heihachi while Panda is the best friend of Ling Xiaoyu. The funny thing is that there are actually two Kumas, with the second one being the son of the previous Kuma. He also has an interest in Panda although she doesn't share it. Together they use a fighting style called Kuma-Shinken or Heihachi-Style Improved Kuma-Shinken which is a style devised by Heihachi to teach the bear characters.
23 Kunimitsu
Kunimitsu is a character that has only appeared in Tekken 1 and 2. Originally, the character was part of the Manji clan who was banished by Yoshimitsu after she was found stealing the funds. Known for her fox mask, she is a character that joined the King Of Iron Fist tournaments for petty and selfish reasons. Initially, she entered to get some funds and steal the treasure. However, by the second tournament, she aims to steal a sword from Yoshimitsu which was a priceless artifact, in order to make a replica for her grandfather. Utilizing Ninjitsu as her fighting style, she employs plenty of fast and evasive moves.
22 Lee Chaolan
Lee Chaolan is one of the most likeable and interesting characters in the entire Tekken universe. Adopted by Heihachi in order to act as a rival for Kazuya Mishima, he is an incredibly arrogant but flamboyant character that slowly went against the Mishima's over the course of his character development. His fighting style fits his flamboyant nature thanks to having a lot of elements of Jeet Kune Do. Although it states that its martial arts, it is clear that is what he uses, while also combining it with other elements such as Boxing and Savate.
21 Marshall Law/Forest Law
Speaking of Jeet Kune Do, both Marshall Law and Forest Law are the Bruce Lee proxies of the game. As they both represent the persona of the late actor. Marshall Law is the father of Forest Law, and has appeared in every Tekken mainline title except the third one. He is a hardworking man who runs his own dojo as well as his own restaurant. Meanwhile, his son is a student at the dojo and joins the King Of Iron Fist tournament 3 when he was dragged into by his family friend Paul Phoenix. As mentioned before, Jeet Kune Do is the fighting philosophy that they follow which deals with fast intercepting strikes and counters.
20 Michelle Chang/Julia Chang
Michelle Chang is a character that appeared and participated during the first two King Of Iron Fist tournaments. She is a half-native woman who entered the first tournament in order to get revenge for the death of her father. By the third tournament onwards, she was replaced by her adoptive daughter Julia Chang where she joined in order to get answers as to why her mother disappeared. Michelle and Julia's fighting style is a mixture of Chinese martial arts specifically Xin Yi Liu He Quan and Baji Quan. It is also combined with wrestling moves.
19 Nina Williams
Nina Williams is the sister of Anna Williams. Just like her sister, she was raised by her father and mother with her father being a well-known assassin. However, unlike her sister, she excelled at being an amazing assassin and enjoyed it. During the first King Of Iron Fist tournament, she was the assassin assigned to kill Heihachi Mishima. Of course, that didn't go the way most people expect. Just like her sister, she specializes in a mixture of Aikido and Koppojutsu. However, she focuses more on her father's Koppojutsu.
18 Paul Phoenix
Paul Phoenix is an overconfident and high-spirited character who aims to be the strongest fighter in the universe. Although this leads to the character being incredibly hot-tempered and having quite the ego. This means that his reasons for joining the tournaments have always been the same. When it comes to his fighting style, he is incredibly aggressive and brute forces away through the opponent. He utilizes a style that combines Judo, Karate and some aspects of Bajiquan.
17 Wang Jinrei
Wang Jinrei is one of the oldest fighters in the entire series and is a close friend of Heihachi Mishima's father, Jinpachi. Appearing in Tekken 1, 2, 5 and 6, he joins the first two tournaments in order to defeat the Mishima bloodline. Heihachi in the first game and later Kazuya in the second game. The character utilizes the style of Xin Yi Liu He Quan which utilizes a variety of Kung Fu techniques that can undermine the defenses of his opponent.
16 Yoshimitsu
Yoshimitsu is one of the ninja characters in the Tekken franchise who has appeared in every single entry to date. As the leader of the Manji clan, he joined the first two Tekken's for different reasons. During the first game, he joined in order to act as a front for the clan to steal the tournament funds. All the while giving Ganryu's corrupt money to the poor. During the second game, he joins in order to rescue Bosconovitch. His fighting style utilizes Ninjitsu while adding in Kenjutsu and Battoujutsu.
15 Angel
Angel is one of the more unique fighters and an important character within Tekken 2. Acting as a contrast to Devil or Kazuya Mishima, her role in the game was to set Kazuya Mishima free from his evil. Although considering what has happened to him later in the franchise, it is clear that she has failed. Her appearance seems to stem from Jun Kazama who later becomes the mother of Jin Kazama. Her fighting style is Mishima Style Karate that is combined with supernatural powers.
14 Baek Doo San
Baek Doo San was a character that made his first appearance during Tekken 2. Although he made a cameo in Tekken 3, he returns as a playable character during Tekken 5 and 6. He joined the second King Of Fighters tournament when he was blackmailed. The unknown sender warning him that he would reveal the fact that he killed his father if he didn't attack Marshall Law's dojo. Although he was dealing with the guilt of killing his father, he has since made peace with it and went on to train Hwoarang in Taekwondo. Speaking of Taekwondo, he utilizes that as his fighting style, although it is far more balanced and clunkier than his student.
13 Bruce Irvin
Bruce Irvin was a character that appeared during Tekken 2 and was raised in rough neighborhoods. Fighting in order to survive, he eventually competed in underground competitions and eventually became a heavyweight champion in professional matches. One day he was told to rig a match in Thailand, however, his pride didn't allow it and thus he won the fight through manslaughter. Running away from murder and getting a hit out by a contract killer, he was eventually caught in a plane crash. Giving him amnesia and being found by Kazuya Mishima. The character employs the fighting style of Kickboxing, although he specifically focuses on Muay Thai style. He primarily uses the style as a counter-hitter, with strong pokes that allow him solid offense and defense.
12 Jun Kazama
Jun Kazama is the mother of Jin Kazama and has only appeared during the events of Tekken 2. Originally she was a wildlife surveillance officer who joined the tournament after finding out that Kazuya Mishima was illegally smuggling animals. Due to her psychic abilities, she also sensed Kazuya's devil gene and seeks out to stop that too. Although by the end of Tekken 2, it seems like she and Kazuya had a deeper connection and she ended up being pregnant with his child. Raising Jin Kazama alone in the mountains, her fate is currently unknown as Jin initially thought that she died from Ogre. Her fighting style is the Kazama Style Martial Arts which focused on defensive play and technical mix-ups.