Easily the best Tekken so far, and a great fighting game.
//Graphics- Everything looks great, the environments have finally started to show damage effectively (although you can't knock your opponent off, or through them). Your characters look great and they move fast and cleanly. That's right, no jumpy gameplay. My favorite character, "Hworang", is looking mighty cool this time around if I do say so myself...
//Sound- I'd tell you if the voicing was good, if I knew Japanese (Ha..), but the English wasn't that great either. It IS a fighting game you know. It's better than most though, and the best comes out in the sequences that play after you beat Story with a character. Sound effects are fit in well, happen on time, and are quite farmilliar if you know your Tekken.
//Gameplay- There are plenty of modes as usual, but this time with a new addition. Arcade mode is called "Story" now, and Arcade mode has become something like Virtua Fighter 4's "Kumite". You fight an endless slew of fighters to raise your own rank and recieve Fight Points to buy clothes and accessories for your character. Did I mention that? No? Well yes, you can now customize your characters from head to toe, from sunglasses to skateboards, from blue to red, your characters are now YOURS. You even create a name for your account, and thats where your rank comes in, although it does nothing but make you feel special. Tekken 1, 2, and 3 are also included in Tekken 5, which is a welcome addition. Although with 5 being a much better fighter, playing the first three gave me no fun, but a nostalgia attack.
//Bad- Yes, sadly, there is bad. Story is often too hard with some characters, after midway through, the difficulty becomes unforgiving, although you can often trudge through the cheapness after about 6 continues. The final boss is complete wrongness. His specials absolutely rape you. He renders you helpless and can even DRAIN health. That guy belongs in an RPG. Also, there is a small adventure game featuring Jin called "Devil Within" which is tedious, easy, and mind-numbingly horrible. I'd rather had Tekken Force back. I see they were trying to load Tekken 5 full of features (not much unlike the Mortal Kombats of late?), but Devil Within was best left NOT WITHIN Tekken 5.
//Overall- If you own any Tekken, and it should be this one. It includes the first three, and has much better gameplay than the fourth. The Arcade mode supplies lots of fun, and is much less difficult than Story. Customizing your characters is nice too. the little bad in this game is completely flattened by the good (Just -do not- play "Devil Within").
Rating -//Superb\\-