Beat by Beat: The Evolution of Tekken Music | DashFight

[@DashFight]

We initially wanted to rate the Tekken soundtracks, but there are simply too many amazing tracks. However, with that said, which one of these OSTs had stuck with you the most?

[@Monmat999]

Tekken 4 by a mile

[@TheRadioSquare]

Tekken 3 OST is forever burned into my memory

[@piotrtylkowski388]

Tekken 3, followed shortly by Tekken 5 (with DR)

[@meekhailbrahma4650]

I love most of the tracks, so I'll mention those that sends chills down my spine, gives me psychotic or violent vibes, or are straight bizarre. The list is quite long, but interesting: 1. Tekken 4 - Fear (very unsettling, creepy with robotic sounds and ominous music, combined with what appears to be painful screams of test subjects being tortured inhumanely in a cold laboratory, god knows what the composer was thinking while making this soul shaking track) 2. Tekken 4 - Didgerhythm (quite noisy and insidious) 3. Tekken 4 - Gym (it feels like someone with anger issues is going mad and throwing and breaking things in the environment violently) 4. Tekken 5 - Ka En No Mai (very bizarre Japanese music) 5. Tekken 5 - Gold Rush (some parts have hissing sounds and the last high pitch part before the loop begins is very bizarre) 6. Tekken 5 - The 3rd, 4th and 5th stage themes from The Devil Within mode (All of them are extremely strange and bizarre, especially the 3rd stage theme, which is a creepy version of the Tekken 4 beach stage theme "Kitch". Listening to these 3 themes always gives me PTSD) 7. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Elegance in Violence (i can't even figure out the rhythm of this very noisy track) 8. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Tiamat (same as Gold rush in Tekken 5) 9. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Amnesia (Very fast and bizarre) 10. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Aurora Australis (Ditto) 11. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Supercharged (Ditto) 12. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection - Shattered Dreams (Sounds like something bad is going to happen) 13. Tekken 6 - Arisa (It is a theme which evoke a mixture of feelings, especially cruelty, remorse, pity, and a feeling of hubris that makes one regret later. Some parts like Arabian instruments and vocals sounds strange and perfectly implies the above mentioned emotions) 14. Tekken 6 - Sacred Dark (completely eerie, unearthly, freakish, sinister theme with eerie, ungodly, supernatural and other-worldly deep male voice chants) 16. Tekken 6 - Tunnel Disaster (very unstable and violent track) 17. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - It's not a Tuna (it's sudden transformation from violins to trance is bizarre) 18. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Zirkus (the bells with electronic sounds are bizarre) 19. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Utmost Limits (the mood of the music is creepy) 20. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Un Deux Trois (I find both the stage and the theme very bizarre) 21. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Tool Pusher (that high pitch sound at around 3 or 4 seconds sounds so bizarre along with the track's fast pace) 22. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Siga (Very noisy) 23. Tekken Revolution - El Condor (it is a very strange, weird and a little funny kind of electrical and dubstep music) 24. Tekken Revolution - Self Destruct (very aggressive guitars and noisy) 25. Tekken Revolution - Lost in a Station (the ringing bells at the beginning and then the whole track sounds very strange and induces a feeling of foreboding) 26. Tekken Revolution - Q (Fun fact: It was earlier named "Buddha Head", but later changed it to just "Q" for some unknown reason) (the music is just a fast paced war drums with some electrical touch and a little bit of piano) 27. Tekken Revolution - Fear to Agonize (strange fast paced acoustic guitar music) 28. Tekken 7 - Attack on rhythm 1 (it sounds quite fancy from outside with the dubsteps, but deep inside the song expresses nothing but regret and the injury that could result from a fight) 29. Tekken 7 - Stigma (both 1 and 2) (It's a electrical war cry music) 30. Tekken 7 - Volcano 2nd (the last part becomes very aggressive and noisy, which depicts the violent struggling of the fighters to survive) 31. Tekken 7 - Ruin 65 2nd (Extremely noisy) 32. Tekken 7 - Distorter 1 and 2 both (I guess everyone knows about these 2 themes by now for its viciously noisy and violent tone) 33. Tekken 7 - Atrocity both 1 and 2 (Same as distorter, but in a little less level) 35. Tekken 7 - Precipice of fate (both 1 and 2) 36. Tekken 7 - Violet systems (both 1 and 2)

[@kjwinbush2012]

3 and 4 are pretty much tied for me, I can't really pick one over the other.

[@hatchhyjack]

Tekken 5 will always have a special place in my heart

[@Soldier4ChristTV]

U, me & everyone else!😎

[@chucklos391]

Tekken 7’s Solitude takes me back to a great time with my ex of 6 years. She didn’t play any video games and she told me she loved that track whenever I fired up Tekken 7. Wish they kept it.

[@fogijay]

Definitely had lovely and fitting atmosphere to it

[@unciervoenciervado]

Tekken 4 OST was a total masterpiece. Not only it was incredibly well done, but the implementation (with the big crescendos after round ends, allowing the track to build itself up between rounds) is something that added an impact to the matches. The only thing comparable right now would be the dynamic OSTs of Devil May Cry 5, Metal Gears Rising and Streets of Rage 4. They had something really cool going with Tekken 4 and I hope they revisit some of those musical ideas.

[@fogijay]

Authentic Sky >>>>

[@SadikiStGeorgeangemon44]

A mix of Tekken 4 and Tekken 3 music would be peak

[@Renegade0Funk]

It's a massive shame that "Namco Sounds" is no longer on Spotify 😭. Great content as always TBS!

[@GoldenAureliush]

It is!

[@capedshinobi]

It is, I work out in the gym listening to tekken tracks

[@irasac1]

​@@capedshinobithey don't have tekken osts in their profile, what's going on

[@capedshinobi]

@@irasac1 they do, tekken 3,4,5, TAG 1 and others

[@capedshinobi]

Type tekken, they must be there. There are all of them

[@aaronsmith8644]

Love the love the music is getting. Tekken music almost never misses. My only complaint is how absolutely criminal it is that “Your Sunset” didn’t get a mention here 😢

[@Harrisensei]

bruh!.. I can't even. Your sunset and tru ogres theme from TTT1.

[@Z3PHYR-]

Ground Zero Funk will always be my favorite fighting music

[@Maymaysmaymays]

Wayang Kulit/Abyss of Time is and will always be the banger of all bangers! There’s something about Tekken and electronic music that just works amazingly!

[@PhD_Flopper]

tekken 6’s has some crazy tracks

[@MackCasual]

To this day i still get chills and tear up whenever i hear the TTT1 opening. Reminds me of weekends playing tekken for hours with my father

[@funakiexpressV2]

They knew what they were doing with the ttt2 intros starting off with ttt1s intro track 🤌

[@OhShitItsWayneBradySon]

Not even a mention of formless like water!?!?! The best Tekken track ever!!

[@bryansam650]

Tekken music is a genre of its own you know?

[@NYUMIR]

Video game music or synthpop perhaps

[@LKRG]

This and Persona lol

[@Victorluuz]

Sad, Namco removed all the Tekken OST from Spotify. I listened to it almost every single day. Namco was my most listened artist in 2020, hope they bring it back someday

[@gregor3000pl]

Every single Tekken OST is great in its own right, it's amazing how consistent this series is with amazing music.

[@marvelsandals4228]

I have a soft spot for Tekken 2, as many of those tracks are super nostalgic (Headshaker is my jam), but Tekken 3 really stands the test of time (I'm referring to the PS1 tracks). They serve their role as fitting background music for a fighting game released in the late 90s. They are designed to be simple chords that loop around, slowly adding on complexity & variation as the fight unfolds, leading up to these high energy epic solos. Most game soundtracks (especially fighting games) are a mixed bag of quality, but nearly every single stage theme from Tekken 3 is a banger. Lei, King, Jin, Law, Nina, even Julia's theme is badass. Some stand out tracks from later games: -Airport from 4 -Moonlight Wilderness from 5 (contender for best track in the series) -Infinite Azure from 7

[@tvmrepic]

5:23 King's theme in Tekken 3 was revolutionary theme for gaming back in the day. Just like the select character theme. Sometimes my 8 year old brain thought the game was glitching when I heard the song for the first time.

[@BlakeJae]

I disagree on the Tekken 5 critique. If anything I think having such a wide variety of composers is why I find it to be one of the best soundtracks in the series. Every single stage has a very unique track that stands apart from each other, which is something that Tekken 7’s soundtrack lacked, even though I do love many tracks in 7

[@suiken3149]

T5 had it share of great tunes, but majority of the songs are just okay. Only Ground Zero Funk and Moonlight Wilderness really stood out for me.

[@henrik5299]

​@@suiken3149Are you serious ?

[@suiken3149]

@@henrik5299 Compared to T2, T3 and T4, T5's overall OST is average

[@henrik5299]

@@suiken3149 LOL , that's your subjective opinion

[@suiken3149]

@@henrik5299 People are blinded by their nostalgia since T5 is their first Tekken game. 2, 3 and 4 have atmospheric themes that T5 lacks.

[@Oolong-Dong]

I replaced almost all Tekken 7 music with the old soundstracks. Even the menu just feels better that way. Sometimes i listen to Tekken 4 and 5 music outside of playing the games.

[@edgelord121]

Tekken 7 S1 menu theme was actually one of the best ever

[@theepiceser9636]

Tekken 5 soundtrack is the best i think

[@Saintlike_0]

There's so much history and variety between each soundtrack and so much effort for a video focused on music that i feel i could watch it for hours! I would be delighted to see (and hear) a part two or a selection of favorites between the dashfight team members. Incredible job, guys!

[@zamza989]

this is the second video ive seen talking about the implementation of bigbeat for tekken 3. Amazing OSTs

[@The_End_Of_Mike]

I really like Yuki, Snow Castle, Pink Pop. I know arcades have a tekken cabinet when I hear one from the tekken 6 ost.

[@showtimefu1234]

I listen to all tekkens ost when I'm at the gym

[@LeMiniBigBoss]

This is a video ive *WANTED* FOR SO LONG

[@chucklos391]

Me too! Tekken music rocks!!

[@pian-0g445]

I do hope some of the ‘polarising’ aspects of 7’s soundtrack returns to 8 with a handful of tracks. Not to everyone’s taste, but god do they get your blood pumping with hype.

[@jinkazama18335]

Thumbnail was great..deal with both Mafias for the entire business..💪💥😎...

[@No-mn9do]

one interesting thing about tekken 1's music and the console version of tekken 2's middle boss theme is that they're sampled from early 90's radio hits, for example the chicago stage/lee's theme is sampled from a prince song iirc.

[@tiger-rgn]

this host is so passionate!

[@bottlemanic]

Wait did I hear right? Keiichi okabe provided some badass music for tekken 3? The guys one of my favourite composers given his work for the Nier series

[@bottlemanic]

Oh apparently that's a trend that continues after 3 also

[@theflashgordon193]

I couldn't believe it when I learn he had work on both t3 and nier. nier ost is a piece of art

[@kjwinbush2012]

Hearing "The Headshaker" again makes me sad that it just does not seem to be allowed to be on any digital re-releases of Tekken 2's soundtrack.

[@epicgaijin]

Yeah, I've always wondered about that. 2 entries in since jukebox mode was created and it's missing in both. Here's hoping it will return in T8 cause I love that song!

[@tobykassulke2385]

Might be a copyright issue. Ground Zero Funk from tekken 5 has an issue with the vocal samples in that track.

[@octo3167]

Tekken 2 ost is the most impressive for me. I've not even played the game back in the day but I like to listen to this tracks nevertheless

[@realamericannegro977]

This is one reason why i want a Tekken 2 remake. I want to seehow theyd do the tracks now.

[@suiken3149]

@@realamericannegro977 I want a faithful recreation, not horrible renditions with EDM or dubstep

[@bossgbini]

I jam Tekken songs almost every single day. When I'm driving, working, working out etc. They're just too good!

[@theperians]

Listen to Tekken TT2’s Plucking Tulips, one of the best music in any game

[@Smashvillain]

A little correction just for the retroactive humor. Kousaki didn't do Amnesia, it was Riow Arai, who is also responsible for... you guessed it, Juri's theme from SFV.

[@poltergeistx]

Just hit me that Jin's Tekken 3 theme sounds like something out of F-Zero GX

[@chucklos391]

Tekken music just rocks. The best of any fighting game. Not even close.

[@bazza3664]

Moonsiders part 1 is a fucking bop and a half. I also have a lot of sentimental value attached to it from watching tournament streams and Steve's love of it. I love it so much that I have it on my morning alarm playlist

[@lordofrage3117]

Tekken 3 music is still the best, especially law theme.

[@WooMaster777]

GAWD!!! Tekken soundtracks ARE SOOO GOOOOD!!!! I absolutely LOVE all the variety to signature sounds throughout the years. Such incredible talents!! 🥰😍🥰😍🥰

[@nioykak5782]

Man, awesome vid. Good job, arya and the dashfight team!

[@tobykassulke2385]

One thing i enjoy about tekken's music is how it changes depending on what genres are around at the time. I'd say it even evolves with the whole electronic genre. Like with the aforementioned big beat genre being an influence in tekken 3. Tekken 1 and 2 have some influence from mid 90s dnb and techno. The stadium and Chicago theme are pretty much ripoffs of existing songs. Dubstep was really getting off the ground around 2011 to 2012 so of course they had to use it for tag 2.

[@starbeeee]

I love that you're giving attention to the wonderful composers behind fighting game music Arya. Great video. Much love 😎♥️

[@ChungiteApostle]

Even if it's probably due to childhood bias, I still hold Tekken 5 + DR to have the greatest soundtrack across the entire series. I remember where I turned on my PS2 and just did homework while listening to the soundtrack from the theater mode. However, I do want to point attention to the music of two spinoffs that I think have excellent soundtracks. The first is the technical marvel that is Tekken Advance for the Game Boy Advance which has a soundtrack that holds up well as Tekken music despite its limitations. The other is Tekken Mobile which has tracks which definitely fit the Tag 2 and 7 sorta vibe but also has some standouts that feel more like songs you'd see in a SEGA game like Windmill Haven and Temple Entrance. Great vid as always, Arya!

[@TekkenGirl4Lyfe]

Tekken Tag 2 had, dare I say it, _the_ best soundtrack of the modern Tekkens.

[@TheUltimateShade667]

For me the top 3 sountracks are Tag 2, 5 and 3. 5 includes DR. Tag 2 has tracks like Sunny and Tool Pusher which I still listen to alongside regular music in my own time.

[@real765rp8]

I expected you to bring up Tag 2 "school" remix but I did not expect you to whip out that Sano clip, lol

[@stanleylee3329]

Tekken 4 was *THE* Soundtrack. It’s so distinct, it fit the game and the environments so well and it’s easily the best standalone listen. Astonishing work

[@devious_diego978]

agreed

[@wowb1965]

Shoutout to bit crusher

[@edgelord121]

Authentic sky 🛐

[@CodenameLavender]

Monument valley should be remixed as a new kazuya theme for Tekken 8

[@joellanderson5137]

Each game had at least 1-4 amazing tracks on them so too hard to rate for me. Jun Kazama Morning Field is an all time favorite though. Thanks for talking about the soundtracks, I feel they don't get enough credit.

[@rodrigoaraujo7323]

Tekken 3 OST is perfect

[@TheRadioSquare]

Love the thumbnail!

[@ToseRoyal]

Tekken 2 has my favorite of OST of any fighting game ever!

[@legendaryaryan5531]

I don't know why? But infinite azure of tekken 7 and electric fountain of tekken 6 gives me peace 🕊️✌️❤

[@Shadowking117x]

I would love to see this exact content for other fighting games. But personal favorite for Tekken is really hard, too many good ones. Tekken 2,3,Tag1,6,and Tag2 had too many to choose for me. Tekken 5 is easily Snow Castle and Tekken 7 is a tossup between Moonsiders Part 1,Vermillion Gates Part 1,Kazumi/Devil Kazumi, and Heat Haze Shadow.

[@carloscarrillo8934]

Heihachi's theme from Tekken 3 is just too badass

[@SadikiStGeorgeangemon44]

Finally someone made a video on the Tekken music evolution.. how did we go from Tekken 3 to now ?

[@Lazar-ox5bd]

There's two songs i wanted to see, Abandoned temple final round and Antares (cathedral theme from t5) but aside from that GREAT video

[@MadMaxBible]

Playing since Tekken 1 and being into electronic music throughout the years you can definitely hear how the music in Tekken followed music trends of the time, later establishing its own style within those styles. At first Tekken's music sounded more or less like early 90's dance, sometimes late 80's music with the sounds they used. Tekken 2 felt more like mid-late 90's console music. That was right before/around the time when games started taking music seriously thanks to first 2 Wipeout games that proved commercial electronica has its place in the gaming industry. Tekken 3 went full on Big Beat which was a thing back then. Especially if you paid attention to Japanese Big Beat - they copied a lot of Boom Boom Satellites from their early work. NAMCO adapted their style in a few games of that time, Tekken Tag, Ridge Racer 4 & 5 sounded like that too. After Tekken 4 dropped the ball IMO I stopped paying attention but back with Tekken 7 it became obvious they tried to ride on the tail end of Dubstep with that soundtrack. Which didn't age too well imo. Hoping that Tekken 8 brings it back to more melodic Tekken 3 roots though. BTW, King George Island theme in T1 is the bomb!

[@Anivrat1]

Special mention must go to Heat Haze in Tekken 7.

[@Tsunami14]

Moonlit Wilderness and Jungle Outpost (before Final Round) will always hit hard.

[@IndigoPhoenix21]

If they bring back Ground Zero Funk for T8, I will be so happy.

[@greycat111]

Tekken 3 and Tag 1 have the best soundtracks in the series imo. Yoshi theme in Tag 1 is amazing.

[@RichhSwaggSmookyGang]

I agree Tekken 3 is crazy, Tag 1 took 3 and went to another level

[@SOBEKCrocodileGod]

I’m kinda sad you didn’t mention Xiaoyu’s disco carousel or Ogre’s beautiful mix of electronics, piano, and violins in the Tekken Tag section. Or the ominous early dubstep of Unknown’s theme. God I love that soundtrack

[@RichhSwaggSmookyGang]

Best Tekken soundtrack

[@acutefailure1]

We as a community failed tekken tag 2. We didn't deserve it

[@bigphil5042]

I grew up playing this game and the soundtrack heavily influenced my music taste forever

[@GeChan1403]

Tekken 3 OSTs is such a fire and timeless

[@KingTheodoreSP155]

Not mentioned yet a Tekken game more or less is the Tekken mobile with my favorite ost the national museum. I haven't played the game but searched the music content.

[@Mentis-de]

Tekken 3 and Tag Tournament had the best music So much memories and it's very unique. Wish they have kept this style and done more in that direction in the further games instead of techno/dubstep

[@ssjduncan7682]

Aloness is my favorite song in Tekken

[@preBLANK]

Tekken music is goated like I bring any game and hear it, just gived me blissful experience and transform me into that era.

[@Strash_]

"Keiichi Okabe swings back to show off his groovier side" Hmmm....im kinda surprised that the prodigy didn't get a mention....sure as hell seems like ethno evening was heavily inspired it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@Saintlike_0]

I'd say not only ethno evening, but a lot of T3's soundtrack in general. I can't talk about big beat without thinking of the prodigy

[@ThatBlastedSalami]

Yeah they definitely took some cues from Spitfire for Ethno Evening.

[@New_Hell]

yeah, ethno evening is a dead ringer for spitfire

[@t3knyks]

Electric Fountain its the most nostalgia inducing stage for me,easily one of my fav stages from the series,same going for Karma.Tekken 6 was my first tekken game i played,and will maybe remain the one I had the most fun with.

[@skunkface_]

I'm surprised you glossed over the music changing from round to round in the arcade version of Tekken 3

[@MugfulofTekken]

Fighting without music is it's own jam, nothing but foot steps on the snow a silent death dance

[@lukelaser5397]

Running over the same old ground. How we found the same old fear. Wish you were here.

[@skywarp1]

Tekken Tag Tournament ending made me cry. Because, it was so good

[@saadabdullah3225]

Funnily enough, that clip of Jin vs Paul in Tekken 3 minus the music was basically my experience of playing the game since I had a copy of the game with the soundtrack removed from it.

[@BIGBOICOMBO]

Surprised you didn't mention Tekken Mobile (Not the Java version) because it had some of the best tunes I've ever heard

[@ahmadshak9568]

Tekken 3 and tekken 5 dr had the best OSTs

[@doublejay10]

6:31 "EARGASM START"

[@Tempestelterna]

Moonlight wilderness is amazing!!! And Honmaru- hell, I love all of tekken 1-4 and tekken tag tournament!

[@elucidator1277]

Fear to agonize goes wayyy harder than it needed to, and I love it. WHY have i not even heard of Tekken Evolution till now?? Those tracks were 🔥🔥🔥 I NEED THIS OST IN MY BLOOD RN???!!! haha

[@sonkanabones6052]

i was waiting a video like this for years

[@vltraviolence7640]

Tekken was the pioneer of EDM soundtracks on fighting games. When everyone was using oriental scores, and rock music. Tekke was really experimental.

[@alies-]

Great video, i love both Tekken soundtrack and TBS videos

[@bluemanvisions]

Funny this came out just before I finished my Tekken mix. Great video

[@cesarknightly]

Keichi Okabe leading the beautiful Nier Automata OST and casually making the most recognizable tekken 3 song ever, Jin's theme. Absolutely goated

[@Jose-xm3tq]

Nice touch with the Pink Floyd Album Cover

[@tyranmcgrathmnkklkl]

Black Winter Night Sky, Sparking, and DR's intro are great tracks. My favorite stage songs are ground zero funk, heaven and hell, and moonlit wilderness. Bonus: Tekken mobile national museum

[@BeretBay]

Tekken 8 already seems to be doing great with what we've heard so far. The tracks that I've heard seem to be bangers, especially that Yakushima theme, and they don't even have any trance in them which gives hope for more variety like the older games.

[@Morzoloanims]

Good thumbnail choice

[@FinesseJohnson187]

Tekken 4 and Tekken Tag 1 for sure. The Airport theme for the win 😎✊

[@DreamyDawnMusic]

Nice that someone goes full details with the music from the Tekken games :D I will say Tekken 3, Tag, and Tekken 5, some of the tracks from Tekken 4 too

[@solidkenjy]

Tekken 2 OST is by Far my favorite

[@iUsedToBeAMusician]

Distorter 2nd might be polarizing, but it fit just right in story mode

[@S0M3GUY778]

I'm honestly a huge fan of the filthy tracks like G-corp helipad night in Tekken 7. Tekken 7 was designed with hype in mind, especially with the slow mos, and zoom ins. Most of the tracks are designed to get adrenaline pumping and your excitement up. I can't wait to see how Tekken 8 handles it's music.

[@kentoylampingasan]

Nina's theme in Tekken 3 is the reason why i love a good bass.

[@iUsedToBeAMusician]

How could you NOT mention Taku Inoue's presence in TTT2? That changed everything!

[@vgggyu9vhji981]

Probably because of copyright, but I wish you had mentioned that one Snoop Dogg track in Tag 2

[@burn_out]

I just came here to say that the thumbnail is great.

[@DashFight]

Haha, thank you!

[@Tempestelterna]

The head shaker is my favorite!!!!

[@urinstein1864]

I would love for the Tekken team to sometime make an OST based around Jazz Fusion. My favoutite Tekken tunes are probably Bit Crusher from T4 and Kuni's theme from T7.