Kunimitsu, the popular Kunoichi from the Tekken series, has announced her return in Tekken 8.

Having debuted as a late-stage DLC character in Tekken 7, where her performance exceeded expectations and earned her a dedicated fanbase, many users are eager to see how she will perform in Tekken 8. How did the development team aim to integrate Kunimitsu into this new title? We sat down with Producer Michael Murray before her release to find out.

Infiltrating Mishima Polytechnic: Targeting Her Mother's Nemesis!

As briefly shown in the pre-release trailer, this second-generation Kunimitsu has a backstory involving her infiltration of Mishima Polytechnic as a student.

Producer Murray explained, "You might have noticed in the trailer that Kunimitsu wears a mix of ninja armor and a school uniform; this reflects her concept as a student at Mishima Polytechnic." He added that among the students, Reina has already caught on to Kunimitsu's infiltration, and the two perceive each other as useful allies while maintaining a facade of friendship.

This relationship allows Kunimitsu to tip off Reina about G Corp's invasion plans, while Reina helps Kunimitsu obtain the powerful cursed blade, 'Kujido.' With the blade in hand, Kunimitsu enters The King of Iron Fist Tournament, hosted by Kazuya Mishima, to hunt down her mother's nemesis, Yoshimitsu.

Beyond Reina, Kunimitsu also has special interactions with Raven, who trained under Kunimitsu's father—a long-time friend of Victor. Murray noted that while there is no separate story expansion this time, players can catch glimpses of Kunimitsu's backstory through these special interactions.

A Master of Stances and Mind Games: The Importance of Aggressive Play

Murray highlighted Kunimitsu's strengths as her variety of stances and her ease in initiating mind games. Kunimitsu possesses three distinct stances: 'Setsunagake', 'Back-Turned', and 'Katon'.

First, 'Setsunagake' allows her to quickly close the distance, leveraging her unique mobility to apply pressure and launch fast-paced offensives. 'Back-Turned' makes her unable to guard, but it provides access to fast mid-attacks or deceptive low-attacks, making it easy to disrupt the opponent's flow and seize the turn. 'Katon' is a stance used to toy with opponents, including teleportation attacks, allowing her to maintain an advantage once she wins a mind game.

Murray explained that because Kunimitsu generally has short reach until Heat is activated, it is best to close the distance as much as possible to maintain the offensive. He then introduced her ultimate performance, 'Flame Dance'. Flame Dance is an attack Kunimitsu can use during Heat, allowing her to engage in long-range combat using two swords. This offsets her short-reach disadvantage and enables even more aggressive play.

Finally, Murray described her Rage Art, which utilizes the cursed blade Kujido, emphasizing it as a move that highlights her unique character traits and serves as her final counterattack. He added that they paid close attention to the visual direction to ensure it captures the essence of a Kunoichi, featuring her using nine cursed blades to slash her enemies.

Seeing is Believing: Kunimitsu's Features Through Pre-release Play

Thanks to the support of Bandai Namco, we had the opportunity to play Kunimitsu before her official release. After spending several hours with her in practice mode and CPU matches, I felt she is a character specialized for infighting with very distinct strengths and weaknesses.

While the risk lies in her short reach, which forces you to stay glued to your opponent, once you close the gap, you can unleash a relentless, fierce barrage of attacks. It also felt designed to satisfy both those simply interested in her and those looking to make her their main character.

For example, executing ↖+LKRK launches the opponent; following up with a right-hand combo and a Heat Smash can deal over 80 damage without complex commands. Of course, such moves carry significant frame disadvantages and only work at lower ranks, but the design allows even casual fans to easily enjoy the game.

Conversely, those aiming for higher ranks or looking to master Kunimitsu must learn complex Chain Skills utilizing Setsunagake, Back-Turned, and Katon.

Tekken 8 Kunimitsu Launch Q&A with Producer Michael Murray

The setting where Kunimitsu forms an alliance with Reina to uncover the Mishima Zaibatsu's secrets is impressive. Without spoiling anything, can you tell us what kind of variable this will act as in future story developments or which direction the story might head?

" There are no plans for a separate story expansion with this Kunimitsu release. However, as mentioned, you will be able to learn more about her setting in this game through interactions with specific characters like Reina or Raven.

Kunimitsu is a very popular character. It seems some players might want to start Tekken 8 because of her, but she looks quite difficult to control. I'm curious how long it will take for new or beginner players to grasp her basic operation.

" That's true. We are well aware that she is a popular character among users, thanks to her unique moves and the voice actor behind her. The basic moves I introduced today are simple enough for anyone to use, and we have prepared move inputs and air combos that anyone can use up to an intermediate level. However, her unique moves and high-damage combos naturally require practice to master.

Are there any moves good for beginners?

" You can trigger a tornado by tapping RP (Right Punch) five times, which allows beginners to use a simple combo. On the other hand, damage-focused combos require technique. Since moves derived from stances also have their own weaknesses, the character is designed to have more depth the more you learn, as you need to judge the situation when using them.

I'm curious about the lore behind the cursed blade Kujido. Could you tell me more about it.

" Ninja characters in Tekken possess mysterious powers. This applies not only to Kunimitsu but also to her nemesis, Yoshimitsu. In line with the mysterious ninja concept wearing a fox mask, Kujido is an extension of that mysterious power. When she deploys Kujido, the sword fans out like a folding fan, which is also a representation of a nine-tailed fox (Gumiho).

When a DLC character is released, the first concern is always 'balancing.' Anna was quite strong, but subsequent releases like Fahkumram, Armor King, and Lidia Sobieska were relatively well-balanced. I'm curious how much consideration went into balancing Kunimitsu's performance. Could you explain if her performance is similar to any existing characters, or if there were aspects you avoided to prevent her from being overpowered.

" Even before Kunimitsu was announced, she was frequently mentioned in various communities when discussing the next character. It is true that because she was a strong character in Tekken 7, there were concerns that she might become even stronger when combined with the Heat system in Tekken 8. Conscious of this, I told the balance team to aim for a balanced release rather than pushing her performance to be strong from the start. It's not that Kunimitsu will be weak, but she won't be a character so strong that she breaks the game's balance upon release.

As you can see from recent DLC characters, they are fun to play but are not top-tier characters. I want to emphasize that the balance team has adapted to the Tekken 8 system and is adjusting things well based on that.

I play Fahkumram occasionally myself, and he has the disadvantage of being large, making him easy to hit and vulnerable to sidestepping. Kunimitsu is fast and flashy, but she has short reach, and achieving high combo damage requires significant practice. Therefore, it's unlikely that Kunimitsu will shake the foundations of the game's balance or that every tournament player will use her immediately upon release.

In Tekken 7, the transition to the second-generation Kunimitsu was very popular with fans. You've already explained the costumes, but in this title, where the visuals have been significantly revamped, what did you focus on most visually to differentiate her from the previous game in terms of modeling and outfits.

" Since the second-generation Kunimitsu is a student at Mishima Polytechnic, Costume 1 emphasizes a more energetic image compared to the first generation. First, the key colors are based on red and white, decorated with particularly vibrant tones among Japanese aesthetics. Modern elements suitable for her age, such as sneaker-style shoes, are also a feature. Additionally, motifs of the nine-tailed fox are incorporated throughout her outfit.

May 28: Season 3's First Character, 'Kunimitsu', Arrives!

Murray concluded the interview by saying, "It's been a while since I visited Korea, and this time I visited Jinju. I was surprised that people recognized me just walking down the street and told me they loved Tekken. I realized that Korea is indeed the 'Kingdom of Tekken,' and I am grateful for the infinite love you send to the series. Seeing that even at the last EVO Japan, Korean users were facing off against each other, it seems there are truly many strong players in Korea. I feel the great love from Korean users, and the entire development team is sincerely grateful."

For the first new character of Tekken 8 Season 3, Kunimitsu, those who own the Season 3 Pass can play starting Thursday, May 28, while individual DLC purchasers can play starting Tuesday, June 2. Following Kunimitsu's release, Bob is scheduled for the summer and Roger Jr. for the fall, with the final character of Season 3 to be revealed at the upcoming fighting game tournament, Combo Breaker.