The past two years have seen the return of what many longtime fans have dubbed "the return of the arcade fighter," giving hope to unsung masses who have yearned for the bygone glory days when the fighting genre ruled the coin-op world.  Of course, in the absence of a healthy arcade market, this renaissance has largely taken place on home gaming consoles and through their respective online matchmaking services - but we'll take what we can get.  In a year that's included the return of Street Fighter and the introduction of newcomer BlazBlue, its only fitting that Namco Bandai joins the fun with the long-awaited Tekken 6 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, their most ambitious interpretation of the series in a decade.  It's certainly got the heart to be, at least.

Those who have followed the Tekken saga over the years are probably more than familiar with the peculiar quirks and nuances that have endeared ‘The King of Iron Fist’ to fans and curious onlookers alike.  For all its convoluted and often confusing narrative, the series can still claim to the most comprehensive and detailed plot of any fighting game franchise and Tekken 6 easily keeps that encyclopedic tradition alive.  The home version of the arcade original is based on the most current Bloodline Rebellion update, which means that Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 owners will be getting extra characters and stages not found in the original arcade game.

Of course being the home version of this two-year old arcade title with every feature we'd expect in a home translation (arcade, versus, survival, ghost battle, etc.).  Those familiar with any of the previous Tekken games should already be familiar with how Tekken 6 generally plays, as it retains approachable for the beginners while thankfully catering to the experts who like the fast-paced competitive nature, and for practically everyone in-between.  This accessibility has always been a highlight for the series, and it probably won’t matter if you haven’t touched a gamepad because most will get by with simply mashing buttons, but new features have been added to make those explosive battles even more dynamic with revised parrying commands, a “bound” juggling system, and a “rage” system that can instantly turn the tide of battle when your life gauge is in the red.

The improved gameplay is also accompanied with a character roster that's simply huge, easily the largest in series history with over 40 playable fighters.  Everyone from past games return, and six new playable characters that include Bob, Leo, Miguel and Zafina from the original Tekken 6 arcade release, while Lars and Alisa come from the later Bloodline Rebellion update.  Of the new combatants only the overweight (yet deadly fast) Bob and robo-anime inspired fantasy Alisa Bosconovitch really stand out, but given this is a franchise that includes everything from ninjitsu pandas and martial trees, there’s bound to be something for everyone in this grab bag of fighting disciplines.

As in Tekken 5, you'll be able to personalize and dress up your favorite character with unlocked (purchased) outfits, hairstyles, as well as other strange options to keep things fresh and...well, bizarre.  Customization seems to be de rigueur with Namco Bandai's fighting franchises these days, and those who love to express themselves via their favorite fighter will probably love the feature set here.

The Scenario Campaign portrays the warring conflict between the Mishima Zaibatsu and G Corporation, seen through the eyes of Lars Alexandersson, the game's newest spiky-haired protagonist.  The campaign vainly attempts to extend the playability but is instead hampered by awkward, nearly undecipherable controls and stage layouts that are not only bland in theme but heavily recycled.  These clunky elements only amount to an uninteresting brawler with a boss at the end of the stage – exactly like the previous renditions of Tekken Force.  It's too bad that Namco Bandai tied so much of the game's plot and storyline to this largely unsatisfying mode, which means you'll have to repeatedly play through with different characters if you'll want to unlock individual endings and unlocked options (such as costumes, etc), or simply see how how the story unfolds through cinematic clips that have the nearly impossible task of making sense of the chaos, but then where else can you watch crazy Heihachi catch a bullet with his teeth?

With the relative absence of a thriving arcade market, online match-making is vital to any modern fighting game, and Tekken 6 isn’t a slouch when it comes to fast and furious bouts with online strangers and friends.  Contrary to what you might have heard, the game fared much better than previous reports, with fast and fluid matches through both Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network.  Just in case, I tested both versions at a variety of locations and under very different bandwidth limits, and only rarely did I come across matches where lag (and not my meager Tekken skills) did me in.  This is par for the course with most online fighters, and not something that hardcore Tekken fans should really worry about.

Arcade fanatics will note that the original Tekken 6 arcade game was built on the System 357, which is based on actual PlayStation 3 hardware, which means the home version is practically identical.  Both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions look and animate just like their arcade counterpart, although I did find the PS3 version to be a bit sharper.  The game's soundtrack and sound effects were disappointing all around, but at this point I'm not expecting orchestral bliss with my Tekken saga.  The most glaring and noticeable difference between the two would be the native load-times, which are absolutely atrocious on the PlayStation version…unless you install the game to the hard drive.  Only then are they comparable, with the PS3 version gaining a slight speed advantage over the Xbox 360.

In a year already filled with great fighting games, Tekken 6 is easily one of the most accessible out there, and certainly the best and most ambitious entry in the franchise since the much-loved third game.  It retains the franchise's unique ability to appeal to casual and hardcore fans alike, allowing just about anyone to jump in and enjoy themselves right away.  It's too bad the lackluster Scenario Campaign is such a letdown, but the core fighting fundamentals, 40+ character roster, and relatively fluid online mulitplayer more than makes up for it.  While it may not reinvent the genre, fans will likely eat this up and come back for more.