Tekken 8 offers more material than just online Ranked Matches. The game was published with a lot of content, including an Arcade Mode for each character, character side-stories, Arcade Quest, the Tekken Lounge, Tekken Ball, and, of course, the main story mode, The Dark Awakens.
The Dark Awakens is Tekken 8’s completely fleshed-out story mode, picking up where Tekken 7 left off, introducing new characters, and continuing the Mishima saga.
And, when you play Tekken 8’s Story Mode, you can choose between three difficulty levels for your opponents: Easy, Medium, and Hard. And, because these options have a significant impact on the CPU difficulty throughout the story mode, is it worthwhile to choose the hardest option right away?
The Rewards for Beating Dark Awakens on Hard
Anyone who has progressed more than halfway through Story: The Dark Awakens in Tekken 8 on Hard is probably thinking if it’s worth it, given how difficult facing True Devil Kazuya appears to be.
It would be one thing if this CPU fight was a one-time difficult encounter, but you end up fighting this exact form (or a slight variation of it) of Kazuya Mishima four times in the second half of Dark Awakens, with the final fight having him rely even more on his ‘crystalline’ ground projectile and command grab.
So, if fighting this incarnation of Kazuya isn’t particularly enjoyable, is completing the game on Hard Mode worthwhile in terms of rewards? Of course, it depends on the individual, but we don’t think so. The only additional awards for completing Story: The Dark Awakens on Hard (excluding the alternate ending) are:
| Reward Name | Type |
|---|---|
| Devil Health Gauge (Gold) | Player Customization (Health Gauge) |
| Devil Panel (Gold) | Player Customization (Player Information Panel) |
| Devil Plate (Gold) | Player Customization (Title Plate) |
So it essentially comes down to a bit of player customization that all adhere to the same gold style. You will not receive any cosmetics, character skins, or more Fight Money for completing the whole (very long) Story Mode of Tekken 8 on the toughest difficulty.
Granted, there are plenty of other awards to be gained in Tekken 8’s other modes, so, understandably, the game wouldn’t give you too much here.
Other Rewards
However, your rewards for beating Story: The Dark Awakens in general are quite substantial. Aside from the ones described above, when you finish the Story Mode on at least Medium level, you’ll receive:
| Reward Name | Type |
|---|---|
| Soul Chain | Character Cosmetic (Jin Kazama) |
| TK8 Style (Story Version) | Character Cosmetic (Kazuya Mishima) |
| TK8 Style (Story Version) | Character Cosmetic (Jin Kazama) |
| Hope | Player Customization (Title) |
| Devil Health Gauge (Bronze) | Player Customization (Health Gauge) |
| Devil Health Gauge (Silver) | Player Customization (Health Gauge) |
| Plate (Gold) | Player Customization (Title Plate) |
| Devil Panel (Bronze) | Player Customization (Player Information Panel) |
| Devil Panel (Silver) | Player Customization (Player Information Panel) |
| Devil Plate (Bronze) | Player Customization (Title Plate) |
| Devil Plate (Silver) | Player Customization (Title Plate) |
| 10 Million G | In-Game Currency |
These are the types of incentives that people were most likely searching for, like Fight Money and character skins, however, it’s unfortunate that only Jin and Kazuya are available.
Overall, playing and completing Tekken 8’s Story Mode is well worth the effort, both in terms of experience and rewards. However, whether you should play it on Hard or not is largely determined by what you hope to get from it.
If all you want is prizes, which is logical given how ludicrous the characters sometimes seem in Tekken 8, then the Dark Awakens Story Mode isn’t for you.
However, if you’re utilizing the Story Mode to re-warm up to Tekken’s combat for online mode, to challenge yourself in general, or to make the Story Mode feel more gratifying, playing on Hard is probably the best option for you.