Kazuya Mishima (Japanese: 三島 一八, Hepburn: Mishima Kazuya) is a character in Bandai Namco's Tekkenfighting game series, first featured as the protagonist in the original 1994 game and later became one of the main antagonists of the series, eventually serving as the main antagonist of Tekken 8. The son of worldwide conglomerate Mishima ZaibatsuCEOHeihachi Mishima, Kazuya seeks revenge against his father for throwing him off a cliff years earlier. Kazuya becomes corrupted in later games, seeking to obtain more power and later eventually comes into conflict with his son Jin Kazama. Kazuya Mishima possesses the Devil Gene, a demonic mutation, which he inherited from his late mother, Kazumi Mishima, which can transform him into a demonic version of himself known as Devil Kazuya (デビル一八, Debiru Kazuya). Devil Kazuya has often appeared as a separate character in previous installments (excluding Tekken (1994)) prior to becoming part of Kazuya's moveset in Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and later games. Kazuya Mishima is also present in related series media and other games.
The character was based on writer Yukio Mishima, with whom he shares a last name. A number of staff members have considered him one of the franchise's strongest characters, which has led to debates about reducing the damage of some of his moves or removing together. Kazuya Mishima's devil form was created to bring unrealistic fighters into the series, but the incarnation has made few appearances. Several voice actors have portrayed Kazuya Mishima in video games and films related to Tekken. In addition to appearances in spin-offs in the Tekken series, Kazuya also appears as a playable character in Namco × Capcom, Project X Zone 2, Street Fighter X Tekken, The King of Fighters All Star and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Kazuya Mishima has been positively received by critics. A number of websites have listed him as one of the best Tekken characters and one of the best characters in fighting games. Journalists have praised Kazuya Mishima's moves and dark characterization, which rivals that of his father. In contrast, critical reception of Kazuya Mishima's portrayal in films has been mixed, with critics finding him generic.
Concept and creation
Kazuya Mishima was modeled after author Yukio Mishima (pictured).
Kazuya was created by Takuji Kawano.[3]Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada created Kazuya Mishima as a corrupted character with a "pure dark side" as opposed to his father Heihachi Mishima, who Harada identified as having a more "human dark side".[4] The franchise's design team referred to Kazuya and Nina Williams as "the soul [or] the cool part" of the original 1994 game.[5] Kazuya's design and characterization was influenced by a variety of sources.[6][7][8][9] Kazuya's family name was taken from author Yukio Mishima,[8] who was also used a model for the character's physical appearance.[9] Harada compared Kazuya to a yakuza,[6] while artist Takayuki Yamaguchi based the character's Tekken 6 costume on a robot.[7] When describing Kazuya's personality, Harada cited him, along with Heihachi and Jin Kazama, as the violent characters of Tekken; he described the family as too quarrelsome. Denying claims that Tekken's plot is too convoluted, Harada said that its basic story is a "simple" struggle among members of the Mishima family with other characters dragged into the conflict.[10][11]
Kazuya's characterization has been influenced by his tragic past. Despite his initial formulaic traits often seen in fighting games in the first Tekken game similar to Ryu from Street Fighter, Kazuya started showing signs of being a more of anti-stereotypical in the story; this was due to him becoming the villain from Tekken 2, clashing with his father multiple times who was the originally the boss of the first Tekken game.[12] Harada described Kazuya as focused on power; writing that the character addresses "different types of power", he explained: "that's kind of the story of Tekken and it's shown as the certain reality of people themselves rather than the idea law and order."[13]
Namco created Tekken 7's storyline as a conclusion for Kazuya's struggle with Heihachi, though the company wanted the game's overall plot to be easily understood by newcomers.[14] Harada also wanted the game to flesh out the characters' relationship and reveal why they are enemies.[15] As part of the promotion for Tekken 7, he said that either Kazuya or Heihachi would die in their final fight.[16] The game's story mode includes a young Kazuya during the time Heihachi threw his son through a cliff following a fight; Harada said that the version of the character may be playable depending on fan demand.[17] Harada called Kazuya's final fight with Heihachi a "major milestone in the storyline". Surprised by the length of the rivalry between the characters and Tekken's popularity as a franchise, he felt it necessary to end in a fight to the death.[18] Although Kazuya's rivalry with Heihachi ended in Tekken 7, his relationship with his son Jin was left unresolved. Harada said that Jin's mother Jun Kazama would be "an important and essential element in talking about the story of Kazuya and Jin".[19] Kazuya's relationship with Jun has been described as a common love story in regards to the interactions between a corrupted man and a goodnaturedly woman, respectively. While Jun was originally meant to be Kazuya's enemy in Tekken 2, the two end up becoming lovers due to Jun finding the hidden caring side in Kazuya behind his devil persona.[20]
Kazuya has appeared in games with Street Fighter characters.[13][21] Kazuya fights Akuma during the end of Tekken 7's story mode; Harada explained that the outcome of the fight was intentionally ambiguous, saying: "It's still a work in progress." He joked that a scene with either character winning or being killed could negatively affect Namco's relationship with Capcom, particularly Capcom CEO Kenzo Tsujimoto.[13] Kazuya teamed up with Nina for the crossover game Street Fighter X Tekken. When creating the illustrations for the characters, artist Kazuma Teshigawara said that he wanted them to complement one another. Nina was selected for the game instead of Anna Williams since her cold personality was similar to Kazuya's. The two characters were featured in the game's first trailer in a fight against Street Fighter characters Ryu and Ken Masters; the trailer was intended to attract the audience with the game's main feature. Completing the game with Kazuya and Nina unlocks an ending scene where Nina is revealed as an agent who escapes from Kazuya's forces. Artist Toshio Ohashi described the ending as the game's most cinematic due to similarities between the characters.[21]
Kazuya's devil persona was created to meet Bandai Namco's request for more unrealistic characters in Tekken, such as Kuma, in contrast with the Virtua Fighter fighting series.[22] Devil Kazuya is unlockable as an alternate skin for Kazuya in the first game,[22] though he appears as a separate character for Tekken 2 and Tekken Tag Tournament, including for a turn-based RPG game Namco X Capcom with similar moves to Kazuya.[23] Kazuya's devil form represents a common element in fantasy but it stands out due to its being related to his genes, most notably Jin's own devil. The parallelism between Kazuya and Jin's devils were compared with the protagonists from the Star Wars films, Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker, respectively.[24]
The Devil fights with a laser, Inferno (インフェルノ, Inferuno) (also known as Devil Blaster (デビルブラスター, Debiru Burasutā)), through his staff and a pair of wings were added later in the game's production. He was made more powerful, with his ten-hit combo easily taking down enemies. Realizing how powerful the character had become, Namco decided to balance his moves before the game's release.[23] The devil form is said to be based on Go Nagai's mangaDevilman, where main character Akira Fudo develops a similar appearance.[25] Although Kazuya's devil persona had first appeared as a single character, in Tekken 4 he was removed from the cast; according to Harada, Kazuya (unlike Jin) embraced the powers of the devil.[26] In homage to Tekken: Blood Vengeance, Kazuya's devil form from the film was added as an alternate version of the character for Tag Tournament 2.[27]
From the first Tekken to Tag Tournament, Kazuya has been voiced by Jōji Nakata.[28] For the film Tekken: Blood Vengeance, writer Dai Satō added Jin and Kazuya as "visual eye-candy" similar to the Williams sisters (Nina and Anna). Satō wanted the pairs to be played together in the spin-off game Tekken Tag Tournament 2, which relies on two-person teams. The story about the cursed Shin Kamiya is meant to give the audience the negative side of the Devil Gene which kills people experimented on and only Kazuya and his son are able to control it.[29] The fight between Kazuya, Jin and Heihachi proved to be the most difficult part to make since it is used three motion captures and the choreography was difficult to adapt. Japanese voice actor Masanori Shinohara enjoyed Kazuya's role in the TekkenCGI film, and hoped his fans would see him in action. Shinohara said that Kazuya is a character the fandom enjoys due to his cruel demeanor.[30]
Gameplay
Kazuya's fighting style is known as Mishima Style Fighting Karate (三島流喧嘩空手, Mishima-ryū Kenka Karate).[31]Motion actor Ryu Narushima performed many of Kazuya's moves while he was working on Jin.[32] Kazuya's moves include techniques often used by his father and Jin, but some are unique.[33] According to Harada, Kazuya is one of the most difficult characters for a player to control. He saw Kazuya as a fun character due to how powerful he is. As a result, Harada felt that gamers who lose while playing as him feel ashamed.[34] While fans often questioned him, saying that Lars Alexandersson was the strongest character to use in tournaments, Harada denied such claims, believing the Mishimas were far more powerful.[35]GameSpy said that while Kazuya retained his previous moves in Tekken 5, new additions over-powered the character to the point that players disliked using him.[36] In the next game, GameSpy said that he was given launcher moves which (despite making the character stronger) could leave the player vulnerable.[37]
Capcom recommended that players master Kazuya's Rising Uppercut (風神拳, Fūjinken, lit. "Wind God Fist") combo, suggesting that it might turn the character into one of the most powerful in Street Fighter X Tekken.[38] Designing Kazuya's moves for this game, Capcom's Yoshinori Ono emailed Harada for ideas.[39] Capcom soon received a Tekken guide and an email from Harada concerning Kazuya's moves. The character's combo had a glitch in this game, which Capcom patched.[40] In the arcade gameTekken 7 Fated Retribution, three of Kazuya's moves were patched to increase the damage they inflict.[41][42] In making Tekken's transition to the Unreal Engine, the staff was concerned about leaving Kazuya's Electric Wind Godfist because it was considered over-powered in previous games.[43]Famitsu recommended the character to skilled players, saying that some of his techniques have good potential—most notably Spinning Demon (奈落払い, Naraku Barai, lit. "Hell Sweeps"), which makes him Tekken 7's strongest character.[44]
Appearances
Main Tekken games
Before the events of the original Tekken game, Kazuya enters the King of Iron Fist Tournament to seek vengeance against his father Heihachi, who had thrown him off a cliff for unknown reasons. After defeating Lee Chaolan in the later stages of the tournament, he narrowly defeats Paul Phoenix in a furious battle that lasted for hours in the semi-finals and reaches the finals, where he battles Heihachi.[45] Kazuya defeats Heihachi and drops him from the same cliff he was thrown from as a child.[46] In Tekken 2, Kazuya has taken over the Mishima Zaibatsu, which engages in illegal activities such as assassination, extortion, arms dealing, and the smuggling of protected species. Kazuya then announces a second King of Iron Fist Tournament. He is the game's final boss, and his alter-ego Devil is a hidden boss. Devil is said to appear as an overpowered version of Kazuya who became one with him before the events of the first Tekken game.[47][48] Heihachi reclaims the Mishima Zaibatsu by defeating Kazuya and throws him into the mouth of an erupting volcano.[49]Tekken 3 begins with Kazuya having impregnated Jun Kazama before his defeat by Heihachi.[50]
Kazuya later returns as the main character in Tekken 4, set 21 years after Tekken 2. It is revealed that Kazuya was revived by G Corporation (a genetics-company rival of the Mishima Zaibatsu), and allowed the company to perform experiments on him to learn the nature of his Devil Gene. He vows revenge on Heihachi in the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4 and to extract the half of his Devil Gene in the body of his son, Jin Kazama.[51] After defeating Violet in the later stages of the tournament, Kazuya advances to Stage 7 where he was scheduled to fight his son, but Jin is ambushed and captured by the Tekken Force and taken to Hon-Maru, a Mishima Dojo in the woods. Declared the default winner of Stage 7, Kazuya meets Heihachi at the final stage and questions him of Jin's disappearance. They clash and Heihachi emerges victorious. After the fight, instead of killing Kazuya outright, Heihachi leads Kazuya to Hon-Maru, a Mishima compound where Jin is held captive. Kazuya, influenced by Devil, knocks Heihachi out of the room with his psychic power and taunts Jin to wake him up. Jin defeats Kazuya and Heihachi in battle, but spares their lives and flies off into the night.[52]
In Tekken 5, Kazuya and Heihachi are assaulted by a squadron of Jack-4s (machines sent to assassinate them by G Corporation for the Tekken Force raid on the corporation's laboratories) after Jin's departure from Hon-Maru. Kazuya jumps out of Hon-Maru, leaving Heihachi to die.[53] Vowing revenge on the traitors, Kazuya enters the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5.[54] During the tournament, Kazuya crosses paths with Raven, who recognizes him after seeing him flying away from the Hon-Maru. Kazuya defeats Raven and interrogates him. When he makes Raven talk, Kazuya discovers that he was betrayed by G Corporation, and that something was awakened from under Hon-Maru. Kazuya realizes what Heihachi has done, and speculates that, in fact, it is his grandfather Jinpachi Mishima, who is somehow controlling the Zaibatsu now. In Tekken 6, as the corporation's shadow head, he converts it into a military company which is the only opposition to the Mishima Zaibatsu (led by Jin), which has begun world conquest and declared war on several countries. The world sees G Corporation as its only savior, although Kazuya intends to kill Jin and dominate the world himself. He uses the company's influence to stop Jin from world domination.[55] Kazuya meets his half-brother, Lars Alexandersson, before he can face Jin. They fight, and Kazuya is forced to leave.[56][57]
In Tekken 7, Kazuya's mother is revealed as Kazumi Mishima, who died while trying to kill Heihachi.[58] It is revealed that the young Kazuya sought revenge against his father but Heihachi knocked him out and threw him off the cliff as he noticed Kazuya inherited Kazumi's Devil Gene, which he finally confirmed it. In the story, Kazuya sends an army of Jack-6 robots to the Mishima dojo to eliminate Heihachi, who was confronted by the warrior Akuma moments before.[59] Akuma says that he was sent by Kazumi to kill Kazuya and Heihachi,[60] later confronting Kazuya at G Corporation's Millennium Tower and revealing his debt to Kazumi for saving his life from an unknown critical situation he was in.[61] Surviving defeat by Akuma, Heihachi secretly captures images of the battle in which Kazuya transforms into his devil form. He broadcasts the images worldwide, exposing Kazuya's nature to undermine public trust in G Corporation as the Zaibatsu's opponents in the war.[62] Heihachi blasts the Millennium Tower with a satellite in an attempt to destroy Kazuya and Akuma;[63] Kazuya survives the attack, and destroys the satellite with a devil beam.[64] Heihachi tells a reporter that Kazuya's devil gene came from his mother, Kazumi. In the final battle at the mouth of a volcano, Kazuya (the final boss of the story mode) transforms into his devil form and continues to fight Heihachi, only for him to successfully defeat him. After Kazuya recognized Heihachi's memories, he ultimately delivers one strike at Heihachi, and then throws him into a lava pit, killing him for good. Akuma resurfaces, having survived the previous blast. Kazuya transforms into his final devil form and they battle once more, with the outcome unknown.[65] However, later after Heihachi's death, Jin, who recovers from coma thanks to Lars, Lee and Alisa, senses that Kazuya's devil remains active, in addition to Lee and Alisa's confirmation of Kazuya's terror of the world instead of ending the ongoing world war, with Tekken 8 confirming his survival from his second encounter against Akuma.[66]
Ultimately in Tekken 8, he fully reveals his devil form to the public, and sets up the eighth King of Iron Fist Tournament, with the finals being held in Rome, in order to lure out Zafina, who is with Archers of Sirius after sealing Azazel's soul inside her left hand, so he can absorb Azazel and become a true devil. It is revealed that the Hachijos, the clan Jin and Kazuya are descended from through Kazumi, is actually one the descendant clans of Azazel's servants, and has an ill-fated history with the ancient Mishima, Kazama and Sirius clans, with the two latter clans being the only ones who can purge both Azazel's existence and his remnants' powers. As the primary star of despair, Kazuya absorbs the desires of the human race to fuel his avarice in destroying the nations' hierarchies. Kazuya also hires an assassin who deserted a now defunct Mishima Zaibatsu, Nina Williams for tasks he enlisted for her, including recruiting villanous tournament fighters, and also deceiving and tricking some of the heroic or morally ambiguous fighters like Marshall Law and Azucena M. Ortiz into his side. Kazuya uses a joint assault by the allied armies of Yggdrasil, UN and Sirius to his advantage at the end of the tournament, and successfully captures Zafina and absorbs Azazel. However, the Sirius leader Claudio Serafino seemingly sacrifices his life after using a forbidden purification technique to temporarily weaken Kazuya and forces him to retreat. As Jin and his allies arrive at Yakushima, Kazuya initiates his warring plan against the allied forces who side with Jin. As he decimates both enemies and allies alike after arriving at Yakushima, he is unaware that Reina, whom Kazuya previously fought in his true devil form is actually his half-sister, who too is a Devil Gene user like him and Jin, and had willingly let herself get caught in a crossfire to awaken her dormant devil. Upon seeing Heihachi in Lars during the latter's struggle to protect Jin, followed by Jin's complete purification of his devil half and rebirth as an angel of hope, Kazuya's anger gets the better of him and ultimately loses by the hands of the latter, despite being overpowered by Azazel's strength. As both Angel Jin and True Devil Kazuya fights in space with full power, they completely lose their devil powers, thereby erasing Azazel out of existence. Despite this, upon landing back to Earth, Kazuya fights Jin to the death, with the latter emerging victorious without killing the former and leaving him unconscious, with Kazuya being found soon after and taken by a seemingly alive Jun, thus signalling the world's freedom from G Corporation. However, Kazuya's defeat was just the beginning, as Reina unlocks her devil form for her next plan to avenge Heihachi.[67]
Other games
Kazuya is the protagonist of the Tekkenmobile game.[68] He also appears in the non-canonical Tekken Tag Tournament, confronting his son's devil form at the end.[69] Kazuya's devil persona is also playable; the game ends with his taking Jun after defeating her alter ego.[70] In the sequel, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Kazuya murders Jun to increase the power of his own devil form.[71] As of this game onward, he can morph into Devil during gameplay with several new moves, instead of becoming a separate character, while Tekken 7 can only be accessed at low health at cost of his Rage Mode. Kazuya also appears in Tekken Revolution.[72]
He appeared in devil form in the crossover strategy RPGNamco × Capcom, with several other Namco and Capcom characters.[73] Kazuya made a playable debut in human form—also transforming into his devil form—in the sequel of Namco × Capcom's successor, Project X Zone 2, teaming up with his son, Jin.[74] Kazuya's image is downloadable content in Namco's Ace Combat: Assault Horizon,[75] and it appears as in Taiko: Drum Master V Version.[76] Although he does not appear, Kazuya is mentioned in the crossover fighting gamePlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.[77]
He was one of the first characters featured in the Capcom's crossover fighting game, Street Fighter X Tekken. In the debut trailer, Kazuya defeats Dan Hibiki before confronting Street Fighter mascot Ryu. He wants to seize Pandora's Box to control the devil gene, and hires Nina Williams to assist him.[78] Kazuya appeared in CyberConnect2's tactical role-playing gameFull Bokko Heroes X in his Tekken 7 design, with a chibi look.[79] He also appears in SNK's mobile phone game The King of Fighters All Star.[80] Kazuya makes a cameo appearance with Heihachi in the PlayStation 5 game, Astro's Playroom.[81] Kazuya appears as a DLC character along with Devil in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, released on June 29, 2021.[82] Later, an amiibo figure of Kazuya has been confirmed at Nintendo Direct in October 2021.[83] Kazuya appears as a playable character in Fist of the North Star Legends ReVIVE.[84]
Other media
Kazuya is the protagonist in the 1998 original video animation (OVA) Tekken: The Motion Picture. As in the Tekken game series, he is thrown off a cliff at a young age by Heihachi and saved by a deal with the devil. Kazuya becomes bent on revenge against Heihachi and enters the King of Iron Fist Tournament to confront him. Jun Kazama repeatedly implores him not to kill his father; after Kazuya defeats Heihachi, Jun destroys the devil's influence and restores his kind, compassionate self. He spares Heihachi's life and fathers Jin with Jun, but is not seen after the tournament's conclusion. Kazuya is voiced by Kazuhiro Yamaji in the original Japanese version and Adam Dudley in the English dub.[85] He is also featured in the Tekken Forever and Tekken Saga comics.[86][87] In the Titan comic, Kazuya briefly faces his son before assaulting the Mishima corporation.[88]
Played by Ian Anthony Dale, he is the antagonist in the 2009 live-action film Tekken. In this version, Kazuya bears no resemblance to his video game counterpart, instead sporting slicked back hair and a Van Dyke beard, and is revealed to have fathered Jin Kazama by raping Jun. Kazuya is Heihachi's right-hand man at Tekken Corporation, hoping to take over his father's company, and is directly responsible for an attack on Jin and Jun's home where Jun is killed, leading Jin to seek revenge by entering the tournament. Impatient with Heihachi's compassion for Jin, he overthrows him and orders his execution (although Heihachi intimidates the soldier into sparing him). After Jin wins the tournament, Kazuya challenges him to a one-on-one duel. Initially defeating Jin, Kazuya is critically wounded; however, Jin refuses to kill him because of their blood relation and leaves him to live in shame.[89] Japanese-American martial artist-actor Kane Kosugi played Kazuya in the 2014 prequel, Tekken 2: Kazuya's Revenge. An amnesiac after experiments by his father, Kazuya spends the movie fighting until he regains his memory.[90]
He is present in the CGI-animated film Tekken: Blood Vengeance, an alternate version of the events between Tekken 5 and Tekken 6; Kazuya, an antagonist, faces his father and son and is defeated by the latter.[91] Played by Kefi Abrikh, he appears in the live-action short film Tekken Tag Tournament 2.[92] His role in the franchise is also told in the novel, Tekken: The Dark History of Mishima.[93]
Reception
Statue of Jin Kazama (left) and Kazuya Mishima (right) in Osaka
Critical reception of the character has been largely positive, and he has often been listed as one of the best Tekken characters due to his appeal to gamers.[94] Such claims involve his dark backstory, which often elevated his popularity across the franchise.[95][96] Kazuya was one of the characters they wanted to see in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.[97]FHM compared him to Street Fighter's Ryu, based on their popularity and representation of their respective series.[98] Kazuya was also compared to his father, Heihachi, due to their similar natures and rivalry.[99][100] Bandai Namco opened the Tekken Museum in Osaka in May 2012, where a statue of Kazuya and Jin performing a cross-counter was exhibited.[101]
A number of websites have noted on Kazuya's dark characterization in the games. Den of Geek enjoyed Kazuya's strong violence, such as his murder of his grandfather Jinpachi Mishima at the end of Tekken 5.[102] By Tekken 4, IGN had praised his evil traits and intention to participate in the series' tournaments.[103] Although GamesRadar noted that Kazuya had been disliked early in the series' beginning,[104] they and other websites praised his transformation into a devil[105] (enhancing his evil characteristics).[106][107][108]Kotaku compared him with Heihachi and called him one of gaming's worst parents due to his antagonism to his son, Jin.[109] PlayStation Universe ranked Kazuya and Heihachi among the top five rival pairs in Tekken Tag Tournament 2 due to their relationship and power, describing them as one of the game's best tags.[110] While enjoying his appearances in the series, Den of Geek felt Kazuya tends to lose most of his fights in the franchise.[111]
Kazuya's alter ego, Devil Kazuya, was also praised. The difficulty in unlocking him in the series' first game did not prevent him from being listed as one of the best characters, similar to Kazuya.[22][112][113][114] According to GamesRadar, players wanted to see a fight between Devil Kazuya and Akuma in Street Fighter X Tekken due to the similarities in their design.[115] In Tekken 7, a bonus fight between Devil Kazuya and Akuma could be unlocked. Calling Devil Kazuya a difficult opponent, Shacknews and Hobby Consolas said that Akuma offered players a challenge; gamers needed to learn Devil Kazuya's moves to defeat him, resulting in the game's most difficult fight.[116][117]
Websites have also noted Kazuya's moves, and his Lightning Screw Uppercut was listed by GamesRadar as one of the most satisfying uppercuts in gaming history.[118]Prima Games praised Kazuya's Electric Wind God Fist for its impact on the enemy and possible player combos,[119] and ArcadeSushi recommended it to players wanting to use the Mishima characters.[120][121] Kazuya's Spinning Demon was performed by Eric Jacobus, attracting Harada's attention.[122]
Kazuya's appearances outside the Tekken games have also been noted. Alex Henning of The Fandom Post stated that John Kim's Western comics adapted well Kazuya's personality in the series, finding it similar to his game incarnation.[123] For the anime film Tekken: The Motion Picture, Eric Sandroni of Games Retrospect called Kazuya one of the film's characters who seemed realistic.[124] However, Adam Dudley's performance as Kazuya in the anime's English dub was not well-received.[125][126] In a review of the first Tekken live-action film, DVD Talk had negative opinions on Kazuya and Heihachi's subplot regarding their rivalry.[127] In Kazuya's Revenge, Manlu Movie panned the actor's performance.[128]GameCrate disliked his moves (calling them "noticeably generic") and his romantic relationship with Laura.[129] Phil Wheat had mixed feelings about Kazuya's role, saying he was still appealing though longtime fans may dislike the changes to his character; Wheat described the teaser for a new film as engaging, and said that he enjoyed seeing Kazuya fight his son, Jin.[130]Games Retrospect was harsher, calling Kazuya a "flat" character due to his generic traits.[131] With an art piece, Tekken commemorated Kazuya's inclusion as a DLC character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.[132] After its inclusion, Screen Rant's Scott Baird expressed disappointment at seeing yet another fighting game character. He went on to say that Tekken has a lot of fascinating characters, and claimed that Kazuya is one of the most uninteresting characters in the game.[133]
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken. Kazuya is the cold-blooded son of Heihachi Mishima. At the age of 5 he was thrown off a cliff by his father. Kazuya survived and vows revenge to defeat his father, he enters the first tournament to kill Heihachi.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 2. After defeating his father, Heihachi Mishima, and throwing his lifeless body from a cliff (as Heihachi did to his son previously) Kazuya appointed himself the new head of the Mishima Zaibatsu. After two years, Kazuya organized the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 5. Level/area: 20 years ago after losing to his father Heihachi in the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2, Kazuya was thrown in the mouth of A volcano with a few days later, G Corporation, a biotech firm making revolutionary advances in the field of biogenetics researches brought him back to life. With G Corporation's aid Kazuya investigated the biomechanics of the devil gene within him by subjecting himself to various experiments. as Kazuya believed that once he unlocked the power of the devil gene he would be powerful enough to defeat his father and destroy the Mishima Zaibatsu. 20 years later the Tekken Forces attacked G Corporation and stole their data, Kazuya was also targeted in the fight. Then Kazuya learns of the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4 which was a trap by Heihachi to lure him out. Despite this knowledge Kazuya enters the tournament knowing that this is his chance.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 5. Level/area: Kazuya Mishima. Knocked unconscious by Jin in the battle of Honmaru. As he came to, he was attacked by JACKs. "Damn!, are they after me too?" says Kazuya. For a while, Kazuya and Heihachi fought as father and son, but Devil Kazuya flew away, leaving Heihachi to die alone. Kazuya enters the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 to make the traitors pay.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Journalist: This lead sent me on a journey through countless documents, where I finally found her name in a single paragraph…Kazumi Hachijo. There was no mention of what kind of life she and Heihachi had led together, but it confirmed that Heihachi was Kazuya's father and Kazumi his mother.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Heihachi: Who the hell are you? / Akuma: Someone whose fists know no equal. / Heihachi: Hah! It seems we can drop the formalities. / Akuma: This too is destiny.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Heihachi: I must say, you impress me. Tell me your name. / Akuma: I am Akuma, and I have come to kill you and Kazuya on behalf of Kazumi.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Kazuya: Before I kill you, tell me how you know my mother. What are you? A relic of the Hachijo? / Akuma: Kazumi once saved my life. That is all you need to know. Now it is time to repay my debt.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Tekken Force soldier: We have received word from the investigation unit. As expected, the target has headed for G Corp's Millennium Tower. In addition, the news of your death, as leader of the Mishima Zaibatsu, has spread throughout the globe and signaled G Corp's victory. / Heihachi: Everything is going according to plan. Have you made the preparations? / Tekken Force soldier: Yes, sir. / Heihachi: Against Akuma, Kazuya will have no choice but to use his devil form. / Tekken Force soldier: We are ready to broadcast to the world when you are, sir. / Heihachi: Once we reveal the truth about Kazuya, no one will trust G Corp anymore. And when Kazuya is dead and buried, public opinion will fall in our favor.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Heihachi: Initiate the final sequence. /… / Heihachi: It all ends now! /… / Heihachi: At last, everything is over… With this, the world will hail my victory! Gwahahaha!
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. G Corporation solder: Public opinion is turning against us. We're running out of options… / Kazuya: No matter. The last laugh shall be mine. /… / Reporter: The Mishima Zaibatsu's satellite has crash landed! Scenes of chaos unfolding…! / Heihachi: Kazuya… / Kazuya: You can never defeat me, Heihachi.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Kazuya: I didn't think you'd stay dead long. / Akuma: I will not rest until your demise. / Kazuya: You are the one who will die.
^Bandai Namco Studios. Tekken 7. Bandai Namco Entertainment. Lee: Looks like G-Corporation have no intention of ending the war. / Alisa: Various regions are facing invasions. Things doesn't look good... / Lars: This is what the world is like without Heihachi, Jin... You're the one who sent this world to hell, so it's up to you to bring it back. There's no else. / Jin: Yes. It's all on me. The devil's blood through my vein, so it's up to me to kill Kazuya.
^SuperBot Entertainment. PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. Who is Jin Kazama's father? Answer: Kazuya
^Capcom. Street Fighter X Tekken. Capcom. From information obtained by the G Corporation, Kazuya learns that Pandora's box possesses incredible power. He now believes that by using the power of the box, the Devil Gene can now be amplified. With that he can now defeat his son, Jin, and take control of the Mishima Zaibatsu. As he plots Nina appears... Kazuya: Now there's a face I haven't seen for a while Narrator An assassin unrivaled in strength and well-versed in the movements of the Mishima Zaibatsu, Nina Williams has been hired by Kazuya to help him obtain Pandora in exchange for a vast sum of money. The woman who had once been ordered to assassinate Kazuya, now works in the shadows with him, as he begins his journey for the box. Nina: Spare me the small talk I'm only here for the job. Kazuya: Of course. And until that job is completed you will do exactly as you're told.
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