Most Broken Video Game Characters: Akuma
The Search for the Most Broken Video Game Character
Akuma in Tekken 7 holds a unique and frustrating position: he’s both broken and overpowered. The core issue is that Akuma isn’t really a Tekken character—he’s a Street Fighter character dropped into the Tekken universe. Sure, he’s part of the roster, but he doesn’t play by Tekken’s rules.
Invasion
Akuma’s arrival in Tekken 7 as a guest character from the Street Fighter series initially generated a wave of excitement, but it quickly became clear that his inclusion was a game-breaking decision. Instead of being fully adapted to Tekken’s mechanics, Akuma was essentially a carbon copy of his Street Fighter IV counterpart, complete with a moveset and gameplay style that simply didn’t belong in Tekken’s ecosystem. His overwhelming damage output and effortless combo potential stood in stark contrast to the rest of the roster, often leading to touch-of-death combos where a single opening could end an entire round. This created a brutally unforgiving dynamic, where even the smallest mistake could result in an instant, almost inescapable defeat.
Tricks of the Trade
What truly made Akuma broken in Tekken 7 were the unique tools and mechanics he brought over from Street Fighter. His teleport, the Demon Flip (often called a 2D jump), the Focus Attack, the FADC (Focus Attack Dash Cancel), and most importantly, his EX Meter—all of these gave him a set of advantages that no other Tekken character had. His EX Meter was especially game-changing, allowing him to repeatedly access powerful EX moves that boosted his combo potential, increased his damage output, and granted him key advantages like invincibility frames and unblockable attacks. On top of that, his ability to fluidly shift between 2D and 3D fighting styles made him incredibly adaptable and difficult to predict.
These mechanics completely disrupted the balance of Tekken 7, leaving many players feeling that Akuma wasn’t just overpowered—he fundamentally broke the game’s core dynamics.
What ultimately cements Akuma’s place on this list isn’t just his dominance—it’s the fact that he broke the rules. His unique 2D mechanics introduced a playstyle Tekken had never encountered before and wasn’t designed to handle.
