In this interview, the Japanese TEKKEN player talks about his victory at The MIXUP, his main character, and his goal for this competitive season.

Thanks to the TEKKEN World Tour and Esports World Cup qualifiers, top-level competitors actively travel across the globe and turn every event into a spectacular esports show. The MIXUP 2024 hosted such a tournament, and some of the best players in the world participated in it — including double. On the way to victory here, double defeated pretty strong opponents, such as Danielmado, Bilal, and JeonDDing. This success brought double a qualifying spot at the TEKKEN 8 EWC 2024 and a good amount of TWT points.

After the event, we reached out to double and asked a few questions.

esports.gg: Congratulations on your victory at The MIXUP 2024. Are you happy with how you played at the tournament?

double: "Thank you! I wasn't satisfied with the first day at all. But I am very happy with the second tournament day. I think I got my best performance."

Marshall Law and Shaheen

We rarely see Law at the top-level TEKKEN 8 esports events. What do you like about the character? Why do you think people avoid Law?

double: "It's because he is an old main character, for those who started playing TEKKEN way before. 

"I don't think he is very strong on the tournament scene. The reason is that the reach of Law's moves is so short that you have to approach the opponent closely and be careful with this. Also, he is weak against homing and fast mobility. His floating technique is much inferior to other characters."

Taking Shaheen for one round did not work for you. But still, do you practice other characters for different matchups?

double: "I will continue to practice. I think it will be impossible in the future to win on the tournament scene with one character only, with Law."

How difficult was it when JeonDDing switched to Reina? Were you prepared for such a scenario?

double: "I was in a hurry because I had never seen Reina of JeonDDing. It was very difficult to deal with her in the beginning, so I just watched the opponent's attack habits carefully, until it was a reset."

TEKKEN 8

Do you like the new TEKKEN 8 characters? Who would you like to add to the game?

double: "I'm very satisfied with the TEKKEN 8 characters! If Rowe is there, I'll do it. That's all."

What is a better game for you, TEKKEN 7 or TEKKEN 8?

double: "It's TEKKEN 8! It is very fun and fulfilling every day. After Leroy came out, the latter half of TEKKEN 7 was really boring. It was very painful to take it seriously after 2020."

What are your goals for this competitive season?

double: "This year, I will probably have my chance to win the world number one. If I don't get it this year, I don't think I'll ever get such a chance again, so I want to run to the end so that I can win the world number one."

Do you practice other fighting games seriously? Why do you like TEKKEN?

double: "I'm not interested in other titles. Having friends in the Tekken community has greatly influenced my game choice. Many of my friends who go out to play are related to TEKKEN."

double, The MIXUP 2024 TEKKEN 8 champion (image by ZETA DIVISION)
double, The MIXUP 2024 TEKKEN 8 champion (image by ZETA DIVISION)

The TEKKEN 8 Esports World Cup 2024 happens between August 22 and 25. Also, double is among attendees at FV Major that happens between July 27 and 28. For interesting and important info from these and other TEKKEN 8 tournaments, stick around on esports.gg!