Last weekend, Bandai Namco Games held a special event to introduce their latest characters of Tekken 7 and one of them is of Filipino descent named Josie Rizal.

What’s with Josie Rizal? The character’s name is said to be a tribute to the Philippine’s national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. We do not know yet but Katsuhiro Harada, Tekken Game Director and Chief Producer, once stated that his marketing strategy worked as the name “Josie Rizal” trended in twitter. However, it wasn’t just any random design. Harada consulted Mark “Markman” Julio, Mad Catz’s community manager – who is of Filipino descent – about Josie Rizal’s design, traits and of course, her controversial name.

Josie Rizal’s release gave the Filipinos mixed emotions. I personally liked everything about her. She’s tanned, she’s pretty and she uses our very own Eskrima with kick boxing. Unlike other female characters in Tekken, Josie Rizal fights really rough and I admire how she was made as a strong fighter rather than a girly one. Well, not everyone likes her since Harada received a lot of complains in twitter. Complain as they please, Harada is firm with his decision on Josie and even stated that the ones ranting are just a minority. Josie Rizal received a lot of positive feedback.

As many thought that Josie Rizal was only the second Filipino character in the Tekken series, since a website stated that the character Mokujin is Filipino, Harada confirmed that the website had a typo and Josie Rizal is indeed the first Filipino Character.

At first glance, her costume may look a bit weird but once you study it, you will notice that it is indeed very Filipino. You will see that her top may look like a modified kimono with the distinct embroideries. Her accessories are in the form of the sun represented by the Philippine flag and of course, the colors which is again, similar to the Philippine flag.

Most of the non-Tekken gamers noticed only the physical aspects of Josie Rizal but Tekken players noticed something interesting with her moves. Josie Rizal had a sample combo, as showed on the trailer at 0.24 second that she had a string which may have a possible automatic evasion. It is a very tricky move and may be one of her highlights.

One thing many noticed is the crying victory pose. For me, I find it very Filipino since a lot of Filipinos cry when victorious. Harada hinted that Josie Rizal is strong but cries because she has a sad story. This is something to look forward to!

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