Jack (ジャック Jakku?, Russian: Джек), sometimes capitalized as JACK, is the name of a series of robots that are upgraded in each main installment in the Tekken series of fighting games. There has been a playable Jack model in every main Tekken game, except for Tekken 4. Prototype Jack is seen as separate to the main line.
Biography
The first Jack was built by the Russian military, though with programming data provided by the Mishima Zaibatsu. It was a killing machine built purely for destruction. After proving himself in the first King of Iron Fist Tournament, updated Jack robots were put into mass production and utilized in battlegrounds. During this time, one of the Jack-2 robots came across a young girl. Suddenly developing a conscience, Jack-2 took it upon himself to look after the girl, up until the point he was destroyed by Doctor Abel. After this, Jane, the young girl rescued by Jack-2, grew up determined to restore the robot who saved her as a child. Although Jane was successful in installing Jack-2's memories into the new Gun Jack model, Gun Jack was ultimately destroyed. After this, Jane joined the G Corporation, where she continued to work on building Jack robots in the hope of restoring her beloved companion.
Starting with Jack-2, Jane transfers the memories and sentience of the latest playable Jack to the next playable model, meaning that all the playable Jacks after that have technically been the same "Jack".
Personality
Having been built as a destructive killing machine, Jack robots are very aggressive, and do not hesitate in destroying all in sight. However, Jack robots are also able to show empathy and compassion, as demonstrated by Jack-2's reaction to finding Jane, and seem to be very protective of those with whom they share a close bond, even going so far as to sacrifice themselves, as demonstrated by Gun Jack in his Tekken 3 storyline. Jack-6's personality is explored a little more when playing as him in the Scenario Campaign in Tekken 6, where he is vocal of his love of fighting, strong opponents and fellow robots, and, while he is programmed to understand longer words like "biologicals" (his name for humans), he generally has a very child-like way of thinking and speaking, failing to understand a lot of what the other fighters are saying to him, and labeling anything unknown or unfamiliar as "bad".
Appearance
The Jack robots, throughout their many incarnations, have maintained the same general appearance - humanoid juggernauts with bulging muscles. While earlier models looked relatively human, the later models have sectionalized skin, making them appear less human. This is especially apparent in the Jack-7 model, where a green glow radiates from the joins in his skin. The most recognizable feature of Jack robots, however, is the distinctive head and face, complete with trademark Mohawk hairstyle, shared by all models of Jack robots.
Outfits
- Main article: Jack/Outfits
The Jack robots have two styles of outfit, which they have maintained since their earliest appearances. The first, and most recognizable, is their military outfit, where they wear camouflage pants, a tank top, combat boots and gloves in colors typical of military wear, such as greens, tans and grays. Their second style is visually similar to either an exoskeleton or suit of lightweight armor, typically in a simple color scheme, with the exception of Gun Jack, who wore more ornate designs. This outfit usually has matching boots and gloves, although Jack-2, in his versions of this outfit, had layered hand wraps in place of gloves.
Story
Jack (Tekken)
The original Jack is a super slaughtering military machine and super killing robot developed by the former Soviet Union. The Russian military got wind of Kazuya's world coup d'etat plans right away and entered Jack into the King of Iron Fist Tournament to get rid of him. Only a robot could boast such violent attacks and stupendous power.
Jack's sub-boss is Prototype Jack, whom he canonically defeats in this tournament.
Jack Tekken 1 Ending
Ending Description, "Mass Production": Jack is shown being strapped onto a machine. A device plugs into a socket in the side of his head, and the camera pans back to reveal many more Jacks being activated. The scene ends with metal doors closing, which have the words "Jack" and "Danger" written on them.
Jack-2 (Tekken 2)
Version 1 (Manual): An android working for the military, Jack-2 is an improvement over the old Jack from the previous tournament. With a new computer chip, he has the ability to learn from his mistakes. Jack wants to save his creator from Kazuya so that he can become more human.[1]
Version 2: Jack-2 was an upgrade to the first Jack model. This version was mass produced and tested in germ warfare by the Russian Military. During a mission, however, one of the Jack-2s finds an germ infected girl, Jane, and escapes with her, defying his orders and programming. The Russian military does everything in its power to find the android and keep this incident secret, but they never recover the Jack-2 or the girl. Jack-2 enters the Second Tournament to rescue his creator, Dr. Bosconovitch from Kazuya Mishima, the tournaments sponsor. Upon rescuing Dr. Boskonovitch, Jack-2 plans to ask him to make it human.
Jack-2 makes his only canonical appearance in Tekken 2, although he also appears in the non-canonical game Tekken Tag Tournament. Jack-2, like the original Jack, was also a rival of Prototype Jack. After the tournament, he was destroyed by Doctor Abel.
Tekken 2 Jack-2 Ending
Ending Description, "Shut Down": Jack-2 is shown on a tropical island with a young Jane, who hands him a flower. The camera then pulls back into outer space, revealing a satellite. The satellite opens up and fires a laser at Jack-2, destroying him. As Jane chases a butterfly, Jack-2 falls to the ground, Jane being the final thing he sees before shutting down.
Gun Jack (Tekken 3)
Jane, still haunted by memories of Jack-2's fate nineteen years later, works on a way to restore Jack-2. She learns that most of the technology responsible for Jack-2's A.I. was created by Mishima Heavy Industries, a subsidiary of the Mishima Zaibatsu. She also finds the ground work for something called "Project Gun Jack", an upgraded Jack with the addition of a pivot gun. Jane snuck into Mishima Heavy Industries and secretly installed the hidden program.
Tekken 3 Gun Jack Ending
Ending Description, "Complete?": Gun Jack is shown, hooked up to a computer. Jane inserts a floppy disc into the computer, which restores the memories of Jack-2. Happy to have restored her companion, Jane climbs onto Gun Jacks shoulder, and he walks outside. As they walk through woodland, Dr. Abel is shown in a satellite. He locks on to Gun Jack and fires an electromagnetic burst at him in an attempt to destroy him, but fails when Gun Jack puts up an energy shield, protecting himself and Jane.
- At the third tournament's conclusion, Heihachi Mishima's Tekken Force attacked Jane. She was rescued by Gun Jack, who was destroyed by the onslaught of gunfire. Jane escaped with the help of G Corporation.
Jack-4 (Tekken 5, Tekken 7)
This version was mass-produced and sent to attack Heihachi and Kazuya Mishima at Hon-Maru. Apparently, this model has a self-destruct feature, as shown in the Tekken 5 opening movie, where a Jack-4's head opens up to reveal an internal time bomb. The massive explosion wasn't enough to kill Heihachi, but the blast did however throw him several miles, as well as free Jinpachi Mishima from his imprisonment.
Jack-4s also appear as unplayable enemies in a playable flashback sequence of the Hon-Maru attack in Tekken 7, unless you have a PC mod for him.
Despite Jack-4 only appearing in Tekken 5, it's considered the Tekken 4-era Jack, since it first appears in the game's opening, set during the fourth tournament, and it's numbered "4". Jack-4 fills in for the lack of any Jack in Tekken 4, making later Jacks' number match the game's.
Jack-5 (Tekken 5)
Jack-5 was created by Jane as an upgrade of Jack-4, and was entered into the fifth tournament as a means of testing him.
Ending Description: Jack-5 returns to have his emotion program installed, and Jane downloads Gun Jack's memories into him. The results cause him to go berserk, and Jack-5 tears free and trashes the lab. As he brings down his arms in a crushing blow on Jane, the memories re-assert themselves and Jack-5 stops, looking over his body in confusion. Jane goes to him and he picks her up in his arms gently, his original personality fully restored.
Jack-6 (Tekken 6, Tekken 7)
Jane successfully restored Jack-5's memory at the completion of the 5th King of Iron Fist Tournament. It was not long until the Mishima Zaibatsu decided to make their own Jack model, which was built with 10 times the power of Jack-5. Kazuya Mishima, the new G Corporation leader, also demanded a new Jack model, and he and Jane eventually created Jack-6. They decided to test Jack-6 in the King of Iron Fist Tournament 6, with the intention of destroying the Mishima Zaibatsu.
Tekken 6 Jack-6 Ending
Ending Description: Jane is seen in a workshop, searching and calling out for Jack-6. As she turns a corner, she finds him, having made modifications to himself by adding an assortment of tools to his body. Jane recoils in shock, asking him what he has done to himself, while Jack-6 just looks pleased with himself.
- In Tekken 7's Story Mode, an army of Jack-6's sent by Kazuya interrupt a battle between Akuma and Heihachi at the Mishima dojo, and they temporarily join forces to defeat the onslaught of Jacks.
Jack-7 (Tekken 7)
It was no secret that G Corporation was locked in a power struggle with the Mishima Zaibatsu. However, within G Corp itself, another battle was raging: the battle to create the ultimate next-gen humanoid weapon.
On one side was the development team behind the Jack series led by Jane; on the other was the research team responsible for Gigas, a bio-enhanced super human. With his massive size and uncanny mobility, Gigas was hailed for his versatility in combat, and some saw him as more than capable of dislodging the Jack series from its position as G Corp's premier weapon.
Both teams entered their weapons into the King of Iron Fist Tournament to decide once and for all which was the best, and Jack's opponent was a wrestler in a jaguar mask.
TEKKEN 7 - Jack-7 Ending & Intro (TEKKEN 7 Character Endings)
Ending Description: After defeating King in the tournament, Jack-7 is seen back at the G-Corporation Tower reading a letter from Kazuya. The letter was proof of recognition of Jack as the chief humanoid weapon in G Corporation. With that, they received unlimited funding to further the program, and $25 monthly allowance for personal use. The letter got Jack-7 excited, and during his victory dance, Jack-7 was unknowingly bumped into by Lucky Chloe, who happened to be outside at the same time, atop of the tower peacefully listening to music. Unfortunately for Jack-7, the letter from Kazuya got blown away by a gust of wind, and as he jumps to catch it, he unknowingly jumps from the building and falls to the ground. After seeing Jack's fall, Lucky Chloe goes back inside the tower, unconcerned, and hears an explosion.
Other Appearances
Tekken Tag Tournament
As mentioned above, both Jack-2 and Gun Jack appeared as playable characters in Tekken Tag Tournament.
Tekken Tag Tournament Jack-2 Ending
Ending Description (Jack-2): Jack-2 is sitting beside Prototype Jack, gazing out at the ocean. Jack-2 turns to peek at P.Jack, and when P.Jack turns to face him, Jack-2 immediately looks away. They then both turn their heads back to face the ocean. This ending takes place in one of Eddy Gordo's stages.
Ending Description (Gun Jack): Gun Jack and Jack-2 perform one of their victory poses; and they both do the Cossack Kicks, Bravo Knuckle, Cossack Kicks, Cross Cut Saw, and Cossack Kicks, all in unison; before reversing each other's backbreakers and posing one last time together. The ending takes place in King's stage.
Street Fighter X Tekken
There is a playable Jack model called JACK-X (Jack Cross), exclusive to this game. This Jack model is based on Jack-6 and is told to be its backup model. Its partner is Bryan Fury. Guile's Swap Costume is based on Jack-X's design.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Jack-6 appears as a playable character in Tekken Tag Tournament 2.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Jack-6 Ending
Ending Description: A newsreader is reporting that a giant meteor is approaching Earth. As people run screaming, Jack-6 walks forward and turns on his thrusters before shooting up into space to confront the meteor. Jack-6 reaches the meteor and pummels it in an attempt to shatter it. When he is unsuccessful, he retreats before charging into it a second time, ploughing his fist into it. This time, Jack-6 succeeds in breaking the meteor, although he shatters his arm in the process. Jack-6 and the meteor fragments then fall back to Earth, slowly burning up as they enter the atmosphere. Back on Earth, people stand and watch as burning fragments fall across the sky.
Tekken Revolution
Jack-6 appears in Tekken Revolution as a playable character.
Non-playable Jacks
Modified Gun Jack
Modified Gun Jack in Devil Within.
Modified Gun Jack is the first boss of Devil Within. Created by Doctor Abel, it is a fully armored version of Gun Jack. Attacks include cannon blasts and machine guns.
Jacks
In Tekken 5, several Jacks appear in Devil Within mode as generic minions. Their attacks are similar to Hwoarang's moveset.
Scenario Campaign Jacks
Several Jacks appear as enemies in the Scenario Campaign. Their exact model is unknown, but they use Jack-6's in-game model and customizations. They mainly appear on stages where G Corporation is the enemy.
Gameplay
All Jack robots embody the huge, slow and powerful fighter archetype: they only need a few solid hits to destroy an opponent, but they're very slow and their limited moveset can get predictable, so they require good timing. Jacks deal good damage and have good pokes and throws, but the real thing that makes them shine is the ridiculous range on most of their moves. Most of their punishers hit from very far away.
Starting with Jack-6, Jack's arms can be extended with some charged moves, allowing him to increase his (already long) range.
The giant robotic upper body gives the Jack robots formidable swiping range, strong physical clout, and some very useful lows, such as his fast, long range d/b+1. Their myriad of throw commands are noticeably more damaging than the norm, and throughout the games the Jack robots have remained one of the strongest, if not the strongest, single throw fighters in the series.
Despite a move set that lacks any hint of evasiveness and more than a few clunky slow commands, the robots have an impressive mix of attacks that balance out their sluggishness. With an arsenal of trusty, solid mids and some lows ranging from pesky to lethal, an advanced Jack will use good movement and attack mix ups to be a nightmare at middle distances. It's close range game is slower and riskier but includes the threat of command grabs that will annihilate anyone incapable of breaking throws.
Fighting Style
While other characters have their own fighting styles, what Jack robots do is best described as "using brute force to annihilate the opponent", and their fighting style is listed as "Brute Force" accordingly.
Moves
Jack-2/Tekken Tag Tournament Movelist
Character Relationships
- Dr. Bosconovitch - Their original designer and creator. Jack-2 entered the second tournament to rescue him from Kazuya.
- Prototype Jack - Their prototype model and rival who hated the main series models.
- Jane - Their long time companion since Jack-2 and creator since Jack-4.
- Kazuya Mishima - The target of the original Jack in the first tournament. Years later, Jack robots sent by G Corp attacked him at Hon-Maru, and later still, from Tekken 6 onwards, Kazuya became their boss.
- Heihachi Mishima - Also attacked at Hon-Maru, he was incorrectly thought to have been killed in the explosion caused by the self-destructing Jack-4 army.
- Raven - They attacked Heihachi at Hon-Maru, possibly in an attempt to dispose of the only eyewitness to their attack on Kazuya.
- Jinpachi Mishima - Jinpachi was freed and awakened by the explosion caused by the self-destructing Jack-4s at Hon-Maru.
- Anna Williams - An ally of Jack-6 since they both work for G Corporation under Kazuya.
- Bruce Irvin - An ally of Jack-6 since they both work for G Corporation under Kazuya..
- Lars Alexandersson - In the beginning of Tekken 6 Scenario Campaign, a single self-destructing Jack injures Lars, temporarily giving him amnesia.
- Lucky Chloe - A colleague of Jack-7. In Jack-7's ending, she accidentally bumps into him and causes him to fall from the G Corporation building.
- Gigas - A humanoid weapon made by a rival research team at G Corporation.
- King II - Opponent of Jack-7 in the seventh tournament.
- Bryan Fury - Master of Jack-X in Street Fighter X Tekken. (Non-Canon)
Trivia
General:
- On the first successful playthrough with Gun Jack (Tekken 3) a 'bad' ending for Gun Jack will be played. This is the same as his 'good' ending, which can be unlocked on a second successful playthrough, except that in the bad ending, the movie stops before Gun Jack shields Jane and saves her.
- Gun Jack has an unlockable third outfit. After playing as him ten times, selecting him with either the triangle or start button will give him the appearance of Jack-2.
- Jack-4 can be used as a skin / mod for Jack-7. See link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b-9NPi7eAQ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKBeAqWxu68
- In Jack-5's story mode, after defeating and giving one final blow to Jinpachi, Jack-5 scans and analyzes his opponent, resulting in a system message on his analyzer saying; "ALL LOG ANALYSIS COMPLETE. PREPARE TO INSTALL EMOTION ENGINE BINARY." The Emotion Engine that it is referring to is a central processing unit developed by Sony Computer Entertainment with in-partnership with Toshiba for use in the PlayStation 2 console.
- Jack-6 can be customized to resemble Jack-1 through 5, Prototype Jack and Gun Jack.
- Jack-6 can also be customized to resemble Optimus Prime from Transformers.
- Jack-6 can also be customized as the T-800 robot from Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
- Jack-6 is one of the few characters who are capable of prohibiting wallsplats. That move is called Patriot Fist and the command is u+1+2.
- Jack-X is the only Jack model so far that has the ability to speak, unlike the other Jacks that only make sounds and grunts (excluding Jack-2 in Tekken: The Motion Picture).
- Jack-6 and Jack-X's models remained the same as Jack-5.
- Jack-7's model is a palette swap of Jack-5, Jack-6, and Jack-X's models, being a redhead with glowing green "gaps" on his robotic body, wearing Jack-5's outfit in Dark Resurrection's colors (a black torso with yellow camouflage pants).
- As seen in King's character episode ending, Jack-7 seems to be able to copy his opponent's moves, reminiscent of the mimicry used by Mokujin and Combot.
- The group of Jack-6's attacking Heihachi and Akuma at the Mishima Dojo mirrors the opening of Tekken 5, which in itself appears as a flashback sequence in the story.
Other:
- In Tekken: Blood Vengeance, Jack-6's dossier is briefly seen when Anna Williams opens a file containing dossiers of various persons of interest (this shouldn't have occurred though, as G Corporation was the very company that actually created Jack-6).
Gallery
References