Bandai Namco has announced that boxing legend Mike Tyson is to headline a Tekken 8 San Diego Comic-Con panel titled "The Art of Fighting".
Tyson will be joined by WWE Superstar Xavier Woods and MMA Grand Slam Champion Cris Cyborg, along with Tekken 8 director Katsuhiro Harada and producer Michael Murray, according to a press release.
Moderation for the event will be handled by esports caster Alex "Goldenboy" Mendez. The panel will take place on Friday and will run from 2pm until 3pm in room 6BCF of the San Diego Convention Center.
According to the aforementioned press release, the subject of the panel will be the portrayal of fighting techniques in gaming, as well as how real-world fighting and gaming have evolved in tandem. Bandai Namco says Tekken 8 is well-disposed to examine this phenomenon due to its fighters' "diverse styles based on more than 21 actual martial arts".
During the panel, each panelist will share "personal stories" from their careers about their experiences with both real-world fighting and video game fighting.
According to Bandai Namco, Tyson and Woods' presences bring "game cred" to the panel; Tyson is "one of the first pro athletes to become the face of a fighting game", and Woods has a gaming YouTube channel with over 2.4 million subscribers.
Cyborg, meanwhile, is the only fighter to win the MMA's Grand Slam, which makes her ideally poised to comment on real-world fighting.
The panel promises "unforgettable fight stories and unmissable moments", according to Bandai Namco. Whether those stories include director Harada once again dunking on Emmanuel Macron for his views on video game violence remains to be seen.
Tekken 8 is the latest game in the long-running Tekken fighting game franchise. It'll see the return of fan favorites like Paul Phoenix, Jin Kazama, and Marshall Law.
As yet, a release date for the game has not been announced, but a closed beta test is set to start later this week. When it does launch, Tekken 8 will be released for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
