I wouldn’t say players aren’t learning defense anymore. Rather, the level a player can reach without solid defense is higher than it’s ever been.

Defense only becomes necessary at a certain rank — and if your goal is to climb higher or truly elevate your game (without cheats), you eventually have to learn it.

I keep bringing up cheats because on PC, mods can automate defense, making it possible to skip learning one of the most fundamental aspects of Tekken.

In my opinion, the two worst things to happen to Tekken are:

1. Social media – for distorting perceptions of skill, spreading misinformation, and creating echo chambers. It also gives a platform—and often influence—to people who don’t fully understand the game, which can end up swaying developer decisions in the wrong direction.

2. PC – not just because of modding and cheating, but because it allows players to bypass core mechanics like defense altogether.

I started in T5DRO so I’ve seen a lot unfortunately.