Characters of the Street Fighter series

Ryu, Akuma, M. Bison, and others, on the cover of Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition

This list of characters from the Street Fighter fighting game series covers the original Street Fighter game, the Street Fighter II series, the Street Fighter Alpha series, the Street Fighter III series, the Street Fighter IV series, and other related games.

Characters

Character	I	II	Alpha	III	IV	SFxT	Total
Abel	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	2
Adon	Yes4	No	Yes	No	Yes1	No	3
Akuma	No	Yes1	Yes	Yes1	Yes	Yes	5
Alex	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	1
Balrog	No	Yes1 5	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	4
Birdie	Yes4	No	Yes	No	No	No	2
Blanka	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes6	4
C. Viper	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	1
Cammy	No	Yes1	Yes	No	Yes1	Yes	4
Charlie	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
Chun-Li	No	Yes	Yes	Yes1	Yes	Yes	5
Cody	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	Yes6	3
Dan	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	No	2
Dee Jay	No	Yes1	Yes3	No	Yes1	No	3
Dhalsim	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	4
Dudley	No	No	No	Yes	Yes1	Yes6	3
E. Honda	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	3
Eagle	Yes4	No	Yes3	No	No	No	2
El Fuerte	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	1
Elena	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes6	2
Evil Ryu	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	No	2
Fei Long	No	Yes1	Yes3	No	Yes1	No	3
Geki	Yes4	No	No	No	No	No	1
Gen	Yes4	No	Yes	No	Yes1	No	3
Gill	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	1
Gouken	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	1
Guile	No	Yes	Yes3	No	Yes	Yes	4
Guy	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	Yes6	3
Hakan	No	No	No	No	Yes1	No	1
Hugo	No	No	No	Yes1	No	Yes	2
Ibuki	No	No	No	Yes	Yes1	Yes	3
Ingrid	No	No	Yes3	No	No	No	1
Joe	Yes4	No	No	No	No	No	1
Juli	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
Juni	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
Juri	No	No	No	No	Yes1	Yes	2
Karin	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
Ken	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	6
Lee	Yes4	No	No	No	No	No	1
M. Bison	No	Yes1 5	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	4
Maki	No	No	Yes3	No	No	No	1
Makoto	No	No	No	Yes1	Yes1	No	2
Mike	Yes4	No	No	No	No	No	1
Necro	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	1
Oni	No	No	No	No	Yes1	No	1
Oro	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	1
Poison	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	1
Q	No	No	No	Yes1	No	No	1
R. Mika	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
Remy	No	No	No	Yes1	No	No	1
Retsu	Yes4	No	No	No	No	No	1
Rolento	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	2
Rose	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	No	2
Rufus	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	2
Ryu	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	6
Sagat	Yes4	Yes1 5	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	5
Sakura	No	No	Yes	No	Yes1	Yes6	3
Sean	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	1
Seth	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	1
Shin Akuma	No	Yes1	Yes	Yes1	No	No	1
Sodom	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	1
T. Hawk	No	Yes1	Yes3	No	Yes1	No	3
Twelve	No	No	No	Yes1	No	No	1
Urien	No	No	No	Yes1	No	No	1
Vega	No	Yes1 5	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	4
Yang	No	No	No	Yes	Yes1	No	3
Yun	No	No	Yes3	Yes	Yes1	No	3
Zangief	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	4
Total	12	18	39	21	39	25

Notes:

^1 Update version only.
^2 Skin/palette swap.
^3 Playable in console versions only.
^4 Unplayable boss or enemy character.
^5 Playable boss.
^6 Downloadable character, console only.

Introduced in Street Fighter

Adon

Adon (アドン, Thai: อาดอน) appears in the original Street Fighter as a Muay Thai warrior that the player faces before the final match against Sagat. He also appears in Alpha, Alpha 2 and Alpha 3. In the first three Alpha games, Adon is characterized as a former pupil of Sagat, seeking to surpass his disgraced master by defeating him, and in Alpha 3 he tries to track down and challenge Akuma. He briefly appears in Sagat's Street Fighter IV prologue, where he is again defeated by Sagat. Adon is a playable character in Super Street Fighter IV. Like Birdie and Eagle, Adon and Sagat share a motif: both characters' special moves are inspired by felines, the jaguar and the tiger.

Adon appears in the Street Fighter cartoon series as a non-speaking fighter in the episode "The Medium is the Message". He also makes a brief cameo in Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation as one of the fighters accompanying Ryu to save Shun from Professor Sadler. He gets into an argument with Birdie and is later shown fighting with Rolento in the base's arena.

Birdie

Birdie (バーディー, Bādī) first appears in the original Street Fighter as the first of two opponents the player faces in England. In this game, Birdie is depicted as a tall white punk rocker with a beak-shaped mohawk hairstyle. He and Eagle are named after the golfing terms Birdie and Eagle.

The character reappeared in Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams in 1995, Alpha 2 in 1996, and Alpha 3 in 1998. In this game, Birdie is depicted as a hulking Black British punk rocker with a blonde, blade-shaped mohawk. The character jokes about this inconsistency in Alpha 3, saying he "looked pale because [he] was sick". Birdie fights in the Alpha series with a grappling style similar to Zangief's, using his chains to slam opponents and a dashing headbutt similar to Balrog's punch rush.

In the first two Alpha games, Birdie is characterized as a former pub bouncer who seeks to gain fame for himself by joining M. Bison's organization, Shadaloo. In the endings of both games, he defeats Bison in combat and is allowed to join his organization. The first game depicts Birdie with the Shadaloo skull logo on his jacket, outside Jack's Bar, possibly a reference to the character C. Jack from Street Fighter EX. In Alpha 3, Birdie is already a member of Shadaloo, but seeks to take over the organization by rebelling against Bison.

Birdie appears in two episodes of the Street Fighter cartoon series. He is shown as an unknown fighter in the episode "The Medium is the Message" and later appears in "Cammy and the Bachelor", teaming up with Final Fight's Sodom to cause a crime wave in England under orders from Bison and Shadaloo. He also makes a small appearance in Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation as one of several fighters accompanying Ryu to rescue Shun from Dr. Sadler. He is the first to win a preliminary match (against Dan) and is taken inside the base, but ends up trapped in a machine, which saps him of his fighting potential. He is rescued by Ken and Chun-Li and later apparently dies in the fight against Rosanov. In the anime, he is portrayed as a much more benevolent character, constantly imploring Ken and Chun-Li to flee the base without him and attempting to fight Rosanov even when badly injured.

Birdie's appearance in the first Street Fighter was voted joint last in Capcom's own popularity poll of 85 characters for the 15th anniversary of Street Fighter. In 2009, Street Fighter Alpha's Birdie topped the Gameist's list of "The 10 Lamest Street Fighter Characters Ever Conceived". He was one of the fighters that IGN wished to see in Street Fighter IV. Birdie was ranked 39th best character out of 50 by UGO.com. Askmen.com nominated Birdie as one of the five characters they wished to be included in Street Fighter IV. The website Games Radar voted Birdie one of the 20 fighters they wished were included were included in Street Fighter X Tekken.

Eagle

Eagle (イーグル, Īguru) is a bouncer from England and a master of singlestick. He craves to experience all fighting arts, searching for the perfect duel. He is introduced in the first Street Fighter as the second computer-controlled opponent the players face in England. He appears as a selectable character in the crossover game Capcom vs. SNK 2, having become a secret agent for MI6. From there he is included in the GBATooltip Game Boy Advance and PSPTooltip PlayStation Portable versions of Street Fighter Alpha 3. He has special moves named after Canterbury, Liverpool, Manchester, Oxford and St. Andrews.

In 2010, Tekken 5 champion Ryan Hart listed Eagle at the top of his list of best Street Fighter characters. Eagle was voted in the UGO.com top 50 streetfighter characters.

Geki

Geki (激) is a Japanese ninja who fights with hand claws and shuriken and has the ability to teleport. He is the second Japanese opponent in the original Street Fighter, a battle which takes place near Mount Fuji. In an issue of UDON's Street Fighter comic book, Geki appears as an assassin sent to kill Gen. In the Street Fighter Legends: Ibuki comic miniseries, Geki is depicted as a rival clan to Ibuki's clan.

Gen

Gen (元) first appears in the original Street Fighter (1987) as the second opponent the player faces from China in the single-player tournament (the first being Lee). He is portrayed as an elderly martial artist who, according to the game's backstory, works as an assassin as well.

Gen resurfaces as a playable character in Street Fighter Alpha 2 (1996) and its sequel, Street Fighter Alpha 3 (1998). He is the only character in the game who can switch between two fighting styles during gameplay: the Mourning Style and the Hateful Style, also known as the Praying mantis kung fu and Fujian White Crane styles respectively. He changes not only his fighting stance and basic moves, but his special moves and super combos as well. In Alpha 3, this feature is removed when Gen is selected in X-ism mode. In the storyline of the Alpha series, Gen is a terminally ill assassin who seeks to fight Akuma as his last opponent before dying. Gen also confronts Chun-Li (whose father was Gen's student, according to the backstory) as a secret rival character in Alpha 2 and Ryu as mid-boss in Alpha 3, believing that he uses the same murderous style as Akuma. Gen appears as an additional character in the home version of Street Fighter IV. His connection with Chun-Li's father and his conflicting emotions with her plays a role in his backstory in the game. He was played by Robin Shou in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li.

IGN included Gen in their list of top 25 Street Fighter fighters. He was ranked 20th on the list of top Street Fighter characters by UGO.com.

Joe

Joe (ジョー, Jō), who appears as the first American opponent in the original Street Fighter, is an underground kickboxing champion who practices by participating in street fights. Similarities between Joe and "Ghost", the blonde underground fighter in red jeans from the Capcom game Final Fight: Streetwise, have led many to believe they are the same character.

Ken

Main article: Ken Masters

Lee

Lee (李（リー）, Rī, pinyin: Lǐ) is a Chinese martial arts expert seeking to test his skills against worthy opponents. He is the first Chinese opponent in the original Street Fighter, encountered at the Great Wall of China. He later appears in the manga Street Fighter: Sakura Ganbaru! as an opponent who challenges Sakura in a street fighting event sponsored by Karin Kanzuki at the Setagaya Ward. He appears in UDON's Street Fighter Legends: Chun-Li to challenge Fei Long for the honor of revealing a Chinese artifact. Lee is revealed to be an uncle of the Street Fighter III characters Yun and Yang, and possibly Gen's son.

Mike

Mike (マイク, Maiku) is an African-American boxer who formerly competed professionally, until he accidentally killed an opponent during a match. He is the second opponent the player faces in the USA in the original Street Fighter. He is thought to be a precursor to M. Bison/Balrog from Street Fighter II due to his similar profile and outer appearance. The assistant producer and blogger for Street Fighter IV, Natsuki Shiozawa, has said, "one probably would believe they are one and the same character".

Retsu

Retsu (烈) is a former Shorinji Kempo instructor who was expelled from his temple after getting involved in too many fights. He is the first opponent the player faces in Japan in the original Street Fighter. Although Retsu has never appeared in another Street Fighter game, his character has been depicted in later Street Fighter related media, including two Japanese Street Fighter II audio drama albums, an appearance in the US Street Fighter comic book and as a card in Card Fighters 2.

Ryu

Main article: Ryu (Street Fighter)

Sagat

Main article: Sagat (Street Fighter)

Introduced in the Street Fighter II series

Akuma

Main article: Akuma (Street Fighter)

Balrog

Main article: Balrog (Street Fighter)

Blanka

Main article: Blanka

Cammy

Main article: Cammy

Chun-Li

Main article: Chun-Li

Dee Jay

Main article: Dee Jay

Dhalsim

Main article: Dhalsim

E. Honda

Main article: Edmond Honda

Fei Long

Main article: Fei Long

Guile

Main article: Guile (Street Fighter)

M. Bison

Main article: M. Bison

T. Hawk

Thunder Hawk (サンダー・ホーク, Sandā Hōku, T. Hawk), is one of the four new characters introduced in Super Street Fighter II. He is a member of the fictional Thunderfoot Native American clan, whose homeland was taken over 30 years before the events of the game by M. Bison, who also murdered his father, Arroyo Hawk. T. Hawk enters the tournament to reclaim his homeland from Bison. During the development of Super Street Fighter II, T. Hawk was named "Geronimo", but it was changed after an American staff member suggested that the name "Geronimo" might be seen as racially offensive.

T. Hawk has always been billed as coming from Mexico. His backstory states that he was born in the Sonoran desert and resides in the Monte Albán plains. T. Hawk's second appearance as a playable character was in the home versions of Street Fighter Alpha 3, in which he leaves his home village after the disappearances of some of the locals. His last opponent before fighting Bison is Juli, one of Bison's bodyguards. The girl T. Hawk is searching for is revealed to be Julia, who was captured and brainwashed into becoming one of Bison's assassins named Juli.

T. Hawk returns in Super Street Fighter IV. He has regained his homeland following the events of the Street Fighter II series, but must fight Shadaloo once more, this time to rescue his girlfriend Julia, who has disappeared again. His rival is El Fuerte, who challenges him after a previous, as yet undisclosed defeat at T. Hawk's hands.

In the 1994 film version of Street Fighter, T. Hawk (played by Gregg Rainwater) is portrayed as a military sergeant serving the Allied Nations Peacekeeping Force under Colonel Guile. He is portrayed in this version as American, although Rainwater is of Native American descent. T. Hawk makes a cameo appearance in Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, in which he travels to America to seek out and defeat Ken. Despite landing some good blows, T. Hawk is defeated, and he develops a new respect for Ken.

The Lightning Hawk Magnum weapon in Resident Evil 5 is an in-company reference to T. Hawk's full name of "Thunder Hawk".

In 2012, Complex magazine ranked T. Hawk as the second most stereotypical character in video games (representing stereotypical Native Americans), commenting, "this fighter sets an entire people back to teepees and scalping" and adding, "Ah Thunderhawk, if you die in a John Wayne movie, it will be only fitting."

Vega

Main article: Vega (Street Fighter)

Zangief

Main article: Zangief

Introduced in the Street Fighter Alpha series

The Street Fighter Alpha series consists of three games: Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams (1995), Street Fighter Alpha 2 (1996) and Street Fighter Alpha 3 (1998). The series as a whole serves as a prequel to the Street Fighter II series. In addition to characters from the original Street Fighter and Street Fighter II, the Alpha series also features appearances of characters from various other sources, such as Final Fight (Sodom, Cody and Guy), the official Street Fighter manga (Karin and Evil Ryu) and Capcom Fighting Jam (Ingrid), as well as a few original characters.

Charlie

Known in Japan as Nash (ナッシュ, Nasshu), Charlie is first mentioned by name in Street Fighter II and its subsequent revisions, in which he is the dead war comrade of Guile, one of the selectable characters. Guile's motive for entering the Street Fighter II tournament is to avenge the death of Charlie, who was killed by the tournament's host M. Bison sometime before the events of the game.

Charlie was made into a playable character in Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams, with both of Guile's special moves, albeit with altered animations (he does the Sonic Boom one-handed, and the Flash Kick in reverse). In the Alpha series, Charlie is a first lieutenant in the United States Air Force, assigned to track down Bison and uncover corruption within the American military. In his endings in the first two Alpha games, Charlie is killed by Bison and his men. The console version of Alpha 3 introduces Guile as a playable character in the Alpha series, and his mission is to "find Commander Charlie". In Guile's ending, he and Charlie infiltrate Bison's base to blow up the Psycho Drive, and Guile escapes while Charlie stays behind to hold off Bison. Charlie is presumed dead after the explosion.

Charlie and other Street Fighter Alpha characters also appear in X-Men vs. Street Fighter. In Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, an alternate version of Charlie named "Shadow" appears as a hidden character. Shadow's sprite is the same as Charlie's, but with almost his entire body blacked out and a white eye shining behind his glasses. He has all Charlie's moves, but his attacks set his opponent alight with blue Psycho Power flames. Shadow also appears in Marvel vs. Capcom as a "helper" (a character that can assist the player in combat) and in Chun-Li's ending, rescuing her from Bison. In Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Charlie appears as himself again.

Apart from fighting games, Charlie appears as a playable character in the shoot 'em up game Cannon Spike, with fellow Street Fighter character Cammy. Charlie was also one of the characters scheduled to appear in Capcom's unreleased 3D fighting game Capcom Fighting All-Stars.

In the UDON comic book version of Street Fighter IV, in the English adaptation of the Street Fighter Alpha manga by Masahiko Nakahira, and in other media, Charlie's English and Japanese names are combined to form the full name "Charlie Nash".

In the 1994 film adaptation Street Fighter, Charlie Nash is combined with the character of Blanka to form the character Carlos "Charlie" Blanka, a friend of Colonel Guile and a soldier in his unit, who is taken prisoner in Bison's Shadaloo compound. His hair is changed to black for this film. When Bison discovers the friendship between Charlie and Guile through one of Guile's threats, he sends Charlie to be brainwashed and mutated by Dr. Dhalsim (Bison's unwilling scientist in this film) to become the green-skinned, red-haired killing machine known simply as Blanka. Dhalsim, however, secretly changes Blanka's mental programming to prevent him from becoming a killer, in return for which he helps Dhalsim to fight Bison's soldiers at the film's climax. He chooses to remain behind and perish with Dhalsim in the explosion of Bison's base, but it is revealed in the follow-up animated series that they both survive. Dhalsim eventually restores Blanka to his human form.

Charlie also appears in the Street Fighter II V anime series, serving alongside Guile in a mission to locate Ryu, Ken and Chun-Li, who have been abducted by Bison. Charlie is the first to find Bison, but is strangled to death. Charlie Nash is played by Chris Klein in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, where he is portrayed as a member of Interpol.

IGN ranked Charlie as 16th on their list of top Street Fighter fighters. He was ranked as 26th top Street Fighter character by UGO.com.

Cody

Main article: Cody (Final Fight)

Dan

Main article: Dan Hibiki

Evil Ryu

Main article: Ryu (Street Fighter)

Guy

Main article: Guy (Final Fight)

Ingrid

Ingrid (イングリッド, Inguriddo) was slated to appear in the canceled Capcom Fighting All-Stars arcade game using the nickname "Eternal Goddess", but her animations were completely redrawn in 2D, and she was introduced as a playable character in Capcom Fighting Jam for the arcades and PlayStation 2. She entered the Street Fighter universe in Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX for the PSP. Little is known about her, although Alpha 3 MAX gives some clues about her true origins. She is revealed to be the Goddess of the Sun, tells Rose to think of her as "an envoy from the heavens", and alludes to the existence of others like her. From her speech patterns in the Japanese version of the game, it can be inferred that Ingrid is actually a lot older than she looks.

Ingrid has the ability to release her opponents from brainwashing and mind control, as shown with Ryu in Alpha 3 MAX. Rose cannot look into Ingrid's future as she can with other Street Fighters. Ingrid states that the core of the Psycho Drive (M. Bison's power enhancer) belongs to her, and that she intends to take it back. How Bison obtained it is never explained, though it appears similar to the crests on Ingrid's head. When Bison is eventually defeated, she comments that an ordinary human being like him couldn't possibly control such energy, and takes the whole Psycho Drive with her as she leaves. Ingrid has the power to travel through time, as she mentions heading to the year 201X in order to contact Ryu in her ending. (In the English version, that ending was mistranslated and alluded to Ryu becoming a monk in the future. In the original Japanese, Ingrid simply calls him a "kid" (小僧, kozō), yet another indication that she is not as young as she seems.) The canonicity of Ingrid's story is under dispute, due to its contradictory nature (she flies off with the monument that is still present in Sagat's stage in Street Fighter II, and Charlie is officially the one to have killed Bison). Also, her claim to be more powerful than Rose or Bison contradicts much of Bison's displayed power in the Street Fighter canon.

Ingrid also plays a role in the background story of Street Fighter X Tekken. In its the prologue comic book it is revealed that she is the creator of Pandora.

Juni and Juli

Juni (ユーニ, Yūni) and Juli (ユーリ, Yūri) make their first appearance in the arcade version of Street Fighter Alpha 3 as a pair of sub-bosses. Before the final battle against M. Bison in the single-player mode, the player faces them simultaneously in a two-on-one fight similar to the Dramatic Battle match. The two characters are unlockable in the arcade version, but they have no storyline in the actual game, sharing their ending with M. Bison. They are head-swaps of Cammy, but have their own special moves and super combos. Juni and Juli are the only characters in Alpha 3 to have special moves and super combos. These are used exclusively when both characters fight as a pair during the Dramatic Battle mode.

Juni and Juli are members of a special unit within Shadaloo called the "Dolls", or Bison Elite Guard (ベガ親衛隊, Bega Shin'eitai), which is composed of twelve young women brainwashed to serve as Bison's personal assassins. The twelve members of the Dolls are named after the months of the Gregorian calendar in various languages, Juni and Juli being German for June and July. Juni and Juli were given their own individual storyline and ending when they became part of the regular roster in the console versions of Alpha 3, in which Juni is assigned to track down Ryu and Juli to track down Cammy. Juli's backstory is further developed in the home versions with the addition of T. Hawk to the cast. In T. Hawk's single-player storyline, Juli is revealed to be Julia, his girlfriend who used to live in his home village until she was kidnapped and brainwashed by Shadaloo.

Juni and Juli appear in Namco x Capcom as two enemy characters that protagonists face throughout the game. They make a cameo appearance in M. Bison's ending in SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos, and another in Super Street Fighter IV, in which Juni appears in Cammy's ending and Juli in T. Hawk's ending.

Karin

Karin Kanzuki (神月 かりん, Kanzuki Karin) was originally Sakura's first rival in Masahiko Nakahira's Sakura Ganbaru! manga from 1996. Her character was integrated into the video game series as a playable character in Street Fighter Alpha 3. Karin is the only daughter of a corporate family and is snobbish and dismissive, calling everyone around her "commoners". Her parents are Daigenjūrō Kanzuki and Nadeshiko Kanzuki. She has a muscular butler named Ishizaki and another employee named Shibazaki. To honor her family motto, "Be the winner of everything", she travels the world to track down and defeat Sakura. She appears in Namco X Capcom fighting alongside Sakura, and by herself in Capcom Fighting Evolution (although Sakura also appears as a playable character).

Maki

Main article: Maki Genryusai

R. Mika

Rainbow Mika (レインボー・ミカ, Reinbō Mika, R. Mika) was introduced in Street Fighter Alpha 3, which currently remains her sole playable appearance. Her real name is Mika Nanakawa (七川 美華, Nanakawa Mika). She is a Japanese girl planning to make her debut as a professional wrestler and working very hard to achieve her dream to become "Star of the Ring". To this end, she travels the world, fighting various street fighters to promote herself and meeting her idol Zangief along the way. She receives rigorous training from her manager, Yoko Harmagedon, a large muscular woman who is seen in a few of her victory poses riding a golf cart and wielding a shinai. Mika also has a cameo in the Capcom game Startling Adventures.

Mika was created to introduce a "tricky and technical character" into the series, though she was not a female wrestler in the beginning. After her development, the team introduced Karin to provide a contrast to her.

Rolento

Rolento, who is given the full name Rolento F. Schugerg (ロレント・F・シュゲルグ, Rorento F Shugeruge) in Street Fighter Alpha 2, was originally an enemy character in the beat-em-up game Final Fight, where he appears as the boss of the Industrial Area stage. He is a former member of the fictional Red Beret special forces unit and serves as the supervisor of the Mad Gear gang's weapons plant. In the game, he fights using a rod and resorts to throwing grenades when he is low on energy. Although Rolento was omitted from the Super Nintendo (SNES) ports of Final Fight, he appears in the SNES sequel, Final Fight 2, as the boss of the Italy stage. In the sequel, his name is transliterated as Rolent both in the game and in the instruction booklet.

Rolento makes his first appearance in the Street Fighter series in the original Street Fighter Alpha, where he makes a cameo in Sodom's ending among other former Mad Gear members gathered by Sodom to help rebuild the gang. His debut as a playable fighter was in Street Fighter Alpha 2, in which he seeks to build a military utopia following the downfall of the Mad Gear gang and wants to recruit his former ally and nemesis, Sodom and Guy respectively, to his cause. Rolento's ending in Alpha 2 depicts him invading the streets of Metro City after forming his own army. In Street Fighter Alpha 3, Rolento tries to persuade Cody, another former nemesis, to join his army. In his ending, Rolento attempts to infiltrate Shadaloo's underground base to gain M. Bison's secret weapon, the Psycho Drive, only to destroy it with Sodom's help.

Rolento's fighting style in the Street Fighter games is based broadly on his Final Fight counterpart. He uses his rod and grenades from Final Fight, as well as throwing knives and wires. One of Rolento's super combos in the Alpha series, "Take No Prisoners", involves his opponent being hooked to the ceiling by either El Gado or Holly Wood, enemy characters from Final Fight who appear to be working for Rolento during the Alpha series.

Outside the Street Fighter series, Rolento appears as a playable character in Final Fight Revenge, a 3D fighting game spinoff of the Final Fight series, and in Capcom vs. SNK 2. Although he does not appear in the game, Rolento also plays a role in Doctrine Dark's back-story in the original Street Fighter EX, as the one responsible for physically crippling him and causing his psychotic breakdown. (Dark's fighting style is also partly modeled on Rolento's, who was inspired by Rolento's motto of "nothing is unfair as long as you win".) Rolento also makes several cameo appearances in Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix and returns as a playable character in Street Fighter X Tekken with his official tag partner, Ibuki. Askmen.com nominated Rolento as one the five characters they wanted to be included in Street Fighter IV.

Rolento was ranked as 34th-best Street Fighter character by UGO.com. The Guardian voted Rolento number 10 of their top 25 characters.

Rose

Rose (ローズ, Rōzu) first appears in Street Fighter Alpha, characterized as a mystic fortuneteller from Genoa, Italy, who searches the world for Bison to eradicate his evil power with her unique ability, known as Soul Power. At the end of the game, Rose engages Bison in combat and seems to kill him. In the ending of Street Fighter Alpha 2, however, she consults her tarot cards and learns that Bison survived.

At the climax of Street Fighter Alpha 3, Rose faces Bison once more and rams her fist through his chest, channeling her energy into his body. As Bison grapples with Rose, he reveals that they both share half of "the same soul". In the end, Bison's physical form evaporates and Rose collapses from exhaustion. Soon after, Guy recovers her and takes her to safety. Although it appears as if Bison has been killed, he has transferred his consciousness into Rose, effectively claiming her body. In the period between the Alpha series and Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, Bison remains inside Rose's body until his scientists can form a new (albeit weaker) one for him. Bison appears as the final boss of Street Fighter II. The Street Fighter IV Training Guide reveals that Rose survived the possession but has no memory of it.

Rose appears in the console and PC versions of Street Fighter IV as an additional character, voiced by Gina Grad. Her purpose is to track down Bison and stop him for good after learning that he has survived Akuma's attack at the end of the second World Warrior tournament. While competing in the tournament, she runs into Ryu. She is determined to halt his advancement for his own protection, saying that he is "the last hope", and they reluctantly fight. In her ending, she is confronted by Bison, who takes his remaining power back from her, causing her to fall to the ground unconscious. As Bison stands over her, he declares his intention to keep her alive to satisfy his soul. The situation is resolved in Guy's ending of Super Street Fighter IV, when Guy rescues Rose from Bison as he attempts to flee with her.

The comic produced by UDON reveals that Rose is a Roma. Elizaveta Kiryukhina portrayed Rose in the 2009 film Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. There are many references to the "White Rose", which proves to be a ship carrying M. Bison's Russian-speaking daughter, Rose. This film reveals that the section of Bison's good soul/morals was transferred to Rose before her birth. As the film comes to a climax, Rose watches her father die at the hands of Chun-Li.

IGN voted Rose one of their top 25 fighters. She was ranked as 29th top Street Fighter character by UGO.com.

Sakura

Main article: Sakura Kasugano

Shin Akuma

Main article: Akuma (Street Fighter)

Sodom

Sodom (ソドム, Sodomu) originally appeared in the beat-em-up game Final Fight, where he is the boss of the Subway stage. An underground wrestling promoter dressed in a samurai-style helmet and gear, Sodom fights the player in an underground ring in the Metro City's subway, wielding two Masamune blades. In the international versions of Final Fight for the SNES and Sega CD, Sodom was renamed Katana (Sword), because of the reference to sodomy.

Sodom's first appearance in the Street Fighter series was in the original Street Fighter Alpha. In the Alpha series, he is characterized as an American Japanophile, who is greatly fascinated by Japanese culture but misunderstands it. After being defeated by Guy in Final Fight, Sodom recognizes his wrong perception of Japan and travels there to re-educate himself. He develops a new fighting style based on Japanese and Western martial arts and trades his Masamune blades for a pair of jutte. On the front of his outfit, Sodom has scrawled the Japanese kanji shi (死), meaning death. In the first Alpha, he seeks to rebuild the Mad Gear gang by defeating his old rival Guy in combat. In his ending, he reforms the gang and holds up a poster reading "Mad Gear" (魔奴義亜, mado gia, written in ateji). In his ending in Street Fighter Alpha 2, Sodom goes to a sumo ring in Japan to seek new members for the reformed Mad Gear and ends up being challenged by E. Honda. In Street Fighter Alpha 3, he seeks a new hideout for his gang and goes to claim Shadaloo's new underground base as his own when he learns about it from his former ally Rolento. He crashes his truck into M. Bison's to foil his plot. In Alpha 3 he regains his katana blades from Final Fight when the player selects him in the X-ism style.

In the Japanese versions of the Street Fighter Alpha games, where the series is known as Street Fighter Zero, Sodom's victory quotes are composed of seemingly nonsensical English phrases that are really mispronounced Japanese phrases. For example, Sodom would say "Die Job Death Car?" instead of Daijōbu desu ka (大丈夫ですか, "Are you all right?") and ""Nip On Die Ski!" instead of Nippon daisuki (ニッポン大好き, "I love Japan!"). In the English version of Alpha 3, Sodom says "Don't thank me! In fact, 'don't touch my moustache!'" in one of his victory quotes. "Don't touch my moustache" is a commonly taught approximation of the phrase dō itashimashite (どう致しまして, "you're welcome").

Apart from the Alpha series, Sodom appears as a playable character in Final Fight Revenge and makes two cameos in Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix. In Mighty Final Fight, there are three Sodoms (or Katanas, as the character is called in the English version), known as the Three Katana Brothers.

Introduced in the Street Fighter III series

Alex

Alex (アレックス, Arekkusu) is the lead character of Street Fighter III, initially designed to substitute series mainstays Ryu and Ken (who were still included in the released game in response to demand from fans).

According to his back-story in the original Street Fighter III and Street Fighter III 2nd Impact, Alex is an American from New York. (Given his accent, many assume that Alex is from Brooklyn, although his stage in 2nd Impact is Greenwich Village). Alex enters the third World Warrior tournament because its sponsor, Gill, has seriously injured his best friend and father figure Tom, even though Tom has told him that Gill had won fairly. Tom allows him to go, and Alex wins every match before facing Gill, whom he defeats but has no chance to kill. He returns home to find Tom fully recovered. In Street Fighter III 3rd Strike, after experiencing numerous battles against other martial arts masters around the world, Alex wants to continue fighting. Against Tom's wishes he sets off on a journey in search of a stronger opponent.

Alex makes other fighting appearances in Capcom Fighting All-Stars, Capcom Fighting Evolution and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars.

In December 1997 Alex ranked 44th on Gamest's "top 50" video game characters, tying with Goro Daimon, and in January 1998 was named the 22nd best character of the preceding year, tying with Ryuji Yamazaki. IGN voted Alex one of their top 25 fighters. He was ranked as the sixth best Street Fighter character by UGO.com.

Dudley

Main article: Dudley (Street Fighter)

Elena

Main article: Elena (Street Fighter)

Gill

Gill (ギル, Giru) is the boss and antagonist of the Street Fighter III series. At the start of the series, he is the President of a secret society that has controlled the underworld for thousands of years and seeks to turn the whole world into a utopia by the 23rd century. His ultimate goal is to test the skills of several warriors and coerce them into his cause. Gill appears in his default costume as a tall, muscular man with flowing blond hair, the right side of his body colored red, and the left side colored blue, wearing nothing but a loincloth.

2nd Impact introduces Gill's younger brother Urien as a player character of similar build and attire. In Urien's ending, Gill is revealed to have been promoted to "Emperor" (天帝, Tentei, "Celestial Emperor") after Urien takes over Gill's former presidency, which he still holds by the time of 3rd Strike The blond woman who assists Gill before battle in 3rd Strike is his secretary Kolin (コーリン, Kōrin), who also appears in Dudley's ending in the first two games, handing him the keys to Dudley's car. Gill is not playable in any of the arcade versions of the Street Fighter III games. However, he is selectable once he is unlocked from within the console versions of 2nd Impact and Third Strike.

Hugo

Hugo (ヒューゴー, Hyūgō) is a massive professional wrestler from Germany who first appears in Final Fight under the name Andore (アンドレ). He makes his first Street Fighter appearance in Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact, in which he wears a similar pink leopard-print shirt and pants with chains around his waist. Because of his physical appearance and strength, Hugo is often compared to André the Giant, a real-life wrestler who worked for the WWF in the mid-80's and inspired the Andore character. Hugo is the son of a farmer from the German countryside and was raised alongside his two younger sisters. After leaving his hometown at the age of 20, he becomes a popular wrestler in the USA, with former street warrior Poison, another enemy character from Final Fight, as his manager. In 2nd Impact, Hugo seeks a partner for an upcoming tag team wrestling tournament due to take place in a few months. Hugo's final opponent in the single-player mode varies, the four possibilities being Gill, Ryu, Elena and Necro. Afterwards, Hugo and his rival go on to form a tag team to compete in the CWA tag tournament. In 3rd Strike, Hugo achieves such an overwhelming victory in the tag tournament that no other wrestler dares to challenge him anymore. Worried about the lack of matches for Hugo, Poison forms a new wrestling organization with him, recruiting only the best fighters. In Hugo's ending, he and Poison form the Huge Wrestling Army (H.W.A.), which includes other 3rd Strike characters.

Outside the Street Fighter III series, Hugo appears as a playable character in SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos. He also appears as a playable character in Street Fighter X Tekken with his official tag partner, Poison. He is an optional pit-fight opponent in Final Fight Streetwise. He also makes a cameo appearance in the Metro City stage of Super Street Fighter IV.

Ibuki

Main article: Ibuki (Street Fighter)

Makoto

Main article: Makoto (Street Fighter)

Necro

Necro (ネクロ, Nekuro), whose real name is Illia (イリヤ, Iriya), was born in a poor Russian village near a lake. He is the third of four children, with two older brothers and a younger sister. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, he wanders off from his home village and into the vicinity of Moscow, where he comes into contact with Gill's organization, which remodels his DNA to turn him into a living weapon, granting him superhuman flexibility. His fighting style is simulated by computer, then programmed into his brain with cyber implants. Necro has a long reach and can use throws and electrocution. In his ending, he is tricked by Gill and left for dead in a facility, until he is rescued by a young girl named Effie (エフィー, Efī), and the pair go on a journey together. Necro's story is the same in 2nd Impact, in which he gains the nickname "super electromagnetic alien". In this game, however, he also has a role as one of Hugo's potential final bosses and tag partners, forming the tag team "Thunderbolt". In 3rd Strike, Necro and Effie are pursued by agents of the organization, but still live in hope of "truth and liberty". In his ending, Necro saves Effie from falling and thwarts agents of the organization at the Siberian railroad.

Oro

Main article: Oro (Street Fighter)

Remy

Remy (レミー, Remī), who first appears in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, is a young turquoise-haired savateur from Paris who seeks revenge against his father, a martial artist who abandoned him and his sister. After Remy's sister died, he encased her body in an iced casket, which he keeps in an underwater cove in the Bay of Biscay. Remy takes his aggression out on other martial artists by challenging them to battle. Remy's rival match illustrates this, as his sudden appearance and challenge surprise Alex, who thinks him nothing but a troubled man. In his ending, Remy realizes that he has been inadvertently following in his father's footsteps. He makes peace with his sister and follows a new path. His attacks are similar to that of Guile and Charlie, but no notable connection to them has been established. Remy was voted 8th in Capcom's popularity poll of 85 characters for the 15th anniversary of Street Fighter.

Sean

Sean Matsuda (ショーン・マツダ, Shōn Matsuda) is an athletic young boy from an average home in Brazil. Impressed by Ken's performance at a martial arts rally, Sean seeks to become his disciple, calling him "Master Ken". An intense but courteous young man, Sean is determined to win no matter what. He was once trained by his grandfather, who was of Japanese descent. Sean's greatest weakness is receiving attacks while attacking. He dreams of creating his original special moves.

It is Sean who leads the basketball parry bonus round in 3rd Strike. In his ending, he becomes Ken's disciple, only to be told that he needs to defeat Ryu to become worthy. In 3rd Strike, Sean is allowed to participate in a martial arts tournament, but Ken tells him that his current skills will not even get him through the preliminaries and that he needs to develop his own style. In his 3rd Strike ending, Sean dreams that he has won the championship title, but in fact he loses in the qualifying rounds as a result of his lack of training.

Sean makes a cameo appearance in Ryu's ending in Marvel vs. Capcom, in which Ryu is training him.

Twelve

Twelve (トゥエルヴ, Tueruvu) is a humanoid creature introduced as a playable character in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike. His stage background, shared with Necro, is Saint Basil's Cathedral.

Twelve is the ultimate humanoid weapon developed by Gill's organization. He has a shapeshifting body that is an improved and strengthened version of the prototype body given to Necro. Via a super art, Twelve has the ability to copy his opponent's form and moves. His targets are filled with despair when he corners them. His objective is to track down Necro and Effie, who are fleeing from the organization.

Urien

Urien (ユリアン, Yurian) is introduced in Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact. He is Gill's younger brother and shares many of his traits, including his physique. Gill and Urien were the children of gifted parents who excelled physically and intellectually. The organization separated the brothers from their birth parents at the age of six and gave them a specialized education to become candidates for its presidency. Gill was chosen, leaving Urien bitter with regret.

In 2nd Impact, Urien challenges Gill for the presidency. He eventually gains the title, only to learn that Gill has been promoted to Emperor, the true leader of the organization, whose existence is known only to its presidents and chairmen. In 3rd Strike, in spite of his new position, Urien resents the supremacy of his brother. He decides to eliminate Gill permanently and destroys the preservation facility where Gill is still recovering.

Urien also appears in Capcom Fighting Jam as one of the characters representing the Street Fighter III series.

Q

Q, who first appears in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, is a mysterious individual in a trenchcoat and hat, whose face is concealed by a featureless metal mask. Q is being tracked by the CIA because of his presence in numerous strange disasters. Nothing of his background has yet been revealed. All of Q's techniques are named in "descriptive" form rather than with traditionally-styled move names, as if they are given by people who have watched him fight.

Yun and Yang

Yun (ユン) and Yang (ヤン, Yan) are twin brothers from Hong Kong. They were separated from their birth parents when they were infants and raised by their adoptive grandfather, who manages a restaurant at Shanghai. He trained the brothers in a variety of Chinese martial arts. The twins are the godsons of eight bosses in the underground community, and the two became leaders of their local town at a young age. Yun (the older borther, in the white outfit and blue cap) is outgoing and impulsive, whereas Yang (in red) is calmer and more analytical. The twins are related to Lee from the first Street Fighter, and a character addresses the twins as the "Lee brothers" (リー兄弟, Rī kyōdai) in their endings in the original Street Fighter III and 2nd Impact. In Street Fighter III 3rd Strike, the twins fight Gill's organization, the Illuminati, who are threatening to invade their home town. Yun and Yang have identical abilities and techniques in the original Street Fighter III, in which Yang is selectable as an alternate version of Yun. In 2nd Impact and 3rd Strike, Yang is a distinct selectable character with his own techniques and abilities, including different superpowers, and his own endings.

After the Street Fighter III series, Yun appears as a playable character in Capcom vs. SNK 2, with Yang assisting in some of his special moves and super combos. This version of Yun appears again in the portable versions of Street Fighter Alpha 3 for the GBA and PSP and in Capcom Fighting Jam. The twins make a cameo in Chun-Li's introductory cutscene in the console versions of Street Fighter IV and in her ending in Super Street Fighter IV. They are playable characters in 'Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition'

IGN included Yun and Yang among the characters they wished to see in Street Fighter IV. They were ranked as 10th best Street Fighter characters by UGO.com. GameDaily ranked them at number 20 on their list of best Street Fighter characters. 1UP.com listed Yang as one of the characters they wanted to see in Street Fighter X Tekken, saying, "Yang is long overdue to show up in a new Capcom fighting game, and Street Fighter X Tekken is the perfect opportunity for his return". They were ranked at number 11 on the list of the best Street Fighter fighters by The Guardian.

Introduced in the Street Fighter IV series

Abel

Abel (アベル, Aberu) is a heavily scarred French martial artist described as an amnesiac. His fighting style is based on Combat Sambo, and he has a move called Marseille Rolling. Obsessively following every lead on the whereabouts of Shadaloo's remnants, he was found in the burning remains of a Shadaloo base and nursed back to health by a group of mercenaries, working alongside them to rediscover his past and to defeat Shadaloo once and for all. He recognizes Guile's "Sonic Boom" technique, but refuses to comment when Guile presses him for information about Charlie, its originator. As a Combat Sambo practitioner, Abel is adept at striking and throwing moves.

It is hinted in Abel's ending that he may have been created by Shadaloo as a prototype of Seth or abducted in his youth to serve as a "replacement body" for M.Bison. This is reinforced by dialogue from both Bison and Seth, who mention him as "the one that got away". The appearance of his eyes change to resemble Seth's during the initiation of his ultra combo. It is also hinted that Charlie is the person that helped him as he recognized Guile's fighting style and comments to Chun-Li about the soldier that rescued him from Shadaloo. In Abel's rival encounter, Abel mentions that he recognizes Guile's Sonic Boom, leading to speculation that he may have spent time with Charlie.

Abel's game mostly revolves around mixing up strikes and throws, and also emphasizes canceling his standing medium kick canceled into a dash, and then linking into his standing heavy punch, or mixing up between strikes and throws after the standing medium kick, which leaves him at point-blank range with an advantage. His signature move – his ultra "Soulless" – involves him changing his eye color, delivering a series of punches and kicks to his opponent, throwing him into the air and then body-slamming him. In his second ultra, "Breathless", Abel runs at his opponent, seizes him, spins to create a tornado and drops him on the ground. Abel appears as a playable character in the crossover fighting game Street Fighter X Tekken, with his official tag partner, Guile.

Abel is voiced by Kenji Takahashi in Japanese and by Jason Liebrecht in English. In the original design, he was a young judo fighter who wore pigtails and "could be mistaken for a girl".

C. Viper

Main article: Crimson Viper

El Fuerte

El Fuerte (エル・フォルテ, Eru Forute), meaning "The Strong One" in Spanish, is a masked Mexican luchador. He is an aspiring chef who seeks out the greatest fighters to learn what they eat and incorporate their recipes into his cooking. Despite his love of cooking, he seems to be an incompetent chef. Many of his moves have names referring to Mexican food. The UDON comic series of Street Fighter shows El Fuerte as a big fan of R. Mika. He immediately recognizes fellow wrestler Zangief as "Tornado Rojo" (Red Cyclone), and then announces his own title as "The Hurricane of the Gulf of Mexico". He has a friendly rivalry with T. Hawk, who bested by him before the events of Super Street Fighter IV and told him to challenge him again when he got stronger. The character of El Fuerte is inspired by real wrestlers from Mexico, in particular El Santo, a prominent Mexican wrestler who also wore a silver mask. El Fuerte is voiced by Daisuke Ono in Japanese, and J.B. Blanc in English. He makes a cameo appearance in stage backgrounds for Street Fighter X Tekken.

Gouken

Main article: Gouken

Hakan

Hakan (ハカン) is an oil wrestler from Turkey and is the second new addition to Super Street Fighter IV. His fighting style is based on Yağlı güreş and involves him coating himself in oil to make his body slippery. This enables him to slide across the ground and launch his opponents by squeezing them through his bulging muscles. Hakan is the father of seven young children and the president of a company that seeks to create the perfect olive oil. He is apparently old friends with E. Honda, his fighting rival in Super Street Fighter IV. There were frequent rumors of Hakan before he was revealed, due to a forum post containing a photograph that was believed to be concept art for new characters. Director Ono stated that Hakan was deliberately written as a "loving husband and father" to alleviate any homoerotic associations that oil wrestling has for American audiences.

Juri

Main article: Juri (Street Fighter)

Oni

Main article: Oni (Street Fighter)

Rufus

Main article: Rufus (Street Fighter)

Seth

The boss character of Street Fighter IV, Seth (セス, Sesu), nicknamed the "Puppet Master", is the Chief Executive Officer of S.I.N., the weapons division of Shadaloo. His body has been heavily modified using advanced technology, with a device installed in his abdomen called the "Tanden Engine". Seth is intent on completing BLECE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Cell Explosion), which spurs the creation of a new fighting tournament. He is named after Seth Killian, Capcom's senior manager.

Seth's normal moves are similar to those of Urien from Street Fighter III, and his special moves are mainly techniques used by other characters. For example, Seth can perform a variation of Guile's Sonic Boom and Chun-Li's Hyakuretsukyaku. He also uses the Tanden Engine for a special move, his super combo, and both of his ultra combos.

Seth is a non-playable final boss in the arcade version of Street Fighter IV, but is selectable in the home version. He is voiced by Akio Ōtsuka in Japanese, and Michael McConnohie in English. In Seth's ending in Street Fighter IV, he is revealed to be "Number 15", one of many similar androids created by Bison. Originally created to become one of Bison's "replacement bodies", Number 15 rebelled against his programming, trying to overthrow Bison and pursue his own agendas.

VideoGamer.com severely criticized Seth, describing him as "not only cheap to fight against but a lazy effort on Capcom's part. He looks like a rip-off of Dr. Manhattan from Watchmen comic book." They added that the combination of his "silly name" and moves taken from existing characters made him a "disappointment". Eurogamer expressed similar sentiments, particularly criticising the character's "near-unblockable (but weak) Ultra move". IGN AU, while calling him one of several "great" additions to the game's roster, considered the character "gimmicky". Official Xbox Magazine described him as the game's only major disappointment, finding his role as the game's final boss to be an anticlimax.

Introduced in the Street Fighter X Tekken series

Poison

Main article: Poison (Final Fight)

Related games / non-canon characters

Introduced in the Final Fight series

Main article: List of Final Fight characters

Several of the characters introduced in later games of Street Fighter originated in Final Fight.

Introduced in the Street Fighter EX series

The characters below are not canonical to the Street Fighter storyline. Arika, not Capcom, owns the characters and the copyright to them, and Capcom has acknowledged a difficulty in having them appear in future games. Producer Yoshinori Ono, however, has said that the possibility of them appearing in future titles has not been ruled out, stating that Capcom still has a good relationship with Arika.

Ace

Ace (エース, Ēsu), who is introduced in Street Fighter EX3, is a government agent who is ordered by the prime minister of his nation to find information about a secret weapon being developed in an underground base. Ace uses a custom fighting style, which the player can edit by passing a series of trials in the game's Character Edit mode. Thus, Ace has access to a wide variety of techniques, including Cammy's Killer Bee Assault, Elena's Healing and some of his own.

Allen

Allen Snider (アレン・スナイダー, Aren Sunaidā), who appears as a secret character in the original Street Fighter EX and as a regular character in Street Fighter EX Plus and EX Plus α, is a fighter who was said to be the strongest freestyle karate fighter on the American karate circuit, until he experienced his first defeat against a young Ken Masters at the All-American Martial Arts Tournament. Ken told Allen that he was only a "big fish in a small pond". Motivated by these words, Allen sets out to prove that he can be the best not only in America, but in the world. Although absent in Street Fighter EX2 and subsequent games, he makes an appearance in the Arika-developed arcade game Fighting Layer, where he seeks to defeat the strongest opponent on South Island.

Area

Area (エリア, Eria), who first appears in Street Fighter EX2 Plus, is a young girl with braided hair. She is the daughter of a scientific inventor, and her intellect is said to surpass his. When her father's inventions fail to sell, she modifies them as weapons and tests them in combat against the world's greatest martial artists. In battle, she wears a pair of high-speed rollerblades and a mechanical right arm codenamed "Cancer" (キャンサー, Kyansā).

Blair

Blair Dame (ブレア・デイム, Burea Deimu), who appears as a secret character in the original Street Fighter EX and as a regular character in Street Fighter EX Plus and EX Plus α, is the daughter of a wealthy European family. She fights wearing a light blue leotard and long boots. In addition to receiving a formal education, Blair has trained herself in various combat sports, believing that one day she will need to know how to defend her loved ones as well as herself. She travels the world to hone her skills with her bodyguard Cracker Jack, whom her mother has hired to protect her. Blair is acquainted with Pullum, as they are both members of the International Debutante Club. Her butler is called Sebastian. Like Allen, Blair appears in Arika's arcade fighting game Fighting Layer, in which she takes a sudden trip to South Island. She is also mentioned in Jack's ending in Street Fighter EX3.

C. Jack

Cracker Jack (クラッカー・ジャック, Kurakkā Jakku), also known as C. Jack, is a bat-wielding former bouncer from Las Vegas, known for his unstoppable punches. While being pursued by an unknown organization, he becomes Blair's bodyguard to travel the world and flee his pursuers. In Street Fighter EX2, his younger sister is kidnapped by an underground fighting champion named Bharat. In Street Fighter EX2 Plus, he continues to be pursued by the mysterious organization, and by the end of Street Fighter EX 3 he seeks refuge in Blair's mansion. Cracker Jack's appearance is based on Daisuke Jigen from the famous Lupin III manga series.

Cycloid-β and Cycloid-γ

Cycloid-β (サイクロイド-β, Saikuroido Bēta) and Cycloid-γ (サイクロイド-γ, Saikuroido Ganma), who both appear as secret characters in Street Fighter EX Plus and EX Plus α, are a pair of cyborgs that use the special techniques of other characters. Beta primarily uses command-based special moves, while Gamma specializes in charge-based moves. Both characters were based on test models used for motion capture during the development of the game. Beta is an untextured blue polygonal model resembling a male human, and Gamma is a green wireframed model. In the Japanese version of Street Fighter EX Plus α for the PlayStation, Gamma is given an additional back-story, a weapon secretly developed by Balba (Pullum's father) to annihilate a huge criminal organization. In Street Fighter EX2 Plus, Cycloid Beta appears in the bonus rounds, but Gamma does not.

D. Dark

Doctrine Dark (ドクトリン・ダーク, Dokutorin Dāku), whose real name is Holger (オルガー, Orugā), is a German-American mercenary seeking revenge against Guile. His back-story for Street Fighter EX2 establishes that he was raised in a mercenary training facility, where he was trained in the use of weapons similar to Rolento's, such as knives, grenades, and wires. Dark once served in the American armed forces. He was in a special forces unit led by Guile when it became involved in a scuffle against a rival unit led by Rolento. Holger was the sole survivor of his unit, but suffered tremendous physical and mental scars. He seeks revenge against Guile, feeling that he did not train him sufficiently. During the development of Street Fighter EX, the developers nicknamed him "Mr. Foul-play" (反則くん, Hansoku-kun).

Darun

Darun Mister (ダラン・マイスター, Daran Maisutā) makes his appearance as a hidden character in the original Street Fighter EX. He is a popular wrestling champion from India who seeks to challenge other wrestlers such as Zangief and Victor Ortega (from the Saturday Night Slam Masters series). He agrees to become Pullum Purna's bodyguard, hoping to use the opportunity to travel the world and fight many wrestlers. He is absent from the original Street Fighter EX2, but returns in Street Fighter EX2 Plus, in which he obtains another opportunity to fight against more wrestlers around the world after Pullum becomes a Princess. In Street Fighter EX3, he has a special ending if the player finishes the single-player mode with Zangief as his tag-partner.

Garuda

Garuda (ガルダ), first appears as a non-playable boss character in the original Street Fighter EX, but becomes a playable character in subsequent installments. He is a demon dressed in samurai-like armor who wields a sword hidden within his own body. According to his back-story in the original Street Fighter EX, he was created by the souls of dead men who were consumed by the Satsui no Hadō, although his revised back-story in Street Fighter EX2 suggests that he has an accumulation of negative feelings such as anger, hatred, envy, treachery, and despair. Garuda's form is said to change depending on his opponent: he takes a strong form against warriors seeking strength and feeds on the hatred of warriors who are seeking vengeance.

Hayate

Hayate (ハヤテ), who makes his first appearance in the original Street Fighter EX 2, is a samurai from the village of Kukunoichi (木霊村, Kukunoichimura), hidden within the mountains. He is following the footsteps of his father, a legendary hero who once saved his home village from the demon Orochi (巨蟒), and is one of the few Street Fighter characters to use a sword in combat. At the end of the original EX 2, he vanquishes the demon his father once sealed and saves the local shrine maiden, becoming the new guardian deity of Kukunoichi. Hayate is the only character from the original EX 2 who was absent in the arcade version of Street Fighter EX 2 Plus. He was re-included in the PlayStation version of the game as a hidden character.

Hokuto

Hokuto (ほくと) is the daughter of a Mizugami (水神) family, who was trained in the family's style of kobujutsu, which has been refined into her personal style that resembles the art of aikijujutsu. She was known as Shirase (訃) as a child. When Hokuto turned 17, she was sent on a journey to find her older brother Kairi, who went missing years before. Unknown to Hokuto, the true purpose of her journey was not only to find her brother, but to defeat him. She has been implanted with the "Seal of Blood" (血の封印, Chi no Fūin) to exterminate her brother. In the original Street Fighter EX, Hokuto wears a blue-white outfit resembling that of a Japanese archer, and white hachimaki around her long hair. In EX 2, she wears a hakama and ties her hair in a pony-tail. She reverts to her original design in EX 3. In addition to her regular version, an alternate version named Bloody Hokuto (血の封印を解かれたほくと, Chi no Fūin Tokareta Hokuto, "Hokuto with the Seal of Blood Broken") is featured as secret character in Street Fighter EX Plus.

Kairi

Kairi (カイリ), who first appears as a secret character in the original Street Fighter EX, is depicted as an amnesiac who was initially conceived to be the main character in the EX series. Kairi was born to the main house of the Mizukami family and was trained in the family's traditional art of karate. He appears in the original EX and its re-releases with long black hair and a scar over his right eye. He lost his memories while fighting an unknown challenger, rumored to have been Akuma, and now walks the "Path of the Shura", fighting to survive. He learns that he is the elder brother of Hokuto, who has been on a mission to find him. In EX 2, his hair has changed from black to white as a result of his constant battles. After confronting Hokuto and Nanase, he recovers his memories and learns that he was responsible for the death of their father.

Nanase

Nanase (七瀬), who first appears as a hidden character in the original Street Fighter EX2 and becomes a regular character in Street Fighter EX2 Plus and Street Fighter EX3, is the younger sister of Hokuto. She was raised to be a successor to the Mizugami clan. Nanase is a skilled master of bojutsu. Although her mood is different from that of her older sister, she is very close to Hokuto, who is the only person she confides in. Nanase becomes worried about Hokuto after she leaves the shrine where they live and does not return. She then learns from her grandfather that she has a brother named Kairi, whom Hokuto was sent to find. She goes on a journey to find Hokuto and Kairi, unaware that the journey is also a test to determine whether she is fit to inherit the Mizugami teachings.

Pullum

Pullum Purna (プルム・プルナ, Purumu Puruna, Arabic: برم برنا) is the daughter of an Arab multimillionaire. She decides to travel the world with her bodyguard Darun when she overhears her grandfather whisper the name "Shadaloo", believing that it is the name of a person. Unknown to Pullum, the reason why her grandfather is worried about Shadaloo is that she has a blood relative working for the organization who is a candidate to become a Shadaloo executive. She is absent from the original Street Fighter EX2 but returns in Street Fighter EX2 Plus, in which she inherits a kingdom after the death of a relative and decides to travel the world once again with Darun to search for her missing father. Pullum's theme tune was later used in the game Technictix.

Shadowgeist

Shadowgeist (シャドウガイスト, Shadōgaisuto) first appears as a secret character in the arcade version of the original Street Fighter EX2 and in Street Fighter EX2 Plus and Street Fighter EX3. He is an unknown man from an unnamed country, dressed in a superhero costume similar to Skullomania's. He has artificially enhanced his body in order to overthrow the men in charge of the totalitarian government responsible for the deaths of his wife and daughter.

Sharon

Sharon (シャロン), who debuts in Street Fighter EX 2, is a beautiful red-haired woman with a tattoo of a rose on her chest. Sharon is depicted wielding a gun in the character artwork for the original EX 2, but she does not use any firearms until EX 2 Plus. In the story, she lives a double life as a nun taking care of orphans at a monastery and an A-class agent for a secret intelligence group. Having separated from her parents when she was young, her only desire is to be reunited with her family and learn about her past. When she learns that a key member of a criminal organization she was assigned to investigate has the same tattoo that she has, she goes after him to find out why. Sharon is believed to be a blood relative of Blair, but it is not specified which. Although no location is given, she has a move called Bermuda Symphony.

Skullomania

Skullomania (スカロマニア, Sukaromania) is the secret identity of Saburo Nishikoyama (西小山　三郎, Nishikoyama Saburō), a third-rate businessman from Tokyo who works to support his wife and children. He adopts his superhero identity when a client asks him to dress up and pose for a superhero attraction at his department store. Donning a full-body skeleton suit, Skullomania sets out to fight evil for real. In Street Fighter EX2, his costume is redesigned, adding a red scarf and a red letter "S" in front of his mask. Many elements of Skullomania are homages to the tokusatsu genre of Japanese action shows in general and Kamen Rider in particular, specifically the red scarf, belt, and prominence of flying kicks in his fighting style. He makes later appearances in the PlayStation 2 music game Technictix and in Fighter Maker.

V. Rosso

Vulcano Rosso (ヴルカーノ・ロッソ, Vurukāno Rosso), who makes his debut in Street Fighter EX2 Plus, is a mysterious Italian warrior who leaves his organization in order to avenge the death of his lover, presumably killed by Bison's Shadaloo operatives. His special moves are named after locations in Italy such as Aetna, Vesuvio, Canossa, Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs), and Torre Pendente (Leaning Tower). At the end of EX2 Plus, he achieves his revenge but still mourns the death of his lover.

Introduced in Marvel crossover series

Alternate versions of some characters were introduced in Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes. Haggar was introduced as a playable character in Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

Cyber Akuma

Main article: Akuma (Street Fighter)

Dark Sakura

Main article: Sakura Kasugano

Haggar

Main article: Mike Haggar

Mech-Zangief

Main article: Zangief

Shadow

Shadow is a version of Dark Charlie that suffered harsh brainwashing experiments at Bison's hands and now serves under him.

Shadow Lady

Main article: Chun-Li

Introduced in Street Fighter: The Movie (arcade game)

Blade, Khyber, F7 and Arkane

Blade (ブレード, Burēdo), played by game designer Alan Noon, is a character who appears exclusively in the Street Fighter: The Movie arcade game. He is not based on any previous Street Fighter II character, but is dressed as a red-clad member of Bison's shock troops from the film on which the game is based. Blade has undergone rigorous physical training and conceals an array of weapons such as knives and grenades. In Blade's ending, he is revealed to be Guile's brother Gunloc (a character from Saturday Night Slam Masters), who has infiltrated the Shadaloo Gang as a deep cover agent.

There are three other hidden characters in the arcade game, who are all palette swaps of Blade. Khyber (the yellow shock trooper) uses special techniques that resemble the ones used by Dhalsim (who was not featured in the arcade game) such as the Yoga Flame and Yoga Blast. Arkane (the blue shock trooper) can teleport. F7 (the black shock trooper) has all the techniques of the other three shock troopers. They all share Blade's ending. The four shock troopers are the only characters from the arcade game excluded from the Street Fighter: The Movie console game, which is a different game based on the same film.

Sawada

Captain Sawada (キャプテン・サワダ, Kyaputen Sawada) is an original character from the 1994 Street Fighter film, who appears as a playable character in both the arcade and the console version of the Street Fighter: The Movie video game. Sawada's voice is the only one dubbed in the film, as Sawada himself only speaks a little English. At the time, Capcom pushed heavily to promote actor Kenya Sawada by any means possible, giving the staff behind the film and game the impression that he was to be the "face" of Capcom, their own action hero to star in later material. Sawada is characterized as Guile's right-hand man and the leader of the AN commando force. He is a hand-to-hand combat specialist who is proficient in all kinds of martial art. His role in the film is very minor. He speaks and fights only a few times in the film, in which he commands a small force of ground troops in the assault on Bison's base. Yet he appears amongst the main characters as they take a pose at the end of the film.

His design in the video game varies somewhat from that in the film. The developers who worked on the arcade version had him go shirtless, based on the fact he was "buff" and partly inspired by Mortal Kombat II characters of the time. Had this presented a problem, the staff would have opted to have a shirt painted over his sprites. The design resembled that of Fei Long in many ways and led to the actor being involved in digitizing sessions for both Sawada and Fei Long. For Fei Long, the design needed little alteration beyond a change of pants, shoes, and hair. However, Fei Long's frames were never cleaned due to time constraints, leaving only Sawada. Despite speculation to the contrary, Sawada is unarmed in the arcade game. What appeared to be a "katana" was intended at the time to be "motion blur", but because of a conflict between the two capcom branches, flicker transparency was not applied and it was left solid. Sawada's slashing attacks were intended to have an ethereal appearance akin to the Hadouken. The designers argued for the flicker effect but were denied, and they opted instead for a look based on Mortal Kombat's effects at the time. Later appearances in the console version of the game changed this and gave him a katana.

Michael Dobson voiced Sawada in two episodes of the Street Fighter television series, as head of the A.N. Special Forces when Guile was discharged and formed his team.

Further reading

• Studio Bent Stuff (2000). All About Capcom Head-to-Head Fighting Game 1987–2000. A.A. Game History Series (Vol. 1) (in Japanese). Dempa Publications, Inc. ISBN 4-88554-676-1. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)

External links

• List of characters on Street Fighter Wiki, an external wiki