Way of the Assassin

(Character images shown above are copyright of Capcom, ARIKA, and SNK.)

A Tournament of Shoto Warriors

Shoto characters have been consistently popular among fighting game players since the inception of Ryu in the first Street Fighter game. This is demonstrated in the Street Fighter V character usage statistics in the Capcom Fighters Network website. Ryu, Ken, and Akuma are featured in the top three most used characters throughout a majority of the game's lifespan. Therefore, a fighting game consisting entirely of Shoto characters would appeal to a sizable number of fighting game players.

The 15 Shoto characters featured so far in this blog were created by Capcom, ARIKA, and SNK which have a history of collaborating with each other (Street Fighter EX series, SNK vs Capcom series, Fighting EX Layer & SNK Heroines). So, it is plausible that they can work together again to create a new fighting game featuring only Shoto characters.

I suggest to call this fighting game Way of the Assassin (or WotA).

Satsui no Hadou Transformation

The fight against the murderous intent or Satsui no Hadou is a central theme for the Ansatsuken warriors in Street Fighter lore, and it can be extended to the ARIKA and SNK Shoto warriors through direct encounters with the Ansatsuken warriors of Street Fighter.

Sagat is a prime example within Street Fighter itself, where he started to struggle with the Satsui no Hadou after his match with Ryu. Kairi could have encountered Akuma after his duel to the death with Hokuto, and Allen would have met Ken during a US Martial Arts tournament. Takuma may have fought and studied under Gouken which led him to develop his own Kyokugenryu Karate style based on Ansatsuken.

Since all characters in WotA struggle to control the Satsui no Hadou within them, a new feature can be added to the game where each character can transform into an evil version of themselves (e.g. Ryu transforms into Evil Ryu) during a match round. The character will turn back to normal in the next round. This would be similar to the V-Trigger transformation of Necalli in Street Fighter V.

Pure Form of Satsui no Hadou

The villain in WotA would be none other than the Satsui no Hadou himself. In Street Fighter V, a pure form of Satsui no Hadou was expelled from within Ryu, manifesting in the demonic-looking Kage. Similarly, each WotA warrior must fight and expel the Satsui no Hadou within their bodies.

The warriors in WotA would need to fight the Satsui no Hadou within their bodies in order to retain their humanity. Once expelled, the Satsui no Hadou must be defeated in battle. Therefore, the final boss fight in WotA would be a battle to the death with the pure incorporeal manifestation of the Satsui no Hadou that is ejected from the warrior's body.

How Well Can You Control Your Satsui no Hadou?

The pure incorporeal Satsui no Hadou would be an overpowered (OP) character (similar to Akuma in Super Street Fighter II Turbo), and so it cannot be used in a standard WotA fighting game tournament.

However, a separate tournament which only allows the pure Satsui no Hadou character to be selected can be organised, and it would be a completely balanced tournament where the competitors are tested on their mastery of using the pure Satsui no Hadou character.

One might think that the use of a single character in a fighting game tournament is boring. However, owing to the popularity of the Satsui no Hadou lore in Street Fighter, a fighting game tournament with the tagline "How Well Can You Control Your Satsui no Hadou?" can appeal to a wide range of fighting game players who are fans of the Satsui no Hadou lore. Each character in WotA struggles with controlling the Satsui no Hadou, and in this tournament, the competitors are also struggling to control their Satsui no Hadou character to be the best in order to win the trophy.

A New Game for the Fighting Game Community

Therefore, I humbly advocate for a creation of this Way of the Assassin fighting game through the cooperation between Capcom, ARIKA, and SNK. This game would be a great addition to the fighting game pantheon and can appeal to a wide range of fighting game fans.

Marco

Art by digitalninja

History

Marco Rodrigues is a student of Ryo Sakazaki, master of Kyokugenryu Karate. He started a martial arts school in Brazil after he attained black belt from his master. He wishes to spread the Kyokugenryu Karate style in Brazil and around the world.

Personality

Marco is playful and sometimes silly, but he has deep respect for his master Ryo Sakazaki. He fights with strength and dedication to achieve his goal of being a mighty Kyokugenryu practitioner at the same level of his master.

Mastery 

Marco is a talented student of Kyokugenryu Karate, and is an expert in the use of Ki. He can use his Ki to detect nearby fighters, and gather Ki to increase his strength. He is particularly skillful in the signature special moves of Kyokugenryu Karate - Kouken, Hien Shippu Kyaku, and Ko Hou. His versions of these special moves are extremely powerful and intimidating to his opponents.


Journey

Marco Rodrigues is the only known Kyokugenryu practitioner to expand the martial art outside of United States and Europe in the South American country of Brazil. He entered a King of Fighters tournament to prove the might of Kyokugenryu Karate, but upon his return, he found his martial arts gym in shambles. His injured students told him that a man called the "Gym Buster" came and destroyed the gym, beating Butt's students in the process. The man also took the gym's billboard. Butt vows to find the "Gym Buster" to retake the billboard and regain the honour of his gym.

Takuma

Art by VerlanMarinho

History

Takuma Sakazaki is the founder of the Kyokugenryu school of martial arts, after battles with various martial arts experts around the world. He married Ronnet from the United States of America, where he moved and started a family. He has a son Ryo and a daughter Yuri. When Ryo was 10 years old, his wife Ronnet died in a car accident. He went off to investigate her death and left Ryo to take care of his sister Yuri.

After eleven years, he reappeared as the masked and enigmatic Mr. Karate, working for Geese Howard's villainous organisation. Mr. Karate was the only person standing between Ryo and Yuri when Ryo tried to rescue Yuri who was kidnapped by Geese's henchman Mr. Big. Yuri asked Ryo not to kill Mr. Karate because he is their father.

Personality

Takuma is a strict and serious martial artist, and dedicates his life to the propagation of Kyokugenryu Karate. He implements a strict and tough training regime for his students, however, he is also a very friendly cordial master to them.

Mastery 

He invented his Kyokugenryu school of martial arts after fighting many renowned martial artists of the world. He is a true martial arts innovator, and is extremely skilled in the art of fighting.

Journey

Takuma Sakazaki is a respected grand master of his own style of martial arts, Kyokugenryu Karate. However, he was forced to work for the villain Geese Howard who threatened to harm his children. He wore a Tengu mask and declared himself "Mr. Karate" to hide his true identity.

He stopped being Mr. Karate after the kidnapping of his daughter Yuri by Geese Howard's villainous organisation. Takuma removed his mask and tried to redeem himself as a master of Kyokugenryu Karate by entering the following King of Fighters tournament. He was badly injured after the tournament, and passed the mantle as master of the Kyokugenryu Karate school to his son Ryo.

Yuri

Art by erufan and Sixth Creation

History

Yuri Sakazaki was kidnapped by Mr Big who works for Geese Howard's villainous organisation. She was rescued by her protective brother Ryo and his buddy Robert after they fought the masked Mr Karate, who turned out to be her father who was brainwashed by Geese. Upon recovering from the brainwashing, Takuma Sakazaki taught Yuri how to fight using Kyokugenryu Karate.

Personality

Yuri is very lighthearted and cheerful despite her tough upbringing. She is also an extremely friendly person who cares a lot about her family and friends. Yuri likes to follow trends, and she is always open to change and innovation.

Mastery 

Takuma Sakazaki only taught Yuri the basic and low-level moves of Kyokugenryu Karate. Nevertheless, she embraces an instinctive approach in her martial arts, and has developed her own flavour of Kyokugen Karate. Some of the techniques she created are Hyakuretsu Binta, En'yoku, Hien Hou'ou Kyaku, and Yuri Chou Upper.


Journey

Yuri was a helpless young girl who was kidnapped by Geese Howard's organisation. After she was rescued by Ryo and Robert, she was trained by her father to be a Kyokugenryu
Karate fighter. Over the years, she has improved her fighting skills, demonstrated by her creativity of adding new techniques to her basic style of Kyokugenryu Karate. She has transformed from a weak damsel in distress to a competent fighter who was the leader of the Women's Team in various King of Fighters tournaments.

Robert

Art by OrochiDarkKyo

History

Robert Garcia is the son of Italian businessman Alberto Garcia, who is a friend of Takuma Sakazaki, the founder of the Kyokugenryu karate school. He has lived a pampered life since childhood, but always yearned for a greater adventure.

Therefore, he always sneaked into the Kyokugenryu karate school and watched Takuma and Ryo Sakazaki's  martial arts training. He aspired to be strong like them, and was eventually accepted by Takuma as a student of the Kyokugenryu karate school. He trained regularly with Ryo since young, and they became best friends.

Personality

Robert is a very charismatic and outgoing martial artist who likes to show off. He may seem arrogant, but is extremely righteous.

Robert is also passionate about his friends and loved ones, and will not hesitate to help them if they get into trouble. When Ryo's sister Yuri was kidnapped by Mr. Big, he went to rescue her with Ryo and fought against the ruthless villain.

Mastery 

Robert has a natural talent in the martial arts, and Takuma has trained him to be a master Kyokugenryu karate practitioner. Hence, his techniques are similar to Ryo's, but with an emphasis on kicking moves such as Hien Senpuu Kyaku and Hien Ryuujin Kyaku. Robert's kicks are legendary, and he once had a kicking contest with the talented  Muay Thai kickboxer King, which resulted in a stalemate.


Journey

Robert was born into a rich Italian family headed by his businessman father, Alberto Garcia. His father expects him to inherit the family business, but he would not sit still and enjoy a luxurious life. When he was young, he was  accepted into the Kyokugenryu karate school and became a talented and respected martial artist.

Throughout the years, he fought many formidable villains and once worked as a bodyguard for his childhood friend Freia Lawrence in Mexico. After numerous fighting adventures, Robert went back to Italy to fulfill his father's wish of running the family business, and became a renowned martial artist in the country.

Ryo

Art by Mick-cortes

History

Ryo Sakazaki had been trained since young to be the successor to the Kyokugenryu Karate school founded by his father. When Ryo was 10, his mother died in a car accident, and he was left alone to take care of his younger sister, Yuri.

Yuri was kidnapped by a crime syndicate led by Geese Howard. Ryo fought a masked Mr. Karate to save his sister, but he was revealed to be his father who was brainwashed by the syndicate. Ryo avenged his sister and father by defeating Geese in the first King of Fighters tournament.

Personality

Ryo was taught by his father to be self-reliant, and so he believes in achieving success through hard work and experience. He is very protective of his sister Yuki, and has a friendly rivalry with Robert Garcia, a fellow fighter of the Kyokugenryu Karate school which he leads.

Mastery 

Ryo is a seasoned expert of the Kyokugenryu Karate, and practices the techniques of Ko-Ou Ken, Kohou, Hien Shippuu Kyaku (similar to the Hadouken, Shoryuken, and Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku of the Ansatsuken fighters respectively). After he saved his sister from Geese Howard's crime syndicate, he went to train rigorously in the mountains. Through tremendous dedication and hard work, Ryo was able defeat the formidable Geese in the first King of Fighters tournament.

Journey

Ryo was eyed as a successor to Kyokugenryu Karate by his father, and so was trained from a young age. When his father went missing (and turned into Mr Karate), he raised his sister on his own by working in a construction site. He trained hard to become worthy as the leader of the Kyokugenryu Karate school founded by his father.

He believes in grit and hardwork, and even though his Karate school is struggling financially, he does not like receiving money from his rich rival Robert Garcia. He has a huge responsibility to pass on the art of Kyokugenryu Karate to the next generation, and has a student called Khushnood Butt (Marco Rodriguez in Japan).

Allen

Art by Kukurobuki 

(www.facebook.com/FurankyDraws/) 

History

Allen Snider is known as the greatest Karate Master in the United States of America (USA). Once, he lost to the formidable warrior Ken in a martial arts tournament. He was told by Ken that he is a "frog in a well", and there are a lot of strong warriors outside of the "well" whom he has never met. Allen strives to be stronger after his loss to Ken, and aims to be the top martial artist in the USA.

Personality

Allen is a dynamic martial artist, and he is famous for his battle cry to intimidate his opponents. He is an extremely proud warrior, and does not take a loss lightly. He takes great pride in his native country, and boasts to be the best warrior from the USA. He likes to chant "USA! USA! USA!" after his victory.

Mastery 

Allen is an expert in American freestyle Karate. After his loss to Ken, he developed the techniques of Soul Force and Rising Dragon that are similar to the Hadouken and Shoryuken of the Ansatsuken warrior respectively. He continues to train himself to surpass Ken to be the strongest martial artist in the USA.

Journey

Allen has trained hard to be the greatest Karate practitioner in the USA. However, when he participated in a national martial arts tournament, he lost to Ken who is an expert in the art of Ansatsuken. Allen struggled with his loss, and trained himself very hard to become a stronger warrior. He did not mind modifying his opponents' techniques and use them as his own. Hence, he has a diverse assortment of techniques to help him become the best warrior he can be.

Kairi

Art by arielpadilla and K-Bol

History

Kairi was raised in the Mizugami clan with his sisters Hokuto and Nanase, but was involved in a fight to the death on a ship with Hokuto. He had no idea why his sister wanted him dead, and was thrown off the ship during the fight. He survived the fall and went ashore. He had lost all his memories after the incident.

Personality

Kairi is an amnesiac and does not remember his family, so he does not display much affection to others. After his fall,these are the only words he could remember: "You must challenge your limits." Due to this, Kairi seeks to be the strongest warrior he could, and often despises opponents who are no match for him. His purpose is only to fight and win.

Mastery 

Kairi follows the path of the Shura, and commands mastery of the Shinki Hatsudo, Maryu Rekko, and Moryo Kasen techniques.These techniques resemble the Hadouken, Shoryuken, and Tatsumaki Senpukyaku of the Ansastuken respectively. He is entering into the path of the demon by following the way of the Shura, similar to Akuma who is becoming more demonic as he indulges deeply in the Satsui no Hadou.


Journey

Kairi was raised and trained in the Mizugami clan's ancient martial art system. He was thrown off a ship while fighting Hokuto, and lost his memories after that. He has no memories of his past, so he constantly wanders around the world fighting other warriors, and looking for clues that may lead to his past. As he delves deeper into the path of the Shura, he ventures closer to the realm of the demon. He is becoming more demonic every day. If he does not recover his memories and reconcile with his sister Hokuto, he may lose his humanity forever.

Sagat

Art by logicfun and NgBoy

History

Sagat is an expert practitioner of the ancient art of Muay Thai. He is an extremely skilled and talented fighter, and once fought the martial artist Go Hibiki (father of Dan) to death. During the fight, Go injured and blinded Sagat's weak right eye. Due to his rage of losing his right eye, Sagat killed Go in the match. This has caused Go's son, Dan to seek Sagat for revenge.

The next formidable fighter he fought was during the first Street Fighter tournament. The Ansatsuken martial artist Ryu, temporarily succumbing to the evil Satsui no Hadou, attacked Sagat with the menacing Metsu Shoryuken. This left a huge scar on Sagat's chest, which he despises to this day.

Personality

Sagat is a proud warrior who does not take a loss very easily. The scar on his chest constantly reminds him of his loss to Ryu, and he vows to surpass Ryu and defeats him soundly in a fair battle. Adon, his former student, criticises him for losing to Ryu as this deals a huge blow to the pride of  Muay Thai. Sagat is prideful, but he does not like Adon due to his arrogance.

Mastery 

Sagat is known as the King of Muay Thai, and dominates his opponents using the moves of Tiger Shot and Tiger Knee. After losing to Ryu's Metsu Shoryuken which left a huge scar on his chest, he developed a move similar to the Shoryuken called the Tiger Uppercut. Sagat is an expert in his native art of Muay Thai, but he never ceases to learn and improve his art in order to become a stronger fighter.


Journey

After Sagat lost to Ryu, he was angry and vowed for revenge. He became tempted by the villain M. Bison (Vega in Japan) and joined the Shadaloo organisation as his bodyguard. Sagat can be easily consumed by rage due to his pride, but when Dan challenged him to a fight to avenge his father, he threw the match due to a feeling guilt for killing his father.

After the second Street Fighter tournament, he could no longer live with his conscience, and left the malicious Shadaloo organisation. Sagat was never an evil person to begin with - only that he was consumed by rage due to him not being able to control his pride after losing to Ryu. He is slowly developing into a calm and honourable fighter who also learns from the Yoga master, Dhalsim.

The Satsui no Hadou that infected Ryu during the Metsu Shoryuken seeped into Sagat, and he is also struggling to contain its power. He may have discovered the Power of Nothingness to counter the Satsui no Hadou on his own, without the help of Gouken.

Gouken

Art by julientainmont

History

Gouken studied the art of Ansatsuken under master Goutetsu, together with his younger brother, Akuma (Gouki in Japan). The martial art contains a element of murderous intent, known as the Satsui no Hadou. Gouken worked consciously to remove the Satsui no Hadou from his art, while his brother Akuma fully embraces it. Gouken left to open his own martial art school after Akuma, immersed in the aura of the Satsui no Hadou, killed their master.

Gouken had three students - Dan, Ryu, and Ken. One day, Akuma came to Gouken's school and attacked him using the Raging Demon move called the Shun Goku Satsu.  Gouken appeared to have died from the attack and went into coma, but he was able to remove all emotions from his soul and survived the Raging Demon.

Personality

Gouken is a stoic, calm, and peaceful practitioner of Ansatsuken. He detests the Satsui no Hadou within it, and refused to train Dan Hibiki after accepting him to his school, because he thought that Dan's thirst for revenge will lead him to embrace the Satsui no Hadou.

Gouken is also a humble master, as he treats his former students Ryu and Ken as rivals instead of eternal students who need his continuous tutelage. He believes that he has nothing else to teach Ryu and Ken, and lets them develop into their own formidable warriors.

Mastery 

While Gouken studied the martial art of Ansatsuken under master Goutetsu, he fully rejects the murderous intent or Satsui no Hadou within the art. He created his own version of Ansatsuken without the Satsui no Hadou, and taught it to his students. However, the Satsui no Hadou still lingers within his student Ryu. After surviving the Shun Goku Satsu attack from Akuma by emptying his own soul, Gouken developed the Power of Nothingness, which he used to seal the Satsui no Hadou in Ryu.

Journey

Gouken lives a righteous life, and seeks to promote martial arts as a peaceful endeavour. He rejects the Satsui no Hadou completely and strives to seal and remove it forever from the world. Even as his brother Akuma moved closer to the Satsui no Hadou and killed their master while immersed in it, Gouken is able to avoid the Satsui no Hadou completely.

His martial art has no murderous intent, and he survived the Shun Goku Satsu attack, a strong manifestation of the Satsui no Hadou, by developing an art that is completely opposite to it called the Power of Nothingness. It is his dream to remove the Satsui no Hadou from the world using the Power of Nothingness, and he has passed on the art to Ryu. With Akuma moving ever closer to the Satsui no Hadou and losing his humanity, the greatest challenge for Gouken is to use the Power of Nothingness to stop Akuma and seal off the Satsui no Hadou for good.

Sean

Art by SemperII

History

Sean Matsuda comes from a Brazillian martial arts family led by his paternal grandfather, Kinjiro Matsuda, who is the master of the Matsuda Jiu-Jitsu fighting style. He taught the style to his three grandchildren, including Sean. While his siblings Fabio and Laura inherits their grandfather's style and practise it proudly, Sean has more interest in pursuing the Ansatsuken style of Ken Masters. He is an avid basketball player, and uses a basketball as a weapon in his fights.

Personality

Sean is a lively and hopeful fighter who strives to be as good as Ken. While he may be inexperienced, he abhors weakness, and detests being compared to Dan Hibiki. He can be very focused in his training to be a greater fighter after an embarrassing defeat. Sean is a warrior who never gives up.

Mastery 

Sean started off as a practitioner of Matsuda Jiu-Jitsu but switched to the Ansatsuken style after watching an online course called Masters Online Karate by Ken Masters. He has not formally trained with Ken, and learned all  his Ansatsuken moves by imitation. His techniques are far from perfect, however, with intense focus, he can perform a special Shoryuken super move that can match the strength of Ken's original super move, the Shoryu Reppa.

Journey

Sean comes from the Matsuda Jiu-jitsu martial arts family, but his interest and admiration of Ken brought him in close contact with the murderous art of Ansatsuken.

His knowledge of Ansatsuken is mainly self-taught, and he once challenged Ken but he lost. He was asked by Ken to search for Ryu and challenge him to a fight. Sean lost badly, but being a determined warrior who does not give up easily, he went to intense solitary training for one full year.

After his training, he went to join the US Martial Arts Championship. However, he did not win and Ken told him that he did not train properly and should train harder next time. Ken went on to win the championship and offered him the trophy. Sean refuses, as it is against his pride to just accept a reward that he did not earn. He vows to be a much stronger fighter, and aims to win the trophy using his own strength in the next tournament.

Sakura

Art by Snipetto

History

Sakura Kasugano was a high school girl who admires Ryu and aspires to be a great fighter just like him. She is mostly a self-taught fighter, and has faced strong fighters such as Sagat and Ken. Sakura has an existing rivalry with her once schoolmate, Karin Kanzuki.

Personality

Sakura is a very outgoing and jolly fighter, and always seek to improve herself as a fighter. She does not shy from challenging stronger fighters, and treats every match as a learning experience. Sakura is deeply respectful of her opponents, and one day aspires to be as strong as Ryu.

Mastery

Sakura fights by imitation of Ryu's style of Ansatsuken. She has never received formal training in the art, but is very talented in copying Ryu's techniques of Hadouken, Shoryuken, and Tatsumaki Senpukyaku. Her versions of those moves are not as refined as Ryu's of Ken's, but they are powerful enough to make her a formidable warrior. She hopes to one day be under the direct tutelage of Ryu, so she can truly master his art of Ansatsuken.

Journey

Sakura has fought many warriors during her high school days, especially her schoolmate Karin who always challenges her to be a stronger fighter. She has developed a life-long friendship with Karin as she pursues the shadow of Ryu. After graduation from high school and working part time in an arcade, she is still searching for her future, and contemplating starting a family. However, she continues to look up to Ryu as mentor and inspiration. Sakura's future is uncertain, and she may develop a relationship with Ryu beyond what she has experienced so far.

Dan

Art by shinbond-zero

History

Dan Hibiki's father, Go Hibiki was a talented martial artist who challenged a great many warriors. However, when he was fighting against the Muay Thai King Sagat, Go was killed in battle. This created a resentment in Dan's heart, and he vowed to avenge his father by killing Sagat. He once studied under the legendary master of Ansatsuken, Gouken, who is also the master of Ryu and Ken.

Personality

Dan is a very confident fighter who likes to show off, and he excels in taunting his opponents. He created his own fighting style called the Saikyo-Ryu, which means the Strongest Style. He is usually extremely arrogant and does not fear his opponents even though they may be stronger than him. He never hesitates to taunt those who dare to challenge him to a fight.

Mastery

Dan's own self-proclaimed strongest fighting style, Saikyo-Ryu, is a mixture of his late father's martial art with amateur Ansatsuken techniques he learned from Gouken, and Muay Thai, the martial art of Sagat - the man who killed his father. It is his hope that by combining the different martial arts, he would have created an unrivaled martial art system that could help him defeat Sagat, his father's killer. It is his dream that Saikyo-Ryu would be the world's greatest martial art, but he has yet to prove it by defeating every strong fighter out there.

Journey

The assassin's fist Ansatsuken is a component of Dan's Saikyo-Ryu style, but he only understands it at a surface level, and never truly mastered it. His former master Gouken refused to teach him the complete Ansatsuken martial art, since Dan had a deep hatred in his heart to kill Sagat. Gouken feared that Dan's vengeful heart may eventually lead him to the path of no return of fully embracing the Satsui no Hadou.

Dan's one goal in life was to avenge his father by killing Sagat. However, when he finally had the chance to fight Sagat, the Muay Thai King threw the match and let Dan win out of guilt of killing his father. Sagat's life was him for the taking, but Dan did not kill him because he thought that his father would not have wished for his son to kill Sagat in this way. Otherwise, Dan would forever be known as a murderer and merciless killer.

Dan is now completely focused on promoting his Saikyo-Ryu fighting style to the world, hoping to get students to enroll in his self-proclaimed strongest martial art school.

Akuma

Art by houssamtamaoui

History

Akuma (Gouki in Japan) first appeared in Street Fighter II, where he killed the villain M. Bison (Vega in Japan) with his signature move, the Shun Goku Satsu (Raging Demon). He studied the martial art of Ansatsuken under Goutetsu, together with his older brother Gouken who is the master of Ryu and Ken. Akuma has always been more attracted to the darker side of Ansatsuken, embracing the Satsui no Hadou more that his brother Gouken. He truly believes in the power of the Satsui no Hadou, and challenged his brother to a duel to the death.

Ryu and Ken witnessed their master's supposed death from the Shun Goku Satsu technique by Akuma. Seeing the two young warriors as weak and immature, he left them to mourn their master as he went on a path to become the world's strongest warrior.

Personality

Akuma has an insatiable lust for power and does not shy away from the murderous intent of the Satsui no Hadou. The more he taps into it, the more powerful he becomes. He only has one goal - to become the true master of the fist, the absolute strongest warrior of them all, even if it means becoming an emotionless, merciless demon.

Mastery 

Akuma is highly interested in the power of the Satsui no Hadou, and is the world's best known practitioner of the extremely fatal murderous intent. He can harness the power of the Satsui no Hadou at will, and not even the notorious villain M. Bison can match Akuma's strength with his great Psycho Power.

There is only one person he fears who can overcome him despite not possessing the power of the Satsui no Hadou - Ryu. A student of his brother Gouken, the young warrior Ryu has tremendous potential in the way of the Satsui no Hadou, and Akuma is always concerned that Ryu may fully embrace it and surpass his strength. Akuma wants to prove that he is the world's strongest warrior, and could not wait for Ryu to fully embrace the Satsui no Hadou, and then defeat him in battle.

Journey

Akuma only desires strength, and all his life he has been searching for true power in the murderous intent of the Satsui no Hadou. Every time he taps deeper into the Satsui no Hadou, a piece of his humanity is lost. Akuma is in danger of losing his humanity while using the Satsui no Hadou to become the strongest warrior in the world.

After years of training and immersing in the Satsui no Hadou, he is able to attain the status of Shinjin, the godlike human. If he delves further into the Satsui no Hadou, he will lose all of his humanity and become Oni, a true demon.

Ken

Art by dnabat

History

Ken was introduced as Ryu's martial arts buddy in the first Street Fighter game released in 1987. His moves are similar to Ryu's, centred on the Hadouken, Shoryuken, and Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku. Ken is the heir to the wealthy Masters Corporation in the United States of America, and is happily married to Eliza. Together, they have a son named Mel.

Personality

Ken is a more relaxed and flamboyant warrior compared to Ryu, but he has a strong drive towards success in the martial arts. Ken is Ryu's eternal rival, and he regularly challenges Ryu to friendly bouts to push himself to the limit. The only person he really wants to defeat in life is Ryu. Ken does have a family, and he needs to juggle his time between fighting Ryu and being together with his wife and son.

Mastery 

During his childhood, Ken was sent by his father to study the martial arts of Ansatsuken under master Gouken, together with Ryu. Ken has been training with Ryu since they were young, and has gained considerable mastery of Ansatsuken. Compared to Ryu, Ken has a more fiery personality, and this translates to his mastery of the flaming Shoryuken and Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku.

Journey

Ken was born in a wealthy family, and he would not have to live a hard life if not for his father who sent him to train in the martial arts under Gouken since his childhood. He engaged in hard labour and endured rigorous martial arts training (together with Ryu) under Gouken. Perhaps his father did not want his son to be a rich spoiled brat who does not understand the meaning of life and hard work. Ken has grown to be a loving husband and father, and perhaps one day he will be the benevolent and compassionate chairman of the Master Corporation, leading an effort to make positive contributions to society.

Ken still has to work on the strength on his mental constitution, since he was once under the mind control of the villain M. Bison (Vega in Japan), and became the psycho-powered Violent Ken. While under the mind control of M. Bison, he was asked to kill his longtime partner and rival Ryu, only snapping out of it in the last second before he gave Ryu a fatal blow. His brotherly friendship with Ryu was the main factor that returned him to humanity, and broke the mind control of M. Bison.

Ryu

Art by dnabat

History

Ryu was introduced to the world in the very first Street Fighter game, released in 1987. He is the hero and main character of the Street Fighter series, and has appeared in all Street Fighter games ever since. He is the very first Shoto character, and has inspired numerous clones in other fighting games, including Street Fighter itself. His signature moves are the Hadouken (Fireball), Shoryuken (Rising Dragon Fist), and Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku (Hurricane Kick).

Personality

Ryu is a lone warrior who always strive to improve himself. His motto is to get stronger, and he travels around the world to meet and challenge other fighters. He has a healthy rivalry with his fellow martial arts student Ken, who never hesitate to challenge him to a fight.

Mastery 

Ryu is a student of the Ansatsuken (Assassin's Fist) under the tutelage of his master Gouken. He is tremendously talented  in the Ansatsuken, however, he has to overcome the Satsui no Hadou (murderous intent) within him that threatens to take over his mind and body. If it happens, Ryu will be transformed into an evil demonic creature who kills without mercy.

Journey

Ryu was once overtaken by the Satsui no Hadou for a brief moment when he fought Sagat in the first World Warrior Tournament (Street Fighter 1987). This left a scar on Sagat's chest, and he vows to challenge Ryu to a fight to prove that he is the better fighter. Ryu regrets that he briefly succumbed to the evil killing intent, and trains hard every day to expel the Satsui no Hadou from his body.

After years of training, he was able to expel the Satsui no Hadou from his body. Even though it was expelled, the Satsui no Hadou within Ryu did not go away completely. Instead, it manifests itself in a physical form called Kage (Shadow). Perhaps Ryu has to defeat Kage to completely eliminate the killing intent that was expelled from his body.

Welcome to Shoto Forever!

I started this blog as a fan page for the lovers of Shoto characters in fighting games.

I will post a profile of a Shoto character every week, starting from next week.

These four features will be covered for each character:

• History
• Personality
• Mastery
• Journey

Stay tuned for my next post!