When it comes to fighting games, not many would be able to compare with the influential franchise Street Fighter. A 2D fighter, this franchise has been around for over two decades. This is thanks in part to the gameplay that established many tropes that fighting games continue to follow, from the health bars to the special moves. Over time, Street Fighter has only gotten bigger with a variety of crossovers, spin-offs and main titles.

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For those interested in playing the Street Fighter series, here is every character's backstory and fighting styles from Street Fighter II.

12 Ryu

Ryu Street Fighter

Can't start this list without discussing the main protagonist of the entire franchise, Ryu. As the adopted son of Gouken and the best friend of Ken Masters, Ryu journeys all over the world in order to further hone his skills and understand what it means to be a warrior. Although he isn't that flashy, he is an incredibly powerful fighter who is able to deliver simple yet strong strikes. Being the most basic character in the game.

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He has many iconic moves such as the Hadoken, the Shoryuken and the Tatsumaki Senpukyaku. His style is known as the Assassin's Fist or Ansatsuken and is specifically the Shotokan variant. Although it isn't exactly Shotokan at all, it is nonetheless a powerful style that allows him to fight virtually anyone. While at the same time being a master of nothing. He also has an evil variant which makes him more aggressive while having less stamina.

11 Ken

Ken Masters

Ken Masters is the best friend of Ryu and is also the first clone character of any fighting game. Fighting almost exactly like his friend, he is also his polar opposite. Although they trained together with Gouken and Ken has since gone on to have a family, the character himself is quite flashy with his personality being optimistic and flamboyant. As the son of a rich hotel tycoon owner, he learned the Ansatsuken style as a means of discipline. Thanks to his natural talent, the character has gone on to focus a lot more on combo damage and is capable of augmenting his attacks with fire. Such as the powerful Shoryuken. He also has his own evil variant called Violent Ken where he's more aggressive and has purple flames.

10 Chun-Li

Chun Li art from Street Fighter

Chun-Li is one of the most famous characters in the franchise as well as being the most famous female character in the series. Often appearing alongside Ryu in terms of appearances, she is known for her incredibly fast and eclectic fighting style. In terms of background, she is an Interpol agent who seeks revenge from M. Bison after the death of her father. Of course, by the time of Street Fighter III, she begins to teach kids kung fu along with being a member of justice. Her style is listed as Chinese Martial Arts, with a reliance on quick movements and even quicker kicks. She is best known for her technique the Hyakuretsukyaku which is a flurry of said kicks.

9 E. Honda

E Honda

E. Honda is the sumo wrestler character of the Street Fighter series. An incredibly kind and honorable person, he joined the tournament in Street Fighter II in order for the world to appreciate the martial art. However, he also joined in order to look into Shadaloo, due to his colleagues taking illegal biochemical drugs. In terms of his fighting style, as described before, he is a character that focuses on Sumo Wrestling. However, he also adds his own personal touches that allows him to compete against his fellow competitors. Some that wouldn't be seen in an actual Sumo match. He tends to be balanced with an emphasis on surprising his opponents with his attacks. However, he is incredibly slow and is weak against projectiles.

8 Guile

Guile

One of the most popular characters in all of Street Fighter, Guile is an American soldier who ended up being friends with another soldier named Charlie Nash. Working together, Guile was able to learn Nash's fighting style although his personality prevented him to become a complete master of it. By the events of Street Fighter II, Guile goes after M. Bison and leaving his family behind in order to stop him and avenge Charlie Nash. Although he decides against killing him as it would turn him to be exactly like M. Bison. The character in gameplay utilizes a unique style that has solid offence and defense. His role is to wait for his opponent to make the wrong move and then capitalizing it accordingly. Another fun fact is that through his wife, he is technically the brother in law of Ken Masters.

7 Blanka

Blanka

Blanka is a really interesting character with an even more interesting backstory. Similar to Tarzan, Blanka is a wild child who grew up within the wilds of Brazil. This is due to him surviving a plane crash. Growing up, he developed green skin and eventually gained the ability to control lightning. Nonetheless, he is a kind character who is only aggressive whenever he is provoked. As a fighter he is very aggressive which fits his personality, relying on his incredible speed in order to deal unorthodox and unpredictable attack patterns. His electric abilities are also very strong and is apparently capable of going up to 150, 000 volts.

6 Zangief

Zangief

Zangief is a Russian wrestler and one of the main grapplers of the game. The character is patriotic and was a national hero to the country of Russia. The character is quite temperamental and is quite brave when it comes to opponents that he fights. When he joined the tournament in Street Fighter II, he eventually loses, however. In terms of his playstyle, Zangief is a direct character that relies on his wrestling. A mixture of Russian and American styles, he employs a lot of powerful throws and solid base attacks. However, he is weak against projectiles.

5 Dhalsim

Dhalsim

Dhalsim is a pacifist who only uses his fighting skills when necessary. A loving husband and father, he is a character that lives in India. He also joined the second tournament in Street Fighter II for more benevolent purposes, only seeking to get funds for his village. However, he dislikes it due to how violent it is.

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Utilizing yoga as a way of spirituality, his fighting style is very interesting. Employing the meditation as a way of fighting, he also combines it with more interesting attacks such as stretching his limbs and breathing fire.

4 Balrog

Balrog Street Fighter

Balrog is the chief enforcer of M. Bison and as such, is one of the most dangerous members of Shadaloo. A character with immense strength, he was a former boxing champion whose hot-tempered attitude and cheats got him out of the game. Nonetheless, his power is so vast that he is one of the most dangerous characters in the series. As expected from a character like Balrog, his fighting style is based around Boxing. However, this style is dirty as he deals with kicks and headbutts.

3 Vega

Vega Street Fighter 5

Vega is the flamboyant narcissist who belonged to a well-off family off in Spain. However, due to circumstances, it eventually culminates to his life going downhill and having a warped personality. Stemming both from his family's economical decline and the death of his mother from his ugly stepfather. Combining bullfighting with ninjutsu, he transformed into one of the most dangerous assassins ever and became a bodyguard for M. Bison. Aside from his aggressive and fast fighting style, it is contrasted by his low defense and overall health.

2 Sagat

Sagat Street Fighter 5

The original main adversary of Street Fighter 1, he joins the second tournament in order to fight his rival Ryu. Although he was initially a member of Shadaloo, he eventually switches sides and became focused on his training as the Emperor of Muay Thai. As shown by his fighting style, he specializes in Muay Thai where he dishes out a lot of strong and powerful damage. He is also incredibly tall which allows for his range to be quite strong. However, it also proves to be a dangerous thing for him as it means his defense is fairly hard.

1 M. Bison

M. Bison Vs. Shao Kahn - Psycho Power

The main villain and leader of the Shadaloo organization, he is an evil and ruthless character who simply wishes to seek world domination. Aside from this, the character is incredibly powerful and is capable of going beyond his bodyguards and enforcers. M. Bison controls the power of Psycho Power which is the embodiment of what he is capable of. Being the only one who utilizes a self-taught style that is equivalent specifically to him. At least up to the point of Street Fighter II.

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