10 Most Popular Street Fighter Characters
1. Ryu
First Appearance: Street Fighter
Ryu is the main protagonist of the Street Fighter franchise, debuting all the way back in the original 1987 game with Ken. Because of this, he and Ken have are the only characters to have appeared in all six iterations of the Street Fighter franchise.
Originally trained, along with Ken, in the art of ‘Ansatsuken’ by Gouken, Ryu spends his every waking moment training to become a better fighter as he travels the world. Ryu won the first ‘World Fighting Championship’, where he faced and defeated the Muay Thai master and tournament host Sagat.
Ryu is the face of the franchise and is easily the most recognisable Street Fighter character. He has also made several crossover appearance, being in every ‘Capcom Versus’ game, namely the Marvel vs. Capcom franchise, the Capcom vs. SNK franchise and 2008’s Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. He has also appeared in two games in the Super Smash Bros. series, 2014’s Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and 2018’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
The popularity of Ryu is undeniable. While the character has never truly been in the competitive spotlight, Ryu’s simplistic gameplay is a gateway for many fans into Street Fighter, which explains why he's so beloved.
Street Fighter Quiz: How Well Do You Know These Characters?
