Ryu: The Origin Of Street Fighter’s Most Famous Character Part 2

Street Fighter 2 is the Street Fighter game that truly put the franchise on the map and made its main character, Ryu, a household name across the world. The game was released in 1991 and included an expanded roster of fighters who are now all icons in the genre, including Chun-Li, Guile, and Blanka. Many consider Street Fighter 2 the most important fighting game in history in terms of setting the genre’s foundation.

Ryu kept largely the same appearance from the first game, but his look became more fleshed out into the iconic character we know today. Ryu appeared in a white gi with a red headband. The palette swap character from Street Fighter 1 became Ken Masters, who would remain a semi-clone of Ryu in terms of fighting style. 

Street Fighter 2 – M. Bison Seeks Revenge, Street Fighter Alpha Fills in the Gaps

In the game storyline, things are a little bit muddled up. This game was released for arcade purposes and was more made to take quarters from players than to cohesively tell a story; however, much of what happened. However, this game’s events have been retold enough through other entries in the franchise that it can still be largely put together here. M. Bison, the leader of the international crime organization Shadaloo, hosted a tournament to draw out the strongest fighters. The Shadaloo organization specialized in biological weapons and intended to use the fighters for their evil purposes.

At the end of Bison’s tournament, it is Ryu who emerges victorious, but the way he did so is somewhat shrouded in controversy. Before Ryu and M. Bison could even begin to exchange blows, their fight was interrupted. Akuma, who was brother to Ryu’s martial arts master Gouken, interrupted the fight, having heard the reputation of M. Bison’s psycho powers. He defeated him in a single attack called the Raging Demon Fist.  After defeating Bison, Akuma simply disappeared, but Ryu was about to find out where this monstrous, intimidating opponent had come from. 

Street Fighter Alpha Fills in the Gaps

The story that somewhat takes place in the arcade format of Street Fighter 2 often feels incomplete. However, due to the phenomenal success of the game as well as the rapid advancements in gaming technology in the 90s, Capcom would fill in the gaps in future games. Gaming was becoming more and more accessible at home during this time, and this allowed Capcom to tell a more complete story in the Street Fighter Alpha series.

The Alpha series is a trilogy of games that largely takes place in the time between Street Fighter 1 and Street Fighter 2. We will cover Ryu’s story in the Alpha series in full detail in the next article, so stay tuned as we continue our deep dive into Ryu’s back story.