Street Fighter is a Japanese video game series focused on fighting games created and released by Capcom. The first game came out in 1987, followed by six more main games, many spin-offs, crossovers, and appearances in other forms of media. The 1991 release of Street Fighter II helped create many of the rules and styles common in one-on-one fighting games.

Street Fighter is one of the most successful video game series ever, and a key series for Capcom, with 56 million copies sold worldwide as of March 2025. It is also one of the most successful media franchises and the longest-lasting fighting game series.

Games

Street Fighter, created by Takashi Nishiyama and Hiroshi Matsumoto, was first released as an arcade video game in 1987. Players control a martial artist named Ryu as he competes in a global martial arts tournament across five countries with 10 opponents. A second player can control Ryu’s American rival, Ken Masters. Players can use three punch and kick attacks, each with different speeds and strengths, and three special moves: Hadōken, Shōryūken, and Tatsumaki Senpūkyaku. These special moves are performed by pressing specific buttons and moving the joystick in special ways.

Street Fighter was later released on many home computers, including MS-DOS. In 1987, it was also released on the TurboGrafx-16 CD add-on console as Fighting Street by Hudson Soft. In 2005, the game was included in Capcom Classics Collection: Remixed for the PlayStation Portable and Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 2 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is also available in the 2018 compilation Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Windows.

Street Fighter II was released in 1991 after an earlier attempt to make Final Fight the sequel to Street Fighter failed. It was one of the first arcade games made for Capcom’s CP System hardware and was designed by Akira Nishitani and Akira Yasuda, who also created Final Fight and Forgotten Worlds.

Street Fighter II: The World Warrior was the first one-on-one fighting game to let players choose from multiple characters with different fighting styles. Each character has around 30 moves, including grappling and throwing moves, and two or three special attacks. In single-player mode, the player faces seven other characters before battling four CPU-controlled bosses. A second player can join at any time for competitive matches.

The original Japanese version of Street Fighter II included a boss character modeled after real-life boxer Mike Tyson. This character was initially named “Mike Bison.” To avoid legal issues, Capcom changed the names of three boss characters for international versions. The final boss, named Vega in Japan, became M. Bison. The Spanish warrior, named Balrog in Japan, became Vega, and the boxer became Balrog. In 2019, Mike Tyson said he was “honored” by the character’s design.

Street Fighter II became more popular than its predecessor and turned Street Fighter into a multimedia franchise. By 2017, the series had earned over $10 billion in inflation-adjusted revenue, mostly from arcade machines. More than 14 million cartridges were sold for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.

The first major update to the series was Street Fighter II: Champion Edition, called Street Fighter II Dash in Japan. This version lets players use the four boss characters, allows two players to choose the same character with different colors, and includes improved graphics and gameplay. A second update, Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting (Street Fighter II Dash Turbo in Japan), was made to compete with unofficial versions of the game. It introduced faster gameplay, new character costumes, and special techniques. Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers added four new playable characters, updated graphics and music, and used Capcom’s CP System II hardware. The final arcade version, Super Street Fighter II Turbo (Super Street Fighter II X in Japan), brought back the fast gameplay from Hyper Fighting, introduced “Super Combos,” and added a hidden character named Akuma.

Many home versions of Street Fighter II were released. The original version, Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, was released on the Super NES in 1992 and became Capcom’s best-selling game by 2008. A Japanese-only version for the PC Engine came in 1993. In 1993, Hyper Fighting was released on the Super NES and Genesis as Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition (Street Fighter II Dash Plus in Japan). Super Street Fighter II was also released on the Super NES and Genesis in 1994. That same year, Super Street Fighter II Turbo was released for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and Windows.

In 1997, Capcom released Street Fighter Collection for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn, which included Super Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and an updated version of Street Fighter Alpha 2. A second collection, Street Fighter Collection 2, included the original Street Fighter II, Champion Edition, and Hyper Fighting. In 2000, Super Street Fighter II X was released for the Dreamcast in Japan with online multiplayer. In 2003, Hyper Street Fighter II: The Anniversary Edition was released in Japan and Asia to celebrate the series’ 15th anniversary. This version combined elements from all previous Street Fighter II games. It was later released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox as part of the Street Fighter Anniversary Collection. In 2005, the games in Street Fighter Collection 2 were included in Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 1 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. A version of Super Turbo and the original Street Fighter was later added to Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 2. Street Fighter II and Super Street Fighter II are also available as downloadable games for some cell phone services.

In 2008, an updated version of Super Street Fighter II Turbo, called Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, was released on the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade. This version features new artwork drawn by UDON artists, with HD sprites 4.5 times larger than the original. It also includes gameplay changes to balance characters but allows players to choose between the original arcade version and the updated version.

*

Other media

The first animation based on the Street Fighter franchise is an unofficial animation released in South Korea in 1992, titled Street Outlaw (Geori-eui Mubeopja). It follows characters Soryong and Saeng as they enter the world of Street Fighter to fight M. Bison. The film was created by Daiwon Animation and directed by Sang Il Sim. It includes appearances from characters not officially connected to Street Fighter, such as April O'Neil, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dracula, and Frankenstein's monster. The film is not well-known outside of South Korea because it was never officially released there.

An anime film titled Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie by Group TAC was shown in movie theaters in Japan in 1994. The English version, made by Manga Entertainment, was released on home video in 1995.

Group TAC also created an anime TV series called Street Fighter II V, which first aired on Yomiuri TV in 1995. They also made a two-episode OVA series titled Street Fighter Alpha: The Movie, released in 1999. English versions of both were made by Manga Entertainment. ADV Films also created an early English version of Street Fighter II V for the UK in the 1990s.

An American-made animated TV series based on the games, titled Street Fighter, was created by InVision Entertainment and aired on USA Network in North America from 1995 to 1997. The show follows Guile as he leads a group of "Street Fighters" to battle Bison and his followers.

A second OVA based on Street Fighter Alpha, titled Street Fighter Alpha: Generations, was made specifically for the English market by Studio A.P.P.P. in 2005.

With the release of the complete Street Fighter II manga edition, a short educational animation film titled Street Fighter: Return to the Fujiwara Capital (Street Fighter Yomigaeru Fujiwara-Kyou) was also released in 2004. In the film, Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, and E.Honda travel back in time to learn about Japanese history. The film has no battles and was released only in Japan, first on video in 1996 and later on DVD.

An OVA titled Street Fighter IV: The Ties That Bind was made by Studio 4°C in 2009. The film, directed by Jirō Kanai, was included as a bonus disc in the Collector's Edition of Street Fighter IV for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was part of Capcom's 2008 multi-platform launch, which included video games and a planned TV series.

In Asia, a downloadable voucher for a Super Street Fighter IV movie featuring Juri was included in the Collector's Edition of the Xbox 360 version. The 35-minute film explains Juri's background and is a story that happens before the game. Though fully dubbed in English, it was not released outside of Asia until its inclusion in the Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collector's Set in 2012.

There are four original animated trailers for Street Fighter IV that serve as prequels to the game's story.

The 2012 animated film Wreck-It Ralph includes brief scenes with Street Fighter characters and others from the series.

The 2018 film Ready Player One includes appearances of multiple animated Street Fighter characters, who act as avatars for people in a virtual reality world.

The first live-action film, Street Fighter, was released in 1994. It stars Jean-Claude Van Damme as Guile, Raúl Juliá as General M. Bison, and Kylie Minogue as Cammy. It inspired an arcade game and a console game, both titled Street Fighter: The Movie. It also inspired an American-made animated TV series, Street Fighter, which aired from 1995 to 1997 and had two seasons with 13 episodes each.

A live-action film titled Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li was released in 2009, starring Kristin Kreuk as Chun-Li. It is considered one of the worst films ever made.

Actor and filmmaker Joey Ansah co-directed a 2010 live-action short film titled Street Fighter: Legacy, starring John Foo as Ryu and Christian Howard as Ken, who also co-wrote the film. Ansah and Howard also appeared as Akuma. That year, Capcom announced more Street Fighter films in development.

After Legacy, Ansah and Howard created the TV series Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist, which aired on Machinima's YouTube channel in 2014. They reprised their roles, and Mike Moh took over as Ryu. A second season, Street Fighter: World Warrior, was planned for 2017 but was later canceled

Traditional games

• An Irish software company named CryptoLogic created a slot machine inspired by the Street Fighter II video game series.
• In 1994, White Wolf released a game called Street Fighter: The Storytelling Game, which was based on the Street Fighter series and included characters from Super Street Fighter II. The game used rules similar to those in the World of Darkness games.
• In 2006, Sabertooth Games introduced a Street Fighter set for its Universal Fighting System (UFS) collectible card game.
• A trading card game called Epic Battles, made by Score Entertainment, also included Street Fighter characters. This game also featured characters from other fighting games, such as Mortal Kombat.
• In 2018, Jasco Games started a Kickstarter campaign for Street Fighter: The Miniatures Game. The game was planned to be delivered in 2019 but was finally released in 2021 after delays.

Characters

In addition to the characters listed below, some titles in the Street Fighter series have introduced characters that are only officially part of their specific media. These include the Monitor Cyborg from the Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie and related game, Shin from the web-based game Street Fighter Online: Mouse Generation, and Blade, Arkane, Kyber, F7, and Sawada from the arcade game based on the 1994 Street Fighter film. Many characters from the Street Fighter franchise also appear in Street Fighter EX and its later versions and new games. While these games added new characters, they were later expanded into their own series called the Fighting EX Layer series, and connections to the Street Fighter cast were removed. Street Fighter 6 was the first main series game to include playable characters from other games, adding Terry Bogard and Mai Shiranui from SNK’s Fatal Fury series in the game’s second season pass.

Each character listed below is based on their playable version in the most complete home versions of the game and major releases. Note that in the first Street Fighter game, only Ryu and Ken are normally playable. More details about the characters can be found under their respective games.

Reception

Since the first Street Fighter game was released in August 1987, the series sold 35 million home software units by 2014 and 46 million units by 2021. It also sold over 500,000 arcade cabinet units, generating more than $1 billion in revenue from arcade sales. This made Street Fighter one of the best-selling video game franchises. As of 2014, Street Fighter was Capcom's second-largest franchise, behind Resident Evil. It remained Capcom's third-best-selling software franchise, following Resident Evil and Monster Hunter.

The most successful game in the series is Street Fighter II, which earned more than $10 billion in total revenue, mostly from arcade machines. Over 14 million cartridges for the Super NES and Sega Mega Drive/Genesis versions were sold. By 2017, Street Fighter II was listed as one of the world’s top three highest-grossing Japan-made arcade games of all time, after Taito’s Space Invaders and Namco’s Pac-Man.

In 1994, Capcom called Street Fighter "the most successful video game series of the decade" while promoting Super Street Fighter II.

Esports

Daigo Umehara, known as "Daigo" or "The Beast" in the West and "Umehara" or "Ume" in Japan, is the most famous Street Fighter player in the world. He is often considered the greatest player of the game. He currently holds a world record titled "the most successful player in major Street Fighter tournaments," as listed in the Guinness World Records.

"Evo Moment 37," also called the "Daigo Parry," refers to a part of a Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike semi-final match at the Evolution Championship Series 2004 (Evo 2004). The match was between Daigo Umehara and Justin Wong. During this match, Umehara blocked 15 hits in a row from Wong's "Super Art" move while having only one pixel of health left. Umehara then won the match. "Evo Moment #37" is often described as the most famous and unforgettable moment in the history of competitive video gaming. At one time, it was the most-watched competitive gaming moment ever, and it has been compared to famous sports events like Babe Ruth's called shot and the Miracle on Ice.

Hajime "Tokido" Taniguchi is currently ranked as the top Street Fighter V eSports player in the world according to SRK Data eSports rankings. From Japan, he has won the Evolution Championship Series (Evo) three times and is widely recognized as one of the best players in the game's history.

Mike "BrolyLegs" Begum was a well-known player who used his mouth to operate the game controller. He was ranked as high as 378 in the world and was featured on ESPN E:60 for his unique way of playing.

In popular culture

Street Fighter influenced mixed martial arts (MMA) sports. The first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) MMA event took place in 1993, the same year that Super Street Fighter II and Mortal Kombat II were popular video games. At that time, UFC promoters described these games as real-life fighting tournaments.

Street Fighter II has been used in hip hop music by many artists, including The Lady of Rage, Nicki Minaj, Lupe Fiasco, Megan Thee Stallion, Dizzee Rascal, Lil B, Sean Price, and Madlib. This began in 1993 with Hi-C’s song “Swing’n” and DJ Qbert’s track “Track 10” in 1994, both of which used sounds from Street Fighter II. The Street Fighter film soundtrack from 1994 was the first major movie soundtrack to include mostly hip hop music. DJ Qbert said, “I think hip-hop is a cool thing, I think Street Fighter is a cool thing.” Vice magazine noted that Street Fighter’s themes of competition, confidence, and individuality match the experiences of rappers. Grime DJ Logan Sama said, “Street Fighter is a huge cultural thing that everyone experienced growing up with such a big impact that it has stayed in everyone’s memory.” Jake Hawkes of Soapbox explained that grime music, which focuses on rapping battles, was inspired by Street Fighter’s one-on-one competition style. Grime artists like Dizzee Rascal used Street Fighter II sounds in 2002, and many grime musicians have sampled the game. These sounds became part of BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth’s Fire in the Booth freestyle segments, using clips like “Hadouken,” “Shoryuken,” and the “Perfect” announcer sound.