Ryu is a video game character, created by Takashi Nishiyama as the main protagonist of the Street Fighter series. He first appeared in Street Fighter (1987) as a young Japanese martial artist that the player takes control of. His best friend is Ken Masters who challenges him in the game’s main tournament. His appeal has grown significantly over the decades as the series mascot, allowing his character to evolve with two alter egos: Evil Ryu and Kage.
Ryu wasn’t a character I picked often when playing Street Fighter until Street Fighter V but his stature and power are undeniable.
Fun fact: we could have got a Ryu solo movie, had Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li not been so bad. He made an appearance in the final scene of the movie, as a potential aid to Chun-Li but that’s all we got. Who knows, maybe we’ll get one in the future.
(Header photo: “Ryu” by Nathan Rupert is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
