When you have a fighting game series, one of the most important things is to never make your characters feel stagnant or one note. We all know about “clone characters” who are there for no reason other than to fill up space and make you wonder why they exist. For Street Fighter they’ve done a mostly good job of keeping clones out of their space, but one of the big exceptions was Ken Masters. He’s the best friend to Ryu and one of the mainstays of the series. However, when you look at his moves, they’re the same as Ryu’s more often than not. Which, thankfully, won’t be an issue in Street Fighter 6.
Part of that similarity was because of lore reasons, as he was trained alongside Ryu by their master, Gouken. As a result, they were taught the same moves. The difference is that Ryu grew beyond that via the Satsu Ino Hadu and the Power of Nothingness, while Ken stayed stagnant for many games and even kept the same outfit. However, in the last mainline game, things finally changed. He was given a new look and some twists on his classic moves. Fast forward to Street Fighter 6, and those changes continue to build. Capcom released the second entry in their “learn your fighters” videos, and Ken takes the spotlight.
As you can see, one of the things they focused on for Ken this time was his ability to be more aggressive and break through his opponents’ guard. While he still uses many of his classic moves, he has some new kicks that’ll help him keep his opponent on edge and at a distance. Plus, he can get up close for combos and throws to further break the enemy’s guard.
But while he can be aggressive, you can also play him in a balanced way so that he can dodge, block, and counter enemy moves. So go through all of his moveset so you can wield him with precision.
Another thing that Ken has going for him this time is his backstory. In the game, Ken will be on the run from the law as he’s been framed for a crime he didn’t commit. To keep his family safe, he ran away to find out who really did the act.
Hopefully, by the time people learn the fullness of Ken’s story and see him in action, they’ll have an even greater respect for the character.
