Who are the best Street Fighter heroes of all time?

In the world of Street Fighter, the duality between good and evil is ever evident, with few characters really staying in the grey area.

Throughout the years, many heroes have seen their paths crossed with great evils, and each of them has a unique personality and powerful motivations.

We’ll be reviewing the best goodies in the world of Street Fighter and pair them with their nemesis.

10. Gouken (Debut: Street Fighter IV)

Gouken fights his Arch Enemy, Akuma: 

Gouken is the Ansatsuken master of Ryu and Ken, and fights mainly for self-defense under the philosophy of “waste not, want not”. His fighting style is based on reading and reacting to the opponent and he has the toolkit for it.

He is the brother of Akuma and has taken a completely opposite path from his brother, focusing on removing all the killing intent of the Satsui no Hado of the Ansatsuken, and developing the techniques of Hado no Chikara and the Power of Nothing.

Akuma killed their master Gotetsu and after that, Gouken fought his younger brother to the death so that he wouldn’t go after his pupils. Gouken lost to Akuma, but they later fought again over Ryu to an unknown outcome.

Arch Enemy: Akuma

9. Necro (Debut: Street Fighter III: New Generation)

Necro fights his Arch Enemy, Gill:

A victim of the Secret Society, Necro was unwillingly subjected to multiple experiments that ultimately mutated his body and gave him the ability to stretch like rubber and generate electricity from his body.

The Russian mutant’s true name is Illia, but it changed to Necro after he was subjected to the experiments for Urien’s and Doctor Woo’s G-Project (the project responsible for the creation of Eleven and Twelve). Gill, the leader of the Secret Society started sending him on special missions and he eventually found Effie, another victim of the society.

The two soon became lovers, and after a failed attempt at taking down Gill, Necro and Effie have been traveling the world trying to escape the ever-chasing Secret Society.

Arch Enemy: Gill

8. Sagat (Debut: Street Fighter)

Sagat fights his Arch Enemy, Ryu: 

Yes, Sagat may not be what you would usually call a hero, but the truth is that even if he started out as the final boss and one of the 4 Kings of Shadaloo, Sagat has been humbled and decided to follow a honorable path, seeking to become a better fighter.

Hailing from Thailand, all his moves are dedicated to the imagery of a tiger, and he is a gigantic Muay Thai master who specializes in combat at long range, with long legs, ferocious arms and flame shots.

Sagat’s biggest rival is Ryu, who defeated him back when Sagat was the Emperor of Muay Thai. The fight left a massive scar on Sagat’s chest for life, a scar that still burns and that is the fuel to him not only as a fighter, but as a human being, as he continues to push his limits to defeat Ryu decisively one day.

Arch Enemy: Ryu

7. Guy (Debut: Street Fighter Alpha)

Guy fights his Arch Enemy, Sodom: 

Of course, we cannot talk about Street Fighter’s best good guys without talking about Guy himself. Originally a Final Fight character, Guy moved on to the roster of World Warriors when Street Fighter Alpha came out in 1995.

A sneaker-wearing, modern-day ninja with an array of incredible and cool-looking moves, Guy is the 39th heir to Bushinryu, the Ninjutsu form mastered by Zeku and taught to by Kimberly.

In the past, Guy had to face the mighty Mad Gear Gang and gained the American Japanophile Sodom as his self-proclaimed arch-enemy. Guy is very dutiful and during the events of Street Fighter, he has his focus on Bison and Shadaloo, considering Sodom only a minor nuisance.

Arch Enemy: Sodom

6. Alex (Debut: Street Fighter III: New Generation)

Alex fights his Arch Enemy, Gill: 

A New Yorker trained by a military veteran named Tom, Alex uses pro wrestling and military moves to battle and has gone against the Secret Society just because he was upset that the organization’s leader Gill defeated his mentor.

Alex has defeated Balrog in a 1-on-1 fair match and has gone all the way through the 4th World Warrior tournament to beat Gill in the finals. Gill himself has stated that there is something special about Alex, something intriguing.

He also holds Ryu as a personal rival and the two of them have fought to an undisclosed result, which says a lot about Alex’s power.

Arch Enemy: Gill

5. Cammy (Debut: Super Street Fighter II: New Challengers)

Cammy fights her Arch Enemy, M. Bison:

Cammy White is an artificial human who was brainwashed into becoming one of M. Bison’s Dolls, but has since been saved from Shadaloo’s control by Dhalsim and now works for Delta Red, a British Secret Services unit.

She is a loving and caring young woman that absolutely loves cats and her fighting style is all about speed and agility, as she’ll do just about anything to get close to her opponent from all angles with drill-like kicks, like a killer bee.

After being freed from Shadaloo, Cammy has since been devoted to taking down the organization, and this even includes branches such as S.I.N. She has allies in Chun-Li and Guile, as all of them represent international anti-crime organizations trying to take down the man with the biggest criminal organization in the world.

Arch Enemy: M. Bison

4. Rose (Debut: Street Fighter Alpha)

Rose fights her Arch Enemy, M. Bison: 

Rose supports a scarf that can be manipulated in battle and she can use orbs and reflect projectiles. 

She has taken a few pupils under her wing, including Menat, and has interesting relationships with many faces from the cast.

She is an Italian psychic who was once M. Bison’s student and who holds the opposite power to Psycho Power, called Soul Power. In fact, she somehow shares her soul with Bison, and the dictator has used her body as a vessel for his soul in the past, committing all sorts of atrocities that are still deeply buried in Rose’s subconscious.

Arch Enemy: M. Bison

3. Guile (Debut: SF II: The World Warrior)

Guile fights his Arch Enemy, M. Bison: 

Sonic Boom! Guile is undoubtedly one of the main characters in the Street Fighter universe. This American Air Force major first appeared in Street Fighter II, seeking revenge for the death of his friend, Charlie Nash.

He relies on his ability to create scythes of energy out of his arms and legs, being able to perform his iconic Sonic Boom and Flash Kick moves.

His wife is the sister of Ken Master’s wife making him and Ken brothers-in-law, but Guile also has a wife and daughter of his own and they are the ones who keep him from falling down a dark path of revenge, as he continuously tries to find and defeat M. Bison, the head of Shadaloo and the one responsible for the death of Charlie Nash.

Arch Enemy: M. Bison

2. Chun-Li (Debut: Street Fighter II: The World Warrior)

Chun-Li fights her Arch Enemy, M. Bison: 

Graceful as ever and with the thickest tighs in history, the Chinese Blue Bird is always ready to kick some butt while working for Interpol. 

The self-proclaimed Strongest Woman in the World won’t hesitate to protect those in need in the name of justice and she will always be prepared to be the voice of reason in any given situation. She battles with her unique style of Kung Fu that is focused on many varieties of fast kicks and deadly combinations and has made her life mission to stop Shadaloo, the ones responsible for her father’s death.

Since M. Bison is the ruling leader of Shadaloo, most of Chun-Li’s missions end up with her facing the evil dictator, and she is always forefront of the heroes’ team trying to take down whatever world domination scheme is following through.

Arch Enemy: M. Bison

1. Ryu (Debut: Street Fighter)

Ryu fights his Arch Enemy, Akuma: 

Ryu is the wandering vagabond constantly traveling the world to seek strenght and self-improvement. He was trained in the art of Ansatsuken by his master Gouken and has had many rivals that helped him become a better fighter, such as Ken, Alex, and Sagat. 

Ryu has succumbed to the Satsui no Hado in the past to become Evil Ryu, but this darkness was later sealed up by his master. The dormant Satsui no Hado within has sparked many conflicts due to the interest of villains in his powers, but with the help of Dhalsim, Ryu was able to reach the Power of Nothingness, overcoming the Satsui no Hado for good. 

Out of all the baddies chasing after Ryu’s Satsui no Hado, there is no such enemy as formidable as Akuma, the one who fully embraced the Satsui no Hado. The two have had several encounters, but Akuma keeps postponing their ultimate battle until he thinks Ryu has reached his full potential.

Arch Enemy: Akuma

Street Fighter is full of amazing guys and so many of them with such interesting abilities. From Dhalsim’s fire-breathing yoga to Blanka’s electricity-generating body, and from Hakan’s oil wrestling to Dudley’s gentleman ways, there is no shortage of awesome dudes to keep here, but ultimately this was a list about the main heroes within the Street Fighter lore.

Hopefully, this list helped you get a better idea of what makes these guys awesome and so iconic in the fandom of Street Fighter, and you learned more about their rivalries and relationships with one another.

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