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Fighting game is a video game genre where the player controls an on-screen character and engages in close combat with an opponent. These characters tend to be of equal power and fight matches consisting of several rounds, which take place in an arena. Players must master techniques such as blocking, counter-attacking, and chaining together sequences of attacks known as "combos". Since the early 1990s, most fighting games allow the player to execute special attacks by performing specific button combinations. The genre is related to but distinct from beat 'em ups, which involve large numbers of antagonists.

The first game to feature fist fighting was Heavyweight Champ in 1976, but it was Karate Champ and The Way of the Exploding Fist which popularized one-on-one martial arts games in 1984 and 1985 respectively. Also in 1985, Yie Ar Kung-Fu featured antagonists with differing fighting styles, while 1987's Street Fighter introduced hidden special attacks. In 1991, Capcom's highly successful Street Fighter II refined and popularized many of the conventions of the genre. The fighting game subsequently became the preeminent genre for competitive video gaming in the early to mid-1990s, especially in arcades. This period spawned numerous popular fighting games in addition to Street Fighter, including the successful and long running franchises Mortal Kombat and later Virtua Fighter and Tekken.

The genre's popularity stagnated as games became more complicated and as arcades began to lose their audience to increasingly powerful home consoles near the end of the 1990s, though new franchises such as Dead or Alive, and the Soul series achieved success. In the new millennium, the genre remains popular but retains a much smaller proportion of enthusiasts than it once did, due to the increasing popularity of other genres and internet multiplayer gaming.

Definition[link]

Fighting games are a type of action game where on-screen characters fight each other.^[1][2][3] These games typically feature special moves that are triggered using rapid sequences of carefully timed button presses and joystick movements. Games traditionally show fighters from a side-view, even as the genre has progressed from two-dimensional (2D) to three-dimensional (3D) graphics.^[1] Street Fighter II, though not the first fighting game, popularized and standardized the conventions of the genre,^[4] and similar games released prior to Street Fighter II have since been more explicitly classified as fighting games.^[3][4] Fighting games typically involve hand-to-hand combat, but may also feature melee weapons.^[5]

This genre is distinct from beat 'em ups, another action genre involving combat, where the player character must fight many weaker enemies at the same time.^[3] During the 1980s publications used the terms "fighting game" and "beat 'em up" interchangeably, along with other terms such as "martial arts simulation" (or more specific terms such as "judo simulator").^[6][7][8] With hindsight, critics have argued that the two types of game gradually became dichotomous as they evolved, though the two terms may still be conflated.^[3][9] Fighting games are sometimes grouped with games that feature boxing or wrestling.^[5][9] Serious boxing games belong more to the sports game genre than the action game genre, as they aim for a more realistic model of boxing techniques, whereas moves in fighting games tend to be highly exaggerated models of Asian martial arts techniques.^[1] As such, boxing games and wrestling games are often described as distinct genres, without comparison to fighting games.^[10][11]

Game design[link]

Fighting games involve combat between pairs of fighters using highly exaggerated martial arts moves.^[1] They typically revolve around primarily brawling or combat sport,^[2][5] though some variations feature weaponry.^[5] Games usually display on-screen fighters from a side view, and even 3D fighting games play largely within a 2D plane of motion.^[1] Games usually confine characters to moving left and right and jumping, although some games such as Fatal Fury: King of Fighters allow players to move between parallel planes of movement.^[1][12] Recent games tend to be rendered in three dimensions and allow side-stepping, but otherwise play like those rendered in two dimensions.^[5]

Attacking and defending[link]

Aside from moving around a restricted space, fighting games limit the player's actions to different offensive and defensive maneuvers. Players must learn which attacks and defenses are effective against each other, often by trial and error.^[1] Blocking is a basic technique that allows a player to defend against attacks.^[13] Some games feature more advanced blocking techniques: for example, Capcom's Street Fighter III features a move termed "parrying" which causes the attacker to become momentarily incapacitated (a similar state is termed "just defended" in SNK's Garou: Mark of the Wolves).^[14][15] In addition to blows such as punches and kicks, players can utilize throwing or "grappling" to circumvent "blocks". Predicting opponents' moves and counter-attacking, known as "countering", is a common element of gameplay.^[5] Fighting games also emphasize the difference between the height of blows, ranging from low to jumping attacks.^[16][17] Thus, strategy becomes important as players attempt to predict each others' moves, similar to rock-paper-scissors.^[1]

An integral feature of fighting games includes the use of "special attacks", also called "secret moves",^[16] that employ complex combinations of button presses to perform a particular move beyond basic punching and kicking.^[18] Combos, in which several attacks are chained together using basic punches and kicks, are another common feature in fighting games and have been fundamental to the genre since the release of Street Fighter II.^[19] Some fighting games display a "combo meter" that displays the player's progress through a combo. The effectiveness of such moves often relate to the difficulty of execution and the degree of risk. These moves are often beyond the ability of a casual gamer and require a player to have both a strong memory and excellent timing.^[1] Taunting is another feature of some fighting games and was originally introduced by Japanese company SNK in their game Art of Fighting.^[20][21] It is used to add humor to games, but can also have an effect on gameplay such as improving the strength of other attacks.^[22] Sometimes, a character can even be noted especially for taunting (for example, Dan Hibiki from Street Fighter Alpha).^[23][24]

Goals[link]

Fighting game matches generally consist of several rounds; the player who wins the most rounds wins the match.^[25] Fighting games widely feature life bars, which are depleted as characters sustain blows.^[12][26] Each successful attack will deplete a character's health, and the game continues until a fighter's energy reaches zero.^[1] Hence, the main goal is to completely deplete the life bar of one's opponent, thus achieving a "knockout".^[15] Beginning with Midway's Mortal Kombat released in 1992, the Mortal Kombat series introduced "fatalities" in which the victor kills a knocked-out opponent in a gruesome manner.^[27] Games such as Virtua Fighter also allow a character to be defeated by forcing them outside of the fighting arena, awarding a "ring-out" to the victor.^[13] Round decisions can also be determined by time over (if a timer is present), which judges players based on remaining vitality to declare a winner.

Fighting games often include a single player campaign or tournament, where the player must defeat a sequence of several computer controlled opponents. Winning the tournament often reveals a special story–ending cutscene, and some games also grant access to hidden characters or special features upon victory.^[28]

Multiple characters and players[link]

In most fighting games, players may select from a variety of characters who have unique fighting styles and special moves. This became a strong convention for the genre with the release of Street Fighter II, and these character choices have led to deeper game strategy and replay value.^[29] Although fighting games offer female characters, their image tends to be hyperfeminized, and they have even been featured as pin-up girls in game magazines.^[30][31] Male characters in fighting games also tend to be hypersexualized, with extra-broad chests and shoulders, huge muscles, and prominent jaws.^[1]

Custom creation, or "create–a–fighter", is a feature of some fighting games which allows a player to customize the appearance and move set of their own character. Super Fire Pro Wrestling X Premium was the first game to include such a feature,^[32] and later fighting games such as Fighter Maker,^[33] Soulcalibur III,^[34] Mortal Kombat: Armageddon,^[35] and Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2 adopted the concept.^[36] Some fighting games allow the player to create other types of game content: Super Smash Bros. Brawl, for example, features the ability to create custom stages.^[37]

Fighting games may also offer a multiplayer mode in which players fight each other, sometimes by letting a second player challenge the first at any moment during a single player match.^[2] A few titles allow up to four players to compete simultaneously.^[38] Several games have also featured modes that involve teams of characters; players form "tag teams" to fight matches in which combat is one-on-one, but a character may leave the arena to be replaced by a team mate.^[39] Some fighting games have also offered the challenge of fighting against multiple opponents in succession, testing the player's endurance.^[28] Newer titles take advantage of online gaming services, although lag created by slow data transmission can disrupt the split-second timing involved in fighting games.^[28][40]

History[link]

Early fighting games: 1970s to 1980s[link]

Fighting games find their origin in boxing games but evolved towards battles between characters with fantastic abilities and complex special maneuvers.^[41] The first two-player video game based on human-to-human combat was Taito's shooter-based Gun Fight in 1975.^[42] Sega's black and white boxing game Heavyweight Champ, which was released in 1976, is considered the first video game to feature fist fighting.^[43] It used boxing glove controls that could be moved up and down for high and low punches, and inwards for striking. Like later fighting games, it was viewed from a side-view perspective.^[44] 1979's Warrior is another title sometimes credited as one of the first fighting games.^[19] In contrast to Heavyweight Champ and most later titles, Warrior was based on sword fighting duels and used a bird's eye view.^[3] In 1983, Sega released another boxing game Champion Boxing,^[45] which was Yu Suzuki's debut title at Sega AM2.^[46] However, Technōs Japan's Karate Champ from 1984 is credited with establishing and popularizing the one-on-one fighting game genre.^[47] A variety of moves could be performed using the dual-joystick controls, it used a best-of-three matches format like later fighting games,^[48][49] and it featured training bonus stages. It went on to influence Konami's 1985 release Yie Ar Kung Fu,^[47] which expanded on Karate Champ by pitting the player against a variety of opponents, each with a unique appearance and fighting style.^[47][50] The player could also perform up to sixteen different moves,^[51] including projectile attacks,^[52] using a combination of buttons and joystick movements while standing, crouching or jumping.^[53] Also released in 1985, martial arts game The Way of the Exploding Fist achieved critical success and subsequently afforded the burgeoning genre further popularity.^[8][54] Numerous other game developers tried to imitate the financial successes of Karate Champ, Yie Ar Kung-Fu and The Way of the Exploding Fist with similar games; Data East took unsuccessful legal action against Epyx over the computer game International Karate.^[55]

Both Karate Champ and Yie Ar Kung Fu provided a template for Capcom's Street Fighter in 1987.^[4] Street Fighter found its own niche in the gaming world,^[4] partially because many arcade game developers in the 1980s focused more on producing beat-em-ups and shoot 'em ups.^[56] Part of the game's appeal was the use of special moves that could only be discovered by experimenting with the game controls, which created a sense of mystique and invited players to practice the game,^[57] although similar controller motions used for grappling maneuvers in the earlier Brian Jacks Uchi Mata were deemed too difficult.^[8] Following Street Fighter's lead, the use of command-based hidden moves began to pervade other games in the rising fighting game genre.^[57] Street Fighter also introduced other staples of the genre, including the blocking technique as well as the ability for a challenger to jump in and initiate a match against a player at any time. The game also introduced pressure-sensitive controls that determine the strength of an attack, though due to causing damaged arcade cabinets, Capcom replaced it soon after with a six-button control scheme offering light, medium and hard punches and kicks, which became another staple of the genre.^[44] Meanwhile, home game consoles largely ignored the genre. Budokan: The Martial Spirit was one of few releases for the Sega Genesis but was not as popular as games in other genres.^[56] Technical challenges limited the popularity of early fighting games. Programmers had difficulty producing a game that could recognize the fast motions of a joystick, and so players had a hard time executing special moves with any accuracy.^[4][56]

Rise and peak: early 1990s[link]

Enthusiasts playing fighting games at a video arcade

The release of Street Fighter II in 1991 is often considered a revolutionary moment in the fighting game genre. Yoshiki Okamoto's team developed the most accurate joystick and button scanning routine in the genre thus far. This allowed players to reliably execute multi-button special moves, which had previously required an element of luck. The game was also highly successful because its graphics took advantage of Capcom's CPS arcade chipset, with highly detailed characters and stages. Whereas previous games allowed players to combat a variety of computer-controlled fighters, Street Fighter II allowed players to play against each other. The popularity of Street Fighter II surprised the gaming industry, as arcade owners bought more machines to keep up with demand.^[4] Street Fighter II was also responsible for introducing the combo mechanic, which came about when skilled players learned that they could combine several attacks that left no time for the opponent to recover if they timed them correctly.^[58][59]

SNK released Fatal Fury a few months before Street Fighter II.^[12] It was designed by Takashi Nishiyama, the creator of the original Street Fighter, which it was envisioned as a spiritual successor to.^[60] Fatal Fury placed more emphasis on storytelling and the timing of special moves,^[60] and added a two-plane system where characters could step into the foreground or background. Meanwhile, Sega experimented with Dark Edge, an early attempt at a 3D fighting game where characters could move in all directions. Sega however, never released the game outside of Japan because it felt that unrestrained 3D fighting games were unenjoyable.^{[citation needed]} Sega also attempted to introduced 3-D holographic technology to the genre with Holosseum in 1992, though it was unsuccessful.^[61] Several fighting games achieved greater commercial success, including SNK's Art of Fighting and Samurai Shodown as well as Sega's Eternal Champions.^{[citation needed]}

Nevertheless, Street Fighter II remained the most popular,^[56] spawning a special Champion Edition that improved game balance and allowed players to use additional characters.^[4] The popularity of Street Fighter II led it to be released for home game consoles and allowed it to define the template for fighting games.^[4][56] ADK attempted the genre with the successful World Heroes^[62], the first third-party fighting game for the Neo-Geo, which was also the first to have features used in several later fighting games, such as characters that can jump more than once and can shoot projectiles from the air, and a second mode that includes environmental hazards called "Death Match" mode.^{[citation needed]}

Many American developers tried to capitalize on the template established by Street Fighter II,^[4] but it was Chicago's Midway Games who achieved unprecedented notoriety when they released Mortal Kombat in 1992. The game featured digital characters drawn from real actors, numerous secrets,^[56][63] and a "fatality" system of finishing maneuvers with which the player's character kills their opponent. The game earned a reputation for its gratuitous violence,^[63] and was eventually adapted for home game consoles.^[56] The home version of Mortal Kombat was released on September 13, 1993, a day that was promoted as "Mortal Monday". The advertising resulted in line-ups to purchase the game and a subsequent backlash from politicians concerned about the game's violence.^[63] The Mortal Kombat franchise would ultimately achieve iconic status similar to that of Street Fighter with several sequels as well as movies, television series, and extensive merchandising.^[27][64] Numerous other game developers tried to imitate Street Fighter II and Mortal Kombat's financial success with similar games; Capcom took unsuccessful legal action against Data East over the arcade game Fighter's History.^[16] Data East's largest objection in court was that their 1984 arcade game Karate Champ was the true originator of the competitive fighting game genre, which predated the original Street Fighter by three years.^[65] That same year saw the release of the Sega Activator, a Mega Drive (Genesis) peripheral that allowed motion detection of the player's physical movements,^[66] based on the Light Harp invented by Assaf Gurner.^[67] It was marketed as a new way to play fighting games,^[68] such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, but the device was a commercial failure due to its "unwieldiness and inaccuracy."^[66]

Sega began to attract attention with the 1993 release of Virtua Fighter in arcades. It was the first fighting game with 3D polygon graphics and a viewpoint that zoomed and rotated with the action. Despite the graphics, players were confined to back and forth motion as seen in other fighting games. With only three buttons, it was easier to learn than Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, having six and five buttons respectively. By the time the game was released for the Sega Saturn in Japan, the game and system were selling at almost a one-to-one ratio.^[56] Meanwhile, the 1993 title Mortal Kombat II captivated American audiences, and was considered the best Mortal Kombat game in retrospect during a 2008 review.^[69]

The 1994 PlayStation launch title Battle Arena Toshinden is credited for taking the genre into "true 3-D" due to its introduction of the sidestep maneuver, which IGN described as "one little move" that "changed the fighter forever."^[70] The same year, SNK released The King of Fighters '94 in arcades, where players choose from teams of three characters to eliminate each other one by one.^[71] Eventually, Capcom released further updates to Street Fighter II, including Super Street Fighter II and Super Street Fighter II Turbo. These games featured more characters and new moves, some of which were a response to people who had hacked the original Street Fighter II game to add new features themselves. However, criticism of these updates grew as players demanded a true sequel. By 1995, the dominant franchises were the Mortal Kombat series in America and Virtua Fighter series in Japan, with Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams unable to match the popularity of Street Fighter II.^[4] Throughout this period, the fighting game was the dominant genre in competitive video gaming, with enthusiasts popularly attending arcades in order to find human opponents.^[27]

Relative decline: late 1990s[link]

In the latter part of the 1990s, the fighting game genre began to decline in popularity, with specific franchises falling into difficulty. Electronic Gaming Monthly awarded the excess of fighting games the "Most Appalling Trend" award of 1995.^[72] Although the release of Street Fighter EX introduced 3D graphics to the series and continued the success of Street Fighter II and Street Fighter Alpha,^[73][74][75] the Street Fighter: The Movie arcade game was regarded as a failure. Street Fighter: The Movie used digitized images from the Street Fighter film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.^[4] While a home video game also titled Street Fighter: The Movie was released for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn, it is not a port but a separately produced game based on the same premise.^[76] Capcom later released Street Fighter III in 1997 which featured improved visuals and character depth, but was also unable to match the impact of Street Fighter II.^[4] Despite excitement in Japan over Virtua Fighter 3 in arcades, the limited hardware capabilities of the Sega Saturn led Sega to delay a console release.^[56] Sega eventually released the game for its Dreamcast console,^[77] but the company became unprofitable and was forced to discontinue the console.^[78] Meanwhile, SNK released several fighting games on their Neo-Geo platform, including Samurai Shodown II in 1994, Real Bout Fatal Fury in 1995, The Last Blade in 1997, and annual updates to their The King of Fighters franchise.^[79] Fatal Fury: Mark of the Wolves from 1999 was considered one of SNK's last great games,^[80] and the company announced that it would close its doors in 2001.^[81]

In retrospect, multiple developers attribute the decline of the fighting genre to its increasing complexity and specialization. This complexity shut out casual players, and the market for fighting games became smaller and more specialized.^[82][83] Furthermore, arcades gradually became less profitable throughout the 1990s due to the increased technical power and popularity of home consoles.^[16][79] Even as popularity dwindled, the fighting game genre continued to evolve; several strong 3D fighting games also emerged in the late 1990s. Namco's Tekken (released in arcades in 1994 and on the PlayStation in 1995) proved critical to the PlayStation's early success, with its sequels also becoming some of the console's most important titles.^[84] The Soul series of weapon-based fighting games also achieved considerable critical success, beginning with 1997's Soul Edge (known as Soul Blade outside of Japan) to Soulcalibur IV in 2008.^[85][86] Tecmo's Dead or Alive (released in 1996 in Japanese arcades and 1998 on the PlayStation) spawned a long running franchise, known for its fast paced control system and innovative counter attacks. The series again included titles important to the success of their respective consoles, the latest installment being Dead or Alive 4 for the Xbox 360.^[28][87][88] In 1998, Bushido Blade, published by Square, introduced a realistic fighting engine that featured three-dimensional environments while abandoning time limits and health bars in favour of an innovative Body Damage System, where a sword strike to a certain body part can amputate a limb or decapitate the head.^[89]

Video game enthusiasts took an interest in gaming crossovers which feature characters from multiple franchises in a particular game.^[90] An early example of this type of fighting game was the 1998 arcade release Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, featuring comic book superheroes as well as Street Fighter characters.^[4] In 1999, Nintendo released the first game in the Super Smash Bros. series, which allowed match-ups such as Pikachu versus Mario.^[90]

Recent history: 2000s[link]

The early part of the decade saw the rise of major international fighting game tournaments such as Tougeki – Super Battle Opera, and famous players such as Daigo Umehara.^[91][92] Several more fighting game crossovers were released in the new millennium. The two most prolific developers of 2D fighting games, Capcom and SNK, combined intellectual property to produce SNK vs. Capcom games. SNK released the first game of this type, SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium, for its Neo Geo Pocket Color handheld at the end of 1999. GameSpot regarded the game as "perhaps the most highly anticipated fighter ever" and called it the best fighting game ever to be released for a handheld console.^[93][94] Capcom released Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 for arcades and the Dreamcast in 2000, followed by sequels in subsequent years. Though none matched the critical success of the handheld version, Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO was noted as the first game of the genre to successfully utilize internet competition.^[94][95] Other crossovers from 2008 included Tatsunoko vs. Capcom and Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe.^[96][97] The most successful crossover, however, was Super Smash Bros. Brawl, also released in 2008 for the Wii. Featuring characters from Nintendo's various franchises, the game was a runaway commercial success in addition to being lavished with critical praise.^[37][38][98]

In the new millennium, fighting games are less popular and plentiful than in the mid 1990s, with multiplayer competition shifting towards other genres.^[27][99] However, SNK reappeared in 2003 as SNK Playmore and continues to release games.^[79] Arc System Works received critical acclaim for releasing Guilty Gear X in 2001, as well as its sequel Guilty Gear XX, as both were 2D fighting games featuring striking anime inspired graphics.^[100] The fighting game is currently a popular genre for amateur and doujin developers in Japan. The 2002 title Melty Blood was developed by then amateur developer French-Bread and achieved cult success on the PC. It became highly popular in arcades following its 2005 release, and a version was released on PlayStation 2 the following year.^[101] While the genre is generally far less popular than it once was,^[27] arcades and their attendant fighting games are still reasonably popular in Japan. Virtua Fighter 5 lacked an online mode but still achieved success both on home consoles and in arcades; players practiced at home and went to arcades to compete face-to-face with opponents.^[102] Tekken 6 was positively received, selling more than 3 million copies worldwide as of August 6, 2010.^[103] In addition to Virtua Fighter and Tekken, the Soul and Dead or Alive franchises continued to release installments.^[28][86] Classic Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat games have been re-released on PSN and Xbox Live Arcade, allowing internet play, and in some cases, HD graphics.^{[27][104][105]} Street Fighter IV, which incorporated online multiplayer modes, was released in early 2009 to critical acclaim,^[106] having garnered praise since its release at Japanese arcades in 2008.^[107] Street Fighter's successful revival has sparked a renaissance for the genre,^{[108][109][110]} followed by titles such as Super Street Fighter IV,^[109] BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds,^[109][110] Mortal Kombat,^[109] Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Street Fighter X Tekken, and Tekken X Street Fighter.^[108]

See also[link]

Look up Appendix:Glossary of fighting game in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• List of fighting games
• List of fighting game companies

References[link]

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2011)

Chun-Li (春麗（チュン・リー）, Chun Rī^?, simplified Chinese: 春丽; traditional Chinese: 春麗; pinyin: Chūn Lì)^[1] is a video game character produced by Capcom. First introduced in Street Fighter II, she has since appeared as a player character in nearly all subsequent games in the series.^[2]

An undercover Interpol agent, Chun-Li enters Street Fighter II 's fighting tournament as a way of getting to its founder, M. Bison. She seeks to avenge her father, who was murdered while investigating Bison's crime syndicate, Shadaloo. Chun-Li is notable for being the first female playable character in a fighting game,^[2][3] earning her a status of the "first lady of fighting games" among the genre's enthusiasts.^[4][5]

In video games[link]

[edit] Street Fighter series

Chun-Li was first introduced in 1991 in the original version of Street Fighter II as one of the game's eight playable characters as well as the sole female character in the game before the addition of Cammy. Chun-Li's backstory centers on her quest to avenge the death of her father, an undercover police agent who disappeared while investigating M. Bison's organization. In her ending, she fulfills her revenge and decides to return to her life as an ordinary girl. In Super Street Fighter II (1993), the player is given the option to make Chun-Li return to ordinary life or continue her work as a police officer.

Chun-Li is brought back in Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams (1995), which is set prior to the events of the Street Fighter II. She is depicted as an undercover International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) agent who is after M. Bison and his drug cartel. In the first Alpha game Chun-Li is dressed in a Chinese acrobatics outfit, although the two sequels: Alpha 2 (1996) and Alpha 3 (1998) feature Chun-Li's original outfit from SFII as an alternate version of the character with alternate special abilities and super combos.

She appears as a playable character in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (1997), the third iteration of Street Fighter III, as one of five new playable characters that were added, making her one of the few Street Fighter characters to appear in all major sub-series. Set years after the Street Fighter II, she has retired from street fighting to teach martial arts to young children,^[6] but is forced to return to law enforcement after one of her students is abducted by Urien.

Chun-Li appears in Street Fighter IV (2008) as one of the returning fighters. Her in-game narrative shows her at a current crossroads in her life, eventually returning to both street fighting and law enforcement.

In the 1996-1997 Street Fighter EX sub-series, Chun-Li's story is similar to that of Street Fighter II, in which she is a police officer investigating Shadaloo in search of her missing father, instead of avenging his death.

Other games[link]

As one of the symbolic Street Fighter characters, Chun Li has made appearances in many other Capcom-produced fighting games, including in all titles of the long-running Marvel vs. Capcom (since X-Men vs. Street Fighter in 1996) and in the Capcom vs. SNK series (also in SNK's SNK vs. Capcom games), and in 2010's Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. She and Ryu are the only Street Fighter characters to appear in every other crossover title by Capcom, including the 2005 tactical role-playing game Namco × Capcom (where they are partnered with Cammy) and the 2012 fighting game Street Fighter X Tekken.

Chun-Li appears in the 1996 puzzle game Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo and its 1998 sequel Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix, and in the pachinko slot game Chun-Li Ni Makase China! (the first game that features her in the starring role). She also makes small cameo appearances in the 1993 beat'em-up Final Fight 2 and the 1993 role-playing game Breath of Fire (the cameo appearance featured on Expert Gamer's 1998 list of The 50 Greatest Video Game Secrets^[7]), and in the 2008 platform game Mega Man 9. Alternate costumes inspired by her character were featured in the 2006 action-adventure Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams (as an unlockable costume swap for Ohatsu) and in Sony's LittleBigPlanet (as a Sackgirl design released as downloadable content in 2008).^[8]

Character design[link]

In the Street Fighter II sub-series and most of her later appearances, Chun-Li wears a qipao, an early 20th century Chinese dress.^[4] In the first version of Street Fighter II, Chun-Li was originally depicted wearing an orange qipao instead of blue.^[2] The dress is modified to allow a far wider range of movement than a generic qipao. Her ensemble also includes a pair of white combat boots and brown pantyhose. She wears her hair in "ox horns",^[2] with silk brocades and ribbons in her hair. Another familiar part of her ensemble are the large spiked bracelets she wears on her wrists.

In the Street Fighter Alpha games (set during the time period before Street Fighter II), Chun-Li wears an embroidered vest, a unitard,^[2] and athletic sneaker shoes. She wears her ox horns unadorned. She also wears her original Street Fighter II outfit in her X-ism mode in Alpha 3.

In Street Fighter IV, Chun-Li's alternate outfit consists of black night gown with gold accents at the bottom. She wears a black and gold sash held by a red rope-like belt. She wears her ox horns unadorned, just like in her Alpha appearance, only this time it's held by red ropes with golden balls at the tip. The outfit is completed with red shoes, gold earrings and black and gold bracelets. The outfit resembles the clothes she wore in one of the episodes of the cartoon series.

Chun-Li is especially known for her muscular legs, while depictions of the rest of her body are more variable. In the Street Fighter Alpha games, where she wore a sleeveless, tight outfit, her arms and upper body were visibly much stronger than those of any other female character in the franchise^[2], but many artists choose to depict her as petite and slim, in official and unofficial artworks alike, drawing only her legs strong due to her emphasis on kicking moves. Chun-Li was designed with an exceptionally strong physique because she was the sole woman among a roster of powerful male characters in Street Fighter II. To overcome this perceived imbalance, she was devised as a character who had mastered Chinese kenpo and really pushed her body to the limit so that she could compete with such a cast of large and imposing men.^[9]

Appearances in other media[link]

Live-action[link]

Chun-Li, who is given the full name of Chun-Li Zang (simplified Chinese: 臧 春丽; traditional Chinese: 臧 春麗; pinyin: Zāng Chūn Lì) in the film, was portrayed in the 1994 action film Street Fighter by actress Ming-Na. She poses as a television reporter in order to infiltrate the nation of Shadaloo and kill M. Bison, a warlord who murdered her father during a peasant uprising during his days as a drug lord. She allies herself with E. Honda and Balrog, a former sumo wrestler and boxer, respectively, whose reputations were ruined by Bison's mafia connections, and later forms an initially uneasy alliance with Ryu and Ken, who are working with Guile to infiltrate Bison's fortress and lead Guile there. At the end of the film, she helps Ryu and Ken free Bison's hostages, and in return for her service, Guile promises her an exclusive interview.

In 2006, Hyde Park Entertainment and Capcom announced its intention to produce another film adaptation with the storyline to focus on Chun-Li, who was given the full name of Chun-Li Huang and became the main protagonist in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li,^[10] played by Kristin Kreuk.^[10] Street Fighter was released in 2009 for the 20th anniversary of the game series,^[11] While the games simply give Chun-Li a Chinese nationality with no further details, she was portrayed as a Chinese-American in the film, having a Chinese father and a white mother.

Animation[link]

Chun-Li is a central character in the 1994 anime film Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie. An Interpol agent, she is investigating M. Bison's organization of Shadowlaw, which is suspected of murdering several diplomats. She requests to work with Guile to investigate Bison's organization. Guile is initially reluctant to work with her, more eager to pursue Bison himself. By the end of the movie, however, they have become inseparable. She is voiced by Miki Fujitani in the Japanese release. In the English dubbing adaptation by Manga Entertainment, she is voiced by Lia Sargent. In a famous instance of fan service, an explicit scene shows Chun-Li showering in her apartment as a Shadaloo assassin, Vega, arrives to kill her. The shower scene has been censored to varying degrees in versions of the English dub.^[12] Vega ends up having been kicked through a wall and hurtling several stories to the ground, but Chun-Li succumbs to her injuries and slips into a coma. She remains hospitalized for the rest of the movie, as distraught Guile promises her that he will make M. Bison pay. Following Bison's defeat at the hands of Ryu and Ken, Chun-Li pulls a prank on Guile by making it appear as if she has died while he was away.

Chun-Li was a regular character in the USA Network's animated television series Street Fighter. She was depicted as a reporter (as she was in the 1994 movie) and was voiced by Donna Yamamoto.

In the 1997-1998 anime series Street Fighter II V, Chun-Li appears as the spirited tour guide to Ken and Ryu. Her character in this adaptation is a far cry from the world's strongest woman, since she is mostly a kung-fu student under the guidance of her father, the highest-ranked police chief in Hong Kong. Chun-Li plays a sizable role in the series' finale, when she is brainwashed by Bison's psycho power. Ken is shown having growing feelings for her, as he takes her on a shopping spree and even buys her an engagement ring in the first part of the series. In the Japanese version, she is voiced by Chisa Yokoyama. In the Animaze dub, she is voiced by Lia Seargent, while in the ADV Films version she is played by Junie Hoang and later on by Tamara Lo.

Chun-Li also appears in the 1999 anime OVA Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation, as an Interpol agent who investigates a mad scientist called Sadler that works for Shadaloo. She believes the trail can lead her to her father, who at the time, was missing and presumed alive. She assists Ryu and Ken in finding a boy named Shun, kidnapped by Sadler to force him to succumb to the Satsui no Hadō. Yumi Tōma voices her in the Japanese version, and once again Lia Seargent provides her voice for this OVA.

Manga[link]

In a Street Fighter II manga published in the 1990s (by Masaomi Kanzaki), Chun-Li remains in her established role of an interpol agent investigating Bison, yet frequently expresses her desire to earn Ryu's praise as a genuine fighter. As the story progresses, Chun-Li participates in a tournament arranged by Shadaloo, eventually coming up against Vega, portrayed here as her father's killer. She defeats Vega, but she is exhausted from the fight and is pulled from the tournament. Her injuries prevent her from doing much when Ryu and Bison confront one another, except call off an air strike by Interpol.

Chun-Li also appears in Masahiko Nakahira's 1996-1997 manga Street Fighter: Sakura Ganbaru!, in which she participates in a police raid to an illegal underground fighting circle. Later on, she follows the trails that lead her to an assassin which turns out to be Gen, from whom she suffers an utter defeat.

In the manga adaptations of Street Fighter Alpha, Chun- Li is again an agent of the Interpol as she is in almost all iterations save for the live action film. She encounters Ryu, who has fallen from grace and had hired himself out as a bodyguard to drug smugglers. Chun-Li winds up befriending him and Birdie as well as Ken, and rescues Cammy from being captured by Sodom. Shadaloo is once again responsible for the death of her father, though the exact identity of the killer has yet to be revealed.

Comics[link]

In the 1990s, Malibu Comics produced a short-lived series of Street Fighter comics, which featured Chun-Li as a starring character. She is depicted as having known Ryu and Ken since her late teens, as well as having a romantic interest in Ryu. The story primarily focuses not on Chun-Li or Ryu in particular, but rather on the events which follow the murder of Ken Masters. Due to the comic's abrupt end (it was cancelled after three issues), the storyline was never resolved.

When UDON picked up the comic book license for the Street Fighter franchise for American distribution, Chun-Li again became a central character, involved in the hunt for Bison and Shadaloo. However, in the new comic, it is not Bison who is the killer of Chun-Li's father, but rather Cammy, prior to her being freed from Bison's control. Chun-Li battles Cammy when they meet face to face for the first time and ultimately forgives Cammy and turns her sights on Bison himself. Chun-Li also meets Cammy for the second time (issue #11) and formally wins against her. Eventually, she receives an invitation from Shadaloo to enter a tournament being held by Bison. The comic appears to be mixing elements of the various games together and Chun-Li's mode of dress changes several times throughout the UDON comics, from the outfits worn in Street Fighter Alpha, to her more traditional qipao from the Street Fighter II games.

In 2008, UDON also released a four-issue special miniseries Street Fighter Legends: Chun-Li, which focuses on a younger Chun-Li and one of her first assignments for the Hong Kong police, when she was working with her partner Po-lin, a young policewoman who has a very personal score to settle with Shadaloo.

Merchandise and other appearances[link]

Scores of Chun-Li figures were produced by various manufacturers.^[13] Artworks of her were also featured on an officially licenced animated Nubytech/UDON joypad for the PlayStation 2,^[14] and a Mad Catz wireless joypad for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.^[15]

Chun-Li was played by cross-dressing Jackie Chan in the 1993 live-action City Hunter movie during the Street Fighter II spoof scene.^[16] In the season 6 (2010) Halloween special of the animated series American Dad, Toshi's older sister Akiko goes trick-or-treating as Chun-Li.^[17]

Reception[link]

Chun-Li is widely regarded as one of the most popular characters in the series and was voted number one in Capcom's own 2002 poll of top 85 characters for the 15th anniversary of Street Fighter.^[18] She was ranked IGN third in IGN's 2009 list of top Street Fighter characters, noting that while sexism is factored into her initial design, she has "come a long way over the years. She's by far the most popular female fighting game character out there, and if you try to start naming off better-known women in videogaming period, you're going to wind up with a pretty short list."^[19] GameDaily ranked her as number one on their 2009 list of top Street Fighter characters of all time, praising her character evolution and for balanced gameplay.^[20] The same site ranked her as second in their 2008 list of top Capcom characters of all time and as the favorite character from the Street Fighter series.^[21] UGO Networks ranked her as third on their 2010 list of top Street Fighter characters, adding that as the first female fighting game character, Chun-Li "was one of few female characters in the early 90s not cast in a role of damsel in distress, but instead showed that female characters could fight just as same as their male counterparts."^[22] She is also a popular subject of cosplay.^[23]

Chun-Li is also often appearing in the top lists for the fighting game genre, all video games, and in even fiction in general. She was awarded the title of the "Hottest Babe of 1992" by Electronic Gaming Monthly, tying with Blaze from Streets of Rage.^[24] Spike featured her in their 2008's contest "Top 10 Video Game Vixens" at number four, citing a preference for her muscular thighs.^[25] In Game Informer's 2009 list of top ten best fighting game characters Chun-Li was seventh.^[26] UGO placed her as ninth on their list of top "videogame hotties", stating "Chun-Li's female presence and early dominance of the fighting game genre propelled her into the minds of many early fanboys."^[27] In addition, UGO ranked her as number one on their 2011 list of fighting games' finest female fighters, stating "For the record: There's nothing wrong with Chun-Li's thighs, and they are definitely not 'too big',"^[28] also including her in their list of "hottest fictional women of 2012".^[5] In 2009, she was included in Manolith's list of the 25 "hottest" video game female protagonists, with a comment that "Chun Li is possibly the most absolutely loved and best remembered of all characters from the fighting game that birthed all other fighting games."^[29] In 2010, CraveOnline listed her as one of top ten "hottest girls in gaming", stating "For millions of early-generation gamers, Capcom's arcade release of Street Fighter II was the very first real taste of a video-game crush."^[30] Similarly, Videogamer.com included her in the 2010 list of top ten "video game crushes", noting that gamers have loved her since 1992.^[31] Mania Entertainment put her second in the 2010's list of "video game women that kick ass".^[32] In 2011, Complex ranked her naked appearance in Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie as seventh on the list of the "hottest cartoon women" of all time.^[33]

Chun-Li's return in the Street Fighter III: Third Strike has been labelled as the main and best addition to the game due to her popularity.^[34][35] Nevertheless, she has been noted to be one of the most overpowered characters from the game alongside Ken and Yun.^[36][37] There was also some negative reception. In 2011, BeefJack featured her among the five game characters who are supposed to be sexy but turn out awkward, comparing her legs to "those of a thoroughbred race horse."^[38]

References[link]

External links[link]

	Japan portal
	Video games portal
	Fictional characters portal

• Chun-Li - The Street Fighter Wiki
• Chun-Li at the Internet Movie Database