The Street Fighter video game franchise is one of the most popular of all time, spanning from the original release in 1987 to 2016's Street Fighter V. In terms of fighting games, many rank it as the top contender that goes neck and neck with the Mortal Kombat franchise. What makes this particular series so appealing is that it contains a diverse array of fighters from different parts of the world engaging in brawls to see who can claim the billing as the world's best.
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However, amid the stories of legacy and honor, there's an underworld and criminal element brought in by M. Bison and his Shadaloo organization that want to use elite fighters to rule the world. With this story evolving and the cast expanding by the release, fans fell more and more in love with the animation style and fluidity of the gaming engine too, but that doesn't stop one thing from ticking off lovers of the game, whether it be on arcade, console or PC, and that's how spammy fighters can be used! If you find the right fighter, you can play really dirty and cause immense headaches to opponents! In light of this, CBR decided to look at 15 of the game's spammiest brawlers!
15 SAGAT
Sagat is best known for his feud with Ryu. As a main general in Bison's camp, he often let this personal beef get in the way of duty as he wanted to test himself against the wandering fighter many deemed the greatest in the world. He eventually opposed Ryu only to come out on the losing side of things, with a huge scar on his chest after Ryu burnt it into him through his famous uppercut.
In game, Sagat makes up for this storyline by being able to throw quick fireballs and his own Tiger Uppercut. He can execute them very rapidly, which doesn't give much time to recover. His reach also enhances his uppercut, so even when you leap over the fireball, it's waiting for you. If somehow you evade these, he can throw a Tiger Knee, which crashes into you at high velocities as well!
14 KEN
Ken had a friendly rivalry with Ryu and a kinship, as they grew up like brothers training under Master Gouken. He's one of the game's most popular faces and is seen as a flashy player, yet very deadly. Mastering him is an art because once done, he's tough to overcome. In terms of spammy fighting, Ken can throw the Hadouken fireballs on a whim and fancy but it's usually to goad you into leaping over it.
This is where his Flaming Shoryuken Uppercut awaits. Nasty fighters usually try to stick you in a corner for this in order to combine it with Ken's Hurricane Kick (a.k.a. the Tatsumaki Senpuu-Kyaku), which is an effective way of boxing you into this zone. These moves provide a combo of neutralizers that make escape tough, because in using his speed as well, Ken can tame long distance or close-range fighters.
13 DHALSIM
Dhalsim is an Indian shaman who, once used properly, definitely brings the pain. He's an unconventional player to use to with a reach extending across the screen which can prove annoying if you try to cover distance. This helps him nullify long-range attacks and also keeps close-range fighters at bay. His Yoga Fireballs can keep you far off and if you manage to get in close, his Yoga Flame is ready to roast.
He gets even trickier when he uses his teleportation style, which leaves you guessing where to place your attack. These build his unpredictable aura, but even when used in predictable fashions, he has so many varied move sets, not to mention he's so fast that you barely get time to conjure moves of your own. Dhalsim's another fighter who doesn't rely on combos, but can just beat you down with special moves.
12 E. HONDA
If it's one thing E. Honda has taught us over the years, it's that you don't mess with sumo wrestlers. He's evolved his game in terms of chops, grapples and throws, especially seen in Street Fighter IV, but when it comes to getting nasty, fans of the first couple games in the series would remember his Hundred Hand Slap whenever opponents got close in. All you had to do was tap punch repeatedly and you would pummel opponents.
His aerial Sumo Headbutt was also pretty spammy because it meant he could attack from a distance as well. Such aerial moves proved annoying because if you decided to avoid them and let him get close, his power-set moves would drain a lot with simple punches and kicks. E. Honda was another unconventional player, but one that really could stick you in a corner and make your life miserable.
11 ROSE
In the Street Fighter mythos, Rose was linked to Bison's soul. She first appeared in 1995's Street Fighter Alpha as a fortune teller wielding this Soul Power and quickly became a cult favorite. Rose was both a close range and distance fighter, which made her all the more spammy. She could throw Soul Spark fireballs, use Soul Reflect to throw back opponents' projectiles at them and also had an array of telekinetic attacks such as Soul Throws.
These moves could simply be employed one after the other, not giving you much time to breathe or react. She was as quick as Bison, with a strong leg-attack game that was also very similar. She may not have been as evil as he was, but Capcom knew they had to make her a viable combatant due to her ties to him.
10 RASHID
Rashid was introduced in Street Fighter V and quickly became a fan favorite due to his array of moves and more so, the speed of execution. He starts off as an arrogant brat, but eventually becomes a hero, opposing Bison's forces. Rashid is a tech-lover and wall-jumping fighter from the Middle-East, with a versatile move-set.
His Spinning Mixer sees him careening into you along with his Eagle Spike, which can both be executed from long distance or close up. What makes him tough to gauge when he does these moves is his lightning-fast speed. He can generate tornados through kicks to throw at you making it difficult to close distance, and this Whirlwind Shot can be guided to keep you at bay, allowing him to rush in while you defend. Rashid's special moves come in quick succession so you're always left guessing what's next.
9 GUILE
Guile is another recognizable face and basically, he's an all-American hero! The military leader usually aligns himself with Chun Li to tackle Bison, who took his best friend (Nash) away. Amid that drama, Guile had to fight off the world's best to get to Shadaloo. His Sonic Boom is a signature projectile move that lures fans in just as much as his theme song does!
It's a lure to get you jumping into his Spin Kicks and Somersault Kicks. Throwing these three in quick succession leaves opponents frustrated because you're left stuck in limbo over whether to go in close to engage or stay away to throw your own projectiles. The thing is, the Sonic Boom is one of the fastest moves in the game, so he can throw them quickly while crawling up on you. Guile may be a patriot but he can be downright disgusting to oppose.
8 FEI LONG
Fei Long is the game's version of Bruce Lee, which means that he's a close-range fighter who is very fast and just as lethal in the arena. His Flame Kick and Flying Kick can be thrown in succession to leave you very much on the defensive. The moment you're no longer blocking, his Dash Punches (Rekka Ken) can the be employed to subdue you up close.
Breaking free at that point is so tough now due to how fast he is. What makes Fei Long even more intimidating is that he covers ground very quickly. He may not be the average superpower in the game, but the Capcom developers knew what they were doing when they created him. Fei Long's combos of punches and kicks are rapid and can be used as great buffers in-between his special moves.
7 NASH
Charlie Nash is Guile's best friend and comrade whom he thought had died in the line of duty. However, Nash was repurposed for more nefarious plans by the Illuminati group and Guile had to literally fight for his friend's soul. He boasts a stronger Sonic Boom than Guile and throws it even faster -- all improvements made when he was brainwashed into becoming a killer.
In fact, he appears to be a better version of Guile, packing moves such as the Sonic Scythe and Moonsault Slash, which aren't just stronger but also executed in slicker fashion. Nash is a player you can easily spam with and, with a versatile move-set, it doesn't matter if you're a ground fighter or an aerial attacker, because he can close the distance or keep you at bay. Long or short range is also of no importance, because Nash has been programmed to assess and overcome any fighting scenario.
6 CAMMY
Cammy, one of Guile's key comrades against Bison, is a great medium-range fighter and another of the franchise's cult favorites. The British soldier isn't a conventional pick but can be one of the most difficult to evade when facing. Her Canon Spike is similar to Ken and Ryu's anti-air Shoryuken uppercut, but it's her Spiral Arrow that poses the most danger. It's a low-range attack where she drills into you with her legs, which usually sets up the Canon Strike kick when you block.
All her moves flow into each other and can be used as a combo of super-moves even putting you on the backfoot. Her Quick Spin Knuckle is another that can be used close up or even from medium distance, which allows Cammy to pass through projectiles and get close for combos. She's quick in attack and in defense, making her overall game quite sturdy.
5 CHUN-LI
Chun-Li worked with Guile to bring down Bison and Shadaloo as he was responsible for her father's death when he investigated the villain. They would eventually find comrades in Ryu and Ken, but Chun-Li always kept the villain within her personal scope for her loss. She's one of the game's most iconic faces and is very popular in pop culture, used by many players. Her fireball isn't as powerful as Gouken's students', but it's a buffer for when she drives at you with her Helicopter Kick.
This limits your aerial game because she catches you off-guard when you're jumping in and even if you block it; her offensive transitions are so fast that you can spam with her rapid kicks. These are her signature moves and the kicks followed by fireballs are used by the franchise's spammiest players because Chun-Li's another lightning-quick combatant.
4 GOUKEN
Gouken is the man who taught Ken and Ryu everything they know and he's also the fighter who Akuma views as his eternal rival. It should come as no surprise that his move set would be even more powerful and expansive than his students. His Gohadouken in Super Street Fighter IV is a combo of two fireballs that is hard to escape, while his Sengokushoa Punch can go through projectiles, transitioning him from far-range to close control.
He also uses a Hurricane Kick and Uppercut set that's similar to his students, but what also adds to his edge is Gouken's Kongoshin, which can absorb the opponent's attacks and repel them. As you can see, it doesn't matter what the distance is because Gouken can work with anything. He's not as fast though, but his moves are very powerful and have a wide reach.
3 M. BISON
Bison has caused carnage via the Shadaloo organization, but what really drives him isn't arms and weapons. It's Psycho Power -- seen as the corrupted negative to Rose's Soul Power. Bison's move usually drain a lot too, so even when defending, you're still boxing yourself in as he's another lightning-quick player to use. His Psycho Blast and Psycho Inferno are moves that can be easily repeated against opponents, and they're pretty difficult to nullify.
As of late, we've seen more of his telekinesis moves embedded, but that still doesn't diminish his old-school moves such as the Double Knee Press and the Head Press, which either drill into you from the side or crush you from the top. The latter two were prominently used in the arcade editions of the game, particularly the different Street Fighter II versions such as Championship Edition and Hyper-Fighting.
2 AKUMA
Akuma harnesses the power of the demonic Dark Hadou to make what he learned with Gouken even more destructive. He's always sought limitless power and control, and this is reflected in the video games. His skill-set is similar to Gouken and his students, from the Hurricane Kicks to the Dragon Punches, but his Hadouken fireballs can be tossed while he's in the air, making them tough to evade, especially if multiple ones are shot.
He also uses his Demon Flip and Teleporting Punches to come at you from different sides. Usually fighters spam you with these in order to build to his super-move, the Raging Demon, as they elevate his power-bar quickly. So even if you're blocking, you're still setting yourself up for major damage. He was initially a secret character, but now as of the later editions, Akuma's playable from the onset inciting a lot of spammy action!
1 RYU
Ryu's moves are similar to Ken's and he follows Gouken and Akuma's mold as they were all part of the same martial arts philosophies. He uses the same moves as his training partner, but his Hadouken fireballs are thrown much quicker. With Ryu, you can throw this on repeat and use it to get close to strike up the Hurricane Kick or if the opponent tries to leap in, you can counter with the Dragon Punch uppercut.
A smart but dirty Ryu user would deploy these moves to get close and stick you in the corner so that combos can be deployed. He's just as fast as Ken, but his combos aren't as fluid, so when it comes to special moves, Ryu's the kind of player you can and should be spamming with, because these moves are very effective and drain a lot from your opposition, especially when he's in his Dark Ryu mode.
What other Street Fighter characters do you think are the spammiest? Let us know in the comments!