The angry demon of Akuma (also known as INSTANT MURDER IN PRISON (if translated directly from Japanese, how awesome is that?) might very well be the most famous super in the Street Fighter series, despite not being usable until the Alpha games came out. I have fond memories of destroying my cousin repeatedly with this move in Alpha 3, and I’m happy to say that I’ll be able to make him relive that terror again when Akuma debuts in Street Fighter 6 soon.
Following up on their Akuma cinematic teaser last month, Capcom released a gameplay trailer showing off the infamous shoto, and it delivers what you’d expect, namely the traditional shoto gameplay you’re used to (i.e. fireballs, round houses , heavy blows, etc.), but with Akuma’s mostly standard spins, thanks in part to more air-based options (the aerial fireball doesn’t seem any less painful to deal with now than it did 20+ years ago) .
I found myself looking at the pictures and saying, “Do it!” only for the trailer to seemingly stop. Luckily, the dastardly folks at Capcom saved the best for last and snuck in Raging Demon at the end.
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In previous games, Raging Demon starts off as a simple forward teleport into a soul-destroying grab combo, and that’s preserved here, but it’s made even more badass thanks to modern cinematic production values. While in past iterations it was cool to simply watch the screen go black and my victim get wiped out as mysterious (at least to my non-Japanese speaking self) symbols appeared on the screen, Capcom has taken it up a notch here. Watching poor Ryu struggle to understand what the hell is going on while he’s surrounded by over 20 Akumas who tell him to “become the Demon” right before pulverizing him is truly a sight to behold.
I’m looking forward to the inevitable Akuma takeover when it drops on May 22nd.
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