Ken

"Ken Turns Up The Heat!"

Ken Masters is a playable protagonist of the Street Fighter series, debuting in the 1987 original and appearing in nearly every title since.

He is also a playable character in Nexed, being the Remix Fighter of Ryu.

Real-World History
Much like Ryu, Ken's design took inspiration from real-world karate master Joe Lewis, who was blonde and occasionally wore a red gi, making him resemble Ken. Lewis also inspired Ken's fighting style, with his challenging of traditional martial arts being comparable to the differences between Ken and Ryu's playstyles. Ken was originally meant to be called Yu, but was given his final name due to it meaning "fist". Ken's last name, Masters, was given by Hasbro when various Street Fighter characters were added to the G.I. Joe toyline; It is speculated that the surname was added to eliminate confusion with the Ken character featured in the Barbie toyline from rival company Mattel.

Ken would be redesigned for Street Fighter II, which would remain as his main design until Street Fighter V, which gave the character a new look (though the original design was retained as a costume). Ken is set to get another redesign with the release of the upcoming Street Fighter 6.

While not as popular as Ryu, Ken is a fan-favorite within the Street Fighter fanbase, with him appearing in nearly every game in the series. In addition, he has appeared in numerous crossover titles, such as the Capcom vs. SNK series and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Ken has also appeared in comics, manga, and films based on Street Fighter.

Gameplay Information
"Trained alongside Ryu, Ken has learned many of his friendly rival’s techniques. However, he tends to put his own more extravagant spin on the teachings of Ansatsuken, giving his attacks a fiery style. While he has a more laid-back personality in comparison to Ryu, he is no less of a powerful warrior!

Ever since settling down and becoming a family man, though, Ken has sworn off fighting tournaments. However, he will always make an exception to the rule if Ryu enters a tournament alongside him. As such, as soon as Ken learned of Ryu’s entry into this particular tournament, he was quick to follow!"

Ken, as a Remix Fighter, bears many similarities to Ryu. He is a ground-orientated fighter, being slightly faster in walk and dash speed than Ryu. In addition, Ken inherits Ryu's strong, combo-focused attacks, with the attributes of some moves being changed in order to make combos easier to perform. As such, Ken is just as much of a threat from up close as Ryu is, if not moreso.

However, Ken also shares Ryu's weaknesses; He has low aerial mobility and an inability to "force KOs", making combos a requirement until late percents. In addition to these, Ken's Hadoken is considerably worse than that of Ryu, making his pressure game much weaker. Overall, Ken retains many of his attributes seen in the Street Fighter series.

Differences from Ryu

 * Ken has a slightly higher walk and dash speed in comparison to Ryu.
 * Ken's basic attacks tend to have less lag frames than Ryu's, but worse range and damage.
 * Ken's Hadoken is slower and deals less damage than Ryu's.
 * Ken's Tatsumaki Senpukyaku deals multiple hits of damage, but deals less damage per hit.
 * Ken's Shoryuken is stronger and has two hits, but deals less knockback.
 * The following moves differ entirely from Ryu's: Forward Light, Forward Strong, Counter, Up Air, Back Throw, and all three Nexus Attacks.

Moveset

 * Command Inputs: Each of Ken's special attacks has a command input (a series of button presses) attached to them, resembling the respective inputs from the Street Fighter series. Upon successfully using a command input, Ken will perform the corresponding move, with a visual indicator and different voice clip to indicate the input’s success. However, command inputs do not affect their corresponding moves in any way aside from aesthetical differences.
 * Hadoken: ↓ ↘ → + Attack/Special
 * Tatsumaki Senpukyaku: ↓ ↙ ← + Attack/Special
 * Shoryuken: → ↓ ↘ + Attack/Special
 * Focus Attack: Guard + Attack + Special

Grounded Attacks

 * Jab: Ken throws a quick punch.
 * Dash Attack: Ken throws a flying kick.
 * Forward Light: Ken throws a straight punch.
 * Up Light: Ken throws an elbow strike.
 * Down Light: Ken throws a crouching shin kick.
 * Forward Strong: Ken throws his tsumasaki geri from Super Street Fighter II Turbo.
 * Up Strong: Ken throws an uppercut.
 * Down Strong: Ken throws a leg sweep.
 * Counter: Ken throws a straight punch resembling his forward light attack.

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Air: Ken throws a knee jab.
 * Forward Air: Ken throws a flying kick.
 * Back Air: Ken throws an outside crescent kick.
 * Up Air: Ken throws a straight kick above himself.
 * Down Air: Ken throws a downward angled cross.

Grabs / Throws

 * Grab: Ken grabs the opponent with one hand.
 * Pummel: Ken knees the opponent’s gut.
 * Forward Throw: Ken performs a Judo throw resembling his punch throw in Street Fighter II.
 * Back Throw: Ken performs the Somersault Throw from Street Fighter II, somersaulting twice instead of Ryu’s single somersault.
 * Up Throw: Ken launches the opponent with a stretch kick followed by an axe kick.
 * Down Throw: Ken performs a knifehand strike after pinning the opponent down.

Stage Intro
Ken steps out of a cloudy fog, entering his battle stance while saying "I'm ready for ya! Bring it on!". This resembles his stage intro from the Super Smash Bros. series.

Taunts

 * Ken gives a thumbs-up to the camera while saying “Yeah!”, resembling his win pose from Street Fighter Alpha.
 * Ken bumps his fists together and points forwards while saying “Get serious!”, resembling an animation from Street Fighter IV.
 * Ken beckons the opponent while saying “Come on!”, resembling his intro from Street Fighter IV.
 * Ken shuffles in place.

Victory Animations
Ken's victory theme is the Match End jingle from Street Fighter II, recomposed for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.
 * Ken brushes his hair before giving the camera a thumbs-up and saying “I did it!”
 * Ken punches twice, roundhouse kicks, and finishes with a raised fist, resembling his victory animation from various Street Fighter games.
 * Ken begins with his arms folded, but quickly turns to give the camera a peace sign.

Colors / Costumes


Trivia

 * Ken was the first Remix Fighter to be planned for Nexed, as well as the first one to be added.
 * Ken was originally leaked on the Nexed Discord prior to release.

Gameplay-Related

 * Ken's attacks use hit sounds sourced from Street Fighter as opposed to the standard hit sounds from Nexed.