Akuma

"My name is Akuma! The supreme master of the fist!"

- Akuma

Akuma (悪魔 or アクマ, "Demon, Devil"), known in Japan as Gouki (豪鬼, Gōki, "Great Devil", "Great Demon" or "Great Ogre"), is a popular fighter as well as a popular villain in the Street Fighter series and UDON comics. He is known as "The Supreme Master of the Fist."

Originally appearing in Super Street Fighter II Turbo as a secret character and hidden boss, he is Gouken's younger brother and Ryu's adoptive uncle. Akuma is voiced by Tomomichi Nishimura in all of Capcom's 2D Games; in Street Fighter IV, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Street Fighter X Tekken he is voiced by Taketora.

Appearance
Akuma/Gouki usually wears a black gi, but varies in the series (occasionally displayed as blue in artwork). He has red hair, sharp, pointed teeth, and is often bare-footed, though some games have him wearing brown sandals. He has tanned skin and crimson eyes, and wears his deceased master Goutetsu's prayer beads around his neck, with a visible black "heaven" (天, ten) kanji on the center bead in some video games. He is seen with a black belt around on his gi, which is replaced as of Street Fighter III  by a tightened rope around his gi. On the back of his gi, he has a red "heaven" (天, ten) kanji that sometimes appears glowing during certain win poses. During the Street Fighter III series, his hair is beginning to gray, hinting that Akuma, while seemingly inhuman, is still physically aging.

Personality
Akuma is a cold and extremely powerful warrior whose sole purpose of existence is to hone his fighting skills by battling and destroying strong foes. He rarely displays any sign of emotions, aside from occasional bursts of anger, and almost never smiles. He takes his training very seriously, and deals brutally with those who dare interrupt him, as seen in his Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike ending. Occasionally, he likes to test himself against worthy rivals (e.g. Gen, Oro). In combat, Akuma almost never resorts to his true strength since he is yet to find an opponent who is to withstand the full extent of his powers.

Akuma detests his brother Gouken for not giving in to the dark side of their arts which is, according to Akuma, the way they were intended to be used. He also blames Gouken for sealing off the darkness within Ryu thus preventing Ryu from reaching his true potential. This forces Akuma to give up on his planned duel with Ryu as he believes that only a fellow practitioner of Satsui no Hado can one day hope to defeat him.

Akuma refers to himself as a 'denizen of hell' and 'evil incarnate', and is seen as such by many. This may be a result of the Satsui no Hado ("Surge of Murderous Intent") taking a toll on his mind.

Moral Code
Most of the time, Akuma abides by the code of the warrior. He fights to improve his skills, defeat powerful foes, or - on rare occasion - to gauge the other's abilities. Although he killed his teacher and believed he did the same with his brother (Gouken), Akuma did so in combat, and thus can be said to have not transgressed on his principles. He fights only warriors that he deems worthy, or the ones he believes have the potential to become the best. He backed out of a duel with Gen once he found out that Gen is fatally ill. During the events of Street Fighter Alpha 2, Akuma fought Ryu only to gain insight on Ryu's abilities, while during 3rd Strike, he faced Oro in order to test his own strength.

Although Akuma usually prefers an even bout, it is not uncommon for him to deliver a lethal sneak attack at an unprepared opponent (as he did with Bison, Gill and Adon's unnamed rival). The purpose of this can perhaps be found in the evil nature of Satsui no Hado itself, which may have corrupted Akuma's ways.

Pre-Alpha
Akuma and his brother Gouken were students of Goutetsu. Goutetsu taught a nameless life-threatening martial art, which incorporates elements of Karate, Judo, and Kempo. He also taught the Shun Goku Satsu (literally Instant Hell Murder), a lethal technique which, although incredibly powerful, puts the user in considerable danger.

As the brothers progressed under Goutetsu's tutelage, a dispute arose on the true nature of their fighting style and the path to master it. Gouken, unable to accept the violent nature and the Satsui no Hado of his fighting style, left Goutetsu to begin his own dojo, which Goutetsu did not oppose. Akuma continued Goutetsu's teachings, and vowed to use their fighting style as it was intended.

In order to learn Shun Goku Satsu, Akuma embraced the principle of Satsui no Hado, and was forced to give up any compassion he held towards other human beings. In addition, Akuma realized his limits as a martial artist could be expanded, and left Goutetsu's guidance of enlightenment to train alone to gain more power. However, due to embracing the Satsui no Hado to his fullest extent, he developed a lust to fight to the death, unlike Goutetsu, who had been able to use the Satsui no Hado without giving in to its dark side.

After coming back from his island, Akuma went back to Goutetsu, and fought him. Akuma killed him with the Shun Goku Satsu and, believing that he was the true master of the Art, took the prayer beads of his dead master and placed it on his neck. Gouken came to visit his former master to see how he was doing, only to find his lifeless body and his brother, now no longer human. Gouken, shocked to see that his younger brother took the life of their master, berated Akuma, who said nothing and left for the woods.

Many years later, Akuma fought Gouken, while the then-young duo of Ryu and Ken watched. Akuma told Gouken that he was not strong enough to face him without giving in the killing intent; Gouken retorted that the art was much more then just death and destruction, accusing Akuma of dishonoring their master's name. Akuma told his brother that Goutetsu did not truly understand the art, and that he was a fool for not using the Satsui no Hado to its fullest extent. The fight continued, and Gouken won. Akuma told his brother to kill him, but Gouken had no intention of murdering his own kin, prompting Akuma to call him weak for sparing the life of a strong opponent and declare that he would return.

A couple of years later, Akuma came back to Gouken's dojo and fought him in battle, using the Shun Goku Satsu on him. Akuma believed him dead, not knowing that Gouken had somehow lived through the attack by emptying his soul, and was only in a coma. Ken saw the flash of the attack while running to the dojo, but arrived only to find Gouken on the floor. Knowing who was behind this, Ken confronted Akuma in the woods and fought him, only to be defeated. After defeating Ken, Akuma disappeared without a trace.

Street Fighter Alpha
Akuma only appears as a secret character only playable via random fighter at the character selection screen. He shares his moveset with Ryu and Ken. In his retconned ending, he defeats Bison claiming his quest was complete, though he feels empty. Gouken is seen in the background of his ending, as one of the people who fear and oppose him.

Street Fighter Alpha 2
Akuma begins to search the globe looking for worthy fighters to challenge. Secluding himself in the shadows, he watches small tournaments and street fights, desperately seeking someone who might be able to match his strength. He is eventually challenged by a man named Gen. Gen fights a vicious battle, even surviving the Shun Goku Satsu by emptying his soul in time. Just as Akuma begins to wonder whether this man is the worthy opponent he's searching for, he begins to sense not all is as it seems. When Gen's mouth begins to bleed, Akuma's suspicions are confirmed: his opponent is sick, and the fight is not fair. After being knocked to the ground, Gen tells Akuma to kill him. Not wanting to carry the fight on any longer, Akuma leaves, infuriating Gen. After the fight, Akuma becomes obsessed with Ryu, hoping to awaken the Satsui no Hado within his prey.

Ryu eventually finds Akuma's island (known as Onigami Isle or the Gokuentou) and challenges him. The intense battle ended with Ryu gaining the upper hand; in truth, Akuma was only testing him. Akuma regains composure and tells Ryu to find him again when he has embraced the Satsui no Hado, before striking the ground with a powerful blow and disappearing. The island falls apart around Ryu, who is left in the ocean to contemplate Akuma's words. Leaving his destroyed abode, Akuma thinks about all the fighters he has encountered, and wonders with excitement if one day he will fight someone strong enough to kill him in battle. This thought drives him on; finding a desolate cavern (also known as Kiga Cave), he begins to train anew and await the day when he will fight Ryu again. At some point, he defeats and kills a Muay Thai fighter who was about to challenge the champion, Adon. Adon sees this as a challenge and sets out to find Akuma, to fight him and prove that he is stronger.

In his ending, he comes to the realization that worthy opponents have challenged him during his journey. He decides that he could stay on Earth to perfect his killing power, knowing that there are opponents that Akuma can consider worthy. While thinking about the opponents he challenged, there are visions of Gen, M. Bison and Ryu on the moon. He then comments that he will be the next to die.

Street Fighter Alpha 3
While waiting for Ryu to embrace the Satsui no Hado, Akuma wanders the globe in search of worthy opposition. He is confronted by Adon, who wishes to establish his fighting style as supreme. Akuma easily wins but, instead of killing Adon, he just leaves apparently deeming his defeated foe as an unworthy. Sometime later, Akuma is challenged by M. Bison. Akuma, unable to sense Bison's massive chi (which was at the time channeled through Psycho Drive), attacks, convinced of an easy victory. He employs Shun Goku Satsu; however, the technique tears the very fabric of the victim's soul, and Bison, having no soul, withstands this move without so much as flinching, and counters.

Unfamiliar with his opponent's true strength, Akuma is caught off guard and ends up being easily overpowered by Bison, who mocks him before leaving. Akuma then encounters Gen once more and fights a second battle (the results of the fight are unknown). However, unbeknownst to Akuma, Ryu rejects the Satsui no Hado while battling the Shadaloo leader, M. Bison, declaring that a true warrior does not rely on violent intent.

Super Street Fighter II Turbo
Akuma did not officially enter the second World Warrior tournament, but did monitor the events that took place during it in hope of finding an adequate challenge. Prior to the final itself, he ambushed the host, M. Bison, and made short work of him with the Shun Goku Satsu. Bison, who was forced to merge with a part of his expelled soul in order to survive the epilogue of Alpha 3, is no longer impervious to this move, gets obliterated in an instant. Akuma then engages in combat with the second finalist but the identity of this warrior, as well as the outcome of the bout, remains unknown.

Super Street Fighter IV
During the events of Seth's tournament, he continues his training, and senses the Satsui no Hado reemerging within Ryu. Immediately, he sets off to find Ryu and help him realize this power so he can try to kill him in battle. Like the other tournaments, Akuma does not officially enter, but stays in the shadows. Eventually, he finds an unconscious Ryu in the care of his brother Gouken. Akuma noticed that his brother has perfected the Mu No Ken (Empty Fist). The two brothers fought, with Ryu being the prize. Both survived their fight, and Ryu was saved by Gouken. Akuma continued his training and his search for a worthy opponent to match his own.

Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact
As with the second World Warrior tournament, Akuma did not enter the third World Warrior tournament, but once more lurked in the shadows. He even successfully pulled off a Shun Goku Satsu on the tournament sponsor Gill, although he left without realizing that Gill had resurrected himself. Over this time-span, Akuma had trained relentlessly until finally harnessing his power and learning several new techniques; some were meant to create tidal waves, other were described as strong enough to split Uluru (Ayers Rock) in half, and one could kill an opponent with a single strike. One such self-taught technique is called the Kongou Kokuretsuzan, in which Akuma channels all his power into one hand and smashes it into the ground, creating a vortex of energy upward around him. It is supposedly this technique that was used to destroy his original training ground.

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike
Akuma continued to develop his now-incredible fighting skill, and even fought with Oro in a simple, inconclusive battle, with each other sensing the other's massive chi and testing their powers. Though mutually impressed by each others power, both men expressed some contempt for the other on a personal basis.

It is also revealed that Akuma has now demonstrated the ability to remain underwater under massive pressure for extended periods of time, and has even managed to make his Tensho Kaireki Jin technique powerful enough to destroy a naval submarine.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds
Akuma appears as one of the four secret characters in the game. In his ending, he is shown to have defeated Galactus as well as many other warriors from the "other dimension" that stood in his path. Seeing as how the "Planet Eater" himself could not defeat him, Akuma decides not to wait for strong opponents to appear, but rather to seek them out. In Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, he also appears in Dormammu's ending, as one of the Capcom villains opposing the dimentional overlord's advances on the Capcom universe. He also shows up in Ryu's ending where Ryu, who has recently been appointed as Iron Fist's successor, defeats Akuma with the same arts that Akuma mocked in his dialogue towards Iron Fist.

Street Fighter X Tekken
Akuma appears in this crossover as a playable character and as one of the final bosses, with his Tekken counterpart being Ogre. In his story, he hears voices from within that become clearer as a meteorite comes crashing into the Antarctica. When it finally impacts, he reappears at the Antarctic, seeing the Pandora as a "new era of chaos" as fighters from all over the world are gathering together to find it. Unlike most characters, he has two Super Arts; his signature Raging Demon and the Misogi, a move that has not been seen since the Vs. SNK games. His Cross Art is the Tenma Shuretto, a descending slicing chop also making its return from the Vs. SNK games. His DLC costume is Heihachi Mishima's infamous outfit from Tekken 4. In his ending, Akuma approaches the Pandora but when it opens, it manifests a Pandora version of Oni before him. Recognizing this form as a raging shadow of himself, he moves in to attack. He also appears in Steve and Hwoarang's ending where Pandora summons an army of Akumas in response to Hwoarang's overconfidence, all of them attacking at once with the Raging Demon.

Asura's Wrath
Akuma, along with Ryu, both made their appearances in Capcom and CyberConnect2's collaborative beat-em-up title, Asura's Wrath. Akuma appears as a DLC-only character with his own fleshed out episode titled The Strongest vs. The Angriest. Much like Ryu's episode, it uses the Super Street Fighter IV engine while shifting to the traditional battle system for the second half.

The story picks up after the Ryu's episode, where Akuma suddenly appears to Asura. To prevent distractions, Akuma immediately executes the Demon Armageddon on Ryu, but instead of piercing him, he launches him so hard that flies through a wormhole back to his original timeline. When Akuma learns of Asura's name, he seems to be very familiar with the deity's background as a being of wrath and challenges him.

Akuma retains his moves from Super Street Fighter IV, and switches Ultras between matches. The Wrath of the Raging Demon can be countered through a Quick Time Event. At the end of the first half, he pushed back and the Onigami takes over, transforming into Oni, starting the second half.

At the end of the battle, Asura and Akuma continue to fight, with the fight apparently lasting for 500 years. In the timeskip, both combatants are still facing each other in a standstill and have turned to stone with developing moss. Eventually, both statues begin to move at last to finally finish the fight, ending in a cliffhanger.

Other Appearances
Akuma appear in Street Fighter Alpah: The Animation and Street Fighter Alpah: Generations.
 * Akuma appears in the Marvel-licensed Capcom fighting game, X-Men: Children of the Atom as a secret character, as well as Marvel Super Heroes as a cameo in one of Anita's (of Darkstalkers series) special moves. An original variation called Cyber Akuma (Mech Gouki in Japan) appears in Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter as the game's final boss. Like the Shin Akuma version of the character, Cyber Akuma is more powerful than the regular Akuma, possesses the greatest attack and defense of any character in the game, and is extremely fast. He can used after beating the game without using continues on the home consoles. Highlight Akuma on the Character Select screen, press the Select button six times, and press the high punch button, Cyber Akuma will now be playable. He can't use a partner, but is so powerful that he can easily win without one. All of Cyber Akuma's super moves are Level 1, including the Shining Gou Shock.
 * In "SNK vs Capcom: SvC Chaos" Akuma's ending shows him ascending to the Heavens, and seeing he has not found a worthy foe on the mortal plane of existence, proceeds to challenge God himself - although he is surprised to find him in the form of an old man, drinking tea in his Living Room.
 * Akuma also makes a semi-appearance in Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness as Zero Gouki.
 * Akuma appears in the arcade versions of Street Fighter: The Movie as a regular character. He also appears in the console versions of Street Fighter: The Movie as an secret boss who can be selected via a cheat code.
 * Akuma appears in Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, sitting against a wall in Calcutta.
 * Akuma also makes cameo appearances in many of the episodes of Street Fighter II V, often in the background interacting with the population.
 * Joey Ansah played Akuma in Street Fighter: Legacy, which he co-directed with Owen Trevor.
 * Akuma will appear in Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist with Gaku Space as Gouki.

Appearances in popular culture

 * Akuma can be created in Mortal Kombat Armageddon's Kreate-A-Fighter mode. His hair is listed as "Demon" in the game.
 * Akuma also made an appearance in South Park "Imaginationland Episode II" on the evil side of Imaginationland.

Gameplay
As a computer-controlled opponent in most games (e.g. Super Street Fighter II Turbo), Akuma is even more powerful, faster, and more durable in comparison, usually only appearing as a final or hidden boss. In his "playable" from, he is usually saddled with extremely low stamina, turning him into a "glass cannon". From 3rd Strike on, he has an extremely short stun meter as well. This reflects his personality, as Akuma often holds back his power so as to give his opponents a fighting chance; when fought as a secret boss, Akuma effectively deems the player's character worthy, and powers up accordingly.

Fighting Style
Having mastered the original form of the unnamed "Shotokan" art, Akuma has the same moves as Ryu and Ken, only much faster and more damaging. His Gohadoken can be used in midair as well. His Tatsumaki Zankukyaku knocks the opponent down instantly and can also juggle. His Goshoryuken knocks down his opponent at the first hit, lands 3 hits up close, and can also juggle with a single use in certain instances.

Due to embracing the Satsui no Hado, Akuma has other special moves that Ryu and Ken normally lack. The Ashura Senku is a teleport move with very short start-up and recovery, which allows him to escape a corner almost at will. The Tenmakujinkyaku is a downwards-angled kick that he can use at the peak of his jumps; it is very fast, hard to punish, and allows for combos afterward. The Hyakkishu is a flip attack, similar to Cammy's Hooligan Combination, that allows Akuma to either attack or grab an opponent while moving forward. He also has the Zenpou Tenshin in the Alpha games, which makes him hop and roll forward a short distance.

Super Combos/Ultra Combos
Akuma's Super Combos, introduced in the Alpha series (for reasons explained below) consist of a high-powered Gohadoken, a powered-up Zanku Hadoken, a Shoryuken-based move similar to Ken's Shoryureppa without the scorching effect, and an upward-spiraling Tatsumaki. Akuma's most well known Super Combo is the Shun Goku Satsu, also known as the Raging Demon; it is traditionally one of the strongest attacks in any game Akuma appears in.

Two more moves are introduced in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike and the Capcom vs. SNK series: the Kongou Kokuretsuzan has Akuma strike the ground hard, generating lightning and waves of energy, and the Misogi, where he performing a homing teleport directly above the opponent and delivers a fierce descending strike.

In 3rd Strike, Akuma is the only other character to possess more than 3 Super Arts AND have 3 of them usable during a match; Ibuki has four Super Arts in total, while Gill can also use his three Arts in a single match, though the other two are unusable after Resurrection. Akuma is also one of two characters without any EX Specials in the series, with the other being Gill.

In Street Fighter IV, he has the Wrath of the Raging Demon (真・瞬獄殺, Shin Shun Goku Satsu, "True Instant Hell Murder") as his Ultra Combo. In Super Street Fighter IV, Akuma has a second Ultra Combo: an extremely powerful Tatsumaki-based move known as Demon Armageddon. Its Japanese name, Tenshou Kaireki Jin, reveals it to be the attack that Akuma would perfect into the submarine-destroying technique shown in 3rd Strike.

Balance Issues
In Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Akuma is banned in U.S. tournaments, and soft-banned (i.e. not used on 'principle' as opposed to being officially unusuable) in Japanese tournaments. This is a result of the fact that Akuma was initially designed to be extremely powerful; such power is potentially reflected in his lack of a Super Combo at that point. As explained previously, Turbo HD Remix attempted to make this version of Akuma more playable by lowering his stamina, giving the Zanku Hadoken a 'blowback' effect, and adding a much weaker Shun Goku Satsu as his Super Combo.

Stage Theme

 * Street Fighter II Theme of Akuma - CPS1
 * Super Street Fighter II Theme of Akuma - CPS2
 * Super/Hyper Street Fighter II Theme of Akuma - 3DO
 * Street Fighter Alpha Theme of Akuma
 * Street Fighter III Theme of Akuma
 * Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition Theme of Akuma
 * Street Fighter IV Theme of Akuma

Trivia

 * In the non-canon animation Street Fighter Alpha: Generations, it is implied that Akuma is Ryu's biological father.
 * In UDON comics Akuma's storyline is rather faithful to the one established in the video games, however it does provide a few interesting twists. Although Akuma is presented as one of the mightiest characters in the Street Fighter universe (staying true to his video game status), in the comic book storyline a few warriors were shown being capable of taking him out or at least able to stand their ground against him. Gouken has managed to defeat him the first time Akuma appeared to challange him. However, the second time around, he was not so lucky, as Satsui No Hado fueled Akuma proved to be too powerful. Gen is also one of the selected few that managed to repeat Gouken's feat. In a duel of fighters both powered by Murderous Intent, Gen's experience proved to be a deciding factor as he striked down Akuma with one of his deadliest techniques. Surprisingly, Akuma survives but is badly injured and at the Gen's mercy. Intrigued by the level of skill displayed by his opponent, Gen spares his life and agrees to a rematch once Akuma has fully mastered the Dark Hadou. This event causes Akuma to grow an utmost respect for Gen's fighting abilities. Their second bout, however, is in the shadow of Gen's illness. After a single, deadly clash Akuma and Gen forever part their ways while paying respect to each other. Soon afterwards, as a result of this brief encounter, Gen collapses and dies. In the final of World Warrior tournament, Akuma faces M. Bison but neither is able to gain upper hand until Psycho Drive, the device that poweres Bison, is destroyed by other street fighters. In the final battle, Akuma is defeated by Satsui No Hado consumed Ryu. Ryu manages to regain his senses in time to spare Akuma's life refusing to dishonor the memory of his late master by giving in to the darkness. Enraged Akuma is then stopped by Gouken, however Gouken's appearance might as well be attributed to Ryu having hallucinations caused by smoke and toxic vapors (courtesy of Shadaloo island disappearing in an eruption of a volcano).
 * Akuma has many cameo appearances in the anime series Street Fighter II V. See all appearances in this link.
 * In the Street Fighter IV games, he is the only character to possess an Ultra Combo that doesn't require all three kicks or punches.
 * Akuma and Fei Long are the only characters not to appear in the live action movie. Akuma did, however, make it into the game based on the movie.
 * The kanji 天 (ten) that appears on the back of Akuma's gi top takes on a different shape between the original Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV. The top stroke of the kanji is more narrow in Super Street Fighter IV than in the original. The kanji may have taken this shape due to Akuma's 2nd alternate using the exact same new shape on the back.
 * Capcom USA initially claimed Akuma was possessed by a demon, but this is considered non-canonical. The character's name change from Gouki to Akuma (the Japanese and American names, respectively) reflects Capcom USA's attempt to accentuate the demonic nature. The word Akuma (悪魔, Akuma) means "devil" in Japanese.
 * Akuma's appearance resembles that of a Nio, the pair of guardians that symbolically protects Buddhist temples against negative influences.
 * Akuma's character design may also be based off the Zodd the Immortal from the Manga Berserk. Both character's share very similar appearances and are always willing to fight a worthy opponent to the death.

Quotes

 * See Akuma/Quotes.

Movelists

 * Akuma's moves in the Street Fighter II series
 * Akuma's moves in Super Street Fighter II Turbo: HD Remix
 * Akuma's moves in Street Fighter: The Movie (the arcade version)
 * Akuma's moves in Street Fighter: The Movie (the console version)
 * Akuma's moves in Street Fighter Alpha 3
 * Akuma's moves in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike
 * Akuma's moves in Street Fighter IV
 * Akuma's moves in Super Street Fighter IV