Hadoken

The Hadoken (波動拳, hadouken, "Surge Fist", a Japanese neologism, also "Wave Motion Fist"), sometimes spelled as Hadouken, is a special attack that originated in the classic Capcom fighting video game series, Street Fighter.

Description
It is usually performed by moving the joystick or D-pad a quarter-circle forward towards the opponent from the down position, then pressing a punch button, which is usually written in manuals and guides as "↓↘→P" (assuming a right-facing character).

The basic type of Hadoken is a surge fist in which a fighter's willpower is utilized to focus ki into and through the palms. As the palms are thrust outwards towards the target, a surging energy (or ki) wave is expelled that results in a punching force traveling through the air in the opponent's direction. The user will usually be immobilized for a short time after performing this move, leaving them vulnerable to counterattack. The normal versions do not usually consume the Super Combo Gauge. Also, some Hadoken types give off electrical energy, as shown in the gallery below.

It is referred to colloquially as the "Fireball", even though most versions of the Hadoken do not involve the use of fire. Most versions can be dodged by jumping over them.

Popularity and Influence
The Hadoken is considered the series' most famous attack alongside Shoryuken, and has received a great amount of parodies and references in media (listed Below) The Hadoken itself is often featured in the intros of various Street Fighter games, usually at the end. This trend started from as early as Super Street Fighter II, and has carried on to the recent Super Street Fighter IV.

Takashi Nishiyama, the creator of Street Fighter, credits the 1970's era anime Space Battleship Yamato and a missile called the Hadouho as the origin of the Hadouken.

Different Variants of Hadoken

 * Shakunetsu Hadoken (灼熱波動拳, Shakunetsu Hadoken, "Scorching Surge Fist") – A Hadoken which is imbued with the power of fire. The user can launch from one to three depending on the strength of the punch button. It is also known as the Red Hadoken, and is an actual fireball.Akuma´s version is also called Hell Hadouken in Brazil
 * Shinku Hadoken (真空波動拳, Shinkū Hadoken, "Vacuum Surge Fist") – A super-charged Hadoken that, when executed, can hit the opponent multiple times and destroy other projectiles launched by the opponent. It is much more powerful than a normal Hadoken.
 * Metsu Hadoken (滅波動拳, Metsu Hadouken, "Destruction Surge Fist") – Using the energy of the Satsui no Hadou, Ryu charges a Hadoken that is likely one of the most powerful variants of the move.
 * Gou Hadoken (豪波動拳, Go Hadoken, "Great Surge Fist") – A much more powerful and potentially deadly variant used by those who have fully tapped into the Hadou (either the Satsui no Hado or its toned down counterpart).
 * Messatsu Gou Hado (滅殺豪波動, Messatsu Gou Hadou, "Annihilator Great Surge")  – A more powerful version of the Gou Hadoken, similar to the Shinku Hadoken, that uses massive amounts of the Satsui no Hadou. In Street Fighter III, it is depicted as being a few times larger than a regular Hadouken.
 * Zanku Hadoken (斬空波動拳, Zankuu Hadoken, "Air Slashing Surge Fist") – This is an aerial Hadoken which travels diagonally down and towards the opponent.
 * Tenma Go Zanku (天魔豪斬空, Tenma Gou Zankuu, "Demon's Great Air Slash") – A more powerful version of the Zanku Hadoken.
 * Denjin Hadoken (電刃波動拳, Denjin Hadouken, "Lightning Blade Surge Fist") – A chargeable Hadoken that electrifies the defender, stunning them momentarily.
 * Gorai Hadoken (轟雷波動拳, Roaring Lightning Surge Fist) – An electric Hadoken used by Oni in Super Street Fighter IV.
 * Meido Gohado (冥恫豪波動, Dark Painful Great Surge) – Oni's first Ultra Combo.
 * Ren Hadoken (連波動拳, Chain Surge Fist) - A new variation of the Hadouken developed by Ryu in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. Here, he can fire off five Hadokens in quick succession instead of one.
 * Baku Hadoken (爆波動拳, Bursting Surge Fist) - Another new move developed by Ryu in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. He is able to charge the Hadoken and once he releases it, it vanishes from sight, reappearing a split second in front of the opponent and promptly detonates with explosive force.

Ryu
Ryu focuses more on the Hado principle of the fighting style, which makes him very skilled with his usage of ki. Some of Ryu's powerful attacks are variations of the Hadoken technique. As time progressed, Ryu's version became the most outstanding of its practitioners, with superior speed and recovery time compared to his rivals.

In some games, he has an exclusive "fake-out" Hadoken, executed by doing a quarter circle forward and pressing the taunt button. By doing so, Ryu will simply do the hand thrusting motion for a Hadoken, not firing it.
 * Hadoken
 * Shakunetsu Hadoken
 * Denjin Hadoken
 * Shinku Hadoken
 * Metsu Hadoken
 * Hado no Kamae (Stance of the Surge, a Fake-out Hadoken)
 * Ren Hadoken
 * Baku Hadoken
 * Shin Hadoken

Ken
Ken Masters is also a student of Gouken alongside his partner and best friend Ryu. However, although he possesses the ability to manipulate ki, he has chosen to focus on developing moves & techniques more in line with his speed-oriented fighting style.

In the crossover games, he gains various types of Hadoken, such as the Shinku Hadoken.
 * Hadoken
 * Zanku Hadoken (crossovers)
 * Shinku Hadoken (crossovers)

Evil Ryu/Violent Ken
Both Ryu's and Ken's darker selves have access to many versions of the Hadoken that their normal counterparts have.
 * Hadoken
 * Shakunetsu Hadoken
 * Shinku Hadoken
 * Metsu Hadoken

Akuma
Akuma infuses his Hadokens with the Satsui No Hadou, giving his Hadokens the potential to truly kill an opponent. Akuma is the first to demonstrate the ability to use the Zanku Hadoken. Given the amount of Hadoken variations Akuma can conduct, he appears to be far more proficient in this move than Ryu.
 * Hadoken
 * Shakunetsu Hadoken
 * Messatsu Gou Hado
 * Messatsu Gou Hadou Agyo
 * Messatsu Gou Hadou Ungyo
 * Zanku Hadoken
 * Gou Hadoken
 * Tenma Gou Zankuu
 * Tenma Gou Zankuu Agyo
 * Tenma Gou Zamkuu Ungyo

Cyber Akuma
Cyber Akuma due to his cybernetic enhancements soundly surpasses Akuma in the manipulation of the Ki principle. His Hadokens, dubbed Bolt Hadoken and Zanku Bolt Hadoken are much larger visually, more damaging and have lesser startup and recovery. Like Shin Akuma, he can launch two Zanku (Bolt) Hadokens at once. His variation of the Tenma Gou Zanku, the Thunder Gou Shower sees him send down a barrage of 32 Bolt Hadokens at once. His counterpart to the Messatsu Gou Hado is the High Mega Gou Beam which is more damaging than the original with almost no startup.
 * Bolt Hadoken
 * Zanku Bolt Hadoken
 * Thunder Gou Shower
 * High Mega Gou Beam

Oni
Akuma's Hadoken variants change after his transformation to Oni; he now fires a one-handed Hadoken similair to Gouken, which can also be charged. Oni also possesses the Gorai Hadoken, which replaces the Shakunetsu Hadoken, and is filled with electricity instead of flames.

He also possesses a stronger version of the Messatsu Gou Hadou, called the Meido Gohado. This massive Hadoken can be fired in 3 ways: on the ground, horizontally and vertically, or in the air, at an downward angle. Each variation bears a different name: Meido Gohado (shot straight), Messatsu Gou Tenha (shot upwards), and Messatsu Gou Zankuu, (shot down from air at angle).
 * Gou Hadoken
 * Gorai Hadoken
 * Meido Gohado
 * Messatsu Go Tenha
 * Messatsu Go Zankuu

Sakura
Sakura Kasugano has an imperfect Hadoken, since she is not trained in the Hado-style and instead learned by imitating Ryu. She can charge her Hadoken, though the longer she charges, the shorter it reaches. Even with no charge, the projectile does not go too far. However, the damage they inflict is great. She also has the Nekketsu Hadouken, where she immediately charges the Hadouken with a pink color and fires it with great force and speed.
 * Hadoken
 * Shinku Hadoken
 * Nekketsu Hadouken

Sean
Sean Matsuda appears to have a powerful Hadoken, but it is not fully mastered yet, and he has yet to fully understand how to manipulate ki. Unlike the other fighters, who have the original technique and some variations available for use, Sean has the Hado-Burst Super Art as his only projectile.
 * Hado-Burst

Allen
Allen Snider has a self-developed Hadoken based on Ken's.
 * Soul/Fire Force

Dan
Dan Hibiki uses the Gadouken, which is a move likely based of what little of the move he learned while training under Gouken.He gains the Shinkuu Gadoken with the similarity of a Shinkuu Hadoken except it is a short distance fireball to close range combat. He also gained and advanced the Gadouken, the Haoh Gadouken in Super Street Fighter IV which is similar to Ryu's Super Fireball, and also parodies the Haoh Shokoken used by Ryo in Art of Fighting/The King of Fighters. The distance of a regular Gadouken depends on how strong the punch button was pressed. Also, Dan can use the EX Gadouken, which boosts the range of the blast.
 * Gadouken
 * Shinku Gadouken
 * Haoh Gadoken

Gouken
Gouken deploys Hadokens based on his belief that martial arts were meant for self-defense. He uses only one-handed for his regular Hadoken in Street Fighter IV, (a reference to the "Sheng Long" rumors), and can also fire them straight as well as upwards (depending on the strength of the punch button pressed). His Hadokens can also be charged by holding down a punch button after executing them. The EX version involves him firing two Hadokens at the same time, with one going straight and the other in the air. He does, however use 2 hands for the Denjin Hadoken, in order to control the Hadoken while he charges it before releasing to his opponent.
 * Gou Hadoken
 * Denjin Hadoken

Sprites

 * For more sprites, see: Hadoken/Sprites

Trivia

 * The Hadoken appears very similar to the Kamehameha (Turtle Devastation Wave) from the Dragon Ball series. Both have identical hand movements (the way the hands are placed is slightly different between them), and are fired the same way. They are also similar in apperance (the Kamehameha is a laser-like beam, much like the crossover versions of the Hadoken).
 * In Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter IV, strategy guide writers consider Ryu's Shinku Hadoken and Metsu Hadoken as the best Super Combo and Ultra Combo, respectively.

Other Appearances

 * The Hadouken appears as a taunt attack in Valve's FPS, Team Fortress 2, and is used by the Pyro. If the fireball connects, it instantly kills any enemy player unfortunate enough to be hit. While it is called "Hadoken", technically it is a Shakunetsu Hadoken (as the attack is in itself a melee-range puff of flames that leaves its victims on fire).
 * In episode 33 of the anime Keroro Gunso, the character Tamama uses a parody version of Shinku Hadoken called Shinku Tamamaken; the attack looks exactly the same.
 * In the game Megaman X, if the player collects all items and completes Armored Armadilo's stage 5 times, at the end of the level above the boss door, the player will find a secret capsule in which Dr. Light (dressed as Ryu) will teach X the Hadoken. The way it is performed is the same as in the games. Unlike the usual Hadouken from the Street Fighter Series, it is quite lethal, as it can kill all bosses in one hit, although X will need to be at full health in order to use it.
 * In the Nexon-imported game Dungeon Fighter, the Fighter possesses a Hadoken-like move, Nen Blast, that uses the same command as Hadoken. This could be seen as a nod to the legacy of the attack.
 * In the Super Smash Bros. series, both Mewtwo and Lucario's Standard Special Moves (Shadow Ball and Aura Sphere, respectively) seem to resemble the Denjin Hadouken, both in pose and projectile.
 * In a reputable comic series inspired by Smash Bros., Kirby can use Hadouken after "copying" Snake, and shaving his beard, leaving his headband. His headband resembles Ryu/Ken's.
 * In the popular MMORPG World of Warcraft, the Troll's spell-casting animation mirrors the Hadouken.
 * In the Worms game series, there is an attack called the "Fireball" (later renamed as "Dragonball"), which is a clear parody of the Hadouken.
 * In Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time, Dr. Nefarious played a game where he used a attack which parodies the Hadoken.
 * In Killer Instinct and Killer Instinct 2, the character Jago uses an attack that is respectively similar to the Hadoken, called Endokuken.
 * In the game The Adventures of Dr. Franken, Franky uses a fireball projectile that greatly resembles the Hadoken. He also uses similar-looking Sonic Boom and Flash Kick-like moves. This can be at seen at 2:54 in this video.
 * The Kirby series of games has a Fighter ability that allows Kirby to use a fireball that resembles the Hadoken, and even wears a headband as a tribute to Ryu.
 * To go even further, in "Kirby's Return to Dreamland" pressing down, forward, and then "1" on the Wiimote, Kirby can perform an instant fireball. This is similar to the actual move's activation.
 * A band, Hadoken!, is named after the move.
 * The Angry Video Game Nerd uses the Hadoken various times while fighting the Nostalgia Critic.
 * Dark Jak's "Dark Strike" move is used in a similar way to a Denjin Hadoken; Jak charges dark energy, with dark sparks being created, and mimics the hand thrust of the Hadoken fireball being released. However, the Dark Charge projectile itself is two dark-powered fireballs twirling at once.
 * In the webcomic 8-bit theater, created by Brian Clevinger, the character Black Mage uses the Hadoken to deal massive amounts of damage to different enemies. The move looks like a steady stream, similar to one of Akuma's. It is used as a clear parody.
 * In Final Fantasy VI, one of Sabin's Blitzes, "Aura Cannon", has the same button commands as the Hadoken, and is visually similar to the crossover variant.
 * In a recent Saints Row: The Third clip called Saints Flow, Pierce uses a move similar to the Shakunetsu Hadouken at one point. There is also a taunt named "Quarter circle forward + A" in the game, and it does a stance similar to a Hadouken.
 * In Call of Duty: Black Ops, Takeo, the stereotypical Japanese character from the Zombies mode, will yell "Hadoken!" at certain times in the game (usually when he gets a gun that shoots electricity, which is unavailable most of the time). In one of the maps, Kino Der Toten, it's a quote that didn't make it into the final version of that map, but it's hidden within the files on the disc. In other maps, he actually does say the quote, though very rarely.
 * In one of the episodes of "Random Cartoons!",in the short: Hero Heights, Brainiac does a move similar to the Shinku Hadoken.He yells out: HADAYUKEN!