Taunt

Yun's taunt in the Street Fighter III games.

The taunt is a mechanic introduced in the Street Fighter Alpha series.

Input

Appearance	Input
Street Fighter Alpha series
Street Fighter III series Street Fighter IV series	+
Street Fighter V	+

Description

Taunts are usually harmless actions that can only be performed on the ground, with the major exception of Dan. Though taunts are often done to mock or annoy the foe, some can actually hit them (though there is little, if any, damage in some cases), making them potentially useful combo starters. Depending on the taunt used, the player might not be able to cancel out of it, leaving them open to attack if timed badly.

The buttons used for taunting are sometimes "extra"/unused buttons found in the control scheme. Taunts generally aren't used very often due to the fast pacing of the games, where the taunter is often open for counter-attack.

Street Fighter Alpha series

This series is the first to feature taunts, and also makes it possible to knock out a foe with certain taunts while said opponent has extremely low health (e.g. Chun-Li's, Sodom's and Akuma's in SFA2 Gold), which grants a point bonus. Each character has one taunt animation that can only be performed once per round - again with the exception of Dan (explained below). In Alpha 3, taunts are exclusive to a character's A-ISM.

Dan

Dan's taunts (the default one is shown here) have become very famous ever since his introduction in this series. Being a joke character, he has many unique attributes to his taunting. For one, he has a unique taunt for standing, ducking, and even an aerial taunt. Dan also has a special move that involves a taunt, Roll Taunt. Finally, Dan has an entire Super Combo centered around his taunts, called Legendary Taunt.

List

To see a list of the taunts in this series, click here.

Street Fighter EX series

The Street Fighter EX series discards taunts as an universal mechanic. However, some characters are still able to perform taunts via specific button combinations, as if they were special moves. If a damaging taunt is used to KO an opponent, the same flash seen during special move finishes will appear.

List

The following characters can perform taunts in the EX series:

• Skullomania
• Dhalsim
• Sakura
• Chun-Li (from EX2 on)
• Shadowgeist
• Area

Additionally, Evil Ryu may sometimes taunt the player during trials in Street Fighter EX Plus α, but the player cannot taunt when using him.

Street Fighter III series

The Street Fighter III series gave all taunts in-game effects that can actually impact a player's strategy, listed below. The game also introduces alternate taunts, which are available to certain characters, and are usually performed by holding the buttons on input instead of tapping. Damage increases granted by taunts only apply to the next attack that hits or is blocked; all other effects last for the duration of the current round.

Several of the taunts can hit opponents, meaning that they can usually be parried, used to start combos, and can also fill the Super Art Gauge slightly.

List

To see a list of the taunts and their effects, click here.

Street Fighter IV series

Taunts are referred to in the Street Fighter IV series as Personal Actions. All characters have 10 each, from which they can pick one when selecting their character, or else select none if so desired. Initially, only 2 are available; playing matches in Arcade and Versus Mode with each character will unlock more.

Personal actions can be performed at any time during the match by pressing heavy punch and heavy kick. As opposed to the previous series, Personal Actions do not affect stats, although many of them can be canceled into various moves. Some characters have unique attack commands that use the taunt buttons to produce certain effects, such as the Victory Rose and Shades of Glory. Some others, including Dan's aerial taunt, can hit the foe for minimal damage. Other taunts can alter hit boxes; one of El Fuerte's personal actions has him crouch and face the screen, allowing most projectiles to pass over him. Adon's first taunt makes him jump in the air, which also lets him dodge mid and low attacks with proper timing.

List

To see a list of the personal actions in the Street Fighter IV games, click here.