Street Fighter's Akuma Invades Tekken 7 Roster

Akuma is here to 'repay a debt'. By Michael Martin

Last night, Bandai Namco dropped a fighting game bombshell when it revealed one of the most popular Street Fighter characters has joined the Tekken 7 roster.

Akuma, or Gouki as he is known as in Japan, is coming in the latest update of the 3D fighter, Tekken 7: Fated Retribution.

Bandai Namco released a trailer that shows series’ antagonist Heihachi Mishima’s wife Kazumi, who is also playable and she throws tigers, pleading with a shadowy figure to promise to kill Heihachi if she dies. He in turn promises to “repay a debt” to her.

The trailer cuts a recognizable silhouette, revealing Akuma from the backside with his trademark “Ten” kanji. It then proceeds to show a montage of Akuma’s classic Street Fighter moves and combos, including dragon punches, hurricane kicks, ground and air fireballs, and his Shun Goku Satsu, or Raging Demon.

You might recall Bandai Namco announced a crossover fighting game, Tekken x Street Fighter, way back in 2010 at the same time Capcom’s Street Fighter x Tekken was announced at SDCC. Street Fighter x Tekken was released in March 2012, while the Bandai Namco crossover is still allegedly in the works.

Tekken boss Katsuhiro Harada’s last update on Tekken x Street Fighter was the game is “pretty far into development” but in that time Tekken 7 has been released in Japanese arcades and is coming to consoles, including PlayStation VR.

While a Tekken crossover with Street Fighter could still happen, adding Akuma into Tekken 7 is a big first step to showing how Bandai Namco would handle Street Fighter characters in the 3D style of gameplay and apparently within its storylines, assuming the Fated Retribution is canon.

Akuma has been a long-time antagonist in the Street Fighter series, having trained with Gouken, Ken and Ryu's master, in the Shotokan style of karate and embracing the demonic force known as Satsui no Hado. He has been a guest in multiple fighting games and appeared in the Street Fighter EX series, a 3D fighting game series developed by Arika.

Last year was the 20th anniversary of Tekken. The series debuted in arcades and on the original PlayStation. The storyline centers on a rather angry clan of Mishimas who like to throw each other in live volcanoes, and the fighters trying to stop the Mishima Zaibatsu, a corporation owned by the Mishima clan, from taking over the world.

Michael Martin is a full-time freelance writer and former Tekken player who is ready to get back into the fight with Tekken 7. Follow him on Twitter @Bizarro_Mike.

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