Ryu

is a fictional character and the protagonist of Capcom's Street Fighter series. Having premiered in the first Street Fighter in 1987, Ryu appears as the game's lead character alongside his best friend and friendly rival Ken Masters. Other games in the series show Ryu to be highly focused on his training, aiming to become the strongest he can. Unable to control his dark nature, Ryu developed two alter egos: , and or simply . He was created by Takashi Nishiyama. Nishiyama's inspiration was the martial artist Mas Oyama. For his second appearance, Ryu's design changed from that of a young fighter to a skilled Karate practitioner. However, because of issues in the making of Street Fighter II he possessed a major weakness within the cast. For the next titles, Ryu's fighting style was modified, so he had different skills with Evil Ryu and Kage possessing more diverse moves. Multiple actors have voiced him both in Japanese and in English. Ryu has been the protagonist of the Street Fighter series since the first game and has appeared as a playable character in several crossover games involving the franchise, including the Marvel vs. Capcom series, Project X Zone and the Super Smash Bros. series. He is also appeared in manga and anime adaptations and the 1994 live-action film. Ryu has become one of gaming's most iconic fighting game characters, but his evil persona has been criticized for retaining most of his regular form's moves. Creation and development