Shoryuken

Shoryuken (昇龍拳, Shōryūken, "Rising Dragon Fist") is a fictional special attack in the Street Fighter series which is, according to the current storyline, developed by one of the story characters named Goutetsu, the creator of the fictional martial art branch Ansatsuken. The move is depicted as an upward punch while the user spins, launching the into the air while landing multiple hits.

Background

In the Goutetsu style of Ansatsuken, the Shoryuken was intended to kill anyone in one stroke. However in the Ansatsuken style of Gouken (the mentor of Street Fighter's main character Ryu), the Shoryuken was meant to bring defeat in one move, even without the Shoryuken's "initial killing touch" (hence its original billing as a "sure killing technique"). It is colloquially referred to as the "Dragon Punch".

Up until Super Street Fighter II Turbo, the Shoryuken was invincible all the way up, and was only vulnerable on the way down. Since then, the properties of the Shoryuken have differed from game to game, but most of them have substantial invincibility at the very beginning of the move.

Method

The player performs the Shoryuken in the games by using a combination of joystick directions, followed by any punch button. The strength of the punch decides the height, damage and in some cases the invincibility of the Shoryuken. The correct sequence is forward, down, down-forward and punch (→↓↘P in many manuals in guides, which assume the character is facing right for the sake of brevity). This sequence is often termed the "dragon punch motion" or "shoryuken motion" when used for other unrelated moves (and for other game series as well). Most variations of the Shoryuken have invincibility upon starting up, meaning they cannot be hit or beaten out of it until it has finished its peak. However, its invincibility is traded off with extreme vulnerability once the character starts to descend. They can be hit with almost anything on their descent or as soon as they touch the ground. Therefore, although the move is extremely useful, it can just as easily backfire if used inappropriately.

In the Street Fighter universe, the Shoryuken is performed when the practitioner concentrates all of his or her ki in the legs and striking fist, and jumps into the air fist-first in an upward spiraling motion. It is devastating to the opponent while ascending, but the practitioner is vulnerable when descending. It was originally a move designed to kill an opponent when well-placed, but Gouken later tailored the Shoryuken to be a potent move without the killing touch.

Variations of Shoryuken

Shoryuken (昇龍拳, shōryūken, "Rising Dragon Fist") - a spiraling punch, moving in an upward arc. The Shoryuken is invincible while the fist is rising, but the practitioner is vulnerable to counterattack when descending. When Gouken founded a non-lethal variation of Ansatsuken, he was able to tone down the killing nature of this move. Therefore, it starts out strong on the ground and ends weak in the air. This Shoryuken is based on Gouken's non-violent beliefs.

Shouryuu Reppa (昇龍裂破, shōryū reppa, "Rising Dragon Wave") - a series of two or three Shoryuken that progressively cause more and more damage to an opponent each time he is hit. Not as lethal as the Messatsu Gou Shouryuu, but still a potent move.

Shinryuken (神龍拳, shinryūken, "Divine Dragon Fist") - a Shoryuken that moves vertically into the air, causing a vacuum effect that sucks in the opponent and strikes him multiple times. Of all the Gouken-style Shoryuken, this is one of the most potent without the "killing touch". Rivaling Shin Shoryuken, it was self-discovered by Ken, the only user of this move.
Shin Shoryuken (真・昇龍拳, shin-shōryūken, "True Rising Dragon Fist") - the "true" Shoryuken in which the practitioner strikes the opponent very hard with one fist (or elbow in Street Fighter Alpha 3), and then performs a high-damage Shoryuken with the other fist. Of all the Gouken-style Shoryuken, this is the most potent Shoryuken without the "killing touch", rivaling the Shinryuken. Since Ryu was the practitioner who discovered this Shoryuken, he is the only one capable of using it so far .

Gou Shoryuken (豪昇龍拳, gō shōryūken, "Great Rising Dragon Fist") - the original Shoryuken, which is a more powerful variation of the regular Shoryuken. While this was the standard Shoryuken at the time the art was founded, the lethality of the move increases when the practitioner embraces the Satsui No Hadou. This Shoryuken knocks the foe high into the air and slices its foe as the fist is rising up. A well-placed Gou Shoryuken can be fatal to an opponent – it has the ability to kill anyone in one stroke if the practitioner is skilled enough.

Metsu Shoryuken (滅・昇龍拳, metsu-shōryūken, "Destroying Rising Dragon Fist") - A version of the move only seen once in the Street Fighter story, when Ryu was near defeat during the first Street Fighter tournament. Consumed with the desire to win, he tapped into the power of the Satsui no Hadou for this move, pulling off a very powerful version of the Shoryuken with the capacity to scar. Afterwards, the move was never used, although it was seen during the Psycho Drive story arc (if a Shin Shoryuken is not done at the right distance).

Messatsu Gou Shouryuu (滅殺豪昇龍, messatsu gō shōryū, "Annihilating Magnificent Rising Dragon") - A stronger version of the Shouryuu Reppa. While this move does not scorch the opponent, a well-placed Messatsu Gou Shouryuu can instantly kill an opponent with the least amount of effort.

Users (canon)

Ryu
- Shoryuken - As his style evolved, Ryu focused on making his Shoryuken hard, usually hitting in one blow and knocking the opponent on his back.
- Shin Shoryuken - Ryu's signature move, which is said to knock out all opponents in one attack; only the giant Hugo has been struck by this move without being incapacitated. He was seen to be developing this move as early as the Street Fighter Alpha series. The technique begins with a strong punch (or elbow in the Alpha series) to the opponent's stomach, following up with more strikes to the foe's upper body with Ryu's other hand as he completes the Shoryuken.
- Metsu Shoryuken - An extremely powerful Shoryuken with the capacity to scar. In gameplay, the move only appeared in Street Fighter Alpha 3 when a Shin Shoryuken was improperly distanced.

Ken
- Shoryuken - Ken has focused on this move in order to distinguish himself from his training partner; his version can strike at several points during the move, and in its stronger forms, his fist will burst into flame, burning the opponent with its power. It is best used after the opponent is already vulnerable to attack.
- Shoryu Reppa - A very simple and straightforward super special move. It involves a set of progressively higher Shoryuken performed one after the other. Ken has had this move since Super Street Fighter II Turbo, though he has it in the Alpha series as well.
- Shinryuken - Ken seems to prefer this move to finish opponents, as it is a stylish and graceful way to win the match. During the Shinryuken, Ken rises from the ground in a single Shoryuken that hits multiple times with a vacuum effect. Unlike his normal Shoryuken, this attack does not curve.

Akuma/Gouki
- Gou Shoryuken - Like Ken, Akuma's version of the Shoryuken can strike at multiple points; however, he focuses a balanced amount of energy on each hit, making it a dangerous move regardless of the point it begins to hit.
- Messatsu Gou Shouryuu - By the time of Street Fighter III, this attack has considerable more initial thrust than the Shouryuu Reppa, making it a preferred counterattack.

Variants

The Shoryuken has been seen numerous times in the Mega Man X series. X could perform it in Mega Man X2 and Mega Man X8, and Zero would do it instead of the Hyōryūshō ("Avalanche Yeti's Technique") in Mega Man X8 with the K Knuckle equipped. Magma Dragoon in Mega Man X4 also performed it, although the move did not look very much like the standard Shoryuken. Also in X4, X could perform Magma Dragoon's variant when charging his weapon, and Zero could perform an attack very similar to the Shoryuken called Ryūenjin (Dragon Flame Blade). The technique also made an appearance when X used the charged version of Pegacion's weapon in X5. It also made an appearance in the Mega Man: The Power Battle series as Mega Man's special charge move.
Dan, another Street Fighter character, utilizes a variation of the Shoryuken called the Kōryūken (晃龍拳, "Shiny Dragon Fist"). It resembles the standard Shoryuken but has little horizontal range and leaves Dan vulnerable during startup. However, Dan will sometimes flash while executing the move, making him invincible during startup (though this only happens either randomly or after a specific number of Kōryūken have been performed).
Sakura uses a self-taught dashing Shoryuken called the Shou'ouken (咲桜拳, shōōken, "Rising Dash Punch").
Sean from Street Fighter III has been known to use two variations of the Shoryuken. Known in both incarnations as the "Dragon Smash", it was first performed by launching the opponent into the air with a rising uppercut. During the spinning motion, Sean would then smash the opponent back to the ground with a downward punch. It had low horizontal range at the start, but Sean moved forward a considerable distance in mid-air. In Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Capcom redesigned the move as a double-handed rising punch, with next to no horizontal range. His "Shoryu Cannon" super art is a variation of Ken's Shouryuu Reppa that deals more damage depending on how rapidly the punch button is pressed (another variation on how the Shinryuken could increase in damage).
In Namco x Capcom, Ryu and Ken have a Multiple Assault (similar to Variable Combinations from the Marvel vs. Capcom series) called Sou Shoryuken. During the move, the two rush their enemy from both sides, unleashing a fury of attacks before unleashing a dual Shin Shoryuken. However, both the game and Ken's usage of Shin Shoryuken are non-canon.
While not performing the Shoryuken itself, variations of the move are evident in a number of Capcom fighters. Capcom characters using similar uppercut moves outside of the Street Fighter universe include Morrigan and Demitri of the Darkstalkers series; Batsu and Hideo of Rival Schools: United By Fate and Project Justice; Mai-Ling and Tessa of Red Earth (aka Warzard); and Spider-Man, Wolverine, Cable, Cyclops and Captain America of the Marvel vs. Capcom series.

References

In the Worms series of games, the Worms can use attacks known as the "Fire Punch" (a Shoryuken) and the "Dragon Ball" (a Hadouken or Kamehameha). The worms will put on Ryu's signature red headband when preparing to perform the attacks.

File:Deadpool Shoryuken.JPG

Deadpool goes Street Fighter on Kitty

In Kirby Super Star, whenever Kirby used the "Fighter" power, he would also wear Ryu's red headband, and one of the attacks he could perform was a Shoryuken variant called "Rising Break", a multi-hit Shoryuken.
After an unsuccessful attempt to rouse Wolverine into a fight, Deadpool asks Kitty Pryde if she ever played Street Fighter and proceeds to give her an uppercut while screaming out "Shoryuken!", knocking her out and enraging Wolverine.
Professional wrestlers Player Uno and Human Tornado use a real-life Shoryuken during matches.
Dante is able to perform the move with the "Beowulf Gauntlets" in Devil May Cry 3; the move is named "Rising Dragon". He can also perform "Real Impact", which resembles a Shin Shoryuken but only has the second part, excluding the initial fist or elbow strike.
Annie Hardy of Giant Drag attempts saying "Shoryuken" in the beginning of the album Hearts and Unicorns.
In the Killer Instinct series, characters such as Jago, Fulgore and Kim Wu (in KI2) are able to perform Shoryuken-like moves. Kim Wu's move "Snap Dragon", however, is only performed as a super.
Ryo and Yuri Sakazaki of the Art of Fighting series, in their Kyokugenryu Karate discipline, are able to perform their own kind of Shoryuken. Ryo's version is called "Koho" (虎咆, kohō, "Tiger Roar"). Yuri's "Shoryuken" are somewhat like Ryu's Shin Shoryuken in some KOF games and Ken Masters' Shouryuu Reppa (one of which is done manually as a special move called the "Yuri Double Upper") in most of her appearances such as the SNK vs. Capcom series and KOF games.
In the anime Arcade Gamer Fubuki, at the beginning of the second episode, Hana performs a Shoryuken-like move called the "Hanko Renpa" as a move against Fubuki when meeting her at the Hell's River Hot Springs entrance. Also, both Fubuki and Hana are wearing SF style karate gi (Fubuki in white wearing a red hedband like Ryu, and Hana in red like Ken).
Princess Fiona in Shrek performs a Shoryuken in the scene where Robin Hood sings (on one of his merry men).
While reviewing The Bugs Bunny Birthday Blowout, the Angry Video Game Nerd eventually ends up in a fight against Bugs Bunny and performs a Shoryuken on Bugs. [1]
In the song Afro Puffs by Lady of Rage, she references "Hooryuken", the way the move sounded in Street Fighter II.

Trivia

When Street Fighter II was first released it was Ryu who scarred Sagat with a Shoryuken. After the release of the Street Fighter Alpha series, it was later made (via retroactive continuity) so that after being brutally defeated by Sagat, Ryu was instantly possessed by the Satsui No Hadou for a split second due to the desire to win, so he attacked Sagat with the nearly fatal move known as the Metsu Shoryuken. After this devastating attack, Sagat received his signature scar.
It is also said that Sagat created the "Tiger Uppercut" to match Ryu's Shoryuken in earlier versions of the SF Story.
In the American version of the original Street Fighter, Ryu would say the translated "Dragon Punch" instead of "Shoryuken" while performing the movement. The Japanese versions retained the "Shoryuken" sound. Most Street Fighter games afterwards would keep their Japanese sound effects.
Upon Ryu winning a match in the American version of Street Fighter II, he says to his battered opponent, "You must defeat Sheng Long to stand a chance." The meaning of the quote was unclear to many people, and has since gone on to become the basis for one of EGM's most famous April Fool's jokes. However, "Sheng Long" was nothing more than an incorrect translation of "Shoryuken" (where the "Shōryū" in katakana were translated as if they were supposed to be in Cantonese).
An Internet website, Shoryuken.com, is also an homage to the move. The website itself is a fighting game-oriented website, where players can discuss fighting game tactics as well as plan tournaments and get-togethers. Most fighting game fans simply refer to the site as SRK. SRK is also the main sponsor of the Evolution fighting game tournament, which has garnered major turnouts each year since its inception in 2001, cementing itself as one of the most elite tournaments in the world.
Capcom licensed an energy drink called "Dragon Punch". It shares similarities with Red Bull and features artwork of Ken on the can.