Rufus (Street Fighter)
Overweight martial artist who mistakes others for Ken Masters.
Rufus (ルーファス, Rūfasu) appears in Capcom's *Street Fighter* fighting game series. Daigo Ikeno designed him for the development team, and he debuted in the arcade version of *Street Fighter IV*, later appearing in related promotions and media. An extremely large, obese martial artist, Rufus is driven by anger over Ken Masters claiming to be "the number one fighter in America," and seeks to defeat him. Along the way, he frequently mistakes other fighters for Ken due to similar clothing or hair color, regardless of their gender. Wataru Hatano provides his Japanese voice, and Christopher Corey Smith his English one.
Since his introduction, Rufus has received mostly positive feedback. While some critics have faulted his design and look, many have praised him for exceeding expectations based solely on his appearance.
**Conception and development**
Unlike earlier *Street Fighter* titles that relied almost entirely on Capcom's Research and Development branch, the development team for *Street Fighter IV* allowed other company branches to contribute character designs, responding to an influx of fan requests from outside Japan. Rufus was created based on marketing research into what American audiences would enjoy playing, and was one of several characters considered for the game. Ikeno initially designed him as a slender, bald, black male in a gi named "King Cobra," intended as a more acrobatic counterpart to Ryu and Ken, with Wataru Hatano voicing him. His fighting style was meant to be "breakung-fu," mixing Chinese martial arts with breakdancing, which the team perceived as a U.S. fad at the time. Early in development, before voice recording began, art director Takashi Kamei proposed making him overweight, an idea Ikeno agreed with. The design then gradually changed, becoming more obese and turning into a mostly bald white male with a long braided ponytail—a design Ikeno later admitted was rushed. This surprised many Capcom staff, including Hatano, who remarked, "Wait, is that my character?" The final appearance was chosen over the initial one because developers felt he would "freak people out." Executive producer Yoshinori Ono compared his inclusion to Blanka in *Street Fighter II*, noting that Rufus's "over-the-top" design was meant to set the game apart from the "really cool-looking but ultimately bland" characters of *Tekken* and *Virtua Fighter*.
Quick Facts
- Voice
- EN: Christopher Corey Smith / JA: Wataru Hatano
- Series
- Street Fighter
- First Game
- Street Fighter IV (2008)
- Designer
- Daigo Ikeno
- Origin
- United States
- Nationality
- American
- Fighting Style
- Self-taught from martial arts films
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Rufus was designed based upon marketing research on what sorts of characters an American audience would enjoy playing. Initially intended to be a bald slender black male named 'King Cobra' with a breakdance-inspired fighting style, the design was changed early in development, before voice recording, when art director Takashi Kamei proposed making the character overweight. The final appearance—a mostly bald white male with a long braided ponytail and a large build—was chosen because developers felt he would 'freak people out.' Executive producer Yoshinori Ono likened his inclusion to Blanka in Street Fighter II, noting Rufus's 'over-the-top' design was meant to set the game apart from characters in Tekken and Virtua Fighter.
Rufus is an American motorcycle
Reader's Guide
Rufus represents a deliberate departure from the 'cool-looking but ultimately bland' character designs that Capcom perceived in competing fighting game franchises. His creation was driven by marketing research targeting American audiences, and his final design was chosen specifically to provoke a strong reaction. The character's gameplay was purposefully made faster than his appearance would indicate, defying expectations and contrasting with other large characters in fighting games. His fighting style incorporates quick movements strengthened by the inertia of his body fat, accompanied by martial artist yells. The development team compared his gameplay to the fighting styles of Street Fighter III characters Yun and Yang, particularly regarding his diving kick attack.
Since his introduction, Rufus has received mostly positive reception. Though some criticism was made over his design and aesthetic, the majority praised the character as exceeding expectations based solely on his appearance. Community manager Seth Killian noted Rufus as his favorite new character in the series. Ono described Rufus as 'quite grotesque to look at' and an 'American Dan' in terms of being a joke character, while distinguishing him from Tekken's Bob by stating Bob represented a 'cool fat guy' and Rufus a 'weird fat guy.' The character's musical theme was developed with a 'freewheeling spirit' in mind, incorporating voice samples from actor Wataru Hatano into the background music.
Did You Know?
- Voice actor Wataru Hatano was surprised by the final design, remarking 'Wait, is that my character?'
- A rejected alternate design included an Elvis impersonator appearance and martial artist attire.
- For Super Street Fighter IV, a third outfit resembling a Chinese jiangshi was included, with a sealing charm that developers considered making removable by attacks.
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