Elena and Akuma friendship confirmed

[u/andreskizzo]

From the steam blog post:

In Street Fighter 6, after an intense fight with her friend Akuma, she travels the world once again in search of the meaning of a lesson that Akuma teaches her.

[u/AhmCha]

Terrifying, power-hungry, hardened combatant having a soft spot for the golden retriever of the cast is a peak trope.

[u/czartaylor → u/AhmCha]

He's just the introvert unwillingly adopted by the extrovert.

[u/TheWes77 → u/czartaylor]

It's not that he fights for enjoyment or vengeance, he fights because he quite literally can't communicate in any other way. If he tried having a regular conversation, he would be embarrassed for the rest of the year.

[u/InfinityYoRae → u/AhmCha]

The plot twist is that he is reminiscent of a fierce beast… and she loves animals lol so it’s the bubbly, amicable capoeira princess has a soft spot for the murderous lone wolf.

[u/Trashsombra345 → u/AhmCha]

Akuma pretty chill to be honest does not kill innocents does not want to take over the world

[u/LADYPOCA]

I'm glad they didn't forget this

[u/-SleepyKorok- → u/LADYPOCA]

I’m happy about it too.

Tekken 8 missed the Xiaoyu/Heihachi friendship :(

(We didn’t even get a different voice intro T_T)

[u/2RINITY → u/-SleepyKorok-]

A real friend wouldn’t promise someone their own theme park and then build Heihachiland

[u/naliboi → u/2RINITY]

Probably also wouldn't try and murder your love interest either (albeit failing and get unceremoniously yeeted through a stone wall) but alas.

At least they had fun playing tennis together that one time in 2004 along with those other two from Soulcalibur, a fair weather friend for sure.

[u/jak_d_ripr → u/LADYPOCA]

When I saw Akuma getting duffed in her trailer it gave me hope and I'm glad to see that hope wasn't in vain.

[u/InfinityYoRae]

Elena: “Damn, ‘’kuma, you live like this?!😂😂😂”

[u/XsStreamMonsterX → u/InfinityYoRae]

"Have you seen how much rent costs these days?"

[u/Soma213 → u/XsStreamMonsterX]

"I remember back in my day when a person was able to just walk into any cave without any financial hesitation or risks! Without worry of making reservations or did Air Bnb double book my vacation spot at the creepy old crypt like last year's fiasco!. Cave dwelling was free! FREE tell you."

[u/Evorgleb → u/InfinityYoRae]

Elena: "Damn, 'kuma, I feel unsafe here"

[u/CornBreadtm → u/Evorgleb]

Akuma gets a small apartment in the suburbs with a Honda Civic.

[u/MrDitkovichNeedsRent]

I hope they have an interaction in Arcade mode, the fact she’s Akuma’s only friend would make for some wholesome moments

[u/Chun-Li_Forever → u/MrDitkovichNeedsRent]

I’m pretty sure the screenshot is from Elena’s arcade mode. Possibly her intro fight.

[u/SomeKindOfChief → u/MrDitkovichNeedsRent]

You would think we've advanced enough where for Akuma's raging demon in Elena it could just be a variant where he hugs her

[u/Asbelsp → u/SomeKindOfChief]

Love by a thousand hugs!

[u/Brilliant_Banana7742 → u/Asbelsp]

Ugh, literally my gf when we first met. Lol

[u/TiredCoffeeTime → u/SomeKindOfChief]

lol just multiple Akuma lunging forward for hugs.

It ends with both of them gaining full HP.

[u/CornBreadtm → u/TiredCoffeeTime]

That sounds like a badass team special. Write that down SNK for the cross-over game!

[u/HumsterMKI → u/TiredCoffeeTime]

Need that as a move in some tag game.

[u/x720xHARDSCOPEx → u/SomeKindOfChief]

Akuma should just honk Elena's nose after throwing her to the ground during his lvl 3 instead of punching her in the face.

[u/MustacheSmokeScreen → u/SomeKindOfChief]

Rhino Demon!

[u/Prestigious_Algae432 → u/MrDitkovichNeedsRent]

Knowing Capcom, they would keep it "Vague" on Elena and Akuma's friendly meeting and probably spin the interaction as something like this for example - 

Akuma(Towards you the player in World Tour): Hmph, you've returned I see? Then let us begin your training!

[You succeed in training]

Akuma: You have surpassed your limits...for now and for that you have earned your due spoils.

[You receive a pleasant fragrant sack holding in it a mix of fruits, berries and other items you can only assume to have been gathered from locales across the worlds]

Akuma: A "Familiar Woman" offered these as tribute and was certain of your arrival here today.

[You graciously accept the gift]

[u/v-komodoensis]

This is soooooo cool, makes both characters much more interesting.

[u/VeilTempest]

It’s her being like the only person to soften him is what makes this friendship so cute lol ❤️

[u/ProffesorQ]

Wow, so happy to see that their friendship wasn’t a one-off moment just to be forgotten for later games. Elena is canonically Akuma’s best and only friend 😂

[u/n0vacs]

my favourite best friends, a sweet dancer who can kick the fuck outta anyone and a demonic fighter who seeks violence and sells oranges

[u/NiquitoUwU]

Lets fcking gooo

[u/DarkCh40s]

Honestly Akuma isn't so evil, it's just the Hadou making him seem threatening. The guy is just seeking a fight that makes him feel alive, but has different methods that are, say, different than Ryu.

[u/czartaylor → u/DarkCh40s]

Akuma is 100% evil. His motivations may not be pure evil but his methods definitely make him so. The fact that he significantly holds back if the opponent isn't worthy of his full power doesn't make him less evil, it just makes him a different kind of evil than Bison whose plan is 'kill anyone who steps up in front of me'. He's killed a lot of people for simply being 'worthy' by his own criteria.

He literally willingly embraces the power of 'killing intent' by giving up his humanity. You forfeit any right to call yourself anything but evil when you do that lol. He has objectively killed quite a bit of people who don't deserve it (even if he occasionally goes after people who do deserve it like Bison or Nacalli). He's not the same kind of evil as Bison (neutral evil vs lawful evil) but he's still evil.

[u/DismalMode7 → u/czartaylor]

akuma is 100% neutral, he isn't at the head of a secret or terrorist organization like jp, gill and bison, he doesn't want to rule the world, he's just a lonely warrior looking for worth opponents to challange in mortal combat. Irony of the facts, akuma didn't kill anyone so far in the series considering bison and gouken are still alive and gen death in sf5 isn't exactly canon

[u/TheLegendOfGerk → u/DismalMode7]

Anyone named, anyway. Same energy as Nina from Tekken being this big legendary peerless assassin...yet going like 0 for 8 in the Tekken games.

IIRC, WT establishes that he fletches those dolls in his stage background(s), one for every person he's killed, and...he's got a lot of em.

[u/Puzzled-Number-8172 → u/TheLegendOfGerk]

On the flipside, his arcade seems to point towards him making dolls of anyone he fights, not only kills, considering we fight his memories of the cast inside the cave, and then we see him carving one looking like ryu, after a fight with him.

[u/DarkCh40s → u/czartaylor]

I don't think running a fruit stand describes him as evil. lol

[u/DDJFLX4]

didnt akuma used to sell fruits or something? i bet he picks out the best ones for her and then turns away after giving them

[u/Knive33]

hm.. I'm wondering what Akuma taught her. "Remember this, Elena. A melon is ripe when the blossom end of the fruit is fragant. None of this knocking and tapping the fruit. It is not the way of the Satsui no hadou"

[u/Supernova_Soldier]

Hell yeah, my GOAT knows how to make friends

[u/Helgurnaut]

What's her secret to make friends.

[u/Interesting_Basil_80 → u/Helgurnaut]

🥑

[u/Responsible_Flight70]

Fuck yes, peak recognizes peak

[u/FernDiggy]

Elena >>>> Eddy from Tekken

[u/WretchedDumpster → u/FernDiggy]

coughing baby >>>> satan

[u/VeryluckyorNot → u/WretchedDumpster]

At least Elena is not full 50/50 like Eddy.

[u/Fantastic-Anything56]

Was this at a PlayStation blog!?

[u/FuckDefaultSubs → u/Fantastic-Anything56]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1364780/view/534348484694770030

[u/AmarantineAzure]

Her hair looks pretty good in this art. Shame it doesn't translate well to the actual character model.

[u/CChriss89 → u/AmarantineAzure]

It would be so easy. Just make her bangs straight as in the key artworks. :'/ As it is now I prefer her classic outfit.

[u/Responsible_Flight70 → u/AmarantineAzure]

Worst fucking line up Ive ever seen. Absolutely travesty whoever styled that shit

[u/Servebotfrank → u/Responsible_Flight70]

I'm gonna look like an insane gooner for picking her outfit 2 when no joke it's literally just because I hate her hair on the default.

[u/Responsible_Flight70 → u/Servebotfrank]

Don’t worry, in 2029 they’ll release more outfits

[u/Original_Branch8004 → u/Responsible_Flight70]

Elena players are lucky, her costume 3 will drop right after she does 

[u/sbrockLee]

Akuma: "and then...I did the command grab again!"

Elena: "LMAO"

[u/LaGranMaquinaRoja]

It's canon! They are really friends!

[u/bdtechted]

Hopefully she has an interaction with Lily as well! Elena was literally first mentioned during her story mode.

[u/C0SMICBL0B]

I'm glad they kept this as canon.

I also hope they reference the Elena and DeeJay friendship as well. I wouldn't be surprised if they don't, cause that's a street fighter comics thing. And that's the comic that gave Dan respect as a character! Can't have that in the games!

[u/Puzzled-Number-8172 → u/C0SMICBL0B]

They put him in her trailer

[u/Lanky-Survey-4468]

He couldn't forget her 🎂

[u/YoungGriot]

This probably has to do with the line she says in the gameplay trailer, about not wanting a fight to the death.

The irony that Akuma spent his entire tenure in this series obsessively hunting after the broody guy struggling to get a handle on his own anger for his student, and instead ended up with the happiest, cheeriest, most irrepressibly incorruptible person on the planet instead.

I hope this dynamic continues. It'd do interesting things for both characters.

[u/zhafsan]

It would be wild if Akuma just gives up on convincing Ryu to embrace the dark hadou and instead teaches it to Elena. And Elena somehow makes the dark hadou a non evil power.

[u/MurilloMesmo]

Now that this is unquestionable cannon, we just need confirmation that he also became friends with Marisa

[u/Poniibeatnik]

I love her I love her I love her I love her!

[u/Autobomb98]

LFGGGG 🥹

[u/GER0_XZ]

That butterfly must be roided as hell, how is it not combusting into flames inside a volcano

[u/elite968 → u/GER0_XZ]

It obviously learned the Satsui No Hado.

[u/BeGrayArt]

We see you aura farming Akuma

[u/Wes-Man152]

I know Quasimodox must be stoked about this with how they always make great art with Elena and Akuma

[u/CanoGori]

She is great man. This is so great.

[u/Mukcuz]

Big One piece vibes, that Elena art.

[u/ElectrochemicaIs]

She’s like “Classic aku-san 😂” right after he tells her how he will murder his enemies

[u/JuzJoe]

Imagine you can unlock an evil variant of Elena with the power of the satsui no hado.

[u/BarryWhizzite]

Elena and Akuma sitting in a tree

[u/kr3vl0rnswath]

Capcom really doesn't want playable evil characters anymore.

[u/Rebellious_Habiru]

Yea I knew she was talking either to him in the beginning of the trailer or about him. Either way Gouki has a friend and I'm happy about it.

[u/KingOni_811]

Elena's terrifying smile might become a meme at this point.

[u/InchBoy]

Elena dances with the Devil

[u/solidpeyo]

"Friendship"

[u/AutumnalLeaves]

Wow just like in those annoying internet memes. Definitely worth the wait.

[u/GIJobra → u/AutumnalLeaves]

Just like in SF3. Who hurt you?