After briefly teasing the character during EVO 2023, Capcom has finally unveiled the poisonous fangs of Street Fighter 6‘s newest combatant, A.K.I., who will slither her way into the popular fighting game on September 27.
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A student of the villainous F.A.N.G. from Street Fighter V, A.K.I. is a Chinese kenpo and shequan (or snake kung fu) martial artist who specializes in targeting her opponent’s vital spots using her venom-coated fingernails. She’s a slippery, sadistic dommy mommy, clad in a leather snakeskin-looking black cheongsam, a haircut that looks like Guile’s drenched in hair gel, and the creepiest smile ever as she pokes from range or slithers to close the gap. Her combos look particularly devastating, as her snake-like movements give her the flexibility to duck and dodge attacks while racking up poison damage.
A.K.I.’s critical art, known as a level three super here (essentially a character’s ultimate attack), looks equally brutalizing. Poking and prodding her opponent with her venomous (and perfectly manicured) fingernails, A.K.I., using her expertise in Chinese medicine, pinpoints and attacks the body’s weak spots. A.K.I. emits an almost Joker-like amount of maniacal laughter as her opponent’s body explodes at the end of the attack, and finally, she bends backward, smiling into the camera in pure ecstasy. It’s giving dominatrix, and I’m absolutely here for it.
I’m not the only one, though. Folks across the social media site with the dumbest name, X (formerly Twitter), are just as obsessed with and terrified of A.K.I. as I am. Someone’s already animated her slithering move, which sees her snake her body across the stage to reach her opponent. Another person set footage of the move to Jason Derulo’s “Wiggle,” which fits perfectly. A different poster said the character looks great because Capcom went all in on her “completely unhinged murderer aspect.” Meanwhile, a separate poster simply wondered what kind of “satanic shit” A.K.I. is on. Girl, same.
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Unfortunately, A.K.I. won’t be free when she hits Street Fighter 6 this September. Capcom’s senior social media and community manager Andy Wong revealed on the PlayStation Blog that while you can play her for up to an hour with a rental fighter ticket (a currency you acquire from the game’s Fighting Pass), you’ll need either the Year 1 Character Pass DLC bundle, Deluxe Edition, or Ultimate Edition to play the slithering mistress. At least her deadly moves and stunning outfit will be unlockable and she comes with an entirely new area, Tian Hong Yuan, that you can explore. Hey, silver linings.