Street Fighter 5: Breaking Down Story Mode to Deduce the 2nd Wave of DLC Fighters

Street Fighter V is out today with 16 characters filling out its initial roster. With old favorites and new combatants making up the first 16, Capcom is not done there. The first six DLC characters are set to hit throughout the year, with Alex set to be the first of them to debut next month.

Subsequent characters are set to hit in April, May, July, August, and September. Back at PlayStation Experience, those characters were confirmed to be Alex, Ibuki, Urien, Juri, Guile, and Balrog, though it is unknown which fighter will be released on which date.

After September, more characters are expected to come down the pipe and continue fleshing out the SFV roster. While those characters have not been confirmed, there are definitely some clear hints as to who will come to the game next, thanks to the game's Story Mode. Today, Shacknews is breaking down the most likely competitors to step into the Street Fighter V arena next.

(Warning: There are spoilers ahead for various characters' Story Modes, so if you're looking to experience those first, turn back now. Trust me, those stories don't take long to complete, so go and come back.)

C. Viper

Crimson Viper's mission is clearly not over, if Bison's Story Mode segment is any indication. Viper is seen hiding in an airfield attempting to observe Bison and Shadaloo's rendezvous. It's here that she narrates his recent destruction of a rival cartel that ends with F.A.N.G. joining his ranks. She also learns a few more details about the mysterious Operation C.H.A.I.N.S., but not quite enough to sum up exactly what it is and what Bison's ultimate endgame is.

But her recon mission doesn't last long. Bison quickly detects her and blasts her with Psycho Power. Viper may be down and out, but if Street Fighter IV has proven anything, it's that it's hard to keep her down. With Nash, Charlie, and Cammy already on the active hunt for Bison, it will also be reasonable to expect Viper to pick herself back up and resume her mission against the forces of Shadaloo.

Sakura

There aren't too many hints that Sakura will eventually join the roster, aside from a single cameo she makes at the end of Karin's Story Mode. It's here that we learn that Sakura and Karin are old friends/sparring partners, as they end Karin's story with a friendly one-on-one. As part of her role in the overarching narrative, Karin is arranging a fighting tournament to be held in New York and it wouldn't be right to leave her friend on the sidelines.

While that may sound anecdotal, there's a similar (though less friendly) confrontation between R. Mika and Ibuki that takes place, ending in similar fashion. Ibuki is already confirmed to be part of the SF roster later down the line and this story ending would seem to write her right into the conflict. Just by that precedent alone, there's reason to presume that Sakura will make it into the game in similar fashion.

Decapre and/or Juni

It's hard to say which of the characters that show up in Cammy's Story Mode segment are more likely to show up as playable fighters, but there are strong cases for both. At the start of her story, Cammy is seen getting the better of Decapre during the events of Ultra Street Fighter IV, but the battle was one that left Bison's 12th Doll devastated and even presumed dead. As Cammy's story goes on, she not only finds out that Decapre's still alive, but she also learns from F.A.N.G. that she and the other Dolls are undergoing improvements to play their part in the mysterious and sinister Operation C.H.A.I.N.S. It was widely hinted that Decapre would be seen again, since the Dolls would seemingly play a big role in Bison's plan for world domination.

Street Fighter Alpha 3's Juni is also a strong candidate to be playable. She was last seen hospitalized after a deadly confrontation with Juri during the events of Ultra Street Fighter IV. She's fully recovered, as seen in Cammy's story, but with no memory of her time serving Bison. However, with the Dolls pivotal to Bison's plans, Shadlaloo forces are trying to abduct Juni and bring her back. Though she's under Cammy's protection, Juri is shown to be hiding in the shadows, while there seem to be hints that Juni may be remembering her former life.

Oro

Over the course of Karin's story, she heads off to India to search for an old hermit who has mastered the art of Senjutsu. This fighter was said to be locked in battle for three days with Karin's grandfather one hundred years ago. Karin bumps into Dhalsim, only to find out that the master has already left.

As we learn in Dhalsim's story, that master is Oro from Street Fighter III. Oro and Dhalsim have a brief discussion about their differences in philosophy, about what it takes to achieve enlightenment, and about what it takes to hit the peak of their power. Oro quickly takes his leave, sensing an "interesting" person.

While it's unknown who Oro was sensing, Karin is confident that she will eventually run into the old hermit, saying that "Powerful forces attract like magnets." If their paths are going to cross, it'll only be if Oro is added as a DLC character. And given the odd and distinct fighting style he could add to SFV, his addition certainly shouldn't be out of the question.

Azam

It stands to reason that Street Fighter V will also add all-new characters through its DLC roster and those paying close attention to the Story Mode can already make some educated guesses on who will be first among them. Perhaps no original non-playable character received more screen time than Azam, Rashid's burly servant. While Azam has dedicated his life to serving Rashid and assisting him in any endeavor, no matter how headstrong, his presence is felt in several other stories. And it's more than just Karin's story, where Azam is seen starring in a series of instructional videos teaching other would-be servants.

Azam's most eye-opening appearance comes in Zangief's story, where the big Russian reveals him as an advisor of the Muscle Soul Fighters Club. The two big men have not only shared a mutual friendship, but they were also shown to have ties to other fighters, like Laura. If Azam does indeed have a past as a fighter, it stands to reason that he'll eventually show what he's capable of and what granted him such a respected reputation in the first place.

Ed

This is perhaps the most intriguing of the potential new additions for reasons we'll get into tomorrow when we break down some of the more eye-opening occurrences from Story Mode. Ed is a mysterious young kid that Nash encounters during his story. It seems like Nash is starting to suffer a breakdown when he grabs a random urchin off the streets, but it turns out that he has Psycho Power abilities, just like Bison. Not much else is revealed, as F.A.N.G. quickly comes to retrieve him.

Ed is clearly tied to Shadaloo in some fashion and his powers show he's more than capable of holding his own in a fight. While we may not know his background, there's reason to believe we'll be seeing more of Ed in the future and he certainly has enough in his arsenal to make him a worthy addition to the playable roster.

Any other potential DLC characters that Capcom is hinting at? Join the conversation and let us know in the comments.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?