Ken (SSBU)

Ken in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Street Fighter
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Shippu Jinraikyaku / Shinryuken

“	Ken Turns Up the Heat!	”
—Introduction Tagline

“	Ken joins the battle as Ryu's Echo Fighter! Their differences are carried over from the original game: Ken's Hadoken is shaped differently, his strong Shoryuken has flames, and he moves a bit faster. He has two Final Smashes: Shinryuken and Shippu Jinraikyaku.	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Ken (ケン, Ken) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He was announced as a newcomer during the November 1st, 2018 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct, alongside Incineroar. He is an Echo Fighter of Ryu, thus being classified as fighter #60ε.

Ken's English voice actor is Reuben Langdon, who has voiced the character since Street Fighter IV, while his Japanese voice actor is Yūji Kishi, who has been voicing him since Street Fighter III: Third Strike.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Ken being the 57th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Yoshi or anyone in his unlock tree, being the eighth character unlocked after Chrom.
• Have Ken join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Ken must then be defeated on Boxing Ring.

Differences from Ryu

Ken is considered the original "Echo Fighter" in fighting game history, but unlike other Echo Fighters in the game, Ken's differences extend beyond visual changes and damage distribution, using the gameplay differences from Super Street Fighter II Turbo onwards to separate him from his mirror character, Ryu. He primarily trades Ryu's stronger knockback in exchange for more combo routes and damage-racking capabilities, similar to their differences in their home series. Several of his attacks are entirely different as well, and he is also slightly faster than Ryu.

Since Ken has multiple entirely different moves from Ryu, he is near-universally accepted to be the most unique Echo Fighter. As such, he, much like fellow Echo Fighters Lucina and Chrom, is not expected to share a tier list spot with his base fighter, and is expected to be legally allowed to be used with his base fighter in Squad Strike.

Aesthetics

• As with all other Echo Fighters, Ken has unique taunts and victory animations.
• Ken says "I'm ready for ya! Bring it on!" during his on-screen appearance rather than being silent like Ryu. His dialogue is the same as his fight entrance in Street Fighter IV.
• Unlike Ryu, Ken faces forward with a neutral expression instead of looking dejected or annoyed during his clapping animation.

Attributes

• Ken's walking (0.75 → 0.825), dashing (1.6 → 1.76) and initial dash (1.76 → 1.936) speeds are faster than those of Ryu, with his initial dash and run speeds being identical to those of Mario.

Ground Attacks

• Held neutral attack is Inazuma Kick, a double-hitting axe kick much like Ryu's up throw. It is somewhat hard to land by itself, as its effective range tends to overlap with his close variant. It deals a large amount of shield damage.
• Neutral attack's second hit is based on Ken's Street Fighter III close medium punch.
• Ken's held forward tilt is his far standing medium punch, a straight with his right arm, as opposed to Ryu's Collarbone Breaker.
  • Held forward tilt is faster and deals more knockback at a lower angle.
  • Held forward tilt has less range and far less shield damage.
• Forward smash:
  • Ken's forward smash is based off of his standing heavy kick introduced in Super Street Fighter II Turbo.
  • It has less start-up (frame 15 → 13).
  • It has less range and does not make Ken travel forwards.
  • It deals less damage (16%/17.5% → 12%/16%), making it weaker despite its higher knockback growth (98 → 100).

Aerial Attacks

• Neutral aerial:
  • Ken's neutral aerial is based off of his diagonal jumping medium kick in SFII, as opposed to Ryu's diagonal jumping light kick.
  • Due to it being a kick rather than a knee, the range of the move is increased compared to that of Ryu's neutral aerial.
  • It has less ending lag than Ryu's (FAF 36 → 28).
  • It has more startup lag (frame 4 → 6).
  • Its duration is shorter (4-31 → 6-17).
  • It has a sourspot on its clean hit that deals less damage (8% → 6.5%).
  • The late hit deals more damage on its sweetspot, but less on the sourspot (4.5% → 4% (sourspot)/6.5% (sweetspot).
  • The late hit has more base knockback (13 → 20).
• Up aerial:
  • Ken's up aerial is based off of his neutral jumping light kick, a kick straight upwards.
  • It deals considerably less knockback, which hinders its KO potential, but makes it much better for combos.
  • It has less startup (frame 6 → 5) and has a longer duration than both hits of Ryu's up aerial (6 (first)/10 (second) → 5-9).
  • It deals less damage (11% (total) → 6.5%) and only hits once.

Throws

• Ken's back throw, Hell Wheel, has him roll backwards twice, allowing him to cover more distance and move closer to the edge of stages from farther away.

Special Moves

• Ken has more input command moves than Ryu.
  • He has Oosoto Mawashi Geri, an outward roundhouse kick from Super Street Fighter II Turbo similar to Ryu's standing held neutral attack that can be cancelled into Inazuma Kick by holding the attack button, letting him use his special cancels without committing to the potential endlag of Shoryuken and Tatsumaki Senpukyaku and mix up his attacks. Inazuma Kick also deals a fair amount of shield damage, making it much riskier to block Ken during his blockstrings.
  • Ken also has his Nata Otoshi Geri, a swiping roundhouse kick from Super Street Fighter II Turbo with a unique input (forward, down forward, down, special/attack) that Ryu does not have. He can cancel either the startup of the move or after the first hit and change it into his Inazuma Kick by holding the attack button. Its low knockback and angle make it useful for combos, leading into down smash, forward smash or a Shoryuken.

• Hadoken:
  • Hadoken contains an image of Ken's hands, as it does in the original Street Fighter II.
  • Ken's Hadoken deals less damage than Ryu's version.
  • Ken does not have access to Ryu's Shakunetsu Hadoken, meaning that he lacks a multi-hit projectile.

• Tatsumaki Senpukyaku:
  • Tatsumaki Senpukyaku hits multiple times, as opposed to Ryu's single hit.
  • If all hits connect, Tatsumaki Senpukyaku deals more damage.
  • Due to its multihit property and distance, Tatsumaki Senpukyaku can be used to drag opponents offstage far away at low percentages, being effective against opponents with poor recoveries.
  • Tatsumaki Senpukyaku has less endlag, allowing for followups after the move is complete.
  • Tatsumaki Senpukyaku does significantly less knockback compared to Ryu's.
  • Tatsumaki Senpukyaku connects less reliably than Ryu's, and lacks a final hit, making it punishable.

• Shoryuken:
  • Shoryuken deals less knockback than Ryu's equivalent and hits at a slightly more horizontal angle.
  • Holding the special attack input performs a Heavy Shoryuken, which hits more than 2 times, and has a flame effect.
  • Although it KOs later, Ken's Shoryuken deals more damage and has powerful hitboxes throughout the move in contrast to Ryu's Shoryuken losing strength the longer it is out. Shoryuken can also drag enemies upwards, letting it kill earlier when close to the top.
  • Ken can travel more horizontally during his Heavy Shoryuken. This makes certain combos possible and horizontal recoveries easier.

• Focus Attack:
  • Ken performs a spinkick in his Focus Attack instead of a straight punch like with Ryu.
  • Ken does not lunge forward as far in his Focus Attack, slightly hindering its range.

• Ken has two unique Final Smashes, Shinryuken and Shippu Jinraikyaku. Shinryuken produces a giant pillar of fire with immense vertical range, which is similar to its appearance in the Marvel vs. Capcom series, which reused Street Fighter Alpha sprites in its 2D-era games. Meanwhile, Shippu Jinryaikyaku has Ken furiously kicking opponents before ending in a devastating series of hurricane kicks, much like his Guren Senpukyaku Ultra Combo II from Super Street Fighter IV and the ending of his Guren Enjinkyaku Critical Art from Street Fighter V, but is ultimately based on his Shippu Jinraikyaku Super Art from Street Fighter III. Shippu Jinraikyaku occurs when Ken initiates his Final Smash near an opponent. Otherwise, he will perform Shinryuken.

Update History

2.0.0

• Neutral aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 34 → 28), matching the move's interruptibility. This allows it to autocancel from a short hop.
• Forward aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 41 → 38), matching the move's interruptibility. This allows it to autocancel from a rising full hop.

Moveset

• In one-on-one matches, Ken always faces his opponent.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Inazuma Kick (held, far)	1.5% (hits 1 and 2)	Tapped: A jab, followed by a short straight-punch, followed by a hook. The second hit is based on Ken's Street Fighter III close medium punch. The first and second hits can be special-cancelled. Held (Far): Ken performs his Inazuma Kick: a double-hitting axe kick. It is somewhat hard to land both hits, as the range tends to overlap with his close variant. This move causes Ken to slightly move forward, and deals a good amount of shield damage; coupled with its ability to be followed up from Ken's unique roundhouse kicks, it is useful for shield pressure. Cannot be special-cancelled. Held (Close): The same as his held Up Tilt.
			5%
			6% (hits 1 and 2, held, far)
			12% (held, close)
Forward tilt			6.8% (tapped, far), 6% (tapped, close), 5% (arm), 10% (fist)	Tapped (Far): The tsumasaki geri, a kick used in Karate. It launches the opponent diagonally upward. As with Ryu, it is good for following with a dash attack or forward aerial at low percents. Cannot be special-cancelled. Tapped (Close): An inward hook. Like with Ryu, move causes the opponent to slightly shift towards Ken. The only purpose of this move is to initiate combos. Held: A straight with his left or right arm. While it is faster and deals more damage that Ryu's Collarbone Breaker, it has less range and far less shield damage. It is based on his far standing medium punch. Cannot be special-cancelled.
Up tilt			2% (tapped), 12% (held)	Tapped: The sok ngat, an uppercut-style elbow strike used in Muay Thai. Functions the same as with Ryu. Held: An uppercut. As with Ryu, it grants his upper body intangibility from frames 4-10, making it a surprisingly effective anti-air attack and KO move.
Down tilt		Light Ankle Kick (Tapped) Heavy Ankle Kick (Held)	1.6% (tapped); 7% (leg, held), 5.5% (foot, held)	Tapped: A crouching, Hapkido-style shin kick. As with Ryu, it can be repeated as fast as the player can press. Any prone opponents will be lightly launched back onto their feet, allowing for longer combo strings. Held: A lunging, Hapkido-style shin kick. As with Ryu, Ken's Shoryuken combos well from this attack.
Dash attack			12% (clean), 8% (late)	A flying kick. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Forward smash			16% (foot), 12% (leg)	A roundhouse kick. Unlike Ryu's forward smash, it has less range, and doesn't move him forward as much. It also has slightly less base knockback. Based on his standing heavy kick introduced in Super Street Fighter II Turbo. Can cancel into his Final Smash upon hit.
Up smash			17% (clean), 13.5% (late)	Squats and then rises up to throw an uppercut. Makes his hurtbox smaller while attacking, making this a good anti-air attack. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Down smash			16%	A legsweep. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Neutral aerial			8% (clean, bent leg), 6.5% (clean, leg/ late, bent leg), 4% (late)	A downward angled kick. While weaker than Ryu's neutral aerial, the range of the move is further. The strongest hitbox is at Ken's bent leg. Hitting with it will also cause the opponent to slightly shift towards Ken, much like his close, tapped forward tilt. At mid percents, hitting clean with his bent leg will cause anyone behind Ken to move in front of him, allowing for combos into his special moves. It is based on his diagonal jumping medium kick in SFII.
Forward aerial			14% (clean sweetspot), 12% (late sweetspot), 9% (clean sourspot), 8% (late sourspot)	A flying kick. Functions the same as with Ryu, although Ken's clean and weak sweetspots deal slightly less damage.
Back aerial			16% (leg), 13% (foot)	An outside crescent kick. As with Ryu, since Ken always faces his opponent in one-on-one matches, one must perform a reverse aerial rush in order to use it for edge-guarding.
Up aerial			6.5%	A kick straight upwards. Unlike Ryu's up aerial, it only hits once. Can cancel into any of his special moves upon hit. Based off of his neutral jumping light kick.
Down aerial			12% (grounded opponent), 15% (aerial opponent sweetspot), 11% (aerial opponent sourspot)	A downward angled cross. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Grab			—	Reaches out, much like Ryu.
Pummel			1.3%	A knee strike while holding the opponent in the collar-and-elbow position. It is based on his Tsukami Hizageri (つかみ膝蹴り, "Grasping Knee Kick") throw in the Street Fighter Alpha/Zero games.
Forward throw			9%	The seoi nage, a Judo throw. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Back throw		Hell Wheel	12%	Ken performs a tomoe nage. However, when he lands on his back, he uses his free foot to spring him and his opponent off the ground. He then uses the momentum from the first roll to toss them away after landing a second time on his back, thus causing him to roll backwards a total of 2 times. This allows him to cover more distance and move closer to the edge of stages from farther away.
Up throw			8% (throw), 15% (kick)	A stretch kick transitioned into an axe kick. Functions the same as with Ryu.
Down throw			3% (hit; throw)	Pins the opponent to the ground and performs a knifehand strike, much like Ryu. Deals less damage.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Kicks behind himself and then in front of himself before getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Kicks around himself before getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Kicks behind himself and then in front of himself before getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			10%	Performs a crouching shin kick while climbing up.
Neutral special		Hadoken	4.5%, 5%, 5.5% (Standard), 5.6%, 6.2%, 6.8% (Input)	Quickly cups his hands to his side and then thrusts them forward to launch a blue ki blast from his cupped hands that deals low damage and knockback, and may cause tripping at low percents. As in the original games, Ken's Hadoken is weaker than Ryu's version. Since Ken does not have access to Shakunetsu Hadoken, he can only do two versions of the move: a small blue Hadoken (special button only), and a minutely stronger and larger inputted Hadoken (↓ ↘ → + attack/special). Combos well out of his tapped tilt attacks and aerials, and is mainly used to rack up damage due to its low damage outputs, knockback and slow speed. Both variants can cancel into his Final Smash. Like in the original Street Fighter II, Ken's Hadoken contains an image of his hands.
Side special		Tatsumaki Senpukyaku	3% (Standard, ground, hits 1 - 4), 3.4% (Input, ground, hits 1 - 4), 3% (Standard, midair, hit 1), 2% (Standard, midair, hits 2 - 4), 3.4% (Input, midair, hit 1), 2.3% (Input, midair, hits 2 - 4)	A jumping, spinning crescent kick. Unlike Ryu's version of the move, Ken's version hits multiple times, and has less endlag. Also, Ken will announce the move by name whether he uses the input or not (Ryu only announces the move if it was performed via input). If all hits connect, it can deal more damage than Ryu's version. The multi-hits can also drag opponents offstage at low percents, making it effective against characters with poor recoveries. However, Ken's Tatsumaki Senpukyaku deals significantly less knockback than Ryu's. Also, the hits connect less reliably, and it lacks a final hit, making it punishable. Any of the hits can be canceled into his Final Smash.
Up special		Shoryuken	13% (Standard ground, fast tap), 8%/6% (Standard ground, mid-fast tap; hits 1/hit 2), 15.6% (Input ground, fast tap), 9.6%/7.2% (Input ground, mid-fast tap; hits 1/2), 2.2%/8%/6.5% (Heavy, Standard ground; hits 1/2/3), 2.6%/9.6%/7.8% (Heavy, Input ground; hits 1/2/3)	A leaping uppercut. Ken's Shoryuken deals less knockback than Ryu's equivalent and hits at a slightly more horizontal angle. However it deals more damage and has powerful hitboxes throughout the move (in contrast to Ryu's Shoryuken, which loses strength the longer it is out). Shoryuken can also drag enemies upwards, letting it kill earlier when close to the top. Depending on how long the button is pressed, Ken's Shoryuken will hit a different amount of times: tapping the button fast causes it to hit once, tapping the button at a mid-fast speed causes it to hit twice, and holding the button performs Heavy Shoryuken: a flaming Shoryuken that hits 3 times. Can cancel into his Final Smash.
Down special		Focus Attack	12% (Level 1), 10% (Level 2), 17% (Level 3)	Functions the same as Ryu's version, but with a spinning kick instead of a punch.
Final Smash		Shippu Jinraikyaku / Shinryuken	1.2% (hits 1 - 13), 13% (hit 14), 1% (initial hit), 3.2% (hits 1 - 4), 4% (hit 5), 4.3% (hits 6 - 10), 7% (hit 11)	Like with Ryu, Ken's Final Smash varies depending on range. At point-blank range, Ken traps the opponent with Shippu Jinraikyaku, a furious series of kicks, followed by devastating series of hurricane kicks. At any other range, Ken performs the Shinryuken, an uppercut which produces a giant pillar of fire with immense vertical range.

Roundhouse Kicks

Unique to Ken, he has 2 additional special moves that are performed only by input. Both moves, each being a variation of roundhouse kicks, originate from Super Street Fighter II Turbo.

• Oosoto Mawashi Geri ("Big Outer Roundhouse Kick"): An outward roundhouse kick, which resembles Ryu's far, held neutral attack. The input is the same as Ryu's Shakunetsu Hadoken: a half-circle input (← ↙ ↓ ↘ → + attack/special). By holding the attack button, he will cancel it into Inazuma Kick. The Inazuma Kick deals a fair amount of shield damage, making it much riskier to block Ken during his blockstrings. The move deals 10%, and the cancelled Inazuma Kick deals 12%.

• Nata Otoshi Geri ("Hatchet Dropping Kick"): A swiping roundhouse kick that hits twice. This move uses a unique input, a reversed forward quarter-circle (→ ↘ ↓+ attack/special), that Ryu doesn't posess. Much like Oosoto Mawashi Geri, holding the attack button will cancel into Inazuma Kick (cancels after the first hit only). As with his Oosoto Mawashi Geri, the Inazuma Kick cancel deals fair shield damage. The two hits both deal 5% each, and the cancelled Inazuma Kick deals 12%.

On-screen appearance

• Walks onto the stage from some mist in the background, then gets into a fighting stance while saying "I'm ready for ya! Bring it on!". Nearly identical to Ryu's appearance.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Faces the screen, and announces "Yeah!" while giving a thumbs-up. Based off of his Street Fighter Alpha winpose.
• Side taunt: Catches his fist in his hand and points forward, saying "Get serious!" Based off of his unique intro with Ryu in certain games, matching the latter's own side taunt. The quote itself comes from Ken's fifth Personal Action in Street Fighter IV.
• Down taunt: Moves his finger towards himself, beckoning towards himself while saying "Bring it on!". Resembles his Street Fighter IV intro along with his quote.

Idle poses

• Adjusts his gloves.
• Wriggles the fingers on both hands, then crosses his arms and pumps them.

Victory poses

• Gives a thumbs-up and says "I did it!" (やったぜ！, I did it!), his recurring win quote that originally appeared in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike. Based off of his Street Fighter Alpha victory pose.
• Punches twice, does a roundhouse kick, and raises his fist, while saying "Challenge me after some practice." In Japanese, he says いくらでもかかってこい！ (Come at me as much as you like!), his win quote from Street Fighter II.
• Kicks twice and performs a beckoning gesture, saying "I knew I'd win! Hah!" In Japanese, he says スパッと勝つと気持ちいいな！ (It feels good to win a spat!), one of his generic win quotes from Street Fighter V. Based off of his victory pose throughout the series, specifically his Street Fighter V variant.

A remix of the victory theme from Street Fighter II.

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Classic Mode: Red-Hot Rivalry

All of Ken's opponents are rivals to the main character of their franchise of origin.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Dark Pit	Palutena's Temple (Battlefield form)	Dark Pit's Theme
2	Wolf	Venom	Star Wolf's Theme / Sector Z (for 3DS / Wii U)
3	Dark Samus	Frigate Orpheon	Multiplayer - Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
4	Dark Link	Temple	Great Temple / Temple
5	Luigi	Mario Bros.	Underground Theme - Super Mario Bros.
6	Ryu	Suzaku Castle (Ω form)	Ryu Stage
Bonus Stage
Final	Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Crazy Hand	On intensity 7.0 and higher, Master Hand fights alongside Crazy Hand, and the track Master Hand / Crazy Hand plays during the battle.

Role in World of Light

Although Ken does not appear in the World of Light opening cutscene, he was vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (sans Kirby) when Galeem unleashed his beams of light.

Ken was one of the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. He can be found in Dracula's Castle; Akuma must be defeated in order to reach him.

Spirits

Ken's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Ken in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

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  978. Ken

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Ken's splash art.

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  Ken's amiibo.

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  Ken's fighter card.

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  Ken on Coliseum.

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  With King K. Rool, Diddy Kong, and Donkey Kong on Tortimer Island.

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  Alongside Koume on Gerudo Valley.

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  Using Focus Attack on Wario on Onett.

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  Using Hadoken on Luigi on Mario Galaxy.

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  Unleashing Shinryuken on Final Destination.

Trivia

• Ken's pose in his official artwork is much like the pose in his Street Fighter III artwork.
• Ken's attack on Wario's motorcycle in the character showcase video is a reference to the car smashing mini-game from the Street Fighter II games.
• Ken's inclusion makes Street Fighter the second third-party universe to have more than one representative, after Castlevania.
  • Ken is also the second third-party Echo Fighter.
  • Additionally, Ken is the first Echo Fighter based on a third-party veteran, as Richter debuted alongside Simon.
  • Ken is the second clone to debut in their home series in the same game as the base fighter, after Falco in Melee, who debuted in Star Fox alongside Fox.
    • Coincidentally, they are the only two fighters who can fight a lone Crazy Hand in Classic Mode.
• Ken is the second newcomer in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to be from a franchise that had its first character introduced in Super Smash Bros. 4, and the only one to be from a DLC-introduced franchise. His inclusion also makes Street Fighter the second franchise with a single character in Smash 4 to receive another playable character, the first for both instances being Animal Crossing.
• Ken is the first character revealed for Ultimate to share a reveal trailer with a character not from the same franchise, having been revealed in the same trailer as Incineroar.
• Ken's showcase of Shippu Jinraikyaku after a successful parry in his reveal trailer is a reference to "Evo Moment 37" (sometimes referred to as the "Daigo Parry"), a famous portion of an EVO 2004 match between top Street Fighter III players Justin Wong and Daigo Umehara.
• Ken and Richter are the only Echo Fighter newcomers with a CGI trailer as well as the only one with CGI footage for their splash art. Daisy did not have either, while Chrom and Dark Samus had only gameplay footage for their trailers and their official artwork for their splash arts.
• Interestingly, Ken's appearance in Ultimate marks the third time in any game where his eye color is blue opposing to the usual brown after Street Fighter: the Movie and Street Fighter IV.
• With the inclusion of his Roundhouse Kicks, Ken has a total of six unique special moves at once, making him the only character in the series with this distinction.
• Ken is one of the few characters who speaks while teetering: he voices a surprised "Uh oh!".
• Ken has the second highest amount of voice clips for any character in the game, with 62 clips. Kirby is the only character who has a higher amount, with 95 total clips.
  • Strangely, his Star KO clip is unavailable in his sound library, making him the only fighter with this distinction.
• Ken and Mario are the only characters that possess the Neutral typing when unlocking them in World of Light.
• In the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Collector's Edition Guide by Prima Games, Ken is the only Echo Fighter to not be covered in the same section as his character of origin, Ryu.