Super Smash Bros. 4
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Akira Yuki

Revision as of 14:50, August 15, 2021 by Nokii (talk | contribs) (→‎Trivia: SmashPedia link.)
"Akira" redirects here. For other uses, see Akira (disambiguation).
Akira Yuki
SSBU spirit Akira.png
SpecialStagesSymbol.svg
Official render of Akira from Virtua Fighter.
Universe Virtua Fighter
Debut Virtua Fighter (1993)
Smash Bros. appearances SSB4
Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown (2021)
Console/platform of origin Arcade
Species Human
Gender Male
Place of origin Japan
Created by Yu Suzuki
Designed by Seiichi Ishii
Voice actor Shin'ichirō Miki
Article on Wikipedia Akira Yuki

Akira Yuki (結城 晶, Yuki Akira) is the main protagonist and mascot of the Virtua Fighter universe.

Origin

 
Akira fighting Jacky in Virtua Fighter.

Akira Yuki is the mascot of the Virtua Fighter series. He is the grandson of the man who invented a unique version of the Bājíquán martial art for Japanese soldiers to use during the Second World War. In the original game, he serves as the assistant instructor at his family's dojo, Yuki Budokan. When he learns of the first World Fighting Tournament at age 23, he decides to enter not for glory, but to further hone his Bājíquán techniques and to understand what "true fighting" is about.

The plot of Virtua Fighter 2 elaborates that, during the first World Fighting Tournament, his overly enthusiastic attitude was met with disapproval by the fellow tournament entrants. He was defeated and humiliated by Kage, whom Akira now holds a grudge against. After putting himself through rigorous training, he attends the second World Fighting Tournament and wins. When he shows the trophy to his grandfather, the old man simply replies, "Don't flatter yourself. You haven't mastered anything yet."

Believing he had not found his true strength yet, Akira attends the third World Fighting tournament and loses. After some encouragement from his grandfather, Akira secludes himself in the mountains to train more, still attempting to figure out what "true fighting" is. While training, he receives an invitation for the fourth World Fighting Tournament. He enters and loses to Kage-Maru. Returning to the mountains, he trains even harder. Akira then attends the fifth World Fighting Tournament; his results are currently unknown.

Akira is the typical traditional martial artist common in fighting games. His preferred style of Bājíquán relies heavily on using parts of the upper body, like elbows, hips and shoulders, to forcefully push an opponent. Most of the damage comes from quick acceleration of the body from a short distance. Akira is the only playable character that uses this technique, with the only other canonical user being his grandfather.

Akira does not seek money or glory from fighting and entering tournaments. He instead fights simply to test himself and his abilities. Akira also seeks to learn the meaning of "true fighting," something that his grandfather assures he will learn in time. Akira is usually seen wearing a traditional sleeveless fighting Gi, either white or black, and a headband around his spiky hair.

In Super Smash Bros. 4

As a costume

 
A Mii Brawler dressed as Akira.

Akira is the basis for a paid downloadable content costume for Mii Brawlers. Nintendo also released a QR code for those who wish to have the exact Mii used in the costume's advertising. The costume is similar to his debut appearance in the original Virtua Fighter, where graphical limitations had him appear in a blocky and polygonal form.

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

As an Assist Trophy

From the original Virtua Fighter game, Akira joins the battle with the same graphic style as his original appearance. He has a wide variety of attacks at his disposal, but none represent him better than his Tetsuzankou. When he leaves the fight he says his signature line!

*By the way, Bayonetta's forward throw is also based off of Tetsuzankou.

Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site
 
Akira on Castle Siege.

Akira appears as an Assist Trophy. He appears with his blocky model from the original Virtua Fighter, and his animations resemble the choppy movements of the original game. However, his voice clips are sourced from Virtua Fighter 4. As a result, his appearance is similar to Virtua Fighter 10th Anniversary, a port of the original game built on Virtua Fighter 4's engine.

He can use a variety of martial arts attacks from Virtua Fighter, including his signature move, the Tetsuzanko (where he grabs an opponent and slams into them, launching them forward). He can also block incoming attacks. He can be defeated as well. Before he disappears, he says his famous quote from the Virtua Fighter series, "十年早いんだよ!" ("It's ten years too soon for you to challenge me!", literally "Ten years too early!") He is also a Spirit in the game's Spirits mode.

As a costume

 
A Mii Brawler dressed as Akira.

Akira appears as a downloadable content Mii Costume for Mii Brawlers, released with the fourth wave of Mii Fighters.

Spirit

No. Image Name Type Class Slots Base   Max   Base   Max   Base   Max   Ability Series
1,294 Akira
 
★★★★ 3 3966 9918 2098 5245 1716 4292 Fist Attack ↑ Virtua Fighter Series

Gallery

Names in other languages

Language Name
  Japanese 結城 晶, Akira Yuki
  English Akira
  French Akira
  German Akira
  Spanish Akira
  Italian Akira
  Chinese Akira
  Korean Akira
  Dutch Akira
  Russian Акира

Trivia

  • Bayonetta performs the Tetsuzanko technique for her forward throw, and she will occasionally say "十年早いんだよ!" in reference to Akira's line. This is a carryover of a similar easter egg from Bayonetta, and is acknowledged in Akira's blog entry.
  • Akira's opponents in the November 1 Direct include Zero Suit Samus, referencing how she looks similar to Sarah Bryant, and Wolf, referencing Wolf Hawkfield.
    • This was referenced once before in his SSB4 Mii Costume reveal, where the Jacky Mii is also seen fighting Zero Suit Samus.
    • In the Wave 4 Mii costume showcase for Ultimate, an Akira Mii is shown fighting Bayonetta, referencing her use of Tetsuzanko, and alongside a Jacky Mii fighting a metal Mii Brawler, referencing Dural.
  • The pose used for Akira's Assist Trophy render is nearly identical to a piece of artwork from the original Virtua Fighter, which is used for his Spirit.