People just don’t understand M. Bison. But now he has a chance to make you understand in this gameplay reveal trailer for Street Fighter V. He’s got plenty of his trademark purple Psycho Power on display as he pummels Charlie Nash into oblivion. Also check out that hair — M. Bison has gone silver fox. Many of his familiar moves return, including a climactic Psycho Crusher, his signature skill.
My knowledge of Street Fighter move sets doesn’t extend much beyond Ken and Ryu blasting Hadoukens while Blanka rolls around like an electrified Sonic the Hedgehog, but IGN has written up an insider’s analysis of what the trailer reveals about Bison’s moves relative to previous games, if you want to get into the nitty-gritty.
Although Charlie Nash has been a part of series lore since Street Fighter II, this is his first playable appearance outside of the Alpha spin-off series. He’s an appropriate opponent for M. Bison to beat down, because Col. Guile’s motivation for entering the tournament in Street Fighter II was to avenge the death of Nash, his friend and mentor, at the hands of Bison. Nash looks a little worse for wear these days, with a big Frankenstein’s monster patch of skin grafted onto his face. The only other characters currently confirmed for Street Fighter V are series mainstays Ryu and Chun Li.
Capcom’s Street Fighter V is set to come out in April 2016. Xbox fans will be disappointed to learn that it will be forever exclusive to PlayStation 4 and Windows PC.
Until then, I leave you with this stirring speech from the 1994 Street Fighter movie. Raul Julia’s M. Bison was his final role on the big screen before tragically passing away, and he gives the warlord an almost Shakespearean gravitas. It’s also worth noting a young Ming Na Wen as Chun Li, well before many of us got to know her as Mulan or Melinda May on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. In any case, pour one out for Bisonopolis.
