Editing Ken Masters (section)

{{Short description|Street Fighter character}}
{{Infobox character
| name = Ken Masters
| image = Ken Masters (SF3 - Third Strike).png
| caption = Ken Masters in ''[[Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike]]'' (1999)
| series = [[Street Fighter]]
| firstgame = [[Street Fighter (video game)|''Street Fighter'']] (1987)
| creator = [[Takashi Nishiyama]]
| designer = Shoei Okano (''Street Fighter II'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://game.capcom.com/cfn/sfv/column/132595|title=Street Fighter II Developer's Interview &#124; Guests &#124; Activity Reports|access-date=2018-11-24|archive-date=2018-11-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124220103/https://game.capcom.com/cfn/sfv/column/132595|url-status=live}}</ref>
| voice = {{Collapsible list|title=[[English language|English]]
|[[Eddie Frierson]] (''SFII: The Animated Movie'')
|[[Jason Douglas]] (''SFII V'', ADV dub)
|Stephen Apostolina (''SFII V'', Animaze dub)
|[[Scott McNeil]] (animated series)
|[[Steve Blum]] (''Alpha: The Animation'')
|Steve Cassling (''Alpha: Generations'')
|[[Reuben Langdon]] (''SFIV''–''SFV'')
|[[Vincent Tong (voice actor)|Vincent Tong]] (''Puzzle Fighter'')<ref>{{cite tweet|number=915299906465579008|title=I voiced Ryu & Ken for CAPCOM's Puzzle Fighter! So pumped that's it's out! Download it now! #capcom #voice #voiceover #yvr|user=VincentTong007|author=Vincent Tong|date=October 3, 2017|access-date=August 25, 2018}}</ref>
|[[David Matranga]] (''SF6'')}}
{{Collapsible list|title=[[Japanese language|Japanese]]
|[[Toshihiko Seki]] (''SFII'' drama CD)
|[[Kenji Haga]] (''SFII: The Animated Movie'', ''SFII V'')
|[[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese dub of the ''Street Fighter'' live-action film)
|[[Tetsuya Iwanaga (voice actor)|Tetsuya Iwanaga]] (''Alpha'' series, ''SFEX'', ''SFEX 3'', ''Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo'', ''X-Men vs. Street Fighter'', ''Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter'', ''Pocket Fighter'', ''Marvel vs. Capcom 2'', ''Namco × Capcom'')
|[[Nobuyuki Hiyama]] (''Real Battle on Film'')
|Kōji Tobe (''SFIII: New Generation'' and ''Second Impact'')
|[[Yūji Kishi]] (''SFIII: Third Strike'', ''Capcom vs. SNK'' series, ''SFIV'', ''SFXT'', ''Project X Zone'' series, ''Wreck-It Ralph'', ''SFV'', ''SSBU'', ''SF6'')
|Gō Yamane (''SFEX 2'', ''EX 2 Plus'')
|[[Monster Maezuka]] (''SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom'')
|[[Kazuya Ichijō]] (''Alpha: The Animation'')
|Eiji Hanawa (''Alpha: Generations'')}}
| portrayer = [[Damian Chapa]] (''Street Fighter'' film, game)<br/>Christian Howard (''Street Fighter: Legacy'', ''Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist'')
| origin = 
| home = North America
| nationality = [[Americans|American]]
| fighting_style = Ansatsuken<ref>{{cite web|url=https://game.capcom.com/cfn/sfv/column-130433?lang=en|title=Ken Masters|website=Capcom|access-date=April 24, 2025}}</ref>
}}
{{nihongo|'''Ken Masters'''|ケン・マスターズ|Ken Masutāzu|lead=yes}} is a character in [[Capcom]]'s ''[[Street Fighter]]'' [[fighting game]] series. The character was first introduced in the 1987 title ''[[Street Fighter (video game)|Street Fighter]]'' as an alternate fighter to [[Ryu (Street Fighter)|Ryu]]. While Ken and Ryu are devoted to testing their power, Ken instead focuses on developing a family with his spouse Elisa. Ken becomes a mainstay in the following ''Street Fighter'' games. An alternate brainwashed version of him, {{nihongo|'''Violent Ken'''|暴力的なケン}}, has also been featured in a few of his appearances. Ken's presence is in several sequels to the ''Street Fighter'' series in addition to its related media. He has also made crossover appearances in ''[[Namco × Capcom]]'', ''[[Project X Zone]]'', and ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]''

Capcom designer [[Takashi Nishiyama]] created Ken when developing the first ''Street Fighter'' game. However, due to budget problems, Ken could only use Ryu's moves, which later resulted in their characterization as friendly rivals and fellow students of [[Gouken]]. Shoei Okano eventually redesigned the character in later games. Seeking to make the character more unique, Capcom redesigned Ken's red gi in ''[[Street Fighter V]]'' and ''[[Street Fighter 6]]'', though the latter resulted in changing his entire character depicting his life as less stable.

Despite being recognized as a clone of Ryu, Ken develops a more social life rather than devoting his life to his training like Ryu. Their similarities inspired the term Shotokans in other fighting games besides ''Street Fighter''. The evolution of his [[gameplay]] and design has been popular among gamers for becoming more unique. However, some critics were critical of his role in ''Street Fighter 6'', which was significantly changed due to the sudden increase in depression resulting from losing his family.