Someone whos been there since the dayStreet Fighter IIbroke out as an arcade phenomenon.
Fans couldnt control him until the updated version,Street Fighter II: Champion Edition.
Thinking about it, the dude is essentially Evil Spanish Batman.
Studied as a ninja?
High society during the day?
Enacting violence at those he blames for the death of his mother at night?
Member of a super team?
Known for climbing walls?
Would love to shatter Two-Faces jaw?
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They also added yodeling.
Vegas backstory is basically a vigilante superhero origin gone wrong.
His mother married an ugly man who was a total piece of shit.
The husband felt that she didnt respect him for anything other than his money, so he murdered her.
You were so close, man.So close.
Vega grew up training both as a matador and as a ninja.
Meanwhile, I recently figured out how to tie a tie correctly.
Vega used his skills to go around slaughtering those he felt deserved it.
In other words, ugly people.
Vega became a member of his inner circle, along with Balrog and Sagat.
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Thats…a little extreme, but at least the guys able to see his goals through.
Vega appeared in the infamous MalibuStreet Fighter IIcomic, but really didnt do much.
He did have a decent enough role in theStreet Fighter IImanga by Masaomi Kanzaki.
So Chun-Li had to fight Vega while enduring the handicap of using a hand to cover her nipple.
That wasnt as weird as the third volume, though.
Seriously, allowing two people to play as Blanka was a revolutionary concept at one point.
1994 saw the release of the live-actionStreet Fighterfilm in the US.
The movie is well-known for getting a lot of the characters wrong.
Luckily, they got Vega completely right.
He mostly existed to pester Blanka in a rivalry that writes itself.
His scant appearances made plenty of sense when you think about it.
In terms of the shows bad guys, everyone else fit into whats acceptable in a kids cartoon.
Balrog used blunt force.
Sagat threw energy blasts.
Bison did telekinesis stuff.
He had a claw.
He was never going to stab or slice anyone with that claw ever.
Not that he didnt get some use out of that weapon elsewhere.
Japans animated seriesStreet Fighter II Vhad Vega show up.
In an attempt to win over Chun-Li, Vega tricked Ken into taking part in a cage match.
On the other hand, Vegas appearance inStreet Fighter II: The Animated Movieis some seriously good stuff.
Here, hes sent by Bison to go take care of Chun-Li.
Its a scene mainly remembered for its very blatant fanservice.
Regardless, its still completely awesome and actually does hold up.
Good on you, Magnus!
So that was cool.
Vegas role in the story is actually canon and is a bit of a bigger role than expected.
Bison has his army of mind-controlled women (Dolls), led by Cammy, Bisons clone.
After all, the guy loves beautiful people.
Allowing them to die would have been such a waste.
They end up adopting her as one of their own and attempt to help her with her newfound amnesia.
For several years, Capcom and SNK made various crossover games, and Vega appeared in all of them.
Capcoms efforts reused his sprites fromAlpha 3with an added move or two, as well as some extra animations.
The various games played up the different SNK characters who could be seen as counterparts to Vega.
Theres Billy Kane, who acts as Geese Howards trusted assassin, much like Vega is to Bison.
Ryuji Yamazaki, another assassin who is defined by his suave nature conflicted with his intense bloodlust.
Thats pretty much like Glass Joe punching out Super Macho Man.
Vegas ending in theSNK vs. Capcom: Chaosgame was pretty neat.
To help on that front, he replaces the Statue of Liberty with a giant statue of himself.
Vegas been a pretty big antagonist in the UdonStreet Fightercomic series, first appearing inStreet Fighter #2.
Hes sent by Bison to track down and apprehend Ryu.
This leads to him having some major rivalries with the likes of E. Honda and Ken Masters.
ESPECIALLY Ken Masters, who proceeds to give Vega the tiniest scar and it drives him completely mad.
They end up becoming archenemies throughout the series, with three fights under their belts.
First time Vega forfeits due to minor face damage.
Second time, Vega has Ken near death, but Guile makes the save.
Then the third time, they meet up in the World Warrior tournament and Ken gets a clear win.
Vega does make a post-fight lunge at him, but Hondas there to crush him.
He wants to just go back to hosting violent cage matches.
Played by Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas, he appeared briefly in an attempt to assassinate Chun-Li.
I mean, no big deal, we got that in the animated movie, right?
Well, in this version, Vega looks like somebody in a terrible Halloween costume.
The fight itself, which is Vegas only real scene, lasts under a minute and looks ridiculous.
The worst part, though?
When Chun-Li knocks his mask off, she remarks how ugly he is.
That is just…What?
!Thats like stitching Deadpools mouth shut level of missing the point.
Anyway, back to video games.
Vega would return inStreet Fighter IV, along with all his other Shadaloo buddies.
Hes still the same egomaniac we know and love, and theres not much new to talk about.
Still messing with Chun-Li and all that while updating his style and animations to the 3D generation.
His appearance inStreet Fighter X Tekkenat least gives him something to do.
Sure, theyre both Shadaloo executives, but they have to absolutely HATE each other on principle.
Vega has no time for Balrogs brutish ugliness and Balrog has no time for Vegas pretty boy behavior.
Their rival team is Yoshimitsu and Raven.
They mainly fight it out based on how everyone but Balrog is a ninja of some sort.
The post-credits epilogue shows the winner based on which character you first selected.
Whoever wins slaughters the loser and keeps the warpath going.
In 2014, the Evolution Championship Series tournament debuted a short fan-film calledMatadorthat acts as a live-action origin story.
Speaking of Evo,Street Fighterenthusiast Jamie Lee Curtis went to the 2015 tournament along with her children.
To keep a low profile, she hid her identity by cosplaying as Vega the entire time.
Plus hes wearing that ridiculous pirate shirt that Jerry Seinfeld got made fun of for having.
Guy deserves to get punched in the face.
