Ken (SSBU)

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Ken (, Ken) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He is the third fighter from Capcom after and . He was announced as a newcomer during the November 1st, 2018 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct, alongside and . Despite being a semi-clone, Ken is Ryu's Echo Fighter (and was the final Echo Fighter to be revealed), thus being classified as Fighter #60ε.
, Ken's English voice actor from Street Fighter IV and Street Fighter V, reprises his role in the overseas versions, including the Chinese and Korean versions. His Japanese voice actor since Street Fighter III: Third Strike, , reprises his role exclusively in the Japanese version. Ultimate is the last game where voices Ken in English, as is his current English voice actor in Street Fighter 6.
Ken is ranked 42nd out of 82 on the current tier list, placing him in the lower half of the B- tier. Ken is known as the more aggressive shoto, being able to dish out huge amounts of damage from his multitude of combos and strings, finishing off his opponents with strong KO confirms into his Shoryuken. Like his fellow Street Fighter friend, Ken has a lot of good frame data on his moves and the distinction of having the auto-turnaround mechanic which allows him to perform his combos easier and more reliably. His Shoryuken in particular is great as an anti-air with high knockback growth when the last hit connects or when all hits on the ground connect with each other.
However, Ken shares nearly the same amount of weaknesses as Ryu, being fairly easy to combo reliably and easily edgeguarded if one reads his linear recovery route. In addition, unlike Ryu, Ken is vulnerable to some of his moves being able to be escaped via SDI, such as his Shoryuken and Tatsumaki Senpukyaku, allowing his opponent to punish him for landing those moves. Finally, Ken is forced to approach in a lot of matchups with his limited amount of approach options, making him linear overall.
Overall, Ken is seen as a capable and viable fighter in the right hands with his strong advantage state and combo ability, and players can choose to play either Ken or Ryu, depending on the matchup or mood. For example, if the matchup requires an aggressive game plan, then Ken is the optimal choice. As such, many players who play Ken also play Ryu, although there are several successful players dedicated to just Ken, such as and .
==How to unlock==
Complete one of the following:
*Play VS. matches, with Ken being the 57th character to be unlocked.
*Clear with or any character in his unlock tree, being the last character unlocked after .
*Have Ken join the player's party in World of Light.
Ken must then be defeated on Boxing Ring (the Ω form is used in World of Light).
==Attributes==
As the more aggressive "shoto" compared to , Ken shares most of his attributes with some slight tweaks. As a heavyweight with average mobility, Ken has decent frame data and damage output, as well as a dependable ground game due to his decent traction and above-average dashing speed. However, other attributes are polarized in an attempt to replicate the physics of Street Fighter; Ken's walking speed is extremely slow, and while his air speed is above average, this is counteracted by his moderately high falling speed and short jumps. Additionally, he has very low air acceleration, and his air friction is uniquely locked at 0 while jumping, causing his jumps to follow a fixed "arc" unless the player steers them manually. Finally, Ken's fast fall increases his falling speed by 40% instead of the usual 60%. Overall, this grants Ken effective burst movement through dashing and jumping, but forces him to commit when approaching through the air and makes it difficult to land or move short distances.
Despite his average attributes, Ken is one of the most unique fighters in Ultimate, as he has access to many variations of both his standard and special attacks (a trait only shared with his base fighter, ). His jab and tilts can either be held or tapped; tapped attacks are faster and usually combo well into themselves, while held attacks have greater KO potential and can serve as combo finishers. This also applies to his special moves (other than Focus Attack), which gain different effects like increased power or altered hitboxes when the button is held; they also see an increase in power when used with the original Street Fighter inputs. This effectively gives Ken two movesets—one for starting combos and racking up damage, and the other for scoring KOs. This versatility gives him access to potent true combos and mix-ups, leading to a strong punish game overall.
Ken's standard attacks are also unique in that most of them (even his tapped tilts) have an increased hitlag multiplier, often of at least 1.5x, mimicking the impact of hits connecting in traditional fighter games. Consequently, this results in several of his attacks being easier to SDI, especially up tilt due to it also having an increased SDI multiplier, but it also grants the player more time to perform command inputs when Kara Canceling attacks on hit.
Ken's grounded moveset boasts considerable utility. His tapped jab and down tilt both hit on frame 3, making the former useful for relieving pressure, and the latter excellent for extending combos due to its launch trajectory being useful for followups, such as grabs. Tapped up tilt's low knockback, high speed and active frames make it effective for combos, either into itself, Shoryuken, or even down aerial at high percents near the ledge. Held down tilt can be canceled on hit into a special move, making it effective for shield pressure and damage-racking even at high percents. Down smash is very fast and can cancel into his special moves, and up smash lowers Ken's hurtbox while charging and is quite powerful for its speed. Both tapped forward tilt and held jab are altered at close range, both becoming very potent at starting combos into his special moves. Tapped distant forward tilt is an extremely useful combo starter, leading into a number of options, most notably down aerial and neutral air. Additionally, Ken will automatically face his opponent when there is only one foe left (while standing on the ground), making it considerably easier to land his effective ground attacks.
Ken's aerial moveset is effective as well. Neutral aerial is a sex kick with low knockback and has only five frames of landing lag, making it useful for combos and kill confirms even at high percents. Forward aerial is quick, highly damaging and has good range; it can be chained into itself through repeated jumps, and its sourspot deals high shield damage. Up aerial has fast startup, a fairly active hitbox and decently high reach, making it useful for juggling. It is also reliably follows up into Shoryuken. Both up and down aerial are also able to auto-cancel from a short hop.
Complementing Ken's moveset and combo potential is his wide array of powerful finishers; some of his held tilts, smash attacks and aerials are very capable KO moves due to their high speed. Held up tilt grants upper body intangibility on frames 4-10 while hitting on frame 7, making it deceptively safe for KOs when combined with its speed and tapped up tilt setups. Up smash makes an effective substitute for held up tilt as a finisher, and its wide hitbox can catch aerial approaches. Ken's forward smash has long range, fast startup and is his strongest standard ground attack, making it useful for hard punishes. Back aerial is Ken's strongest aerial, and is fast and has good range despite its small hitbox. Forward aerial also serves as a decent KO move, enhancing its already impressive utility. Finally, down aerial is a powerful meteor smash with fast start-up and long duration, making it a deadly edgeguarding tool. Combined with his excellent combo ability, Ken's punish game is incredibly effective and versatile, being able to rack up damage or KO very easily after connecting with almost any attack.
Ken's signature special moves are also effective in their own ways. Hadoken is a large ki projectile, with three travel speeds based on input method; the standard version is capable of locking, while the input variation deals more damage. Tatsumaki Senpukyaku propels Ken forward, hitting multiple times throughout the attack, and potentially leading to followups, but the non-input version is unsafe on hit. While Ken's signature Shoryuken serves as his main vertical recovery move, it is most well-known for its offensive utility, due to its sweetspot's high knockback, multiple powerful hitboxes, and brief intangibility (frame 5), making it both a powerful KO option and a potent anti-air. The input version of Shoryuken has increased KO power, even longer intangibility (frames 4-6, with arm intangibility frames 1-14), and lower landing lag, and can easily be chained into from Ken's other moves. Focus Attack grants Ken heavy armor against a single hit, and incapacitates opponents when at least half charged, allowing for followups. It can also be canceled on hit, after tanking a blow, or even while charging, allowing Ken to fake out with a shuffle that also provides horizontal recovery distance. His close held neutral attack, first two hits of tapped neutral attack, close tapped forward tilt, distant taped forward tilt, down smash, held down tilt, and all aerials can be canceled into special moves, allowing Ken to combo into Shoryuken for KOs, Tatsumaki Senpukyaku for extending combos, and Focus Attack for mixups and safety.
Outside of the standard special moves, Ken also has access to the Oosoto Mawashi Geri roundhouse kick and the Nata Otoshi Geri crescent kick using inputs only. The former is a powerful KO option at the edge with much more safety than his other special moves, while the latter is a combo extender that leads into either a forward smash, a down smash, or even a Shoryuken with proper reading. Furthermore, both attacks can be cancelled into Inazuma Kick, which deals heavy shield damage, further complementing his ability to pressure and deplete shields with his lengthy blockstrings.
Lastly, Ken has a long-distanced recovery and is surprisingly difficult to combo, traits not shared with most heavyweights. Tatsumaki Senpukyaku has large hitboxes and doesn't cause helplessness; this combined with canceled Focus Attack's armor and momentum boost grants surprisingly effective horizontal distance and protection. Shoryuken travels a good vertical distance, reaches above edges, and can stage spike reckless edgeguarders. Focus Attack also serves as an effective combo breaker, and neutral aerial and input Shoryuken both grant high speed and intangibility, and can even lead into combo or KO opportunities respectively. These traits allow Ken to survive to very high percents when used effectively, which also allows him to take full advantage of rage.
Despite his abundant strengths, Ken has his weaknesses as well, most of them shared with Ryu. Though his recovery travels a long distance, it becomes very short if extendable elements, such as Tatsumaki Senpukyaku, cannot be utilized. Focus Attack requires a brief charge before it can be canceled. Tatsumaki Senpukyaku's long duration and low damage makes it vulnerable to being interrupted by long-ranged attacks, and he can only use it once without landing or being dealt hitstun. Ken's falling speed, low jumps and poor air acceleration make it difficult to recover from below the stage, as Shoryuken's recovery is almost strictly vertical and has high endlag, making Ken's vertical recovery easy to predict and interrupt. While Ken excels at shield pressure, his grab game is sorely lacking; his throws have high damage, but none of them have effective follow-up or KO potential. Down throw is his only combo throw at very low percents, and the extra utility of his throws (down throw instantly breaking shields, and up throw's kick KOing bystanders) does not apply in a 1-on-1 setting, making them situational.
Although Ken has an overall good neutral game, it does suffer from noticeable flaws. Despite his good frame data (especially for his tapped tilts and neutral aerial) and decent running speed, his slow walking speed and short range hinders the otherwise great utility of his tilt attacks, which gives him trouble against characters who possess disjointed hitboxes, especially when combined with his tall stature. Ken's only projectile, Hadoken, is punishable if used carelessly due to its long endlag, weak damage and low priority. Aside from the advantages granted his neutral aerial and Focus Attack, Ken's fixed arc jumps make his aerial approach highly committal and thus very predictable. These issues force Ken to play patiently and take advantage of any opening, as he has trouble against opposing camping. Focus Attack's utility is also match-up dependent, as it becomes much less effective against fast or multi-hitting moves (such as Roy's forward aerial or Cloud's Cross Slash, respectively). Because Focus Attack is also Ken's main method of escaping combos, this makes him susceptible to certain combos and juggles due to his high weight and quick falling speed, and his slower fast-fall compared to most other characters occasionally makes it difficult to land safely.
Finally, Ken struggles to "force" early KOs, as his KO potential relies heavily on executing combos. While Ken does possess some powerful moves, like back aerial and sweetspotted forward smash, these usually require hard reads to land, and most of his other moves have low knockback scaling due to being tailored for combos. Ken's superb combo ability does largely compensate for this, but without accounting for opposing smash directional influence, or without full knowledge of Ken's moveset, setups and combos, he can have a difficult time taking stocks. Ken's multihit special moves can be fallen out of if not used properly, leading to him being unsafe, or even punishable if he is not careful. Finally, the emphasis on Ken's unique inputs means that his non-input special moves have lower power, and a mere slip of the hand can be more detrimental than usual, at worst even causing a self-destruct while recovering.
Overall, Ken is a combo-oriented fighter with a fearsome offensive potential, as his unique mechanics deliberately give him access to powerful true combos essential to the competitive success of most characters; his ability to trap opponents in hitstun or shield pressure, multiple options for escaping or negating combos, and dependable recovery all make Ken very rewarding and unpredictable. However, his polarized movement, mediocre vertical recovery, and lacking approach make him difficult to play optimally. His high learning curve in particular is perhaps his biggest issue; much practice is generally required for his input specials to use them reliably and consistently, rather than accidentally inputting the wrong move.
==Differences from ==
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 onward to distinguish him from his mirror character, . He primarily trades Ryu's stronger knockback from single hits and zoning capabilities in exchange for more combo routes and damage-racking capabilities, similar to their differences in their home series. His grounded movement is slightly faster than that of Ryu's, and a handful of his attacks have entirely different properties as well.
Since Ken has multiple entirely different moves from Ryu, he is near-universally accepted to be the most unique Echo Fighter, being the only Echo Fighter that is a semi-clone. As such, he, much like fellow Echo Fighters and , is ranked separately from his base fighter on tier lists, and is allowed to be used with his base fighter in Squad Strike.
===Aesthetics===
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===Attributes===
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===Ground Attacks===
*Neutral attack
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*Forward tilt
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*Forward smash:
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===Aerial Attacks===
*Neutral aerial:
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*Up aerial:
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===Throws===
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===Special moves===
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*Hadoken:
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*Tatsumaki Senpukyaku:
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*Shoryuken:
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*Focus Attack:
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===Misc.===
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==Update history==
Like but to a much greater extent, Ken has been buffed overall in game updates so far, with most of his significant buffs coming in the 3.1.0 update. Many of his multi-hit moves connect more reliably and have a lower SDI multiplier, and more importantly, his moves that can be special-canceled have a longer window to do so, making his combos more consistent. His held, close neutral attack has completely changed for the better, now functioning as a reliable combo starter at a much wider percent range.
Update 7.0.0 buffed Ken even further. His overall shield is bigger, making it harder to shield poke him. His down tilt angle change was a mixed bag; it is now easier to combo into his Tatsumaki Senpukyaku, but it is now harder to combo into his Shoryuken. His pivoting leg is now invincible during his Tatsumaki Senpukyaku, making moves like 's PK Fire no longer work. The Tatsumaki is also stronger overall. The biggest change however, was to his down smash. It is now possible to cancel his down smash with a special move (at the expense of less shield damage), vastly improving his offense game. Another, albeit undocumented, buff to his down smash is that it is now possible to Kara Cancel the down smash charging animation. Kara Cancel was already possible but it could only be down during the first four frames of the down smash. Because of this, Ken's combo game has been greatly improved. And finally, Update 9.0.0 made Shippu Jinraikyaku connect much more reliably by making it deal more knockback and having more horizontal hitboxes.
Overall, much like Ryu, Ken fares much better than he did at Ultimate's launch.
 
 
 
 
 
 
==Moveset==
*Ken always turns around to face his opponent when one is left standing, counting teammates as opponents if Team Attack is on.
*A small flash will appear whenever Ken does the input command version of one of his Special Moves instead of the standard B input.
*Sound effects from the Street Fighter II series, albeit heavily modified, are used when Ken hit an opponent instead of the standard knockback sound effects. The intensity of the sound depends on the power of the move. Ken also uses a unique sound effect when he performs a parry, which is based on the parry sound effect from the Street Fighter III series. Ken shares this trait with .
For a gallery of Ken's hitboxes, see here.
===Canceling===
Ken can perform a special move out of certain normal attacks, a mechanic known in his home series as special-cancelling. By pressing the special button or doing the command input after connecting with a normal attack on hit or on shield, Ken will cancel the endlag of the normal attack and perform the move. The normal attacks that can be canceled include the first two hits of neutral attack, tapped and held down-tilt, tapped up-tilt, and proximity forward-tilt, held neutral attack and down smash. He is also capable of doing so with his aerials. Special-cancelling allows Ken to perform blockstrings and hit confirms into Shoryuken for a kill, Tatsumaki for a combo, Hadoken for safety and pressure, and his roundhouse kicks for mixups and KOs at the edge. He can also bait the opponent out with a special cancel into a Focus Attack, further increasing mixup potential.
===Stats===
===Announcer call===
Ken English Announcer SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Ken French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
===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 on-screen appearance.
KenOnScreenAppearanceSSBU.gif|Ken's on-screen appearance
===Taunts===
*Up Taunt: Gives a thumbs up, saying "Yeah!". Based on his Street Fighter Alpha winpose.
*Side Taunt: Bumps his fists together, holds his fist out, and says "Get serious!" (, Give it your all.) Based off of one of his Personal Actions in Street Fighter IV. Nearly identical to 's side taunt.
*Down Taunt: Does a beckoning gesture with his hand, saying "Bring it on!" (, Bring it on!) Based on his introduction in Street Fighter IV.
SSBUKenTaunt1.gif|Ken's up taunt.
SSBUKenTaunt2.gif|Ken's side taunt.
SSBUKenTaunt3.gif|Ken's down taunt.
===Idle poses===
*Adjusts his gloves.
*Wriggles the fingers on both hands, then crosses his arms and pumps them.
SSBUKenIdle1.gif|Ken's first idle pose.
SSBUKenIdle2.gif|Ken's second idle pose.
===Crowd cheer===
 	Cheer (English) 	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian)	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Ken Ken Ken-Ken-Ken!	Ken Ken Ken! 	Vai Keeen! 	Ken Ken! *claps 2 times* Ken Ken!	Allez Ken!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Keeeen 	Ken! Ken! Ken - Ken - Ken!	Ken! Ken! Ken! 	Ken! Ken! *claps 2 times*
===Victory poses===
*Left: Brushes his hair before giving a thumbs-up to the camera, saying "I did it!" ("", I did it!). Based off of his Street Fighter Alpha victory pose, which recurs throughout the series.
*Up: Punches twice, does a roundhouse kick, and raises his fist (similar to Ryu), while saying "Challenge me after some practice." In Japanese, he says "" (Come at me as much as you like!), his win quote from . Based off of his victory pose throughout the series, specifically his Street Fighter V variant.
*Right: Kicks twice (the first being the Nata Otoshi Geri, and the second being the Oosoto Mawashi Geri) and performs a beckoning gesture, saying "I knew I'd win! Hah!" In Japanese, he says "" (It feels good to win a spat!), one of his generic win quotes from .
KenVictoryPose1.gif
KenVictoryPose2.gif
KenVictoryPose3.gif
==In competitive play==
===Most historically significant players===
See also: :Category:Ken players (SSBU)
* - Known for playing all four FGC characters but primarily played Ken in 2021 and most of 2022. He is the best Ken player in Europe and is best known for winning with mostly Ken, defeating and twice. He has since relegated the character to a secondary, pulling out the character to defeat at and at .
* - The best Ken player in the world since 2024, first known for winning over and defeating at . He is since known for many other performances, including placing 7th at , 13th at defeating and 9th at defeating .
* - One of the best Ken players in the world, spearheading Ken's rise in the metagame after placing 5th at and 7th at in the early metagame, defeating and in the former event and marking some of the best Ken results of all-time. Although notoriously inconsistent since then, he still remained the only Ken player with multiple top 8 finishes at majors, placing 5th at several events including and . 
* - One of the best Ken players in North America and one of the best Ken players in the world in the first half of 2022. He is the first American Ken player to top 8 a major, doing so at after defeating , , and . His other notable performances include placing 17th at both and , defeating and in the latter event.
===Tier placement and history===
In the early stages of Ultimate, Ken and his original fighter had poor representation due to their high technical learning curve and problems with approaching due to their slow mobility and vulnerability to projectiles. Due to the perception of Ryu at the time being lackluster from the nerfs he received from Smash 4, Ken was viewed more positively as he had access to his input kicks and slightly better mobility, though he was nonetheless perceived as a mid-tier at the time. Future patches to both characters granted them noteworthy buffs that enhanced their close-quarters fighting style, notably giving them a retooled jab that became an excellent combo starter and giving them more leeway to input special moves from many of his attacks. Players initially believed the buffs were more beneficial to Ken, as Ken had a wider array of combos and better mobility and damage-racking capabilities compared to Ryu, leading to Ken to drastically improve in representation in the second half of 2019. This representation was spearheaded by , who finished top 8 finishes at a few majors during this time, and also included a few good major performances from , some notable secondary usage from , and several strong regional-level players such as and . As such, players widely considered Ken to not only superior than Ryu, but also a high tier, with this perception being maintaned following further buffs to Ken in 7.0.0.
This perception began to change in 2021, as not only did Ryu receive buffs exclusive to him, but many Ken players also began picking up Ryu as a co-main. As such, the representation between the two characters began closing, which was most apparent in 2022: although it marked one of the most successful years for Ken thanks to strong performances from in the first half of the year and towards the end of the year, it also marked the meteoric rise of , whose results with Ryu eclipsed all results from Ken players during that time. The first tier list was favorable to Ken, ranking him at 34th as a high tier and two spots above Ryu. Following the first tier list, Ken's results at the top level took a hit, as takera remained notoriously inconsistent and Jahzz0's performances were rather low-key save a few high peaks. With Asimo remaining a consistent threat to place high at majors, the community began believing that Ryu was a better character than Ken. As such, Ken slipped to 45th on the second tier list in the B- tier, now ranking thirteen spots below Ryu and tying with and for the largest drop between the two lists. Following the second tier list, Jahzz0 saw a more consistent period in being able to place highly at majors, such as his placings at and , as well as recent wins over and . As a result, some players believe Ken's steep fall between the first and second tier lists should be reevaluated, with some believing Ken deserves to be ranked higher. Currently, Ken is considered to be inferior to his Echo Fighter, Ryu; however, the extent of how inferior is still up for debate.
==: Red-Hot Rivalry==
All of Ken's opponents are rivals to the main character of their franchise of origin. Because Crazy Hand represents the destruction of Master Hand's creations, Crazy Hand is encountered in Master Hand's place on lower difficulties.
Round 	Opponent 	Stage 	Music 	Notes
1 	 	Palutena's Temple (Battlefield form)	 	
2 	 	Venom 	 	References Wolf's rivalry with Fox.
3 	 	Frigate Orpheon 	 	
4 	 	Temple 	 	Represents Dark Link.
5 	 	Mario Bros. 	 	References how players can compete with each other in It also aligns with Sakurai's statement that Luigi could be considered the "original Echo Fighter".https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fccgHnBQ0YM&t=225
6 	 	Suzaku Castle (Ω form) 	 	References Ken's rivalry with Ryu.
Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage
Final 	 	 	(Less than 7.0 intensity) (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, fights alongside Crazy Hand.
Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Ken has accompany the credits.
==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 ) 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 behind an evil ghost; must be defeated in order to reach him.
===Fighter Battle===
No.	Image	Name	Type	Power 	Stage 	Music
60ε	 	Ken 	 	10,600	Boxing Ring (Ω form)	
==Spirit==
Ken's fighter spirit can be obtained by completing as Ken. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Ken has been unlocked. 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. His fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with his artwork in Ultimate.
SSBU spirit Ken.png|978. Ken
==In Spirit Battles==
===As the main opponent===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music
602 	 	F-Zero Series 	• • ×3 	 	8,800 	Big Blue (Battlefield form) 	•Sudden Final Smash	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash•Reinforcements will appear during the battle 	 	
766 	 	Metal Gear Solid Series 	• • ×3 	 	9,600 	Midgar (hazards off) 	•Attack Power ↑ 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•Timed battle (1:30)•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage 	 	
942 	 	Punch-Out!! Series 	• (140 HP) 	 	3,600 	Boxing Ring 	N/A 	•The enemy's up special has increased power•Stamina battle•The enemy favors up specials 	 	
996 	 	Street Fighter Series 	• (120 HP) 	 	1,600 	Suzaku Castle (Ω form) 	•Jump Power ↓ 	•Stamina battle•The enemy loves to taunt•All fighters have reduced jump power 	 	
1,197 	 	Rhythm Heaven Series Rhythm Paradise Series	• •Tiny ×3 	 	1,500 	Spirit Train 	•Item: Food 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy favors up specials•The enemy is easily distracted by items 	 	
1,359 	 	Fatal Fury Series 	• •Giant •Tiny 	 	1,800 	King of Fighters Stadium 	•Jump Power ↓ 	•The enemy's kicks and knee strikes have increased power•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd•All fighters have reduced jump power	 	
1,483 	 	Tekken Series 	• (130 HP)• (130 HP)	 	3,800 	New Donk City Hall (Battlefield form)	N/A 	•Stamina battle 	 	
==Alternate costumes==
							
							
==Reveal trailer==
==Gallery==
Ken Turns Up the Heat.png|Ken's splash art.
Ken amiibo.png|Ken's amiibo.
SSBU Ken Number.png|Ken's fighter card.
Ken unlock notice SSBU.jpg|Ken's unlock notice.
SSBUWebsiteKen1.jpg|Ken on Coliseum.
SSBUWebsiteKen2.jpg|With , , and on Tortimer Island.
SSBUWebsiteKen3.jpg|Alongside Koume on Gerudo Valley.
SSBUWebsiteKen4.jpg|Using Focus Attack on on Onett.
SSBUWebsiteKen5.jpg|Using Hadoken on on Mario Galaxy.
SSBUWebsiteKen6.jpg|Unleashing Shinryuken on .
SSBUWebsiteKazuya4.jpg|Fighting alongside Ryu, Terry and Kazuya on Mishima Dojo.
===Fighter Showcase Video===
==Trivia==
*On the official website for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Ken's head icon is slightly different than how it appears in-game, as it lacks the red marks to indicate the color of his gi, and has an additional gray outline on top of the standard black.
*Ken's pose in his official artwork is much like the pose in his Street Fighter III artwork.
**It also resembles 's pose in his Smash 4 artwork, only mirrored.
*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 Classic Mode route is vaguely similar to 's, as both of their routes fight "dark" forms/rivals of main characters as opponents, and both of their routes have the same opponents in some rounds.
**Ken and Falco are the only two fighters who fight a solo as their final boss in Classic Mode under Intensity 7.0.
*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 .
*Ken's showcase of Shippu Jinraikyaku after a successful parry in his reveal trailer is a reference to "" (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, where Umehara's Ken successively parried each hit of Wong's Houyoku-sen as Chun-Li before following with the Shippu Jinraikyaku to win the match.
**The moment is more directly referenced in a development image posted on Masahiro Sakurai's Twitter account, which features Ken parrying 's forward tilt.https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1221266927147839489 Within Ultimate, Zero Suit Samus is used to represent Chun-Li in her Spirit Battle. This picture was also posted during the timeframe of , which Sakurai attended.
*One of the gameplay showcases in Ken's reveal trailer depicts him taunting at New Donk City Hall before being attacked by ; ironically, in Ken's home series, he has a girlfriend (who later becomes his wife) named Eliza.
*Ken and are the only Echo Fighter newcomers with a CGI trailer as well as the only ones with CGI footage for their splash art. did not have either, while and had only gameplay footage for their trailers and their official artwork for their splash arts.
**Unlike Richter, Ken's trailer can be played on his fighter page on the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site.
*Interestingly, Ken's appearance in Ultimate marks the fourth time in any game where his eye color is blue opposing to the usual brown after Street Fighter X Tekken and Street Fighter IV.
*Ken is one of the few characters who has a unique line while teetering: he voices a surprised "Uh oh!".
*Ken is the only character who speaks when he grab releases an opponent, voicing a quick "Whoops!" (, You're good...!).
**Strangely, his Star KO clip is missing in his sound library, making him the only fighter with this distinction.
*Ken and are the only characters that possess the Neutral typing when unlocking them in World of Light.
*If Ken is set as a CPU-opponent in Training Mode, all three CPUs will always face the player, much like on 1-on-1 matches. He shares this distinction with , , and .
**This also happens if Ken faces a single opponent in a team consisting of two or more characters in Team Battles with Team Attack off, and in All-Star Mode when he appears.
*A few of Ken's attacks where he uses his legs or feet to attack, such as Focus Attack, are coded as arm or fist type attacks. This is likely a result of his attacks being copied from Ryu, as many of Ken's leg/foot attacks that are wrongly coded as arm/fist attacks are arm/fist attacks for Ryu.
*In the results screen after a team battle, if the winning team consists of in the front and Ken behind him to the left, Villager's net will clip through Ken's arm.
==Notes==
:1. "Inazuma" translates into "Lightning"
:2. translates into "Toe Kick"
:3. translates into "Uppercut Elbow"
:4. translates to "Flying Foot Edge Kick''
:5. translates to "Straight Line Kick''
:6.translates to "Rotating Leg Sweep"
:7. translates into "Shoulder Throw"
:8.translates to "Knee Kick"
:9. translates into "Circle Throw"
:10. translates into "Hatchet Dropping Kick"
:11. translates into "Big Outer Roundhouse Kick"
==References==
 
Category:Third-party characters
Category:Capcom
Category:Spirits
es:Ken (SSBU)