Balrog punching his way to Street Fighter V

“Street Fighter’s” original pugilist, Balrog, is coming to “Street Fighter V” this July 1 as a new playable fighter.

Balrog is so greedy that he’d probably sell his own mother for the right price, if he hasn’t done so already. He really is quite a despicable character. But people forgive his awfulness because he has a gift for punching people in the face really, really hard – which we’re sure is on everybody’s list of “things I wish I can do very well.”

While he may not be the brightest bulb in the “Street Fighter” pantheon, Balrog’s ruthlessness makes him one of M. Bison’s most valuable enforcers. He is also known among fans as the guy who can’t kick.

Like most returning characters, it appears Balrog’s playstyle will be a mix of the old and the new. He retains many of his earth-shaking, face-shattering punches, but his V-Skill and V-Trigger definitely give him new flavor.

The V-Skill is called KKB. This has Balrog performing a very manly twirl while advancing towards his opponent. While twirling, Balrog can combo attacks together, and even dodge projectiles. Fireball spammers beware!

His V-Trigger, Crazy Rush, allows Balrog to chain special moves, such as the Bursting Buffalo and Charging Buffalo, together.

His Critical Art, Gigaton Blow, is a punch so powerful it’ll knock his opponent’s skull all the way back to the Stone Age.

More on the way!

Balrog will not come alone, however. Previously announced high school ninja Ibuki is also part of the July 1 update, along with the eagerly awaited cinematic story mode, new stages, and new costumes. One of those stages is none other than Balrog’s classic “Street Fighter II” Las Vegas stage, while one new costume is a white swimsuit for Karin. It remains to be seen if the other characters will also get the swimsuit treatment. It’s probably a good idea that Capcom should take into serious consideration. Who wouldn’t want to see Zangief in a sexy thong?

The trailer also gives us our first good look at the last two of the first batch of DLC characters for “Street Fighter V”: South Korean psychopath Juri, and silver-haired megalomaniac Urien.

Both characters have undergone visual makeovers. Juri is now sporting an eye patch and a skintight suit, to the joy of fanboys worldwide. To our surprise, Urien is actually now wearing clothes, though it’s safe to say a future alternate costume will likely return him to his almost-naked, loincloth-wearing glory. — TJD, GMA News