Street Fighter 6 is already a pretty strange game when you get down to it. While the underlying gameplay is a rock-solid expansion of classic fighting game mechanics, the story is as expansive and bizarre as ever. This extends beyond the obviously unique characters like Blanka, with even seemingly normal characters like Alex getting some very strange touches to their narratives.
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Recently added to Street Fighter 6 as DLC, Alex’s character ending has left a lot of fans online confused and frustrated because of a bizarre turn for the character. This has caused uproar in the fanbase, prompting Capcom to quickly plan a patch for the game to update the offending material. It’s an interesting new example of how quickly fan reactions can reshape the games they play, making it a potentially important footnote in the history of developer/player relationships and how quickly publishers can amend their work.
Street Fighter 6 Accidentally Gave Alex An Incest Plotline
Brought into the game as part of the “Year 3” DLC, Alex is one of the many characters in Street Fighter 6 who gets an ending to their personal storyline. These endings highlight what happens to them after the events of the game. For Alex, that involves marrying Patricia, the daughter of the man who trained him. The ending even reveals they have a child together. The problem is that the ending also reaffirms the idea that Alex and Patricia were step-siblings and that Patricia is actually Alex’s second-cousin. It adds a very queasy element to that relationship, especially given that fans online have noted the age difference between the two characters means a young Alex held Patricia when she was a baby.
The backlash to the ending has led to Capcom addressing the issue. The publisher has confirmed that an upcoming patch will address the issue and update Alex’s story. While the backstories aren’t being removed from the game, the patch will “revise certain text passages that may have been misleading.” A short story on the official Street Fighter 6 website confirms that character history still largely exists, but highlights how the pair didn’t know each other growing up. This attempt to calm the fanbase hasn’t been working too well, however, with many players on social media still decrying the relationship, noting that the incestuous nature of the relationship is just the (very glaring) tip of the iceberg over what makes it uncomfortable for fans.
Capcom’s Patch Proves How Quickly Gamers Can Shape The Stories Of Major Franchises
Street Fighter has never necessarily been a restrained series when it came to absurd storytelling. Just look at the uncomfortable implications that come with the revelations about M. Bison and Cammy. However, it’s notable that the fan base quickly took note of Alex’s ending and responded negatively, forcing Capcom’s hand to patch in a fix to the language in a bid to uncomplicate the situation. This is far from the first time this sort of thing has happened, with the blowback to Mass Effect 3‘s ending and the subsequent additional story beats provided by BioWare still lingering as a major moment in gaming.
Social media has made it incredibly easy for players to share their thoughts — both positive and negative — with creatives across all media. That’s especially true for gaming, a space that has always thrived online. Capcom’s quick response to the blowback highlights just how quickly fan responses can impact game creators and how fast those changes can go into effect in the modern era. Even as Capcom attempted to mitigate the damage, the blowback continues to mount. This could lead to Capcom further patching the game and adding more elements to Alex’s story, even potentially changing it completely. While it’s a minor moment from a fighting game DLC, this could be a potentially important moment for developers and publishers as they learn just how quickly they may need to adjust their released work if players find the content particularly distasteful.
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