Here’s a theory about Chun-Li and her place in the story mode:
Ususally, the character story modes were to introduce us to the characters and their personalities, styles, and motivations for fighting. And more times than not, they are used to set up the plot for the upcoming cinematic story mode expansion. But here is an interesting thought I had after watching the story mode clips like for the 20th time.
What Chun-Li’s character story takes place AFTER the Cinematic story mode?
Here me out on this. Firstly, let’s take a look at Chun-Li’s drive to fight. Ever since she first appeared in the Street Fighter franchise, Chun-Li’s motivation for fighting was fueled by revenge, revenge, REVENGE. M. Bison kills her father, and she won’t stop until she brings him to justice and takes down the entire Shadaloo organization. And it wasn’t until SFIII where she finds a new purpose for fighting: to teach and protect younger generations as a motherly figure.
Chun-Li is arguably the most iconic female character in the franchise, the poster girl and the main heroine in the series. But lets take a look at some of her previous battles in the previous games: She gets her ass handed to her by Bison in Alpha. In SFII, even though her ending states that she’s avenged her father’s death, she clearly isn’t the one who kills him. SFIV, we dive a lot more into her with the SFIV Aftermath Short (Including one aftermath Short about her Post-SFII) . But in SF Ties that bind, she is reduced to a minor role. And let’s not forget that she gets her ass handed to her by Juri in the Juri OVA. Finally, in SFIII, while get gets added late, her ending clearly reveals her new motivation on fighting.
Now we will be finding out what will happen in the cinematic expansion what takes place between SFIV and SFIII. But all we do know is that Chun-Li accomplishes two major things:
- According to Urien in SFIII, Chun-Li’s “legendary legs were said to have destroyed that organization”. I would assume that Urien is refering “that organization” as Shadaloo. So if that were the case, some time during the Cinematic expansion, Chun-Li will find a way to not only save the world from those dreaded black moons, but will also bring down Shadaloo as well. (Whether or not she finally beats up Bison’s ass for killing her father will remain to be seen)
- She takes in Li-Fen as her own ad raises her like a mother. Now in her character story, We just see Li-Fen already living with Chun-Li for some time now. And in SFIII, she rescues her from Urien.
Now as mentioned, Chun-Li takes in Li-Fen. But we don’t know what happens before that. Like how did the two meet? What made Chun-Li decide to adopt her, versus helping Li-Fen find her own family (assuming she has one, and they are still alive)? It just seems so random to give Chun-li this girl for her to take care of with out a reason, especially since she’s been on the path of Justice for the longest time. So my theory is that this story mode is going to be a huge character development for Chun-Li as she goes from avenging her father’s death, to motherly role to Li-Fen.
Now earlier, I hypothesized that Chun-Li’s character story takes place after the story mode. The reasoning for me thinking this is because when Combofiend and Mike Ross played the story mode demo at E3, in one of the early scenes, we see Li-Fen on the Shadaloo base, eventually being rescued by Rashid. Rashid saves her, but I was surprised how very little of her and her background was mentioned. (Probably because Rashid was more concerned finding his friend, but I digress). It’s interesting to me that Li-Fen doesn’t mention anything about her family, or where she was taken from, or even Chun-Li at all. Like for instance, if a child gets kidnapped, the first person they want to be back with would be their parents. If Li-Fen didn’t have any, then maybe she’d would want to get back to the closest figure to a mother that she has: Chun-Li. And yet, in that short encounter, there is no mention of her.
Fast forward to Chun-Li’s first scene: Shadaloo strikes, and both she and Guile are tasked with a mission to investigate. Now assuming that this is all real time, and if Chun-Li was taking care of Li-Fen, then she probably would’ve been more emotionally distressed from the fact that the organization that killed her father now has Li-Fen in their grasp. But when we first see Chun-Li in that scene, she’s looking calm, confident, and determined. Fast forward to later on down the road before they meet Charlie Nash (more specifically, the scene where Chun-li was injured in her last fight and was sitting against a car/van/truck, whatever it was). Chun-Li says “There’s a group of computer hackers who’ve gone missing. The ages, genders and nationalities all vary, including some very young ones.” That would be a pretty good time to mention someone as important as Li-Fen, but once again, no mention of her names comes out.
So could it be that both Chun-Li and Li-Fen have not met yet? And that they are destined to find each other some time down the road in the Cinematic Expansion? What will happen that will make Chun-Li change her path from justice to caring for kids?
With that being said, this upcoming cinematic story mode probably grants Chun-Li the biggest spotlight on her character in a long time. She will get a chance to display her might as we’ll see how she takes down Shadaloo. And we’ll also see an impact in her character development as she takes in Li-Fen.
Here is what I think (and want the most) of what will happen:
Chun-Li has a chance to destroy Bison’s Black Moon machine and end Shadaloo once and for all. But Li-Fen is being used as a hostage or something which puts her life in danger. Chun-Li is engaged in a fierce battle with Bison with him gaining the upper hand. As a beaten Chun-Li looks in the eyes of a scared Li-Fen, she gets flashbacks of her when she was a kid, when she received the news that her father would never come back, that look of fear, sadness, anger… and a new purpose to protect Li-Fen from going through what she has gone through, gives Chun-li the power she needs to defeat Bison once and for all. But when faced with a decision on whether to execute Bison, or to save Li-Fen, she chooses the later. While she saves the little girl, Bison is gone (probably to get wrecked by Nash on)
After that, with no one to look after the little girl, Chun-li takes her in. And thus, we lead back to her character story.
So that’s my theory. Chun-Li’s character story takes place after the cinematic story because her cinematic story will showcase both her destroying Shadaloo, as well as shift her character into the motherly protector she is in SFIII.
