On May 28th, 2026, Ingrid finalized the third season of Street Fighter 6, and while the reveal of Season Four was highlighted with the reveal of Final Fantasy 7’s Tifa Lockhart, we still were treated to four great, and partially classic, assortment of the characters. So, here is a look at the entire Year Three fighters to get you hyped for Season Four.
Sagat
When Street Fighter 6 revealed their launch lineup, the famed Muay Thai fighter, Sagat, wasn't part of the game's launch cast. Sagat has been a staple ever since the original 1987 arcade release of Street Fighter, eventually becoming a playable fighter in Street Fighter II: Championship Edition. So yeah, he’s been around for the entire history of the franchise and him not appearing at launch left a sour taste in a lot of player’s mouths.
While Sagat is a rather tall character, he is also lanky, and isn't a mountain of muscle like some others on the roster. However, Sagat is nonetheless built to dish out damage with a quick Drive Rush, and able to corner juggle his opponents, draining their health bar like few can.
Given his stature, Sagat has a ton of range, even with simple jabs, and especially with his kicks. Medium kicks and low punches serve him well, as they can be converted into some devastating combo strikes that will leave your opponent questioning their approach. The Tiger Knee Crush is another great attack that is quick to pull off, especially when compared to more of his sluggish moves. Sagat may have some slow attacks, but landing them makes that timing all the more worth it.
Sagat has a series of solid strikes. From a medium overhead punch, to light kicks, to strong combo abilities with his forward heavy kick, which if connected with his Drive Rush, can be then furthered with his standing heavy kick, which is the perfect starter for his more damage-inducing combo attacks. Sagat also benefits from several of his punches being cancelable, making him very versatile in battle to always be ready for a change in offense.
Adding to his arsenal is the Tiger Shot, his projectile, which is a serious competitor to Ryu's fireball. The low Tiger Shot is through his low punch, which his high Tiger Shot is through his medium or heavy punches. While this may limit or restrict how his Tiger Shot has worked before, it nonetheless is still satisfying to pull off.
Specials for Sagat are actually quite good, with his Tiger Uppercut returning. While it likely isn't going to convince people to swap to Sagat if they don't know or have liked the character before, the fact he has an invincible reversal in his overdrive version, makes him a compelling character to master. Or, at the very least, attempt to.
His Tiger Knee Crush and Tiger Shots also have solid damage output via his Overdrive. And when it comes to his Supers, both his Level one Tiger Cannon and his Level 2 Savage Tiger are certainly worth pulling off, as well as his Level 3, the Tiger Vanquisher, which is an extremely cool looking move as he lays down a series of kicks to knock his opponent out with a crunchy uppercut.
There is a lot to play around with when it comes to Sagat. His level 2 is extremely powerful, and his cancels and reversals, especially when pulling off his Overdrive specials, really make him quite strong and versatile.
While I'm not a Sagat guy, nor a fan of his new costume, I can certainly see his appeal and see why fans do enjoy playing as him, and why his return is so celebrated. And, with an interesting, but brief, narrative built around him and his past, it'll be interesting to see his path in the future.
Crimson Viper
If there has been one character I've been dying to see return, it's been Crimson Viper, my second favorite SF character after Cammy. Now, we haven't seen her since Street Fighter IV, so it's been a bit of a spell since she last laced boots.
Back then, C Viper was a bit of a difficult character to control. She basically played very different to many of the other fighters, and for me, that is what made her stand out. That, and her design was absolutely flawless.
Here, she has a far busier outfit than before, rocking a big coat that almost acts like a cape, and despite resting on her shoulders, it never once flies off; I chalk it up to magic. Still, her design is fantastic, and her original outfit is also available as well, should you want to swap back. For me, I like both, but her new hairstyle sort of removes part of her character, given it is wildly different from her trademarked mohawk ponytail. That said, that chest window may give Powergirl a run for her money.
Like before, Crimson Viper is a beast to control, and may not be for everyone due to her lack of solid range with her standard attacks, or that her standing and medium kicks don't cancel into her specials. That said, she has a solid series of punches, especially her standing medium punch, which when used with block can transfer into standard light kicks or medium crouch punch and then cancel into her specials.
However, fans of C Viper know that her special attacks and the more flashy presentation of her skills are what has made the character memorable to those who really invested time into her. Whether it is her anti-air use of Thunder Knuckle or Seismic Hammer, they are so fun to pull off, as is the case with her Burning Kick or Thunder Dash, which are enhanced via her Overdrive. However, if you do attempt to use combos with her high jump from Burning Kick or Thunder Knuckle, it does use a bar on her Drive Gauge, preventing you from spamming it, or risking a burnout.
While some of her Street Fighter IV charm remains, some moves do see slight variations, such is the case with Focus Force, which replaces Focus Attack, working as a solid offering for a counter move. Capcom likely didn't want to revolutionize the character and make her feel drastically different than before, so I am glad to see some new but subtle changes to her kit, such as this.
Crimson Viper also has the ability to feint most of her specials, which is fairly unique and throws off your opponent. You can feint Seismic Hammer and Thunder Knuckle, which open up various tactics, such as Seismic Hammer being feinted for use for anti-air. Feinting is equally useful in the middle of combo attacks as well as it serves as a way to link other attacks as you disguise your attempt, forcing your opponent to leave themselves vulnerable.
Her supers are extremely fun, with her Level 1, the Limit Decoupler, being a solid throw attack, which also serves as an anti-air strike. Otherwise, her Level 2, Mission Complete and her Level 3, Hard Luck Rejector, compliment her arsenal, even if they act somewhat the same.
Crimson Viper, as she was in Street Fighter IV, is a complex character meant for the more technical player. Myself, as a button masher, I get the most out of her with modern controls, pulling off her specials and supers with ease. Feints are a huge part of her arsenal, with her aerial strikes only making her more dangerous.
Her story mode revolves around her mission, as well as her daughter, which gives her a nice work life balance that the character needs.
Crimson has always been a style over substance character for me, but I adore her move set, even with its deep technical mastery. She certainly won't change your mind if you passed on her before, but players who have mastered her are deadly online.
Alex
Alex is certainly one of the more enjoyable characters this season, and for good reason. During the reveal of this season's character pass, we saw AEW star, Kenny Omega, cosplay as the character, and to much surprise, he also did the motion capture of the fighter as well, giving him some authenticity to his wrestling arsenal.
However, Alex feels different than before, for some good reasons, and some not so good. However, it is worth pointing out that Alex isn't just the grappler he once was, he has more depth and substance to his arsenal, which is significantly for the better.
Alex feels more built around combo attacks now, which is a huge bonus. By combining that with his grappler skills, he becomes more complex and versatile in practice. Having a combo string getting him close for a throw is crucial, and really gives him more to chew on. While there is an attempt to branch him away from the grappler, I do wish his Power Bomb throw did far more damage.
Previously, Alex had an aerial attack with Air Stampede, which required a charge. Here, it doesn't need the charge as it now is linked to his medium kick via his Prowler Stance. Where the move was good before, this freedom makes it far more effective and enjoyable to pull off.
The Prowler Stance is crucial to what makes Alex tick this time around. You have around a half dozen solid moves associated with it, making it very beneficial to use. Now, while you can't block in this stance, the benefits outweigh the negatives, as you're going to really see why when you really invest into him. Light punches can easily link into other Prowler Stance moves, his Rising Shoulder Tackle is easily pulled off with medium punch, and his heavy punch sees his lariat punch returning. This added with some good heavy kicks, and his Aerial Smash, and he just becomes a force of nature.
The previous version of the character was never a good design for me. While I do like his updated look, it doesn't quite match the appearance of a wrestler, given the nature of the character. It reminds me more of the everyday clothes you see wrestlers wear during backstage segments than what is worn in the ring. Again, good outfit, but it doesn't match his wrestling theme.
Alex has a great set of Supers with his Level 1, the Raging Spear, always be a good strike to make. He has two Level 2 supers with Sledgecross Hammer and Omega Wing Buster, with the latter being a tribute to Kenny Omega. His Level 3 is the Final Prison, which is more powerful when your health is at 25% or lower, and is visually fun as hell to watch.
Now, when it comes to Alex's story, woof.. this is where it gets weird. While it's not too taboo in Japanese culture to have distant family relations, as it is perfectly legal, albeit uncommon, it's another matter entirely elsewhere in the world. While Capcom has since edited it to sound less like family relations, it is still an odd thing to really even been included in the first place.
Despite his story background, Alex is super fun to use, and is a good counter to Zangief and his wrestling approach. They do attempt to make Alex break free of some of the traditional grappler moves, but he still fills the role extremely well, even with his wrestling theme not present in his attire.
Ingrid
Throughout the years, Ingrid has been sort of a sore spot for Street Fighter fans. So, when it was announced that the final fighter for Year 3 would in fact be said Ingrid, her announcement wasn't without its critics. From Fighting Evolution to Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max, Ingrid was a character the community absolutely hated. That said, her inclusion in Street Fighter 6 feels like the version of the character we should have had years ago.
Ingrid is also an interesting character in her own right. She's not technically an alien, but rather an interdenominational being, or goddess, that treats the Street Fighter world like a book. Hell, she even mentions Ryu in a way where, in another dimension, that Capcom Fighting All-Stars wasn't cancelled.
Her initial outfit is still very alien-like, almost like some sort of space princess. If anything, it reminds me of the headgear of Katamari Damacy, with the protruding side pieces on each side of her head albeit not as pronounced. She does have her original outfit, but her face type doesn't feel suited to it anymore. That said, her third outfit, a combination of a maid and magician, is hands down her best fit.
Regardless of her appearance or backstory, Ingrid is a blast to play, especially with how you can power up her attacks and really lean on the offence. While she does feel a tad overpowered in some ways, balance changes and players learning her weaknesses are going to balance her out in time.
Despite being overpowered, some casual players are likely going to struggle with her. This is due to her normals not having the greatest range. Still, her standing heavy punch does counter this with some decent range, despite it feeling a bit slow. Her forward heavy punch comes with a bit of leap, and can be cancelled into certain strikes, making it good for pulling a fast one on your opponent. Her anti-air isn't as quick as I'd like, and you sort of have to anticipate that your opponent is going for such an attempt.
Kicks are also great with combo ability and you can even cancel her crouching medium kick into her special attacks. It's also worth pointing out that you can actually Drive Rush cancel from it, which isn't something more of this season's characters can do. It felt like Capcom was listening to fans. Her standing heavy kick is also quite good, even if it isn't cancellable. It pushes her forward while hitting twice, which bridges the gap nicely while producing offense. It also opens up for some great combo transfers with her punches, or into many of her Super Arts.
Ingrid has a resource system called Sun Crests. These let you power up her attacks and Supers. You can build up to four Sun Crests to deal extra hits, extend combos, and apply more damage to your attacks. They are built up in various ways, but the easiest way is to use your Light Sun Flare or Sun Burst. A Sun Flare will store up one Sun Crest while the light aerial version of the Sun Burst stores up one as well.
This makes Ingrid a fantastic Zoner due to powering up her projectiles. And, depending on the amount of Sun Crests built up, they will vary on look and function. Her Sun Shot is a good way to play defense due to its ability to control your zone, due to its slower push speed. It can certainly confuse opponents who are expecting a faster shot. Her Sun Flare, as mentioned previously, is a solid projectile, especially when powered up. Depending on which version, it can nearly clear the screen, fire multiple times, and consume other incoming projectiles as well. And as mentioned before, the jumping version of it, the Sub Burst acts very similar and is a blast to use.
Additional attacks consist of her Sun Rise, which is a great counter to aerial attacks, while her Vanishing Sun teleport has a lot of utility as there are multiple versions of it. This allows her to teleport forward with a drop kick. You can also teleport above your opponent, and perform a good ol’ Mario butt stomp. The teleport can also be used defensively, as you can teleport backward to avoid attacks.
Ingrid's Super Arts are equally solid with plenty to choose from. Her Level 1 Super, the Shining Sun, makes you damn near invincible from incoming attacks or even throws. This can also be powered up with additional Sun Crests, making it even deadlier. Order of the Sun, her Level 2, is an AOE that fires down beams of energy at a mark on the ground. While you can move this around, you also have control of Ingrid as well, which really puts the pressure on your opponent. And, like her Level 1, this can be manipulated via her Sun Crests.
Cosmic Ray is her Level 3, and can focus and track her opponent across the entire screen. It also helps that it can be combo’d after some of her best special attacks, such as the Sun Burst or even simple juggle attacks. However, while a great move, it is also extremely slow and can be a risky play against those who can out maneuver Ingrid.
However, Ingrid also hides a dark secret. As the final boss of the Avatar Arcade Mode, you'll fight Dark Ingrid. She is very similar, except she has a new Super Art 2 with Sun Octopus, which is a command grab. This move was originally her Super Art in the cancelled Capcom Fighting All-Stars. She also starts each match with 4 Sun Crests built up, while her Super Bar fills up passively during the match. She also has a powered up version of Sun Flare known as Lights of Heaven and a special kick attack that puts her opponent instantly into burnout. What makes her deadlier is that you can unlock this variant by triggering a secret transformation at the start of the match.
As for her story mode, Ingrid is focused on two people, Ryu, who she alludes to some future shenanigans, as well as her time with him via the cancelled Capcom Fighting All-Stars. However, her final bout is with Bison, and her demonstration of her untapped power as a goddess.
Ingrid is a wildly fascinating character with a ton of potential. Her Sun Crest build up can take even the most basic projectile and turn them into complete hell for your opponent. Her playful nature is a mere ruse as she is a destructive force that treats the Street Fighter world like a simple plaything. She has a deep and rewarding set of moves, and her dark version is a legit threat, as many find her wildly overpowered. Still, it's good to see some redemption for a character that once was one of the most hated character across the canon.