Talk:M. Bison

Musical chair naming

"If you hail from outside Japan, then you may be confused why the above red-themed toy was named "Vega" by TakaraTomy. Well, because that's his name in all Japanese Street Fighter media! Back in the 1990s, Capcom named the red-suited dictator "Vega", the masked claw fighter "Balrog", and the boxer "M. Bison". However, when the game was being localized for the west, Capcom USA thought "Vega" did not sound sufficiently intimidating for a final boss and were concerned about potential litigation from the real-life boxer Mike Tyson. Thusly the aforementioned three characters had their names rotated: the red-suited dictator became "M. Bison", the masked claw fighter became "Vega", and the boxer became "Balrog", a change that has continued to this day. In fact, most Street Fighter players simply refer to them as "Dictator", "Claw", and "Boxer" to avoid this very confusion.[1]" The source given does not actually say that Vega "did not sound sufficiently intimidating". Nor does it support the statement that "most Street Fighter players" refer to the characters by the descriptions rather than the names. --Khajidha (talk) 14:35, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

Source for the intimidation bit. And as someone who closely follows competitive Street Fighter, the boxer/claw/dictator thing is well-established. Here's footage from Evo, the biggest tournament in the world, where the commentators explicitly call Balrog "Boxer". -- Cyberlink420 (talk) 18:03, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

What is done at international tournaments is not necessarily the same as what most people do when just playing the game. Perhaps rephrase the statement to something like "during international play, the characters are often referred to as dictator, claws, and boxer to avoid any confusion."--Khajidha (talk) 19:49, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

Except it's not just tournaments. Most pro players use the shorthand in general discussion to make it clear which character they're referring to. Even major fighting game websites like Eventhubs use it. It's exceptionally common practice and the cuurrent verbiage suffices. -- Cyberlink420 (talk) 20:56, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

And all the many casual players? Do two random guys in Anywhere, USA playing against each other in their game room really say "the boxer" or do they use the name they see on their screen? --Khajidha (talk) 21:08, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

If they're online, they probably know too. Even Capcom's social media acknowledges it. Let it go and move on. -- Cyberlink420 (talk) 21:15, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

Why does this matter McBaggins (talk) 21:14, 6 October 2022 (EDT)

Honestly, it doesn't. The phrasing is fine, and there's no need to change it. -- Cyberlink420 (talk) 21:15, 6 October 2022 (EDT)