Yun's taunt in the Street Fighter III games.
A taunt is a mechanic common in fighting games. Within the Street Fighter games, taunts were introduced in the Street Fighter Alpha series.
| Appearance | Input |
|---|---|
| Street Fighter Alpha series | 
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| Street Fighter III series Street Fighter IV series |
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| Street Fighter V Street Fighter 6 |
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Description[]
Taunts are usually harmless actions that can only be performed on the ground, with the major exception of Dan. Though taunts are often done to mock or annoy the foe, some can actually hit them (though there is little, if any, damage in some cases), making them potentially useful combo starters. Depending on the taunt used, the player might not be able to cancel out of it, leaving them open to attack if timed badly.
The buttons used for taunting are sometimes "extra"/unused buttons found in the control scheme. Taunts generally aren't used very often due to the fast pacing of the games, where the taunter is often open for counter-attack.
Street Fighter Alpha series[]
This series is the first to feature taunts, and also makes it possible to knock out a foe with certain taunts while said opponent has extremely low health (e.g. Chun-Li's, Sodom's and Akuma's in Alpha 2 Gold), which grants a point bonus. Each character has one taunt animation that can only be performed once per round - again with the exception of Dan (explained below). In Alpha 3, taunts are exclusive to a character's A-ISM.
Dan[]
Dan's taunts (the default one is shown here) have become very famous ever since his introduction in this series. Being a joke character, he has many unique attributes to his taunting. For one, he has a unique taunt for standing, ducking, and even an aerial taunt. Dan also has a special move that involves a taunt, Roll Taunt. Finally, Dan has an entire Super Combo centered around his taunts, called Legendary Taunt.
List[]
To see a list of the taunts in this series, click here.
Street Fighter EX series[]
The Street Fighter EX series discards taunts as an universal mechanic. However, some characters are still able to perform taunts via specific button combinations, as if they were special moves. If a damaging taunt is used to KO an opponent, the same flash seen during special move finishes will appear.
List[]
The following characters can perform taunts in the EX series:
- Skullomania
- Dhalsim
- Sakura
- Chun-Li (from EX2 on)
- Shadowgeist
- Area
Additionally, Evil Ryu may sometimes taunt the player during trials in Street Fighter EX Plus α, but the player cannot taunt when using him.
Street Fighter III series[]
Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike gave all taunts in-game effects that can actually impact a player's strategy, listed below. The game also introduces alternate taunts, which are available to certain characters, and are usually performed by holding the buttons on input instead of tapping. Damage increases granted by taunts only apply to the next attack that hits or is blocked; all other effects last for the duration of the current round. In Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact however taunts gives meter without any further character-specific effect.
Several of the taunts can hit opponents, meaning that they can usually be parried, used to start combos, and can also fill the Super Art Gauge slightly.
List[]
To see a list of the taunts and their effects, click here.
Street Fighter IV series[]
Taunts are referred to in the Street Fighter IV series as Personal Actions. In the original game, each character has only one taunt, or else select none if so desired. From Super Street Fighter IV onwards, all characters have 10 each, from which they can pick one when selecting their character. Initially, only two are available; playing matches in Arcade and Versus Mode with each character will unlock more.
Personal actions can be performed at any time during the match by pressing heavy punch and heavy kick. As opposed to the previous series, Personal Actions do not affect stats, although many of them can be canceled into various moves. Some characters have unique attack commands that use the taunt buttons to produce certain effects, such as the Victory Rose and Shades of Glory. Some others, including Dan's aerial taunt, can hit the foe for minimal damage. Other taunts can alter hit boxes; one of El Fuerte's personal actions has him crouch and face the screen, allowing most projectiles to pass over him. Adon's first taunt makes him jump in the air, which also lets him dodge mid and low attacks with proper timing.
A difficult but flashy ending used by Dan was used in this era solely to humiliate opponents using Dan's Legendary Taunt exactly when the opponent is KO'ed for the Legendary Taunt Finish.
List[]
To see a list of the personal actions in the Street Fighter IV games, click here.
Street Fighter V series[]
All characters have one normal taunt, which is performed by pressing all punch and kick buttons together.
Some special attacks and Critical Arts end with a unique taunt if they cause a knockdown. The player can cancel this taunt by entering any input.
With the addition of V-Skills, some of them are similar to Street Fighter III taunts like Alex's which gives him a CC chance with no counter needed and Akuma given an aura damage one, while G's V-Skill highly appears like Q's.
Street Fighter 6 series[]
Like Street Fighter V, taunts are performed by pressing all punch and kick buttons together. Characters have 3 or 4 taunts each. Holding forward or back (and sometimes down) will change the taunt animations and voice lines. Most taunts are very long and cannot be cancelled in any way, with some even being punishable after stunning the opponent.
Jamie's forward taunt changes with each Drink Level; at its maximum level, he will fall asleep partway through, resulting in a 738 frame (12.3 second) taunt animation.
Akuma's back taunt features a hidden animation should the player perform a down taunt upon turning his head; by doing so, Akuma will shift his sitting position and eat a rice ball. Fully completing this special animation grants access to his Misogi and Kongou Kokuretsuzan Super Arts for the rest of the match, along with a full Super Art Gauge and an alternate Double Zanku Hadoken. His forward taunt has him walk forward and activate a proximity guard effect, preventing the opponent from walking backwards while active, insulting the opponent if they jump over him.
A.K.I.'s neutral taunt grants her a bar of Super Art Gauge if completed. Her back taunt has her create a poison bubble of F.A.N.G with a hitbox; getting hit by the bubble causes her to react angrily.
M. Bison's neutral taunt has different voice lines and animations if up or down is held during the middle of its duration. His forward taunt is modified if the opponent currently has a Psycho Mine activated, manually detonating it after a three count. M. Bison's back taunt performs an unblockable strike if the opponent steps in range, calling them a coward if they do not approach him.
Trivia[]
- Ibuki's taunt (personal action) 5 has a rendering error that for a specific frame her jaw will stretch out in an unrealistic way. A similar situation happens in Yun's Sorai Rengeki when the victim character is supposed to not be on camera.