Yoshimitsu

For other uses, see Yoshimitsu (disambiguation).
Yoshimitsu
Tekken and Soulcalibur character
Yoshimitsu in Tekken 8 (2024)
First appearanceTekken (1994)
Created bySeiichi Ishii
Designed byAya Takemura
Voiced by
English
  • Phil Sheridan (Soulcalibur II)[1]
    Mitch Urban (since Soulcalibur III)[1]
Japanese
Portrayed byGary Ray Stearns (Tekken film)[5]
In-universe information
Fighting styleManji-style ninjutsu and kenjutsu
OriginJapan[6]
NationalityJapanese

Yoshimitsu (Japanese: 吉光) is a name used by three different characters who appear in the Tekken and Soulcalibur series of fighting games by Namco.

The first version of Yoshimitsu made his debut in the original Tekken in 1994 and is one of four playable characters to appear in all main installments of the Tekken series, alongside Heihachi Mishima, Paul Phoenix and Nina Williams. The second version of Yoshimitsu appeared in every Soulcalibur game since the 1998 self-titled installment except for 2012's Soulcalibur V, which instead features a third version of the character, informally known as Yoshimitsu II. All Yoshimitsus are their era's leaders of the honorable Manji clan, practitioners of ninjutsu, and master swordsmen with a mask and mechanical prosthetic arms.[7]

As Tekken is set in modern times while Soulcalibur takes place in a medieval fantasy setting, the first Soulcalibur Yoshimitsu was originally considered to be an ancestor to Tekken's Yoshimitsu; however, the introduction of Yoshimitsu II revealed that Yoshimitsus are willingly killed and replaced by a younger protégé as part of a secret ritual, to make "Yoshimitsu" appear immortal to outsiders. Therefore, the Tekken version of the character is implied to have inherited the mantle similarly. The characters have been well-received by critics.

  1. ^ a b c d "Yoshimitsu Voices (Soulcalibur)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2019. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  2. ^ a b "Yoshimitsu Voices (Tekken)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2019. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  3. ^ "Tekken Tag 2: 'My Staff Say We Have Too Many Characters' - Harada Interview". Archived from the original on February 5, 2013. Retrieved January 1, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ Project Soul. Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny. Bandai Namco Games. Scene: Ending credits, 5:33 in, VOICE OVER ACTORS JAPANESE.
  5. ^ "Martial Artist Gary Stearns – A Big Guy With Big Talent". Martial Arts Entertainment. September 27, 2015. Archived from the original on February 23, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  6. ^ Hurwitch, Nick (2019). The Art of Tekken: A Complete Visual History. Dynamite Entertainment. p. 176. ISBN 978-1524107734.
  7. ^ "Tekken 2 - Yoshimitsu Profile". Archived from the original on November 19, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)