There was a great disturbance in the fighting game community today, as if thousands of Street Fighter 4 players suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. Elena had returned. Yes, the undisputed best character from Ultra Street Fighter 4 (though Elena fans would likely prefer to remember her debut in the gorgeous Street Fighter III: 3^rd Strike) has returned to the series as the latest character in Street Fighter 6, not too long ago we saw her World Tour teaser and now we have her actual official trailer.

Funny that she’s paired up against Deejay, as similar to Deejay Elena’s gameplay seems to revolve around Sway moves to bait out attempted whiff punishes and generally be really annoying. Several of Elena’s classic moves have returned such as her slide, the Scratch Wheel (which looks to be her invincible reversal), and her Mallet Smash and Spin Scythe. And yes, Healing has returned. The move that killed Street Fighter 4 is back and they gave it a post trailer teaser as if it were Akuma’s Raging Demon. As of right now we don’t know how Elena’s Healing actually works, some people are speculating that it’s a special property added to her Critical Art, or an option given for her regular Level 3, while others seem to think it’s her Level 2. Only time will tell but the nature of Street Fighter 6 as well as the lack of Ultra meters means that Healing will likely not be too oppressive, at least that’s the hope.

An interesting note is that the trailer does not show Elena’s 5mk as Drive Cancelable. This doesn’t mean much, other character trailers have excluded that small but very VERY important detail, but with Street Fighter 6 heading into its third year and third season, many players are hoping for some revolutionary system mechanic changes, with the Drive system as well as a few other things like throw loops totally in the crosshairs. Elena’s release is a big deal, but it probably wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the third season that’s going to come with her will likely make or break Street Fighter 6. Elena herself will release on all platforms (and notably the Nintendo Switch 2) for Street Fighter 6 on June 5th, 2025.