Listen To This Awesome Street Fighter II Rock Opera

What started as a throwaway joke between friends has now concluded as something much, much more; a fully-fledged rock opera extravaganza. In 2007, Texan indie group Man Factory got together and decided that there was enough referential material in the Street Fighter series to knock together a garage rock album telling a continuous story in that Universe. With tongue firmly in-cheek they set out to do so, not fully realizing what they had gotten themselves into.

Six years and three albums later, the whole saga has finally concluded after one doozy of a fight. Though they considered throwing in the towel once or twice, a commitment to fans had the band stay in the ring long enough to complete their project, one which quickly grew from a joke into an elaborate reality.

It tells the story of both Ken and Chun Li, separate tales but intertwined with all twelve of the game's playable characters. Chun Li is out to avenge her father's death at the hands of M.Bison, while Ken is having some girl problems with that ladies man Ryu. Fans of The Protomen will know what they're in for here, and it's great to see some other classic titles get lovingly retold in such a glorious, rocking and operatic fashion.

From simple beginnings to a seven-minute long finale track, you can listen to all three albums on their bandcamp page or right below.

Support the band by purchasing the album if you like what you hear, and let us know of any other video-game themed tracks you're a fan of with a comment below.