Hadouken Revolution

Lyrics

[Intro]
February, 1991. Two in the morning.
The air is thick with smoke and the heat from your exhaust fan.
I put my first quarter in.

[Verse 1]
Six buttons in two rows of three.
A black ball-top joystick in my left hand.
My thumb finds the divot in the plastic, a hollow snap.
Just learning the alphabet of you.
Forward, back. Jump, crouch.
Clumsy, slow. A conversation with no rhythm.
Akira Yasuda's drawings just stand there, waiting.

[Chorus]
Then my fingers remember the shape.
Down, down-forward, forward, and a punch.
The speaker cone rattles your whole frame.
A blue light explodes from my hands on the screen.
Hadouken.
You spoke back. For the first time, you really spoke back.

[Verse 2]
Now there are quarters taped to your side.
My own, and the ones from the guy I just beat.
The winner stays. That’s the only rule here in Akihabara.
The CPS-1 board inside you sings a low, warm hum.
It's been weeks. The world outside is a rumor.
My right hand is just a blur over Fierce, Strong, Jab.
My left knows the quarter-circle better than my own name.

[Chorus]
My fingers already know the shape.
Down, down-forward, forward, and a punch.
The speaker cone screams with the impact.
The blue light is a part of me now, an extension.
Hadouken.
You obey me. Every single time, you obey.

[Bridge]
There’s a new challenger. I don’t look at his face.
I just hear his coin drop.
The screen flashes. Select your warrior.
This isn’t a game anymore.
This is a science. A martial art learned in the dark.
Frame data, hit boxes, cancel animations.
A language only we understand.

[Outro]
The screen burns with my three letters.
Just one more.
The sun is coming up.
Dragon Punch.