yu is a classic character. He has been around from the beginning, and his rivalry with Ken is well known. The makers of Puzzle Fighter had this in mind and made Ryu and Ken exact opposites. Ken attacks in horizontal colored rows, and Ryu attacks in vertical colored columns. I am sorry to inform Ryu users that Ken has a considerable advantage over Ryu in Puzzle Fighter. When an opponent knows Ryu's pattern, it is very easy to utilize it for his own means. Because Ryu attacks in vertical strips, an opponent only has to build a certain color next to that strip, and Ryu's death is emminent. Ken, on the other hand, is hard to "plan" against because everytime he drops a considerable amount of blocks, everything you had will be covered by layers of different colors. Thus, Ken's pattern wins that of Ryu's. However, Ryu has a small advantage over Ken. Because Ryu builds vertically, he tends to "trap" his opponent's movement to the center column, thus making him somewhat more effective when the opponent is almost at his last breath. Despite his faults, Ryu is still a decent character. He can be used by both beginners and advanced players.