User:MoonJet/Leroy Smith

Leroy Smith (リロイ・スミス) is a fictional character from the Tekken fighting game franchise by Bandai Namco Entertainment, making his debut in Tekken 7 as downloadable content in 2019 as part of Season 3, and will be returning for Tekken 8. Leroy also appears in the anime series Tekken: Bloodline, where he is notably the only character introduced after Tekken 3 to make an appearance in it. Leroy practices Wing Chun, and carries a dog named Sugar around with him to battle. Since his introduction, Leroy has been among the best-received characters from Tekken 7.

Design and gameplay
According to producer Michael Murray, fan complaints about the lack of "real" martial arts with some of the recent Tekken characters led to the creation of Leroy Smith. Murray discussed with director Katsuhiro Harada about implementing a Wing Chun practitioner on several occasions, but took time to figure how to implement it "properly." Murray mentioned that Leroy's Wing Chun fighting style was inspired by real-life Wing Chun practitioner Donnie Yen and the film series starring him Ip Man. Discussing the tattoos that Leroy sports, director Kouhei Ikeda stated "We want Leroy's awesomeness to come through, whether he's clothed or not." Ikeda also mentioned Wing Chun practitioners often use a staff-like weapon called the Dragon Pole, giving them the idea to implement a cane as part of Leroy's design and moveset.

Reception
Elton Jones at One37pm ranked Leroy as the 8th-best character in the series, and described his design as "incredible," further elaborating "the clothing, the grey dreads, the powerful stances, and even the little bulldog make him such a beloved character."

Ian Walker of Kotaku praised the Leroy's dog assistant Sugar, stating "First and foremost, Sugar is a good girl. And while it's unfortunate that there aren't any button combinations to make Leroy pet her during a match, he can do the next best thing by calling on her assistance to trip up his opponents."