When Hiroshi Matsumoto and Takashi Nishiyama were working on the first Street Fighter game, they created a concept for a "caucasian man wearing a leather jacket" who would later be known as Joe in the final game. This character was originally planned to be the protagonist, going so far as to feature him in the opening sequence. But the idea was dropped, and the team ultimately decided on making Ryu the main character. After their move to SNK, still wanting to use their original concept, they based the design of the lead character on that design. This character ultimately ended up becoming Terry Bogard.