King of Fighters Break Down

[jalvarez82]

KOF 2001 is the first DC import I ever bought. And I don't play it much anymore. lol

KOF 2002 is where it's at! I love KOF '99 and Dream Match as well.

[CD AGES]

Me and my friends were just comparing them. The gameplay is faster on 2002, I like the slower pace on 2001. Also I like the Striker option of bringing another player in in 2K1, that could still be available in 2002 but I did not see it clearly. I also feel the graphics are more dense in 2k1 and brighter in 2k2 which I like the density. Biggest issue again is the speed. When the speed is that fast its aggravating to play abusers who chronic jump

I don't know if I would call 2002 fast when compared to 2001. While its true that 02 is significantly fast then previous KOF games in the series, this speed increse actually began in 2001 when the franchise got a new developer. Play 01 and compare the pace to that of 99 and 00 and you'll see hwat I mean. Regardless of the games speed though, high level KOF starting from 96 onwards is always agressive rushdown as fuck lol!

Yes I have played every MI series... even the JPN exclusive Regulation A

[RunNShoot]

Me and my friends were just comparing them. The gameplay is faster on 2002, I like the slower pace on 2001. Also I like the Striker option of bringing another player in in 2K1, that could still be available in 2002 but I did not see it clearly. I also feel the graphics are more dense in 2k1 and brighter in 2k2 which I like the density. Biggest issue again is the speed. When the speed is that fast its aggravating to play abusers who chronic jump

I don't know if I would call 2002 fast when compared to 2001. While its true that 02 is significantly fast then previous KOF games in the series, this speed increse actually began in 2001 when the franchise got a new developer. Play 01 and compare the pace to that of 99 and 00 and you'll see hwat I mean. Regardless of the games speed though, high level KOF starting from 96 onwards is always agressive rushdown as fuck lol!

Yes I have played every MI series... even the JPN exclusive Regulation A

How did you like MI compared to the regular 2D graphics?

So this is what ive decided to do, I have aquirred the following

KOF 94, 98, 99, 2K, 2K1, 2K2

Fatal Fury 3, Special, Bout, Bout Special, Bout 2, MOTW

Art of Fighting 3

Im going to play them in order from earliest to oldest so I can really get a grip on the progressions SNK made. If there is one you think I am missing that is a MUST to play let me know. I got KOF 94 because I wanted to see how it all got started. Ive heard alot of good things about AOF 3. And FF I wanted to play some of these Bout and Special versions. Apparently there are ring out versions and levels were you can knock people through the "wall" of the level, which has always been my gripe in 2D fighters. I hate getting caught in the wall and getting spammed. Make it an option to have never ending wall levels simular to Dead of Alive. I know some dont like that, but it should be an option for gamers.

[CD AGES]

may I ask why you are skipping on key releases like 96,97 (97 is my all time fav!) and more modern releases like XI and XIII? May I also ask how you are playing these games... through Neo hardware, Console ports, emulation?

The Real bout series is amazing! It's basically a reboot to the FF franchise while heavily exploring the multi plane system from the standard FF titles. Ring outs are only a factor in the first release, eventually removed in the 2 sequels that were released later on. Real bout series is still a beautiful looking and technical game even now. Have fun with those

AOF3 is def one amazing looking 2D fighter, but its quite stiff and has a few faults that keep it from becoming an amazing fighter. Worth a look though.

[CD AGES]

With respects to the MI series. It was a valiant effort by SNK which they didn't seems to get just right in the first game. But MI2 (aka2006) was pure fan service to its loyal fans and is packed with so much content! I found MI2 to be a very enjoyable overall fun experience that shouldn't be taken seriously due it's broken mechanics, balance issue and manic pacing. Regulation "A" was an arcade release effort that takes MI2 and actually turns it into a balance game as well as adding the team structure much like its 2D forefather. They also added 4 more faces to the mix like Anti hero "Ash" and a special guest by the name of Mizoguchi from Data East's Fighters History fame. The MI seires while sharing the name or KOF and some of its famous characters, should really not be compared to the 2D KOF series. SNK has even gone on the record saying that MI is an alternate universe and MI places more emphasis on the new characters like Alba, Duke and Lien to name a few. Until SNK one day decides to place a MI character in a 2D KOF game, MI to me personally, is no KOF game. It's just a cool, very fun 3D fighting game from SNK that just happens to have some KOF fighters in it

[RunNShoot]

I'm playing ported versions on the dreamcast.

I skipped 95-97 because through my research no one has regarded those to being there favorite and there was no significant change that 98 didn't bring all together. Again I could be wrong that's why I asked.

I played FFB so far. I'm in love with the 2 plane system. Honestly I liked it better then MOTW

I would love to play KOF XII & XIII

But I currently have the red ring, :/ thanks for ur input MI well defiantly give MI2 a try

[CD AGES]

Lol! I just find it funny that you skipped the entire Orochi saga which is the by far the high point of the KOF franchise due to its pretty immerse storyline that unfolds from 95 to 97 the finale. 95 was a major improvement to the decent 94 as well as including Iori for the first time in the franchise (arguably the most popular of characters). 96 is chock full of bugs yet it set a new standard in the series and literally became the template that just about all later KOF's abide in a graphical and technical sense. While 98 was basically a refined version of its previous release, I still believe 97 is superior over it. It concludes the saga nicely, the game is so broken across the board that it actually makes for a better balanced game over 98 and most importantly, KOF 97 has perhaps the greatest presentation of any other KOF game. The designers went above and beyond this aspect to make the game feel like an actual broadcast tournament which makes the game so charming to me.

XII? I never said anything about XII! I said check out XI and XIII. The former is a PS2 release so red ring of death need not apply lol!

Well I'm glad you enjoy the real bout series. Although MOW is still a better gameif you ask me.

[BrianC]

I cannot believe I missed this thread. KOF 98/DM 99 changed my life. 2k2 is good as well though! I honestly haven't played them all yet but I can tell you this: 98 is my favorite because I played it first. That is the only real reason when comparing it to 2002 for example. There aren't that massive of roster changes between the two but many of the moves have been altered and the sprites have been redone in many cases. To me 98 has the perfect move-set but only because I've played it far more than the others so my advice would be, pick 98 or 2002 as both are Dream Matches and will really get you used to every character more or less. I definitely wouldn't recommend getting all of them or five of them right away since the slight differences will make it impossible to truly master one and see how deep it can be. Pick one, cherish it, love it, and beat the shit out of your controller

I was also quite surprised by how well King of Fighters Android turned out and I've heard great things about the iOS KOF as well.

@CD AGES: You know what bugged me about MotW? I could not find a single character that I liked! I think that has always been a big problem for me with fighting games and for obvious reasons King Of Fighters has changed my attitude on the genre completely .

[dark]

KOF96 was my favorite for a long time. It had characters that didn't appear in most of the other games (Geese, Mr Big, Krauser). It had a good story. And it introduced most of the mechanics that became the defacto KOF style in later games. 96 was the first KOF to have running instead of a short hop, the technical roll (forwards or backwards) instead of just dodging into the background stationary for a second. All the characters from 94-95 got lots of new animations and moves, and the sprites got many small changes in terms of shading and dimensions that made them larger and more detailed.

KOF96 was a watershed moment in the KOF line, and although the bosses are a pain in the neck, and a few characters aren't balanced well, it's still pretty good. At least the stages all have music, unlike KOF97.

[BrianC]

I really hate the bosses in 98 and 2002. Fighting games should give up on the boss mechanic because I've never seen one get it right. Well Project Justice wasn't half bad about it but otherwise I stand by my comments