Genre: Fighting
Developer: SNK Playmore/Eolith
Publisher: SNK NeoGeo
# of Players: 2
Released On: December 9, 2003
Website: www.snkneogeousa.com
The uppercut. The fireball. The Sonic Boom. The move referred to simply as "C’mere!" All moves from fighting games that have come and stayed over time. Things you remember, even after several years. Unfortunately, King of Fighters has nothing that I wish to remember. As I play it, a sense of boredom comes over me like no other. Everything feels so generic. All the moves and scenes done before. This is just a taste of what I feel about this game, read on to see my full impressions. Unless otherwise stated, all opinions below represent my thoughts about both the 2000 and 2001 versions of the game. They are that similar. The game’s developer(s) SNK Playmore and Eolith, will simply be referred to as SNK in this review. Please do not confuse them with the publisher of the game, SNK NeoGeo.
Presentation
One word: Wow. No, not because it’s such a great and unique interface, but because a company managed to not only re-use the most card-board cut-outish menu system ever, but because they used it twice for both games. Immediately you begin to feel the plain and fighteresque stereotypical menus pinching your nerves, begging you to play something interesting, like Paint Dry Sim 2003. All joking aside, the presentation sucks.
Graphics
Pitiful. Quite possibly the worst I’ve seen in any game this generation to date. Both games in this bundle have extremely low resolutions. While the 2001 Edition has slightly revamped graphics, it still holds the same ugly look and feel. When you’re going to make such a simple game, the least you could do is try to hide the hideous scan lines. It truly felt as though SNK simply made the game on a 5" inch monitor and stretched the image by placing large black bars in-between each line of resolution.
You think that would be enough? That SNK would take the ounce or so of dignity they had left and put in some decent animation? Not so. The game has a very "cartoon flip book" feel to it. Choppy and inconsistent most of the time, like a flash video made by a drunken man in the dark. Alright, maybe that comparison was slightly asanine, but I believe you get the idea. The game is just ugly to look at. There is really nothing else to say. The characters and scenery all feel as though they were ripped straight out of a very unpopular anime series and quickly emulated into fighters. Blech.
Gameplay
At first, the game seems easy. You knock out all of your opponents fairly quickly and it’s entertaining for the most part. Then, you get to a boss fight. The flow of the game is immediately changed. Rather than being a small step up from the normal battles, or at least a tough, but beatable challenge, you’re faced with something that you’ll use a few continues on just for the sake of annoying you. They have insane amounts of HP and moves that destroy you in seconds. Normally I’m all for strong bosses, but this was just frustrating. After beating said boss, I felt no sense of accomplishment. What was I treated to? A terrible story sequence. Speaking of which, if you’re a fan of AOL chatroom literature, King of Fighter’s story is right up your alley. Consisting of nothing more than broken sentences and meaningless anime-esque "comic book style" images, it makes you wonder if this company simply used a group of 8 year old Russian speaking children to translate the game from Japanese to English.
So the story is painful, the fighting has some merit, correct? Wrong. As I said, at first it was entertaining. But like air pump shoes and scooters, the appeal dies out quickly. It becomes monotonous and boring. The fighting system should hardly be called such a thing. Any button masher can quickly get into it and beat skilled players, and likewise, the skilled players could make a single mistake and pay dearly. Yes, there’s a combo system, but it’s hardly worth learning. Uninteresting moves that you watch instead of play out for massive damage and a lame second-character that can jump in and smack the enemy once or twice is nothing more than laziness.
Sound
Elegant tunes, atmospheric beats, bouncy jingles and epic orchestras. All glaring examples of what you won’t find in King of Fighters. I’ve heard better music conducted by 11 year olds on MIDI keyboards. No, really, I have. As I write this review, I have to have the game playing in the background just so I can remember the music. As it wouldn’t be fair to review what I could not remember. Voices are muffled and scratchy, and the music itself has absolutely no soul to it. You’ll feel as though you’re listening to rejected dishwashing soap tunes. Audiophiles beware, this may be the game that turns you into a lover of silence.
Final Thoughts
Yuck. That’s about all I have to say. You may think my review is biased, but it’s not. I have good reason for disliking this game so badly. Mainly because I can play better fighters just about anywhere, and that SNK was especially lazy. Not once in this game was I having any fun. Two player mode isn’t worth playing, and I just couldn’t get into it at all. If you’re a fan of the series, then by all means- have at it. But if you’re a fan of great fighters, I strongly advise you to rent it at the very most. There just isn’t much to say about such a poorly put together game. A huge disappointment when you consider I am usually a great fan of SNK’s games.
