Overview
In Japan, SNKP have been gaining some ground by releasing collections of their classic games for the PS2 home console.
The King of Fighters is one of the most known products of the company since they entered the video game universe. To be fair, after ’94, all KOF yearly games did appear on the first Playstation (Well, America only got ’95) and were met with low fanfare.
Now, with the more powerful and faster PS2 in their grasp, SNKP gives it another shot with the games. In this bundle, are three KOFs referring to the chapters of the Orochi saga from beginning, middle, and end. So how accurate are the games, in PS2 form, to their arcade experience?
Graphics 8/10
It’s picture perfect. Every one of them are exactly how they were seen, back when they first came out in the arcade. You can’t say much really. The “focus” mode in the series’ select menu clears and filters up the grainy pixels to make the KOF tournaments look smoother and better. It’s a mighty nice touch, but when I was watching it onscreen, it made for some blurry altercations when it came to the actual fighting.
To my contradiction, I did stay “Focus On” for majority of my fights. SNKP once again implanted a color edit option in case you wanted to change color of a fighter to fit your attire style needs or drastically make them a bunch of awkward combinations of psychedelic weirdness. This, of course, is to have them showcase in the designated game you want them in. I’ve done it and let’s me just say, it does feel satisfying.
Gameplay/Controls 8/10
If you have an intact memory, every detail you recall from each of the KOF battles, inch by inch, are in its original fighting goodness. The computer intelligence, the controls, and the bug problems are all there for your enjoyment. However, anyone who played the dream matches in the past can agree that pulling off desperation moves in 95 are still a ***** to do and 96 is strict when it came to directional execution.
The loading process is quite random, but the thing is that it will be a faded memory and you will get use to it. The only time this come into existence is when you are going into team order select and getting to the next fighting stage the first time, which takes about 3-5 quick seconds a part. After that, it usually goes from 2 seconds to maybe nothing and just blaze through.
As an added bonus, all of them have the bosses automatically open for you to control, with KOF 97 being an exception. Sorry, no Orochi. The options are rather the same as what you get in the Neo-Geo home carts, like the dialogue setting. Excellent news for English readers, except in KOF ’95 where there is none.
To further extend the fun is the inclusion of being able to play this online with several other fans who can relate. Before you get super excited there are two problems that might prevent you from obtaining that connection. For one: you need to pay a monthly fee to battle others, and number two: it’s only for use in Japan and their consumers. I think I speak for everybody when I say “Aw, man.”
Sound/Music 8/10
The sound and music quality are left unchanged, still in its classic hearing glory. To the spoken speeches, musical soundtracks, and special effects, it’s been copy and paste with okay work. (Yes, I know about the lack of a musical score in ‘97.) The arrange tracks are awesome, but I prefer the original tracks just because I'm too use to them.
There is one downside that plagued SNK, which can also be seen when it come to their PSOne versions, and that is the music is lower then it should be. Too bad going to the volume option to max it out won’t enhance it a bit. Truly, it is a travesty that SNKP have left this the way it is for years and seriously needs to personally, crucially fix this issue.
Replay Value 10/10
To many casual and hardcore fans, this compilation is an absolute must buy, unless you have the actual Neo-Geo home system and carts in your possession. That and if you don’t have a PS2 from Japan or a method to make your American PS2 systems play Japanese games, you’re screwed. You should get a chance to make this happen because it almost definite that it won’t be coming stateside anytime soon.
Overall 9/10
Having one disc containing the three KOF games is a killer and awesome deal. The modes are endless and it doesn’t matter what you choose. One player, two player, survivor, and single are all great.
My only wish was the presence of a practice mode to try out old combos and trying out special execution. Not all of us are going to remember to do some moves that were only available in certain versions. Thankfully, the instruction manual is incredibly organized with information, scripted in the Japanese language. Yes, there pauses for loading time, but that will not be of any annoyance to you. Bottom line is you’re going to enjoy every damn minute and second of this collection masterpiece.
- by Boombada
