Could this truly be THE King of Fighters?
It’s been 6 long years since the last KOF game, but even that was a more traditional 2D fighter…even the stages and characters had an anime look to them. The King of Fighters XIV is the first game in the series to actually have 3D fighters and stages. But after a long hiatus, is this enough to compete with the big boys?
The likes of Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat have had a resurgence of sorts over the past few years, so it might seem a bit late for the series to return to the dining table…but that doesn’t stop it from doing so and doing it well. Sure, the character models themselves may be dated in comparison…but the gameplay is anything but. Despite a shaky story mode, the core fighting mechanics are what holds KOF XIV up against its rivals.
If you’ve read any past fighting game reviews of mine, you’ll know that I suck at them. I mostly button-mash my way to victory or defeat, but mostly defeat. KOF XIV is a bit more forgiving with it’s Rush mode that makes even me look like a combo king. Such a feature is bound to divide fans of both fighting games and the KOF series, but I like that they’ve made it so it’s more accessible to everyone.
Online fights don’t seem to suffer from much lag either, which is usually the issue for them. I remember playing some fighting games with dreadful lag…I’m looking at you DOA 3. The roster of characters is pretty big and will take a while to find your dream team of 3 fighters to take with you, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.
SNK have done a great job in bringing back the series, but as I said before…the 3D models are dated, very dated to other games out there. The animations seem stiff too in comparison, while the soundtrack is very typical of the series. The overall presentation is a mixed bag, but the overall feeling is that it’s good for the series to be back. Wherever it’s successful or not remains to be seen though…
The Verdict
It’s been 6 years since we had a real King of Fighters game…6 years too long I fear. The 3D models are dated and the story mode is sub par, but the main course of the game…the fighting mechanics themselves are still great. Will it knock out the competition? That’s for you to decide, I personally hope it gives them a run for their money..