SNK's King Of Fighters Goes 3D, MVS Continued, Kao Megura Remembered

Thanks to Insert Credit for its in-depth report on SNK's forthcoming PS2 title, King Of Fighters: Maximum Impact, as "the first 3D fighter of SNK's new age" is rated from preview builds, with the author arguing "it would be considered a respectable contender against Dead or Alive 2 and Soul Calibur." Elsewhere, UK company Vektorlogic are bucking the death of the MVS arcade hardware, and are announcing multiple new MVS-compatible arcade cartridges, including an arcade version of Super Bubble Pop. Finally, and sadly, prolific Neo Geo (and other) FAQ writer Chris MacDonald, aka Kao Megura, has recently passed away, according to forum messages posted by his brother.

Comments

R I P

[roseblood]

Kao Megura, may you rest in peace.

SNK, Please Don't Release Maximum Impact

[illuminata]

I'm not arguing that King of Fighters: Maximum Impact won't be a fun game. But, this is already getting comparisons to Dead or Alive 2 and Soul Calibur. Notice how these aren't the lastest and greatest of those series. By the looks of the screenshots, I'd have to agree. And, considering the number of KOF titles that have already been released, I don't see how they can change the gameplay mechanics too much without resorting to a complete overhaul; essentially taking away what makes a KOF game a KOF game. That's why we generally see a plateau in the innovation of a fighting license's gameplay. So, we probably won't be getting much else than a pretty solid game with somewhat dated 3D graphics; not too bad.

But then I start to think about the Street Fighter EX line of games. For the most part, they were alright games with the third one coming up shorter than the first two. However, they were by no means memorable. With Capcom making the decision to go into 3D, I figured that they would do it in a big way. Instead, those games end up being less than memorable. They weren't terrible by any means, but these were Street Fighter games. They were meant to be a cut above the rest! So, unfortunately, I'm left with disappointing memories of games that didn't do much more than muddy the waters of a great license.

If I were a big SNK fan, I'd be worried that the same might happen to the King of Fighters line. Sure, you might end up with a good game. But, are you going to be able to hold it as high as you would the other King of Fighters games? Aren't you expecting a little bit more than just good from SNK?

One of the interesting things that I see potential for is that, if this game does indeed tarnish the King of Fighters series, it probably won't stop there. Because King of Fighters is comprised of characters from multiple SNK licenses, Maximum Impact could possibly have the same effect on the licenses that make up the King of Fighters license.

Personally, I'd rather see SNK do what Capcom should have done; stick to 2D and let the King of Fighters license and the ones under it bow out gracefully. I wouldn't flood the market with 2D games, either. Maybe a few more and a grand final salute would be suitable. Then, focus on creating new licenses better suited for the future. That way, you're company is still alive and people can keep the fond memories of their favorite licenses without having to remember the ones that didn't quite live up to the high standards set.