The King of Fighters XIV (Japanese: ザ・キング・オブ・ファイターズ XIV) is a fighting game, part of The King of Fighters (KOF) video game series by SNK. It was developed for the PlayStation 4 and released in August 2016. Atlus USA and Deep Silver published the game in North America and Europe, respectively. It is notable as the first main series The King of Fighters game rendered entirely in 3D, in contrast to previous installments which used 2D raster imagery. Carrying over 50 characters, the gameplay retains the classic system of teams composed of three fighters. The game was ported to the Microsoft Windows and Japanese arcade cabinets during 2017.
The game's development began in April 2014 when SNK's CEO announced the company should start designing new, appealing video games. This entry in the series was directed by Yasuyuki Oda who has previously worked on Capcom's Street Fighter IV as well as titles by SNK. While working to make it as popular as The King of Fighters '98 and The King of Fighters 2002, the designers also decided to implement the "Rush" system to invite newcomers to the series. Besides downloadable characters, SNK added extra alternative outfits for certain fighters as well as patches to improve the visuals.
Critical reception to The King of Fighters XIV has been generally positive with video game publications praising the appeal of its fighting system to newcomers and experts of fighting games. However, it has also been criticized for its use of a graphic engine that supports real-time 3D rendering at an inferior quality to fighting games released during the 8th generation. The series inspired an ongoing manga while in December 2018, SNK announced they are working on a new sequel, The King of Fighters XV, which was confirmed at EVO 2019 to be released around 2020.
Gameplay
The King of Fighters XIV features full 3D models like The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact, but on a 2D plane like Street Fighter IV and its updates, while keeping the same formula used in the previous installments. The player can select a team composed of three characters who fight against other teams. The Hyper Drive system from the last game is no longer present and has been replaced with a new version of "Max Mode" from earlier games in the series. In Max mode, the player can perform unlimited EX special moves for a short period of time, and the timer changes depending on what position their character is in.
The characters have three types of Supers: the returning "Super Special Moves" and "Max Super Special Moves", the latter of which require a total of two power gauges to execute (one in Max mode on), and a new type called "Climax Super Special Moves". Climax Super Special Moves are the strongest types in the game and will require a total of three power gauges (two with Max mode on). The game also features the "Just Defend" mechanic from Garou: Mark of the Wolves. The HD thrust system now makes the opponent hit the wall and crumple for follow up attacks. The game is designed to play like The King of Fighters XIII during Max mode where the player can use EX moves and three levels of Supers that can be canceled in their order of hierarchy. For beginners, there will be the automatic and simple "Rush Combo". The online lobby has three modes: team VS, single VS, and party VS; up to 12 players can enter and also spectate.
Plot
The story takes place a few years after the, The King of Fighters XIII, in which a mysterious Russian billionaire named Antonov buys the rights of the King of Fighters brand in order to host a new tournament named The KOF Grand Prix, consisting of both veterans and newcomers. For the story mode, SNK wrote sixteen prologues focused on each team before entering into the competition. players can choose a team of three fighters and interact with others depending on their relationships. However, near the end of KOF XIV, the fighters must confront a strange yet threatening entity named Verse, whose existence is the result of Ash Crimson's time and space distortion when he had changed the timeline in the previous tournament. This anomaly attracted characters from other dimensions and universes, such as Nakoruru, and implicates three characters named Shun'ei, Meitenkun, and Kukri.
Development
The decision to create The King of Fighters XIV was made when SNK Playmore's CEO Eikichi Kawasaki decided the company should return to producing appealing fighting games rather than Pachinko-Slot Machines and Mobile Apps. While it took some time, the game began full production when more staff from Esaka joined the team in April 2014. The staff wanted the game to be easy to play and as popular as The King of Fighters '98 and KOF 2002. While KOF XIII was a success, it was noted by the staff to be challenging to newcomers. Accordingly, they intended to combine the simplicity of KOF '98 with the Quick Max features of KOF 2002 and the way meters were managed in KOF XIII. The game was first announced at the Sony Computer Entertainment Press Conference for the 2015 Tokyo Game Show and was present at the PlayStation Experience 2015. SNK Playmore chose the PlayStation 4 as its console due to high worldwide sales. While SNK Playmore did not want to add a new system to the game, some changes were made in response to The King of Fighters XIII. Whether the game will be given updates (like Street Fighter IV) or be a single release followed by sequels was yet to be decided. In August 2016, the staff decided to advance the new plot through a sequel.
Reception
The King of Fighters XIV received generally positive reviews by video game media with Metacritic having an average score of 79 out of 100. Gaming Age's Chris Dunlap gave it a perfect score believing it is the best The King of Fighters game in the series, recommending it to fans of the fighting game genre due to its appealing traits such as the Rush that would make fights easier to newcomers to different characters or possibilities for rematches against the artificial intelligence with advantages. Many reviewers commented on the fighting system with GameSpot praising it due to its appeal to newcomers but criticized the 3D characters models. EGM also highly praised the game's core mechanics and the use of the Rush System for appealing to a bigger audience. Despite the difficulties of mastering a character's moves without the Rush system, Game Informer praised the game's online mode despite some slowdowns during the game's launch. Metro found the game appealing for skilled fighting game fans but displeased fans from the recently released Street Fighter V fighting game. GameRevolution noted that while he found the normal gameplay too challenging based on its performance needed to execute the special moves, the gameplay remained true to the series' previous games, most notably The King of Fighters XIII. The large amount of modes, characters and unlockable material was also the subject of positive response by IGN.
