Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
213,627
edits
The King of Fighters: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
m (revise quote template spacing) |
No edit summary |
||
| (20 intermediate revisions by 7 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{work}}
[[File:KOFallFightersSmall.jpg|frame|[[Loads and Loads of Characters]] indeed. And this isn't even all of them...]]
{{quote|''It all began in '94.''
Line 10 ⟶ 9:
''Nothing's gonna stop it 'cause it's 1998!''|'''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7GcbCgEqcE Cipher]''', [[Thematic Theme Tune]] of ''[[The King of Fighters]] '98'' (and its [[Updated Rerelease]], ''Ultimate Match'', as a remixed version).}}
The '''''King of Fighters''''' series started out as a crossover fighting game, featuring some of the most popular characters from [[SNK]] Playmore's (known as ''SNK'' back then) fighting game franchises: ''[[
Although the first game was merely intended to be a [[Mascot Fighter]], the series became more popular than the others that inspired it, and [[Continuity Creep|an overreaching plot soon developed that took the other SNK fighters along for the ride]].
Line 25 ⟶ 24:
The games were initially released on the (ridiculously expensive) [[Neo Geo]] home arcade system, so they had a hard time catching on with North American home gamers, but remained very popular in Japan, as well as with arcade gamers worldwide. It released new editions of the game every year with [[Madden NFL|Madden-like regularity]], introducing new characters and rosters into the storyline, while the old characters have seemingly retained their basic sets of special moves throughout the series, probably to dodge the problem of the older games being [[So Last Season]].
In addition to the thirteen games of the main ''
These include ''Maximum Impact'', a 3D [[Fighting Game]] series which takes place in an [[Alternate Continuity]], right down to having characters not featured in the main
Aside from fighting games and tie-ins, there were the rather infamous [[Dating Sim]] games for mobiles and [[Nintendo DS]], ''Days Of Memories'' allowed the Player Character to venture in Southtown and date most of the fighting divas from the series (and [[Fatal Fury|from]] [[Art of Fighting|others]]); later versions also allowed a girl Player Character to date the male fighters as well.
Line 34 ⟶ 33:
----
{{tropenamer}}
* [[Dream Match Game]]: Both the [[Trope Namer]] (thanks to the Japanese subtitle of ''{{'}}98'', ''Dream Match Never Ends'') and [[Trope Codifier]].
{{tropelist}}
* [[Adaptation Expansion]]: Usually present in home ports, which tend to add (at the very least) new characters to the roster.
* [[Alas, Poor Villain]]: Surprisingly, it's happened a few times before. The prime candidates are Krizalid (retroactively by Whip when she discovers his dead body), Original Zero and Mukai.
* [[Alternate Continuity]]: The ''Maximum Impact'' series, the ''EX'' series, the ''R'' series, ''Neowave'' (the latter of which has no proper story), and ''Days of Memories'' (with changes going up to the characters' personalities themselves).
** ''
* [[Amazon Brigade]]: Women Fighters Team, in its various incarnations. In ''2003'', the High School Girls Team replaced the Psycho Soldiers Team, which consisted of Athena, Hinako
* [[The Anime of the Game]]: ''Another Day''.
* [[Announcer Chatter]]: In the ''Maximum Impact'' series. This might be the only announcer in the series to rival those of ''[[Street Fighter]]'', ''[[Marvel vs. Capcom]]''
{{quote|"''[[Title Scream|The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact]]'' '''''[[Incoming Ham|TWOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!]]'''''" <br />
"First attack!"<br />
Line 52:
"The moment of truth for our contestants arrives!"<br />
"Final Round! Ready?"<br />
"'''''WINNERRRRRRR!!!'''''"
** There's also his waxing poetic on the mood the battlegrounds set in ''[[Updated Rerelease|Regulation A]]''. They ''really'' should have just gotten a native English speaker to handle this role...
** The female announcer in ''XIV'' also spouts random quips every time someone gets knocked out.
* [[The Artifact]]: It's what happens when [[Demoted to Extra|you're not]] [[Spotlight-Stealing Squad|the protagonist]], regardless of whether or not you've been a mainstay. The biggest cases of this are probably Terry Bogard, [[Ms. Fanservice|Mai]] [[Jiggle Physics|Shiranui]] and Kim Kaphwan. While they are still around more than the others whom are generally [[Demoted to Extra]] or [[Chuck Cunningham Syndrome|just mysteriously disappear]], but they are generally just simply around to only appease older fans. And as for Mai Shiranui, some people accuse SNK of the "real reasons" why Mai is still around.
* [[Assist Character]]:
** ''2000'''s Another Striker cameos.
** The cameos in ''{{'}}99: [[Updated Rerelease|Evolution]]''.
* [[Audio Adaptation]]: There are numerous drama CDs for the series, usually one or two per game, with individual characters sometimes getting their own CDs.
* [[Badass Crew]]: Most of the (earlier) teams fit this bill (i.e. Team Japan, ''Art of Fighting'' Team, ''Fatal Fury'' Team, ''Ikari'' Team, etc
* [[Badass Family]]: The Kusanagi, Sakazaki
* [[Battle Trophy]]: Rugal Bernstein: it's revealed in his debut game that he preserves the bodies of the countless martial artists he's defeated over the years by subjecting them to a grisly liquid metal bath, making them ''living trophies''.
* [[Bishonen]]: Half of the male cast is made up of pretty boys. Nagase, the tech-head ninja from ''Maximum Impact 2'', dislikes each and every last one of them.
* [[Blind Idiot Translation]]: Most of the games up to ''2002'' will have at least one totally bizarre line that becomes almost way too funny. At a serious scene, just one slip up in translations and BAM: INSTANT [[Narm|NARMAGE]].
* [[Blonde, Brunette, Redhead]]: Iori Yagami, Mature
* [[Bootstrapped Theme]]: Aside from [[Leitmotif|the repeated use]] of "Geese Ni", nearly every theme for the ''Art of Fighting'' Team is based off of Ryuhaku Todoh's [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg0VBBo3Abo theme] from the first ''
* [[Boss Dissonance]]: Like most of [[SNK]]'s bosses, this series has some nasty ones. How nasty? [[SNK Boss|It has a trope!]]
* [[Calling Your Attacks]]: Almost everyone. Very often subverted when the characters yell something other than the move's name (like Iori); averted by the less talkative characters (Daimon, Leona) and Orochi, whose moves didn't even had actual names until ''{{'}}98: [[Updated Rerelease|Ultimate Match]]''.
* [[The Cameo]]: The entire gamut is enough to probably warrant its own page.
* [[Canon Discontinuity]]: ''XIII'' starts where ''XI'' left off, leaving ''XII'' as if it never happened. [[Obvious Beta|All things considered]], it's not hard to see why.
* [[Character Customization]]: While its still impossible to change costumes in ''XIII'' because of 2D, SNK have been very creative with color palettes (Robert Garcia with very convincing Terry Bogard palette for example), especially with skin color and skintight clothing (Most notable are "no pants" Yuri and Raiden's many "costumes"). And then, as soon as the arcade version was released, it's been revealed that there's alternate palettes that give certain characters actual headswaps: Yuri gets her long hair back, Raiden loses his mask (revealing that he is, in fact, Big Bear), and Takuma gets his Mr. Karate tengu mask back.▼
** To be fair, all of the [[Dream Match Game|"dream match"]] titles are like that. ''{{'}}98'' and ''2002'' (''[[Updated Rerelease|UM]]'') have no bearing on the titles that come after them. The anomaly here is rather where the placement of the dream match occurred (that is in the middle of a saga, rather than as a bookend that brings back the cast from the whole saga; though it was clearly not intended to be a dream match anyway).
** The console version adds to this with Kyo getting his old 94 school uniform back (And this is without counting his DLC form which comes with a whole new costume altogether.)▼
▲* [[Character Customization]]: While its still impossible to change costumes in ''XIII'' because of 2D, SNK have been very creative with color palettes (Robert Garcia with very convincing Terry Bogard palette for example), especially with skin color and skintight clothing (
* [[Character Roster Global Warming]]: As far as [[Mighty Glacier|Mighty Glaciers]] go, the series started with Ralf, Clark, and Chang. It took them about six years to add Maxima, a year to add Seth, three years to add Tizoc, and about another six to add Raiden.▼
▲** The console version adds to this with Kyo getting his old ''{{'}}94'' school uniform back (And this is without counting his DLC form which comes with a whole new costume altogether.)
** On a lesser scale, the PS2 ports of ''King of Fighters'' games from ''Neowave'' up to ''2002 Unlimited Match'' had a colour edit feature allowing players to create their own custom palettes. ''King of Fighters XI'' onward let you edit their special moves' colours too.
▲* [[Character Roster Global Warming]]: As far as [[Mighty Glacier|Mighty Glaciers]] go, the series started with Ralf, Clark
* [[Charles Atlas Superpower]]: Partially averted, as many characters have incredible strength and powers due to their bloodlines. On the other hand, others are powerful simply because they trained.
* [[Colony Drop]]: Igniz tries this in ''2001''. {{spoiler|It fails
* [[Comic Book Time]]: After ''{{'}}95'', SNK froze all of the ages of their characters in order to keep the cast roughly youthful. While there are a few illusions of the passage of times (such as Kyo changing his outfit to show that he's dropped out of high school), the earlier characters remain in their teens and twenties whereas most of them should be about a full decade older. This also extends to cameo characters and newer entrants. This is why characters like Kim's sons Jae Hoon and Dong Hwan from ''Garou'', as well as fan-favorite Rock Howard ([[Executive Meddling|SNK Playmore's desire to save Rock]] for the ''Garou'' sequel [[Vaporware|which will probably never come to pass]] aside) will probably never make a playable appearance in a future 2D ''
* [[Compilation Rerelease]]: Three so far:
** ''The King of Fighters Orochi Hen'' (PS2): A Japanese release comprising of ''{{'}}95'', ''{{'}}96'', and ''{{'}}97'': the Orochi Saga.
** ''The King of Fighters NESTS Hen'' (PS2): Same as above, only it includes ''{{'}}99'' (plus the Dreamcast port, ''{{'}}99 Evolution''), ''2000'' and ''2001''. Basically, the NESTS Chronicles.
** ''The King of Fighters Collection: The Orochi Saga'' (PS2, PSP, Wii):
* [[Continuity Creep]]: What was envisioned as a relatively storyless [[Mascot Fighter]] began to kick into overdrive starting in ''{{'}}95''. The story has since become more and more complex, to the point that you'd be lost if you currently jumped into the games without knowledge of ''at least'' the first and third sagas (i.e. the arcs revolving around Orochi and the Three Sacred Treasures). And that's not even counting all of the plot elements and allusions carried over from ''[[Fatal Fury]]'', ''[[Art of Fighting]]'', ''[[Ikari Warriors]]'', ''[[Psycho Soldier]]'', ''[[Samurai Shodown]]'', ''The [[Last Blade]]'', ''[[Fuun Series|Savage Reign/Kizuna Encounter]]''... A few more titles and we might very well approach full-on [[Continuity Porn]]/[[Continuity Lock Out]].
* [[Creepy Twins]]: The two that appear in the Ikari Team's ''XI'' ending.
* [[Crisis Crossover]]
Line 86 ⟶ 90:
** Specifically, mixed bloodlines (i.e. Leona and Iori) can't fully control the power of Orochi, making it easy for Orochi or one of Four Heavenly Kings (Goenitz, Yashiro, Shermie, or Chris) to induce a violent, mindless rampage.
* [[Death Is Cheap]]: Averted since dead characters only return in the non-canonical [[Dream Match Game|Dream Match games]].
* [[Demoted to Extra]]: The American Sports Team from ''
* [[Depending on the Artist]]: Iori's hair is either a gravity-defying pompadour or a more realistic bang that covers part of his face. Sometimes it's in between the two styles!
** K' usually has a (relatively) normal hairstyle, disheveled with a fair amount of bangs. This is consistent throughout the most of the series in terms of sprites and most artwork, but his hair will sometimes appear thick and bushy like a miniature afro, slicked, or even straight-up [[Shonen Hair]].
** The exact [[Moe]]-ness of Athena also varies from game to game due to different artists.
* [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?]]: Orochi is [[Informed Ability|supposed]] to be able to bring [[The End of the World as We Know It]], Goenitz is capable of [[Person of Mass Destruction|catastrophic destruction]] (with hints that Chris, Shermie, and Yashiro can do it too), yet it is never even hinted that more than three fighters were needed to defeat any of them; and in fact, Kyo is usually given all the credit for the defeat of Orochi.▼
* [[The Dev Team Thinks of Everything]]: In ''XI'', one of the stages is set in an alleyway outside of the [[Fatal Fury|Pao Pao Café in Southtown]]. If you hang out in the center and right areas of the stage, nothing exactly spectacular goes on besides some civilian spectators cheering you on. Move far enough to the left, however, and a motorcycle comes barreling down the street
* [[Difficulty Spike]]: Several games in the series suffer from this, but the three most [[Egregious]] examples would probably be in '''94'', '''96'', and ''XI''. If you reach the first cutscene (in '''94''), face the Boss Team (in '''96''), or make it to the [[Sub Boss]] (in ''XI''), expect things to take a turn for the worse.▼
▲* [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?]]: Orochi is [[Informed Ability|supposed]] to be able to bring [[The End of the World as We Know It]], Goenitz is capable of [[Person of Mass Destruction|catastrophic destruction]] (with hints that Chris, Shermie
* [[Distracted by the Sexy]]: Only in the comical, non-serious "ending" of ''2002'', though: Shermie makes several suggestive poses and many male characers (including [[Celibate Hero|Andy Bogard]]!) run around trying to get a good look. Clark just runs up and tackles her.▼
▲* [[Difficulty Spike]]: Several games in the series suffer from this, but the three most [[Egregious]] examples would probably be in ''{{'}}94'', ''{{'}}96'', and ''XI''. If you reach the first cutscene (in ''{{'}}94''), face the Boss Team (in ''{{'}}96''), or make it to the [[Sub Boss]] (in ''XI''), expect things to take a turn for the worse.
▲* [[Distracted by the Sexy]]: Only in the comical, non-serious "ending" of ''2002''
* [[Dive Kick]]: As May Lee Jinju is a ''Kamen Rider'' fan, her Desperation Supers involve a Rider Kick at the end, complete with a heroic pose.
* [[Divergent Character Evolution]]:
** Clark and Ralf used to be basically the exact same character; Little more than headswaps. Over time, they evolved to the point it was downright bizarre to think they were ever similar ([[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Ralf likes to punch things, Clark tosses you around]]) Fan reaction was '''''extremely''''' negative when Clark was brought back to the rank of "[[Palette Swap|Ralf 2]]" in ''XII''.
** Mature and Vice. The former is more speed-oriented, while the latter is a grappler
** The Kyo clones, whose differentiation came in ''2002
** Kyo and Iori were actually [[Ryu and Ken]] in ''{{'}}95'', but then became wildly different in the next game; in fact, when Iori lost his flames and became a more physical fighter ala Kyo post-''{{'}}95'', Kyo ''went back'' to his old moveset.
** The console version of ''XIII'' then added the original flames Iori and "rekka" style NESTS-saga Kyo as DLC playable characters thus restoring the Kyo-Iori side of this trope two-fold (
* [[Doomed by Canon]]: The New Faces/Orochi Team die in ''their'' ending, for crying out loud!
* [[Doomed Hometown]]: Southtown, the setting of sister series/AlternateContinuity ''Fatal Fury'' and ''Art of Fighting'', is all but systematically wiped out by Clone Zero's [[Kill Sat]] at the end of ''2000'' [[Turned Against Their Masters|in his attempt to rebel against the NESTS cartel]]
* [[Downloadable Content]]: ''XIII'' has 3 characters made DLC, all three of them being different versions of existing characters basically serving as nostalgia.
** "Iori with the Power of Flames" is Iori as he used to be, using his old moveset from other KOF games before Ash stole his powers. He also claims the SDM version of his Ya Otome from
** "NESTS Kyo" is Kyo in his
** "Mr. Karate" is Takuma in his classic ''[[Art of Fighting]]'' boss persona (
* [[Dramatic Wind]]: A few characters have these in their intro or win poses. This includes Kyo and Iori's special introduction in ''2000'' which is made funny if the wind in one of the backgrounds is blowing the other way around.
* [[Easter Egg]]: In ''XI'', certain characters have alternate taunts depending on who they're facing. Iori has specific taunts for Kyo and Ash. Ash has the same in regards to Kyo and Iori. Oswald happens to have three different poses for his taunt, although it's not character-specific. The special intros and idle animations throughout the series could also count. Try holding down with Bao for example.
* [[Enemy Mine]]: Kyo and Iori teaming up occasionally; Gato with the Outlaw Team in ''2003'' (though Gato has no friends or enemies, from his point of view).
* [[Four Is Death]]: Goenitz, Yashiro, Shermie
* [[Game Mod]]: No matter which [[Neo Geo]] installment of the series you pick, there's always a hack of it. Primarily they tend to make bosses playable though some add new arenas, graphics and bump up character's attacks to ludicrous levels.
* [[Girls with Moustaches]]: In ''XI'', the Kyokugen team's ending has Yuri, of all people, don a fake moustache as part of her disguise. Needless to say, Ryo and King aren't fooled, [http://youtube.com/watch?v=_V8Ta2KILHs nor are they amused].
Line 113 ⟶ 120:
* [[Hong Kong Dub]]: Largely played straight with the ''Maximum Impact'' dub. Inverted in that the original Japanese audio doesn't always sync properly with the lip movements either, although it's far less frequent.
* [[Idle Animation]]: K''s is notable in that it doesn't loop, which is unique for a sprite. The only way to see him in his fighting stance again after he's put his hands in his pockets is to move him from his spot and to add to that his eyes close progessively slower til he's outright fallen asleep.
** This even extended to the characters on your team who waited their turn on the sidelines (from ''{{'}}94'' to ''{{'}}98'') as you fought. The combatants who had yet to fight would stand and react accordingly (positive gestures if you landed a hit, not-so-positive ones if you were getting your block knocked off); KO'ed fighters would sit there silently in a defeated slump, only acknowledging the ongoing fight if their teammate(s) managed to avenge them. If you got stunned nearby your teammates you could mash buttons and one of them could jump out and briefly attack your enemy.
** Other characters have started having idle animations that don't loop, particularly by the HD upgrade in ''XII''. Things like Iori shrugging his shoulders or Ash twisting his hips and playing with his bangs follow K' as non-looping fighting stances.
* [[Image Song]]: A crapload. Besides the numerous individual ones for the more popular characters (see the individual character sheet), SNK decided to create an entire ''band'' off of this concept called "The Band of Fighters." The lineup was Kyo (guitarist), Iori (bassist), Athena (lead vocalist), Terry (drummer)
* [[I Was Young and Needed the Money]]: When SNK Playmore was in dire need for some quick profit in 2005, they pulled a desperate gamble, make a game to gather many as fans as they could, but another fighting game wasn't their aim, seeing how many Bishoujo and [[Ms. Fanservice]] girls they had in ''The King of Fighters'' and other [[Art of Fighting|fighting]] [[Samurai Shodown|games]] [[Fuun Series|as]] [[Fatal Fury|well]], a series of [[Dating Sim|dating sims]] were made for mobiles and later ported over for the [[Nintendo DS]]. The series was called ''Days of Memories'' with a subtitle for each new installment, it proved to be rather successful as seven ''mobile'' games and two [[Updated Rerelease|rereleases]] for [[Nintendo DS]] were made until 2008.
** The original intent was to only aim at men with the female fighters as obvious [[Love Interests|interests]] for the average Player Character, but the series proved to worthy of their time and SNK Playmore started to whore out male fighters for female fans of the franchise as well. The initial roster for girls was composed of: '''Athena Asamiya, Kasumi Todoh, B. Jenet, King, Mai Shiranui, Yuri Sakazaki, Leona Heidern''' and '''Kula Diamond''', and the men were: '''Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, K', Ash Crimson, Terry Bogard, Rock Howard, Alba Meira''' and '''Ryo Sakazaki''', eventually after all the seven installments the choices grew to arguably as many popular guys and girls as any ''
* [[Large Ham]]:
** Krauser's "I'll chisel your gravestone! SLEEP WELL!" is [[Narm Charm|hilariously cheesy]].
** The ''Maximum Impact'' announcer.
* [[Leaning on the Fourth Wall]]: While several [[Victory Pose|Victory Poses]] seemed to be aimed at the player directly (such as Yashiro giving a sly pointer gesture, Kim's [[Twinkle Smile]], Benimaru's "I love you" and "Thank you
▲* [[Leaning on the Fourth Wall]]: While several [[Victory Pose|Victory Poses]] seemed to be aimed at the player directly (such as Yashiro giving a sly pointer gesture, Kim's [[Twinkle Smile]], Benimaru's "I love you" and "Thank you," Shermie blowing multiple kisses, etc.), but they're also combatants in a (usually) televised, wildly popular international fighting tournament, so it's possible that they're also [[Fourth Wall Psych|appealing to their fanbase]].
* [[Left Hanging]]: The ''Maximum Impact'' series seems to be heading this route. ''2'' ended on a [[Sequel Hook]], ''Regulation A'' was simply an [[Updated Rerelease]], and ''Regulation A2'' was cancelled.
** Basically, everything surrounding the Dragon Spirit, what exactly is, how with intertwines with the overall plot or other characters. Ron has said that the power is so absurd that makes all of NESTS look like nothing and yet this plot point never achieves to be as important as it is implied. Years after such reveal and pretty much nothing happening around it, it is said that Kensou has mastered the control of the Dragon Spirit, still no major changes can be seen through his character taking account at how leagues more powerful he should have been if he truly mastered the control of his powers.
* [[Loads and Loads of Characters]]: As of ''XI'', there are 98, ''not counting'' all the clones, alternate versions, guest appearances
* [[Massive Multiplayer Crossover]]
* [[Mirror Match]]: Not just a game mechanic, considering the number of Kyo clones there are. He even complains about how many of them there are in a few games set after the NESTS Saga (namely ''
* [[The Movie]]: There's one, starring [[Ray Park]] as Rugal... and let's leave it at that.
* [[Mundane Made Awesome]]: Several (although which side of the door things swing on is a case-by-case basis).
** One of Rugal's super moves is an overhead stomp. If it connects, he breaks his opponent's neck, crushes them into the ground, and proceeds to '''''[[Everything's Better with Spinning|perpetually spin in 360 degrees]] [[This Is a Drill|and drill the opponent in the gut]]'''''. Damage is sub-par, but it's well worth it. This eventually contributed to the [[Memetic Mutation|You Spin Me Right Round/Rugalspin meme]].
** In ''2002
*** [[Bonus Boss|Nightmare Geese]]'s Raising Dead End HSDM, wherein [[Power Glows|his hands glow]]. If he [[Counter Attack|counters]] a move then, [[Shirtless Scene|he rips his shirt off]], encases you in a giant Reppuken, and fires it at you. It sounds mundane, and yet the visual delivery is surprisingly epic.
*** Clone Zero traps you in a black hole, follows you in, and seems to [[Street Fighter II|Shun Goku Satsu]] you.
*** Original Zero has Ron whack your soul from your body, and then has his gang of strikers physically smash it to bits before he slots it back in.
*** Igniz [[There Is No Kill Like Overkill|traps you in a galaxy and then blows it up]]. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFdo8xgMyFA Check it out] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCXYfZme4Aw for yourselves
*** EX Takuma whipping out his [[Kamehame Hadoken|Max Power Suburu Ou Shikoh Ken]] HSDM, coincidentally the same attack he shows off in the
*** EX Kensou's super repulse touch palm attack HSDM, and keep in mind this version of Kensou was based off of his powerless form from ''{{'}}99'' to ''2000''.
*** Krizalid's Lightning Disaster, where he expels all of his battle data into physical form.
** Before all of this, there was Orochi in ''{{'}}97'', who could rip your soul out of your body, and crush it in the palm of his hand. ''Your soul''.
** The above HSDM/MAX2s gain [[Spiritual Successor|Spiritual Successors]] in the form of the Neo MAXs from ''XIII''. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_SDcV-5DaA Here's a compilation of them
** Not even the songs are safe! [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vH4t4XOOdg To the rhythm! T-t-to the rhythm!]
* [[Nebulous Evil Organisation]]: NESTS, as well as Addes (and its sub-syndicates/branch organizations the Children of Kokaviel, Kusiel, Mephistopheles, and Belphegor) in the ''
* [[No Ending]]: Usually in the case of characters added to home ports of games (who usually receive some sort of congratulatory artwork in place of an actual ending), as well as all the hidden characters in ''Maximum Impact 2''. The case of the former, this also results in no character-specific prologues and cutscenes for the sub-boss and boss.
* [[No Koreans in Japan]]: Averted.
* [[Not Just a Tournament]]: The game in a nutshell, most prominently during The Orochi Saga (''{{'}}95''-''{{'}}97'') and The Tales of Ash (''2003''-''XIII''), where the primary motive of the baddies is to [[Sealed Evil in a Can|unseal]] [[Orochi]] (although for varying, but no less equally evil purposes). This has happened so frequently that characters start [[Lampshade Hanging|asking]] why there can't be a regular fighting tournament that ''doesn't'' serve as the instrument for [[The End of the World as We Know It]] every once in a while.
* [[Numbered Sequels]]: Until recently, all of the games had the "''The King of Fighters''" title, followed by the year the game was released. This tradition stopped with the release of ''XI'', which was released two years after ''2003''. There is also a bit of confusion about this, since ''
* [[Obvious Beta]]: ''XII'''s home version was released with very spartan single-player features (only five fights and no boss), a poorly regulated and hastily-patched online mode (to the point of being unplayable,) and massive [[Game Breaking Bug|Game Breaking Bugs]]. Studious crackers have found files on the game disc regarding [[Dummied Out]] characters.
* [[Oddball in the Series]]: It seems that this title would originally go to ''2001'' with its bizarre spin on the [[Assist Character|Striker System]] (your team can go anywhere from all four characters to only one member with three Strikers), the low-quality, highly-repetitive, techno-style music that lasts for all of 30 seconds, its lukewarm conclusion to an already controversial saga, and (most of all) [[SNK Boss|"lovable" Igniz]], one of ''the'' cheapest bastards in fighting game history (to put this into perspective, ''he'' was the former posterboy for [[SNK Boss]]), but you could make a case for the [[Obvious Beta|bare bones]] ''XII'' too.
* [[Off-Model]]: Since the default sprites are used since ''{{'}}96'' and the style of animators keeps evolving or the animators are changed, this is bound to happen, starting with new attacks that looks a little different in style (some attacks in ''2000'') to very noticeable art clash (starting with ''2000'' newcomers, although ''{{'}}99'' newcomers are an arguable transition).
* [[Offscreen Moment of Awesome]]: Oswald's fight with Shen Woo in their team's ''XI'' ending. [[Word of God]] says that the fight was left [[Cliff Hanger|open-ended]] because the fans would be disappointed with the final result.
* [[Over the Shoulder Murder Shot]]: Iori does this in one of his desperation moves.
* [[Parts Unknown]]: Unlike most fighting games, who ''mostly'' restrict this trope to bosses, a good chunk of the characters in the series have "unknown" listed against their birthplaces
* [[Practical Taunt]]: In earlier iterations, taunting lowers the other player's power bar (though it does the opposite in more recent installments).
* [[Public Domain Artifact]]: Treasures of Amaterasu, which is a major part of the plot the latest story arc.
* [[Put on a Bus]]: This happens a lot. You can't fit 80+ people in one game.
** The American Sports Team, who appeared in the first game and has only been back in a non-striker fashion only once for the "Dream Match" game
** Leona skipped ''XI''.
** Andy Bogard skipped ''2003'' and ''XI''.
** Considerably, May Lee, K9999, Foxy
*** [[Akira|With the second being dead in a]] [[Bus Crash]]. [[Word of God|
*** ... while Bao, King, Jhun, Hinako, Xiangfei, Shingo, Lin
*** Not to mention that ''2001'' was the ''only'' canon installment to include Foxy as a playable character. Officially. Save for ''
** Hinako. Put on a bus since ''2003''.
** The current saga was notable in that several characters that were mainstays throughout the Orochi and NESTS sagas (i.e. Andy, Mai, Robert, Leona, Chang, Choi, Chin, etc
* [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]]: The Outlaw Team from ''2003'' is made up of sub-bosses from the ''[[Fatal Fury]]'' games (and Gato)
** ''{{'}}96'', ''2001''
* [[Real Is Brown]]: For no reason, ''2002'' and ''2003'' had desaturated colors in their stages.
* [[Relationship Values]]: Rare non-RPG example, and stealthily inserted at that. From ''{{'}}94'' all the way up to ''{{'}}98'', the teammates you chose affected who would actually be willing to jump in and initiate a Help Attack if their partner in the ring was dazed or being grappled. Allies are more likely to do so if the characters aren't hostile to one another and/or have strong ties (familial, romantic, or platonic) in canon. However, not all characters abide by this rule. Iori, for example, will ''never'' bust his neck to help out a teammate, '''period'''.
* [[Rotoscoping]]: ''XII'' was extensively rotoscoped off of 3D models, and apparently so was ''XIII''.
* [[Roundhouse Kick]]: Several characters have this as a move.
* [[Science Is Bad]]: The underlying message with the NESTS Chronicles.
* [[Secret Project Refugee Family]]: K', Whip
* [[Shout-Out]]: Check [[The King of Fighters/Shout
* [[Sibling Team]]: The Bogard Bros., who usually team up in ''
* [[So Last Season]]: Subverted: the rosters rotate with every new season, but the special moves rarely do.
* [[Some Dexterity Required]]: The series had a problem with this early on. Then there's the legendary Raging Storm: Down-Back, Half-Circle Back, Down-Forward. There's a reason it's called "[[Fan Nickname|The Pretzel]]
* [[Stable Time Loop]]: {{spoiler|The whole Ash saga was revealed to be one in ''XIII'' due to Saiki and [[Meaningful Name|Those From the Past]]. It's broken in the ending by Ash's [[Heroic Sacrifice]]
* [[Submarine Pirates]]: The Lillien Knights.
* [[Surprisingly Good English]]:
** The opening rap from ''{{'}}98'' at the top of the page.
** The announcer and pretty much all text in ''XIII''.
*** ''XIV'''s announcers as well: despite fairly clearly being native Japanese speakers, their English is otherwise quite fluent.
* [[Suspiciously Similar Substitute]]: Nameless, who replaces K9999 in ''2002
** As well as Aya and Hermione, Rugal's secretaries from ''{{'}}98'', who replaced Mature and Vice after they became [[Ascended Extra|ascended extras]].
* [[Tag-Team Twins]]: Pre-final boss fight in ''2003'' against Chizuru and Maki Kagura who fit this trope just exactly: not only they're literal twins, and they both fight in a two-member tag team (whereas three was the default number), [[Synchronization|they also share the same lifebar]].
▲* [[The Dev Team Thinks of Everything]]: In ''XI'', one of the stages is set in an alleyway outside of the [[Fatal Fury|Pao Pao Café in Southtown]]. If you hang out in the center and right areas of the stage, nothing exactly spectacular goes on besides some civilian spectators cheering you on. Move far enough to the left, however, and a motorcycle comes barreling down the street--the very same road the combatants were obstructing earlier.
* [[Tournament Arc]]: The point of the entire series, considering that it revolves around the titular fighting tournament. However,
* [[True Final Boss]]: Several throughout the series.
* [[Unblockable Attack]]: A good number of them, chief among them being Ralf's Galactica Phantom when charged up.
* [[Updated Rerelease]]:
** ''{{'}}94: Rebout'', which added Saisyu, Team Edit (missing in the original ''{{'}}94'' and didn't become a staple of the series until the next game), enhanced sprites, and a lot of 3D backgrounds.
** ''{{'}}98: Ultimate Match'', which added Eiji from ''{{'}}95'', Kasumi, the Boss Team and Goenitz from ''{{'}}96'', and Orochi Iori, Orochi Leona and Orochi himself from ''{{'}}97''.
** ''2002: Unlimited Match'', which has EVERYONE who was in the NESTS saga games (except K9999, who gets a [[Suspiciously Similar Substitute]] in the form of Nameless), INCLUDING Geese (with his added Nightmare mode from ''[[Fatal Fury|Real Bout Fatal Fury Special]]'', [[SNK Boss|cheapness and all!]]) and Goenitz, last seen on the [[
*** ''Ultimate Match'' got its own rerelease with the PGM 2 version, which brings in some balance fixes and new moves.
**
* [[Up to Eleven]]: SDM/HSDM/MAX2/LDM/Neo MAX variants of existing specials and DMs tend to be a mite bit more grandiose than their normal versions.
* [[Video Game Long Runners]]: "It all began in ''{{'}}94''..." All joking aside, the series includes twelve titles (not including [[Updated Rerelease|Updated Rereleases]] like ''{{'}}98 Ultimate Match'', ''2002: Unlimited Match''
* [[
* [[Wham! Episode]]: ''XIII'', considering its ending.
** The ''entire'' "Tales of Ash" saga is pretty much a Wham ''[[Up to Eleven|Arc]]'' (Chizuru and Iori lose their powers, the seal on Orochi is broken, Ash beats ''Orochi Iori'' effortlessly, etc
{{reflist}}
[[Category:
[[Category:Neo Geo]]▼
[[Category:Atlus]]▼
[[Category:Arcade Game]]
▲[[Category:Atlus]]
[[Category:GOG.com]]
[[Category:Microsoft Windows]]
▲[[Category:Neo Geo]]
[[Category:PlayStation]]
[[Category:PlayStation 2]]
[[Category:PlayStation 3]]
[[Category:Sega Dreamcast]]
[[Category:Sega Saturn]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Xbox]]
[[Category:Xbox 360]]
[[Category:Video Game]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:King of Fighters, The}}
| |||