While some fans might find something to enjoy about
Maximum Impact, let's face
it... Maximum Impact fails as a 3D fighting game and doesn't nearly live up to the 2D
KOF games.
An enhanced version of the game, strangely entitled "KOF: Maximum
Impact MANIAX" came out for the Xbox about a year after the PS2
version. MANIAX added Japanese voices to the game and online play.
Thankfully, the true sequel King
of Fighters: Maximum Impact 2, was a significant improvement over this
disappointment. ~TFG
Webmaster
.
STORY:
Addis was the most powerful gang in
Southtown. Its leader, a man known only as Fate, was considered a modern-day
Robin Hood to the poor and downtrodden. He himself had adopted two twin
brothers, Alba and Soiree Meira, and trained them to be successors to his
legacy. Six months before the in-game events, Fate is killed by Duke, the leader
of the up-and-coming Mephistopheles gang. Duke then proceeds to exploit the poor
to serve his own twisted thirst for power.
In the present day, the Mephistopheles
Fighting Tournament is beginning, with the venue being all of Southtown. The
participants ( Minus the Meira Brothers and Lien.) believe that the tournament
is being sponsored by a charity organization known as the Metatron Foundation,
but they soon learn that its true sponsor is the Mephistopheles gang. However
for Alba Soiree and Lien they are contacted directly by Hyena so they know
Metatron has nothing to do with this.
Alba & Soiree are the
new... heroes? :/
REVIEW:
King of Fighters: Maximum
Impact is the first game in the long-running KOF series to go
"3D". While it's a somewhat refreshing visual overhaul for the series,
overall, the game was a pretty big disappointment. So let's start there...
For starters, in the original PS2 version, the character voices are dubbed
in English, with no Japanese dialogue option. (That right there killed the
entire game for me). To make matters worse, the characters
sound nothing like their original Japanese voice actors... a terrible
terrible mistake, one
which really put a damper on the game for actual fans of the series.
Maximum Impact has some
cool moments... but only some.
Maximum Impact's gameplay actually does feel somewhat like the
KOF we know and love, mainly due to the fast pace of the gameplay. Returning characters retain most of their classic moves (and
frame
counts for some moves), but animations in general appear stiff rendered
in 3D. While those frame counts might have worked in a 2D
fighting game, that's not to say they'll work the same in 3D. Some moves
simply look horrible, but other classic attacks are animated
fairly well and look like they hurt when they connect (particularly the super moves). The combo
system is pretty simple... and there are plenty of cheap
"pick up" combos in the game, such as Terry
Bogard's Power Dunk, or K's uppercut (which can be done 3 times in a row and hit
a grounded opponent... guaranteed I believe.
It's good for a laugh at least.)
Now that's a
fireball.
As a 3D fighting game, Maximum Impact doesn't do much right,
and doesn't bring out what the KOF series is respected for. The character
roster is really small when compared to nearly all of the prequels,
another big flaw. The Story Mode is borderline retarded... due to the fact that a weird,
no-name freak in a lime green suit (Hyena)
orders you around and tells you who to fight next. Did that ever happen
in a previous KOF game? No.
The
new character designs introduced are a mixed bag, but aren't that great (and
don't succeed the classics that are severely missing from the game).
Furthermore, the lack of many fan-favorite classics leaves so much to be
desired.
SNK threw in a few extras besides your
staple Arcade & Versus Modes, such as: Mission Mode, which is a challenge at
least. There's even a sort of poor man's customize mode, where you
can select a "Rigging Model" for each character... WTF is a rigging model anyway?
*In
best Bill O'Reily voice* I don't even know what that means!!!
Is this a 3D model-making software? No... it's not. Anyway, this "rigging model"
changes your characters appearance by adding a few silly items to their outfit
and/or changing it all together... most of which, either look awkward or are completely stupid. The alternate and bonus costumes for classic characters are worth a
look, but still doesn't give any sort of reason to play this game.
)
)
)
For starters, in the original PS2 version, the character voices are dubbed
in English, with no Japanese dialogue option. (That right there killed the
entire game for me). To make matters worse, the characters
sound nothing like their original Japanese voice actors... a terrible
terrible mistake, one
which really put a damper on the game for actual fans of the series.
It's good for a laugh at least.)
The
new character designs introduced are a mixed bag, but aren't that great (and
don't succeed the classics that are severely missing from the game).
Furthermore, the lack of many fan-favorite classics leaves so much to be
desired.
*In
best Bill O'Reily voice* I don't even know what that means!!! 
Is this a 3D model-making software? No... it's not. Anyway, this "rigging model"
changes your characters appearance by adding a few silly items to their outfit
and/or changing it all together... most of which, either look awkward or are completely stupid. The alternate and bonus costumes for classic characters are worth a
look, but still doesn't give any sort of reason to play this game.
