The King of Fighters '94
  

 
 
STORY Rugal Bernstein is an incredibly rich and notorious arms and drugs trafficker, as well as an incredibly skilled and ruthless fighter. Having become bored with the lack of competition, Rugal decides to host a new King of Fighters tournament. Rugal has his secretary travel to eight destinations around the world and invite fighters to his new tournament.
 
 

The King of fighters '94 character selection screen.

   
REVIEW
The King of Fighters '94 is the first installment of what would later become SNK's longest-running and most successful fighting series. KOF 94's premise alone is simply epic, especially for fans of SNK's earlier hand-to-hand 2D fighting games. "The Future is Now"... 3-on-3 battles featuring SNK's most well known characters from arcade hits such as Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting. In addition, "reimagined" versions of characters from other classic Neo Geo games (such as Psycho Soldier and Ikari Warriors) also make their fighting game debuts in '94.
  

Team Fatal Fury is here to represent!

  
Players can choose from one of 8 different teams (representing a different country), each consisting of 3 members. King of Fighters '94 plays like a staple 2D fighting game, using a simple 4-button control scheme with the staple punch and kick commands. However, KOF '94 offers up some unique gameplay mechanics, including: Evading, Bop Attacks and Super Meter Charging.
 
Comparably to Capcom's latest hit arcade fighting game in 1994, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, KOF '94 offered something distinguishable and different in the fighting genre. Although KOF '94's gameplay definitely feels somewhat "stiff" compared to Capcom's polished and refined iteration of Street Fighter II (among other 2D fighting games of the era). However, what KOF '94 lacked in gameplay refinement made up for in "style" and its advanced / interesting gameplay engine for the time. Flaws aside, KOF '94 was definitely ahead of its time!

 

Learn How to Play and get good.

  
In addition to traditional and interesting gameplay elements, KOF '94 offers some pretty fun 3-VS-3 match-ups (non tag). Each team of three has their individual strengths and weaknesses, and unlike in the KOF sequels to come, players cannot pick individual characters... only pre-set teams. KOF 94's roster was an impressive size for the time, although the fact that players couldn't "customize" their teams was a definite flaw and hurt the game's overall replayability (something that was fixed in The King of Fighters '95).
  

"Must see" 2D sprites and stages.

  
Graphically, KOF '94 presents "realistically proportioned" 2D character sprites, which actually brought something unique (and possibly refreshing to the fighting genre at the time. On the flipside, you could also say KOF 94's graphics were a bit drab and heavy on pixels. Any way you shake it, KOF '94 definitely wasn't the prettiest 2D fighter around in the mid 90's. The sound and music quality is also fairly mediocre. As a big fan of Samurai Shodown and Art of Fighting at the time, KOF 94's art style and (arguably) "gritty" in-game graphics and sound didn't really manage to impress me. (However, I later became a big fan of the series, after KOF '97 and KOF '98 arrived). 


On certain backgrounds in KOF '94, the sharp pixels of characters and backgrounds don't quite mesh together well. In short, the game isn't as "easy on the eyes" as other comparable 2D fighters of the era. Nonetheless, the iconic and stylish 2D character sprites and hand-drawn backgrounds have a unique flair and paved the way for major improvements in future installments. One of the coolest and most unique visual aspects of KOF '94 is that your eternally supportive teammates are seen in the background during the fight, cheering you on when you land attacks. This subtle detail alone definitely added a ton of personality to the game, and would later carry on to future sequels.
   

Click Here for all Concept Artwork!

   

 

 

 

 

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Page Updated: June 20th, 2024
Developer(s): SNK
Publisher(s): SNK
Artwork by: Toshiaki Mori (Shinkiro)
Platform(s): Neo Geo, Neo Geo CD, PlayStation, PSN, PS4
Release Date(s): Aug. 25th, 1994           Arcade
Oct. 1st, 1994                 Neo Geo
Nov. 2nd, 1994               Neo Geo CD
Dec. 21st, 2010            PSN
Oct. 27th, 2016            PS4 via PSN
Characters Kyo Kusanagi, Benimaru Nikaido, Goro Daimon, Andy Bogard, Terry Bogard, Joe Higashi, Ryo Sakazaki, Robert Garcia, Takuma Sakazaki, Mai Shiranui, King, Yuri Sakazaki, Ralf Jones, Heidern, Clark Still, Athena Asamiya, Sie Kensou, Chin Gentsai, Chang Koehan, Kim Kaphwan, Choi Bounge, Lucky Glauber, Heavy D, Brian Battler, Rugal Bernstein

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Featured Video:

Related Games: The King of Fighters '94: Re-bout, The King of Fighters '95, KOF '96, KOF '97, KOF '98, KOF '98 Ultimate Match, KOF '99, KOF 2000, KOF 2001, KOF 2002, KOF 2002 Unlimited Match, KOF 2003, KOF XI, KOF XII, KOF XIII, KOF XIV, KOF XV, KOF: Maximum Impact, KOF: Maximum Impact MANIAX, KOF: Maximum Impact 2, KOF: Maximum Impact Regulation A, KOF Neowave, KOF EX Neo Blood, KOF EX2 Howling Blood, KOF R1, KOF R2, KOF Collection: Orochi Saga, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Mortal Kombat 2, Fatal Fury, Samurai Shodown 2, Art of Fighting, Art of Fighting 2
  

Gameplay Engine  6.5 / 10
Story / Theme  8.5 / 10
Overall Graphics  7.5 / 10
Animation  6.5 / 10
Music / Sound Effects  7.0 / 10
Innovation  8.0 / 10
Art Direction  7.0 / 10
Customization  2.5 / 10
Options / Extras  3.0 / 10
Intro / Presentation  7.0 / 10
Replayability / Fun  5.5 / 10
"Ouch" Factor  7.0 / 10
Characters  8.0 / 10
BOTTOM LINE

 7.3 / 10

 Review based on Arcade version     

 

Final Words:

KOF '94's 3-VS-3 match-ups were definitely innovative for the time, but the sluggish and slightly "stiff" gameplay was no doubt the biggest flaw of the game. An inexperienced fighting game player might not notice this "stiffness" I speak of... but comparing KOF '94 to other hit 1994 fighting games, such as: Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Mortal Kombat 2, or even SNK's own Samurai Shodown 2... King of Fighters '94 clearly wasn't the cream of the crop at the time (no matter how thick your nostalgia glasses are). 

Even though KOF '94 wasn't the smoothest or best-looking fighter at the arcades, this brave new take on the traditional arcade fighting game opened the door for many amazing sequels down the road. KOF '94 was also the first ever "crossover" fighting game, a concept which became increasingly popular in the fighting genre, many years later.
~TFG Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen  
 
 

 


 
 

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