Is every King of Fighters game worthwhile?

[cr4zymanz0r]

I was wanting to get some opinions from Neo fans on the KoF games (mainly ones on Neo hardware, but feel free to comment on others). I'm trying to figure out what my ideal AES collection would be and I know I want some KoF games in it, but I'm not sure all of them are worth it or if there's just 3 or so I should probably focus on.

I haven't personally put much time into the KoF games past '99. Is there any kind of general consensus among of the community such as "oh, after _____ it went downhill. Don't bother with anything newer than ____". I figure the 1st entry or two are probably primitive too. I've played most of them to varying extents, but not near enough for me to pin down the worthiness of each individual entry.

 

[cdamm]

a lot of it is personal preference now. some are better than others.

my top 3 are: '98, 2000, '96. in that order.

 

[Dr Shroom]

Whatever you do: stay away from the horrible shit that is 2001.

 

[complexz]

I think it really totally depends on what kinda player you are, if your mostly playing alone I think all the old snk developed versions have the best production values like pretty graphics, story segments and endings. But if your gonna get some serious competition out of them then 98 and 2002 are pretty much the only semi relevant versions on neogeo.

either way I think 98 is the best combination of all of the above.

 

[Late]

95, 97, 98, 2000, 2002

 

[arcwyvern]

98 and 2002 on the reg.

 

[Fandangos]

97 FTW! But I also like the 94.

 

[N30_G30_speed]

Whatever you do: stay away from the horrible shit that is 2001.

+999999999999999999999999999.

DEAR GOD THE HORROR. THE HORROR.

 

[Zenimus]

Whatever you do: stay away from the horrible shit that is 2001.

+999999999999999999999999999.

DEAR GOD THE HORROR. THE HORROR.

I disagree completely! 2001 may have ugly character portraits, but it also has the biggest roster of any KOF game. I think it's an excellent entry.

My favorite is '96 though, probably only because the boss team with Geese is in it.

 

[HeavyMachineGoob]

What's so bad about 2001?

 

[Taiso]

Yes, they're all worth it.

Some more than others.

Only play XII with others. There is no value to it as a single player experience. The others can, more or less, be enjoyed as traditional fighting games.

Get them all. Play them all. Decide which ones are the best for you.

They're out there, in various ways, in easily affordable versions. Even if you can't afford MVS or home cart versions, you can get respectable ports of the entire series. They won't be perfect, but they capture enough of the essence to help you form an opinion on which ones you want to stick with.

 

[hoop-jones]

What's so bad about 2001?

The ugliest backgrounds in the whole series.
Music is pretty mediocre too..., but it's a good
KoF in terms of gameplay.

 

[bloodhokuto]

Yes.

Over the space of a few years I picked up each Home Cart KOF game, and there was something to like with every one,every single one.

There is also something nice with having the whole series. Generally the games won't really break the bank either - and I'd rather have the carts over the ports.

Still think '94 is just as impressive as any other in the series, so don't forget that one!

 

[Dr Shroom]

I disagree completely! 2001 may have ugly character portraits, but it also has the biggest roster of any KOF game. I think it's an excellent entry.

Well I'm more of a quality over quantity kinda guy. Fact is: It is by far the ugliest in both audio and visual and has the cheapest boss of all time, you can't deny that
At least Nona improved his (?) character art for the other games, that's at least something positive. The ports fixed the horrible art a bit.

 

[Dr Shroom]

I actually liked the art for KoF99...

 

[LoneSage]

They are all worth a play, yes.

Even 01 and 02, just to see how shitty they are.

 

[Gamefan]

I plan on getting them all on JPN home carts one day. I love the KOF series!

 

[neo-geo-mvs]

As the MVS carts are so cheap - get them all!

 

[BigDeadFreak]

I loved the challenge of 94 although it was a bit too hard at times. I also loved the backgrounds and sound effect/music.

98 is good but it's 96 that really does it for me. Amazing art direction, great music and as agood a roster as you ever really need.

After 98 it seemed to go downhill although 2003 as a certain appeal.