The champion's belt is here.
Come and get it!
The King of Fighters...
...begins now!!"
The King of Fighters XIV is the fourteenth installment in the The King of Fighters series created by SNK. After a six year hiatus, the series returned in grand style with a new saga (the "New Age" saga) and a new look to boot. This is the first game in the series to swerve the "arcade first" policy and developed for consoles, releasing on August 23rd, 2016 for PlayStation 4, and then ported to arcades on June 29, 2017 for Taito Type X3 board. The Windows version was also released in 2017 on Steam, and on GOG.com in 2020.
In this installment, a Russian billionaire named Antonov buys the rights to the King of Fighters name and, naturally, decides to host a tournament just for the sake of having one. No evil gods, secret organizations or crazy cults pulling the strings, just a regular, actual tournament. The invitations are sent out and fighters, new and old, join the fray for the annual bash up. But like the ones before, Antonov and the participants soon learn that there's something amiss with this new KOF. The new hero is Shun'ei, a young martial artist who is under the teachings of Tung Fu Rue (from Fatal Fury) and struggles to get control of his powers.
KOF XIV is the first installment in the main series to take a Video Game 3D Leap (but not the first in the franchise, as Maximum Impact sub-series on the PlayStation 2 already did it), shifting from its sprite based pixel art to 3D models, though the fighting system is still on a fixed 2D plane like other 2½D fighting games like Street Fighter V and Guilty Gear Xrd. It utilizes its 3D graphics a lot for the action, like the camera effects focusing on your character when they're using a Super Move. The previews and initial launch version were panned by critics for its 3D graphics looking less stellar than the competition of its time (like the two games mentioned earlier), but SNK rolled out many patches to polish them and update their lighting effects.
While the start of previous arcs played with experimental mechanics (the Striker system in the NESTS games and the Shift system in the Ash games), KOF XIV takes a more conservative approach in this regard, basing its general fighting system on its immediate predecessor, KOF XIII. The EX variation of both Special Moves and Super Moves makes a return from XIII, although in XIV they can only be activated in the MAX Mode and each use depletes the MAX Mode meter. Neo Max in XIII is replaced by Climax, which requires three Power Gauge stocks (two stocks if you're in the MAX Mode, but using Climax deactivates the MAX Mode instantly). KOF XIV streamlines the combo systems a bit; it introduces a Rush system that performs a basic combo (finished with a Super Move if you have a Power Gauge stock) only by pressing the Light Punch repetitively. The game also features the Just Defend mechanic (from Garou: Mark of the Wolves) which allows the players to parry enemies' moves.
SNK also put a huge effort on overseas merchandising at the time of release, as its manga adaptation, The King of Fighters: A New Beginning, was officially licensed and published in the Western countries to tie with the game.
- Team China: The legendary Tung Fu Rue enters alongside his two newest students: our new saga protagonist Shun'ei and his best friend Meitenkun.
- Team Japan: Kyo Kusanagi, Benimaru Nikaido and Goro Daimon return once again.
- Team Yagami: Iori Yagami, having regained his powers, returns to KOF alongside Mature and Vice to settle his score with Kyo.
- Team Fatal Fury: Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard and Joe Higashi as always.
- Team Art of Fighting: The three disciples of Kyokugen return on the same team: Ryo Sakazaki, Robert Garcia and Yuri Sakazaki.
- Team Psycho Soldier: Athena Asamiya enters on a promotional tour for her music career, alongside her usual teammates Sie Kensou and Chin Gentsai.
- Team Ikari: Leona Heidern, Ralf Jones and Clark Still are sent to once again investigate KOF, to see if the new owner is really as innocent as he claims.
- Team K': Upon learning that remnants of NESTS are beginning to emerge, K', Maxima and Kula Diamond enter the tournament hoping to tie up loose ends.
- Team Women Fighters: King and Mai Shiranui return, this time joined by the Shingo to Terry's Kyo, Alice Garnet Nakata.
- Team Kim: Just as he did in the previous tournament, Kim Kaphwan enters with a fresh team; in this case, alongside his master Gang-Il and the mysterious Luong, a woman Gang-Il fell in love with while training abroad.
- Team Villain: After being let loose from Kim's watch, Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge are convinced to return to their criminal ways by the eccentric crime lord Xanadu.
- Team Official Invitation: A team formally invited by Antonov consisting of Sylvie Paula Paula, a former NESTS scientist who can wield electricity; Kukri, a mysterious hooded figure who can wield Earth powers and Mian, a Sichuan opera dancer who incorporates such moves into her fighting style.
- Team South America: Another new team consisting of of newcomers from Brazil and Colombia, including Nelson, a boxer outfitted with a cybernetic arm, Zarina, a Capoeira dancer trying to save the nesting ground of toucans, and Bandeiras Hattori, a self proclaimed ninja trying to advertise his own dojo.
- Team Mexico: Returning to KOF after a long absence, Ramon and Angel are joined by the supposed newcomer King of the Dinosaurs. note
- Team South Town: Geese Howard finally enters KOF again, joined by his loyal enforcer Billy Kane and butler Hein.
- Team Another World: A team of fighters from different eras in time who somehow found themselves in the present day consisting of Nakoruru from Samurai Shodown and two characters from SNK's pachislot era: Mui Mui from Dragon Gal and Love Heart from Sky Love. note
- DLC Characters:
- Wave 1: Whip, Ryuji Yamazaki, Vanessa and Rock Howard note
- Wave 2: Heidern, Oswald, Blue Mary and Najd note
- Boss:
- Mid-Boss: Antonov - Sponsor of this King of Fighters who just simply wants to prove he's the best of the best. That's it; no ulterior motive, no evil plan, he just wants to claim his rightful title as the King of Fighters. Not that it stops things from going awry...
- Final Boss: Verse - An otherworldly being who crashes the tournament after the Finals conclude. Who or what he is is a complete mystery.
The King of Fighters XIV contains examples of:
- 2½D: The first game in the mainline series to make the jump to 3D visuals, but with the traditional 2D gameplay we've come to expect in the genre.note
- Anti-Frustration Features:
- Starting from this game, the Blowback (C+D, both Strong Punch and Kick) will now blow the opponent away and splat them on the other side of the stage if it connects, allowing for a better combo opportunity than in previous games.
- Cancel windows as a whole are considerably more lenient here than they ever were in previous games. Go ahead and try doing a basic light confirm as Shun'ei here then do it as K' in 2002 Unlimited Match or as Kyo in '98. Quite the difference to be had.
- Like in prior games, if you're having a hard time with the bosses of this game, there's always the Continue Service that lets you level the playing field with a handicap (or no) of your choice on said boss.
- Amazon Brigade: Team Women Fighters (Alice, King, and Mai), as per series tradition. There's also Another World (Love Heart, Mui Mui, and Nakoruru) and, well... edit teams that let you pair your own combination of KOF's most iconic femme fatales.
- Back from the Dead: Well Mature and Vice obviously, though no explanation how in this onenote . At the end of the game though, Verse's defeat brings back a number of deceased characters as it's explained he was carrying the souls of the dead within him including Ash Crimson, Yashiro, Shermie, Chris, Orochi (though he's quickly sealed), etc. Essentially it's just an excuse to bring back dead characters for the next generation.
- The Bus Came Back: Besides the abundance of new faces, plenty of familiar ones return after a long absence. Specifically...
- Blue Mary, Geese Howard, Oswald, Tung Fu Rue, Vanessa, and Whip all return after being absent since KOF XI. Played with in King of Dinosaurs' case since he's just a dinosaur-themed Tizoc that's trying to perform a Face–Heel Turn. Well... points for effort, at least.
- This game marks Angel's and Heidern's first appearances in a canon title since 2001.
- Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge, Kim's longtime teammates turned rivals, return after being last playable in 2003 and 2002 respectively.
- Canon Foreigner:
- Alice Garnet Nakata, who debuted in a Fatal Fury-themed pachislot title, makes her mainline series debut here.
- Mui Mui and Love Heart, hailing from the Dragon Gal and Sky Love pachislot titles respectively, make their first and only KOF appearance here.
- Nakoruru, of Samurai Shodown fame, also appears in this title as part of the Another World team.
- Rock Howard, the main protagonist of Garou: Mark of the Wolves, finally makes his mainline series debut after numerous cameos (notably 2001) as a child.
- Dawn of an Era: From a meta standpoint, this game marks SNK's second return from bankruptcy after the failure of The King of Fighters XII (
which left them reeling quite a bit despite the success of XIII). Only this time as just SNK and not SNK Playmore. - Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: Verse just appears with no foreshadowing whatsoever to keep up with the tradition of KOF having super humanoid bosses. This does lead into a mystery later where he comes from in the following game but still...
- Hellhole Prison: The home stage of the Villains Team is a straight, almost nightmarish example, with there being plenty of floating cages and crumbling stone walls strewn about.
- Masquerade Ball: The Official Invitation Team's home stage is, well... Exactly What It Says on the Tin. Opera vocals and all.
- Musical Nod: Tons of classic KOF (and by extension, many of SNK's other IPs) tracks have been given the remix treatment for this one. This list only covers a minority of them.
- "New Order" from KOF XI plays during Kyo's and Iori's Fated Battle.
- "Soy Sauce For Geese" from Fatal Fury 2 is remixed twice - once for the original FF version (which plays when Terry fights Geese) and the other being a remix of Geese's theme from Art of Fighting 2 (which plays when Geese fights Ryo).
- "Micha Iya!", another classic Art of Fighting piece, plays when King fights against Ryo.
- "KD-0079", K's theme from his debut game, is remixed for his Fated Battle against Ralf.
- Speaking of which, the main theme from Ikari Warriors is also remixed when Ralf and Clark square off against each other.
- "London March", Billy Kane's iconic Leitmotif (which had already been remixed in the previous game) is given another remix, this time playing when he fights against Hein.
- Surprisingly enough, even Andy gets some love with his Fatal Fury 2 theme, "Pasta", being remixed for his bout against his master, Tung.
- Even further still, "Kurikinton", Terry's own leitmotif is also remixed as "Kuri Kinton Flavor" whenever he's present in the Transcontinental Railroad stage.
- The Ikari Warriors' theme from KOF '99 is also remixed as Whip's standalone theme.
- "C62", Yamazaki's theme from Fatal Fury 3, is also likewise remixed as his own standalone theme.
- No OSHA Compliance: Team Yagami's stage is a remixed version of Iori's classic stage from '95, which in itself returned back in XIII.
- Not Just a Tournament: Naturally since it's KOF but unlike the previous games, this tournament's unexpected climax wasn't Antonov's fault at all, as all he did was buy the rights to the name and organize it as a legitimate sporting event.
- Video Game 3D Leap: While not the first KOF to go CGI (that honor belongs to the Maximum Impact series). It is the first in the mainline series to go 3D after years of sprite-based games.
