Rugal/Orochi Saga
The King of Fighters '94 | The King of Fighters '95 | The King of Fighters '96 | The King of Fighters '97 | The King of Fighters '98
NESTS Chronicles
The King of Fighters '99 | The King of Fighters 2000 | The King of Fighters 2001 | The King of Fighters 2002
Tales of Ash Saga
The King of Fighters 2003 | The King of Fighters XI | The King of Fighters XII | The King of Fighters XIII
Shun'ei Saga
The King of Fighters XIV | The King of Fighters XV
- Anti-Climax Boss:
- While Otoma=Raga more than lives up to the threat that Dolores foretold, the same can't be said for Re Verse, who manages to be just as much of a pushover as its prior form back in XIV. Even on the default difficulty, it's extremely easy to get the drop on it before it can even hit you at all.
- For being touted as the "CPU from hell", more than a few KOF veterans found the Superboss fight against Omega Rugal to be quite underwhelming. For one, his AI isn't as bright as one might think since it's fairly easy to bait his infamous Genocide Cutter by doing an empty hop in front of him (or even whiffing a move that puts you in the air, like Krohnen's Strike Slash) and then punishing accordingly. For another, he doesn't regain any health after every round, making the task of whittling his health a fair bit easier. And finally, it's surprisingly easy to deal with his infamous Dead Mount Press command grab - either jump right behind him and punish him or pick specific characters with a super that can activate regardless (like Heidern's Gae Bolg, poetically enough.)
- Awesome Music: Has its own page.
- Broken Base: The roster can be contentious. The base roster is smaller than the one in XIV despite a large portion of the roster being ported over from that game with only a small handful of non-XIV returning characters and only two completely brand new playable characters. Almost all of the newcomers from XIV have been cut as have some series staples, notably Kim, Kensou and Chin. Some people are fine with the roster and proclaim semi-jokingly that it's "all killer, no filler". Others are disappointed by it for the smaller number, cuts, reused characters, or focus on popular characters at the expense of more unique or obscure characters from previous KOF or SNK games. Most people, however, aren't terribly happy with one of the DLC team slots being the Awakened Orochi Team as they'd been EX characters accessible normally in previous games.
- Continuity Lockout: The game's plot continues from XIV, with Verse's destruction having revived several previously deceased characters (such as CYS, Krizalid, Igniz, and Rugal - if Verse's win quotes in XIV were anything to go by). Thus, this game is filled to the brim with Call Backs from as far back as the very beginning, requiring quite a bit of knowledge with the series' canon to enjoy most of the story.
- Crosses the Line Twice: The Sea Enthusiasts ending. Jenet and Darli tossing Joe overboard into a school of sharks? Pretty dark. The possible reason Joe is even on the team is because his Muay Thai shorts look like swim trunks? Priceless.
- Epileptic Trees: Since the Multiverse is confirmed to exist in this game (as it's explicitly referenced in Team Ash's Story on SNK's website), that in itself leads to a number of possibilities:
- Given how their soundtrack was added into the DJ Station with the release of Team Samurai, it's not out of the question if the Maximum Impact series will be given some new life in the mainline series, especially with those games having its fair share of Dark Horses like Alba, Chae Lim, and Lien.
- Likewise, since they're presented as an Alternate Timeline to the mainline series, it's possible (but less likely than the MI characters mentioned above) that some of the original characters introduced in the KOF EX spin-offs (such as Moe Habana and Miu Kurosaki) could make the jump to the mainline series with this game.
- There might even be crossover potential from other non-SNK fighting games, too. Team Street Fighter, Dead or Alive, or Tekken, anybody? With the latter two in particular, it's only fair that SNK returns the favor since Mai and Kula made appearances in the former while Geese guest-starred in the latter.
- Even Better Sequel: XV builds upon its predecessor's accessibility by expanding the Rush combo system and simplifying command inputs (like changing half-circle moves into quarter-circle), making this the easiest KOF to start in the main series. It also has some changes in the gameplay mechanics for old fans, such as EX Moves being performed outside of MAX Mode and reduced cost on regular Supers while in MAX Mode, providing more combo expression. XV brings back fan favorites that returned from the grave (mainly the Ensemble Darkhorses Yashiro Nanakase, Shermie, and Chris), favoring "Quality Over Quantity" this time around a starting roster of 39 as opposed to XIV's 50. The 3D graphics are still a point of contention, still behind its competition like Guilty Gear Strive, but it's considered a marginal improvement for having stylish effects that hide their rough spots. It does help the game is developed with Unreal Engine 4 (which has mod support built right in, ensuring its longevity on the PC version).
- I Knew It!:
- Some players have been speculating that K9999 or Nameless would return to KOF XV were proven correct when the former does in fact return as Krohnen - his new identity is the result of his and Ángel's betrayal and exile from NESTS, as he and Ángel are now on the run both from them and the Ikari Warriors, owing to them getting Kula back on board for the tournament.
- For those that called the official formation of Team Sacred Treasures back in XIV (owing to the Yagami Team's ending revolving around Chizuru, Iori, and Kyo re-sealing Orochi), they were proven correct here.
- Another one for players who have played KOF XIV, as many players had long been speculating that Ash would not only return to XV (as his revival was confirmed in the Official Invitation team ending), but he'd team up with Elisabeth and Kukri. This also turned out to be true.
- Memetic Loser: Billy is probably the first character that comes to mind when asking who the worst character in KOF XV is. The biggest contributor is his Far C have a frame disadvantage of -18... on hit. Meaning that, the second Billy throws this move out and it connects, he's the one who can get punished for it. Discredited as of Season 2, where this is no longer the case and he's nowhere near as unpolished as he was on release.
- Narm Charm: Max Powers gives his all as the announcer, with a delightfully over-the-top performance fitting for the emcee of an international martial arts festival. And for those who do dislike him, his commentary can be toggled off.
- Nightmare Fuel: Shares a page with the rest of the franchise here.
- Older Than They Think:
- This wasn't the first game in the series to have a Post-Credits Scene for each ending. The King of Fighters '99 also had them, although they weren't fully voiced.
- An Auto-Combo mechanic was previously present in the home port of KOF XI, where characters could perform a full sequence starting with normal moves and ending on DMs or LDMs with a single shoulder button press.
- On the topic of XI, this wouldn't be the first game to have a (sort of) universal input for the Climax Super. Leader Super Special Moves in the latter game were performed by pressing a super motion (e.g., double quarter-circle forward) plus the blowback button, much like in this game, with the key difference being that the input is the same across the whole cast as opposed to being varied like in XI. The game also had some characters' special moves simplified despite not being stated in the move list. For example, Ryo's trademark Hien Shipuu Kyaku had an alternate quarter-circle back input instead. Long before it would become official here.
- This game marks the first time players can use both the regular and Awakened versions of the Orochi team members on the same team, for example using both Yashiro and Orochi Yashiro together, as they are now considered separate characters rather than alternate forms. However, 2002 Unlimited Match treated Kusanagi this way, unlike the vanilla game where he shared a character spot with Kyo.
- Play the Game, Skip the Story: The story has proven to be contentious with SNK lore fans. Between certain team stories (particularly K', Krohnen and Fatal Fury) and the rather abrupt conclusion to Shun'ei's saga, some fans consider the writing to be on the weaker side despite the high-stakes plot and the many returning characters. The gameplay mechanics and characters themselves, however, have seen much praise.
- Polished Port: On one hand, the basic settings on the game's PC version aren't ideal nor detailed, not even having basic graphics presets or even the option to turn on V-Sync from within the game itselfnote , but on the other hand, the PC version looks every bit as good as the console version, has full Raytracing support, and has the least amount of input lag
compared to the console versions at only 33ms compared to the PlayStation 5 version having 88ms (pre-1.34, anyway). In layman's terms, if you want smooth and reliable inputs every time (which are extremely important when it comes to combos or even basic motion inputs), you can't go wrong with the PC version. - Porting Disaster: Much like Guilty Gear -Strive- before it, it was quickly discovered that the PlayStation 5 port of the game at launch had the highest amount of input lag, which averaged about six frames of lag. This was eventually fixed in 1.34, which brings the input lag to the same level as the PS4 version.
- Rescued from the Scrappy Heap:
- Not only is Ash much stronger than he was compared to his last outing back in KOF XIIInote , but he's also much, much nicer here than he ever was in any of his previous appearances. It also helps that he's not the main protagonist anymore, being somewhat Demoted to Extra and content with leaving the heavy lifting to anyone else that isn't him (even Kukri has more prominence in his team's story than he or Elisabeth do).
- K9999 was a highly polarizing figure within the fanbase and even SNK themselves, to the point where he was retconned out of the series' timeline. His return as Krohnen and being a bit more bearable as a character seems to have softened opinions and in some cases even won people over. From a gameplay standpoint, though...? A repeat of Nameless back in '02UM, but worse.
- Scrappy Mechanic: The game's matchmaking system. Not being able to find opponents online for any reason is frustrating enough, but what makes this mechanic especially aggravating to deal with is the fact that when it is working, you'd have to wait upwards of 30 minutes to be able to find a match. And if you do happen to be patient enough to wait that long for a match; then chances are it'll be with someone from halfway across the globe in your region (likely with a borderline unplayable connection), regardless of your pre-match settings. What makes it all the more frustrating is that, as of April 2022, SNK has yet to fix the issue, leaving more and more players frustrated and ultimately dropping the game altogether. Thankfully, as announced in August 2022, SNK has resolved to fix this very issue.
- Sequel Difficulty Drop: Between reducing half-circle inputs, light confirms being easier and more damaging, more special cancelable standing normals, the Climax Super input now being qcb~hcf+CD for the entire roster, and EX moves costing only half a bar instead of a whole bar (like in XIII) or relegated to MAX Mode (as was the case in XIV), this game was made to be accessible for even those completely new to the series.
- Spiritual Adaptation: Unorthodox example. This game's the closest there is to a canon Dream Match Game, what with staples like CYS being brought Back from the Dead, Geese and Rock finally getting a proper interaction with one another, the 2002 NESTS Team being reunited as Team Krohnen, and Rugal getting revived and having interactions with his archenemies, Kyo and Heidern, among other things.
- Suspiciously Similar Song:
- "Enter the Venue", the theme of Team G.A.W., is nearly a note-for-note rip of pro wrestler Masahiro Chono's entrance theme.
- The newest Fated Battle theme between father/son duo Geese and Rock Howard, "Way to The Horizon", is the closest one will get to a remix of Rock's Garou leitmotif, "Spread the Wings". As a result, it also takes cues from the late Robert Miles' "Children", which the latter is influenced by. It also has some similar notes to the "Going to Space" theme from Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire.
- "Enter the Venue"
- Tear Jerker: Shares a page with the rest of the franchise here.
- They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character:
- Funnily enough, despite being the one who effectively caused the mess of the main plot (and the game before) in the first place after erasing himself from existence, Ash's role in this game is a mere background character. Sure, his team gets a CG cutscene for the Climax Boss, but even still, it's Kukri of all characters that do the heavy lifting for most of his team's plot. Even Team Ash's own story on SNK's website focuses more on Kukri than on Ash, especially Elisabeth.
- Despite being hyped up as the Iori to Shun'ei's Kyo, Isla doesn't really do much in the grand scheme of things beyond being another Amplified Specter (the very concept of which isn't even explored, as can be seen below in They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot). Being reduced to a Damsel in Distress (at least in the Hero Team's side of the story), a vessel for Re Verse, and most importantly, having a one-sided rivalry with Shun'ei that quickly turns into a Ship Tease doesn't do much to help, either.
- Speaking of rivals, Krohnen, aka, K9999. Ignoring the lack of impact he also has in the main plot, him and K' never even interact beyond their special intro in Story Mode - in both sides of their teams' respective endings, he and Angel both leave before the former and K' could even get the chance to interact for the first time in what is 20 years' worth of KOF canon. And that's not even getting into Kula's lack of reaction to seeing the (would-be) assailants of her maternal figure (or her Flanderization, for that matter), either.
- Rugal. While it's nice to have him back after 27 years, he has surprisingly little in the way of edit teams and cutscenes. Beyond some special win quotes against Kyo and Heidern, among others, the latter two have nothing unique to say to him in return.
- They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot:
- Shun'ei's and Isla's rivalry... or lack thereof, rather. Not only does Shun'ei not even acknowledge Isla to start with (seriously, his reaction to her in the introductory cinematic says it all), but their "rivalry" ends before it can even flourish or amount to anything. Hell, Isla even becomes friends with Shun'ei by the end and possibly develops feelings for him.
- Simply put, what even is the concept of an Amplified Specter? Both the game itself and the supplementary material on SNK's site have little to say on the matter beyond being Barrier Maidens whose powers would make them a target for any potential evildoers to harness their powers for their own reasons. Which isn't even remotely demonstrated within the confines of the game, let alone elaborated on anywhere else.
- During the Climax Boss battle with Re Verse, Shun'ei is almost consumed by the as-of-yet-unknown evil entity that's powering his Superpowered Evil Side, only to be stopped by Meitenkun at the last second. Why this couldn't have been an opportunity to demonstrate the extent of said evil side or for Meitenkun to actually demonstrate his true potential to get his own friend to come to his senses is anybody's guess. Especially since it would've been a fun callback to KOF XIII where an evil variant of Ash possessed by Saiki served as the Final Boss of that game.
- The Team K' and Team Krohnen subplot has been controversial. Kula's reasoning for running away from K' and Maxima ultimately played even harder into her Flanderization, being upset that they were too busy with work and broke their promise to take her to a theme park. Team Krohnen also don't factor into the grand scheme of things; they are mostly relegated to fanservice for fans of 2001 and 2002. The best Krohnen gets is interactions with Kyo and K' for continuity's sake, and nothing else.
- Ditto for the ending for Team Super Heroine. While many expected that Athena's reason to include Mai and Yuri was to form an Idol group, instead she makes a circus act with Yuri dressed as a clown and Mai dressed as a lion, making the team's reason its formation being a let down for some.
- The presence of a Metal Slug-themed stage for the Ikari Warriors made a lot of people wish that a Metal Slug team would make it into the game, especially with Marco Rossi, Fio Germi and Mars People having appeared already in other fighting games such as SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos, NeoGeo Battle Coliseum and The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact 2.
- Unexpected Character:
- Absolutely no one expected K9999 to come back as Krohnen McDougall, especially due to being such a blatant copy of Tetsuo Shima that led to him being temporarily retconned from the game's events.
- While Rock Howard's return as was very much expected since he was already in XIV (which was his mainline series debut to KOF after being an NPC since 2001), it was the return of B.Jenet and Gato (who haven't been seen since XI) that came as a surprise (Even if it had already been leaked before).
- Saisyu finally making a physical appearance after his very long bus ride (last seen in the non-canon Neowave, with some stage cameos here and there throughout the rest of the series) in the Sacred Treasures ending will be a surprise to many. As is Shingo, now sporting a new look.
- The Team G.A.W. ending also features a whole cavalcade of unexpected cameos, ranging from Zarina to Sho Hayate.
- Omega Rugal making his first canonical appearance surprises many. Being a free DLC Character and being introduced as a Boss Challenge is another. Suffice to say; Rugal is a welcome return.
- While a team based on Samurai Shodown was expected, as well as series leads Haohmaru and Nakoruru being part of it, a surprise (at least for those who didn't see the Content Leak) came in the form of Darli Dagger, a character from the 2019 SamSho reboot. Not that many are complaining.
- SamSho veterans may get a kick out of Nakoruru's 8th color palette, which references Purple Nakoruru, an EX character variation of her who is much crueler and violent. The fact that this color variant gets a unique special outro may raise eyebrows from said veterans, implying that she's technically a part of the game.
- Of the many character predictions for Season 2, nobody expected Sylvie Paula Paula, now with an all-new design, or Najd to return to this game. Same for Goenitz, and as another free DLC character in his case, no less.
- Hinako's to return in KOF XV after a 20-year absence is also a surprise to many, especially since she's the last DLC character of season two.
