STOVE

The King of Fighters is the last of three stories planned as King of Fighters stories.
Here I will briefly introduce the King of Fighters series and talk about things that were not covered in previous series.

*. Collection of openings from KOF 94 to 13 (including Neo-Ojio KOF 94 and spin-offs)

[KOF 94~98]

Who would win if Superman and Son Goku (Dragon Ball) fought? This was the eternal curiosity of elementary school students at the time. In fighting games, there were also many stories about who would win if popular characters from Capcom and SNK fought.
In 1993, Ryo Sakazaki appeared as a hidden boss in the Arang Special, and a year later in 1994, a game was released that depicted the dream match between Arang and Fist of the Dragon Tiger, a 3-on-3 match, and this was [The King of Fighters 94].
Many people probably still remember the opening where Kyo and [The King Of Fighters 94] appear as the invitation card burns.

<The Legend of Arang and the Fist of the Dragon Tiger? Shut up and take my money!>

<R's invitation delivered once again and...>

In 1995, KOF 95 was released. KOF 95 left a strong impression on users at the time, starting with an opening that showed that the final boss Rugal was alive, and showing the confrontation between Kyo and Iori. There were many small changes, such as being able to freely select team members.
This work was a bigger hit than its predecessor, and the KOF series emerged as the most popular fighting game at the time in Korean arcades.

<With the success of '95, the KOF series enjoys great popularity.>

However, KOF 96's popularity declined when it came to KOF 96, which had many changes such as creating new characters and changing skills. Existing users were unable to adapt to the changed skills, and the gap in performance between characters was too large.
However, this is also the work where the Orochi Saga story begins in earnest, with the appearance of Chizuru and the story of the clan that sealed Orochi.

<The story becomes complicated with the appearance of Cheeseru.>

< When you think of KOF 97, everyone probably thinks of these two>

KOF 97 is the most popular game in the King of Fighters series along with KOF 98. The Orochi Saga story that started in 94 was completed, and the system of KOF 96 was strengthened, so the balance was pretty good except for a few cheat characters.
KOF 98, which was created to commemorate the conclusion of the Orochi Saga story, was further improved in balance, and KOF 98 is considered the most complete work. However, KOF 98 was a work that was not often seen in arcades at the time.

<The Orochi of 1800 years ago and the Sanshinki Clan that sealed them>

The story of the Orochi Saga is that the ancestors of Kyo, Iori, and Chizuru sealed Orochi, who was trying to destroy humanity 1,800 years ago. However, Orochi's clan called Hachigeki tried to revive Orochi, and the three clans have been guarding the seal of Orochi for generations.
The Orochi clan seduces and corrupts Iori's ancestors, allowing them to gain the power of Orochi (the fire that Iori controls), but in return they develop an instinctive hatred for Kyo's clan and die young for generations.
In modern times, the Hakgeoljip succeeds in killing Chizuru's older sister and breaking the seal on Orochi's body. After that, the leader of the Hakgeoljip, Genitz, transfers some of Orochi's power to Rugal, and after Rugal holds a KOF tournament, it leads to KOF 94.
In KOF 94, Rugal is defeated, but thanks to the power of Orochi within his body, he does not die, and in KOF 95, he reopens the dialogue, but disappears due to Orochi's power going wild.
And Chizuru opened the KOF 96 tournament to gather the three clans in order to seal the Orochi who had not yet fully revived, and Genitz appeared in the KOF 96 tournament. In order for Orochi to fully revive, he needed the fighting spirit of warriors with strong mental power, and this led to the KOF 97 tournament.
Orochi is resurrected through Chris's body, but is defeated again by the protagonist team, and the Orochi saga ends when the Sanshinki team seals Orochi again.

King of Fighters 98 was not as popular in arcades as 97, but it was the most highly rated KOF among die-hard KOF users and experts, and it led to the release of KOF UM in 2008.
KOF 98 UM is a comprehensive gift set for fans that includes all the characters that appeared up to KOF 98 as well as three popular bosses: Genetz, Orochi, and Omega Rugal.
This game has also been ported to other platforms including the PS2, making it a favorite among classic KOF fans.

[KOF 99~2002]

<The most highly rated of the NESTS stories of 2002>

KOF 99 - 2002 can be considered a turbulent period. 99 - 201 introduced the 3-person + Striker system, but there was a lot of talk about this system because of the large differences in the performance of the Strikers.
SNK went bankrupt after making 99, 2000, and was barely able to release 2001 with investment from Ioris. After SNK went bankrupt, some of the development staff created a company called Dimps, and some split off to Brezza Software (now absorbed by Shin SNK) and continued developing the KOF series.
So, 99~2002 are mostly talked about in terms of completeness and balance, except for 2002 which came out last.

KOF 99 was the first game to use the Striker system, where other team members jump in during the fight to help, but the abilities of these team members varied greatly, so there was a lot of talk about balance issues. It seems like they tried to make a new change, but they failed to adjust the balance.
The balance issues with this striker continued into 2001.

<You can fight like this and call in a striker to attack>

KOF 2000 brought back the original Kyo and Iori, but the balance issues with the strikers became more severe. Some even implemented their own rule of banning strikers to prevent the balance from collapsing, but the series' popularity declined.
After releasing this work, SNK went bankrupt and the production team dispersed, so this work is considered to be SNK's last work. However, it is said that some of the production team remained and participated in the production until 2001.

And when talking about KOF 2000, you can't leave out the ending. The final boss, Zero, tries to self-destruct, but the machine doesn't work, and NESTS blows up South Town with a satellite weapon.
The ending shows each character preparing for the final battle with NESTS while revealing their own story and circumstances. So it is also a work that is fun to watch the ending depending on the team combination.

<The invincible Korean team that can withstand satellite weapons>

KOF 2001 is the final work of the NESTS storyline, but it is also a work that has reached the peak of balance collapse due to the striker system. The problem of fraudulent characters such as Chae-rim and Lee Jin-ju has become severe, and the illustrations have been very controversial.
The twist that the leader of NESTS was actually already dead and his son and second-in-command, Ignis, was actually the real leader of the organization was okay, but it seemed like a twist that didn't fit well with The King of Fighters.

<Still, the background was legendary.>

KOF 2002, which was released to commemorate the completion of NESTS Story, changed to a 3 vs. 3 match, but in the beginning, it was not well received because there were many Dane users in 2001, but it was later re-evaluated and gained much popularity, albeit late. KOF 2002 UM, which was released for PS2, was quite popular for a home KOF.
In a sense, it could be said that KOF, which had been through a turbulent time, has finally found its place. As a dream match without a story, the final boss is Omega Rugal.

<KOF with Omega Rugal as the boss was well-received.>

[KOF 2003~KOF XIII]

From now on, it is a period of darkness and cataclysm, so I will briefly explain it from here on.
< It has become difficult to see it in arcades since KOF 2003. >

KOF 2003 was a game that made many changes, such as changing the main character to Ash and adding a system that allowed the three characters to be switched depending on the situation, but as a result, it was the King of Fighters with the worst balance in history.
I felt that this work had too much of a gap between strong and weak characters, and this problem became worse when characters could be freely changed. I remember that it became difficult to see KOF in arcades starting from this work.

KOF XI is the first game without a year attached, and was released in 2005. Outside of games, SNK was in a worse situation, to the point where they were selling bishoujo games like [Doki Doki Witch Shinban] and [Days of Memories].
The work itself was pretty good for a KOF, but it didn't attract much attention as 3D fighting games became mainstream.

<It turned out pretty well, but...>

KOF XII features the fewest characters in KOF history, at 20 + 2, and there is no final boss in the game.
This game, which appears to have been released unfinished no matter how you look at it, is probably because it was made with money that SNK Playmore didn't have at the time, so it had to be released unfinished.
The silver lining is that SNK's finances improved afterward, allowing them to put out a proper sequel.

<These are the characters that appeared up to KOF 13.>

<It's clear that this is the King of Fighters that fans wanted.>

KOF 13, released in 2010 after a five-year hiatus, is a KOF that has clearly improved on the problems shown up to 12, and is the most highly regarded KOF work since 2003. Most of the characters cut from the previous work have returned, and a physics engine has been introduced for the first time in KOF history.
All the popular characters who were cut from the previous work are back, the Ash story is re-developed, and there is even a new scene and ending full of fan service... This work has definitely returned after 5 years as a work that fans will cheer for.
So, this is a brief summary of the series up to KOF13. I will cut the stories for each game short here.

[Other stories]

Perennial repeat students, unemployed people, and...

Since KOF started with Dream Team, the time period is fixed to the time when KOF 94 took place. Terry is a fighter who has not had a job for 25 years, the Dragon Tiger Fist team is suffering from poverty, and Kyo is a repeat student.
Terry Bogard of Arang and the Legend of Warcraft went through many changes in the sequel Arang and the Legend of Warcraft MOW, including taking Geese Howard's son as his disciple and adopted son, but when Arang and the Legend of Warcraft MOW went bankrupt, the series was dropped as is.
In reality, the time has passed since the release of KOF 94, when the children born have become adults, but Kyo Kunasaki has not yet graduated. Ryo Sakazaki also...
Thanks to this, these three people haven't changed since KOF 94 was released 25 years ago. Their situation has even been used as a joke in secondary creations. Judging from the ending of the main character team in KOF 13, it seems that SNK is enjoying it now.

<What did you dream about? I had a sweet dream.>

Billy the God Game Appraiser

<The photo above has nothing to do with the actual content.>

*. Billy Theory Source:
http://old.battlepage.com/index.php?menu=i_talkforkof&mode=view&no=170595

Iori's Journey
<Miss X, the organizer of the Girls Fighters Tournament>

There is a work called [SNK Girls Fighters] released by SNK for Pocket Neogy. This work is a fighting game where all of SNK's popular female characters appear. A character named Miss X appears as the host and final boss of this tournament.
This Miss X's identity is known to everyone. It was a short fighting game for a little-known game console called Neo Geo Pocket, but this character became a legend with just this one game.
Miss X also appears in SNK Tag Heroines, which came out in 2018. Although SNK Heroines was a failure, it left behind Miss X, who was armed with a prettier appearance(?) than the original and an enhanced sense of humor.

<Look at the pretty(?) appearance of SNK's official heroine, Miss X>

<THE KING OF FANTASY Yagami Iori's Isekai Musou - Remember Every Time You See the Moon!>

<Content: Iori's great activities in another world>

After sealing Orochi in KOF 97, Iori disappeared somewhere, but there is an official SNK side story novel that covers the period before Iori's intrusion in KOF 99. In it, Iori is said to have been blown away to a fantasy world due to the shock of sealing Orochi, and after adventuring in that world, he returned to the KOF world.
The title of the novel is [THE KING OF FANTASY Yagami Iori's Otherworldly Musou - Remember Every Time You See the Moon!]. This novel is currently being serialized as a manga, so I hope the manga will be officially released in Korea.
For now, this is all I can think of. I've briefly summarized the memories that come to mind when I think of KOF. What do you think of when you think of KOF?

KOF Part 1: https://page.onstove.com/indie/global/view/10657686?boardKey=129395

KOF Part 2: https://page.onstove.com/indie/global/view/10682166?boardKey=129395

Hello.

Everyone~ Today is Lua,

Finally managed to catch the last cherry blossom train! 🌸🚃 Ppu Ppu!

It's April and there are still flowers left.

I went on a "picnic" with my teammates, full of spring vibes! 💕

📍Where is the picnic location?

It's a park near my company, and cherry blossoms are falling...!!!

The sky is clear, the wind is blowing , the atmosphere is great.....wow!

The feeling of sitting on a mat, chatting together, and soaking up the sunlight…

The brain cells in Lua's heart said, "Healing complete~"

I can endure dieting, but I can't endure spring~

2025.04.21 Since it's a picnic, buckwheat noodle salad!

🥗 Lua, what's on the picnic menu for today?

As a dieter's picnic,

Today, Lua prepared 'Buckwheat Noodle Salad' ~

The noodles are 100% buckwheat !

It has a chewy texture and a slightly savory taste.

The more I chew, the healthier I feel(?)

The texture of chewing onions and cabbage is crunchy .

The colors are pretty, so it's pleasing to the eyes and mouth.

1+1 combination, yeah!
Mortgages are trendy these days!

Can't miss out! I won the mortgage sesame mayo!!!!!!!!!

But... emergency emergency

Emulsion! Emulsion! Emulsion!

There was an accident.....!
The team members just took it out    tteokbokki.

That rich, spicy seasoning ,

A single protein on top of chewy wheat cake... a boiled egg!

In front of that visual .............................

Lua's reason is logging out....

“Just one bite…” I said

When I found out... the reality was that I was taking a lot of money... Hehe

The reality of professional dieter Lua.... Her true feelings....

So everyone,

Let's go back to the diet classic, Lua ~!

(But seriously, the tteokbokki was so delicious...)

Hello~~ 🧡