The King of Fighters '95
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''(KOF '95)'' is a
fighting game A fighting game, also known as a versus fighting game, is a video game genre, genre of video game that involves combat between two or more players. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappli ...
produced by
SNK is a Japanese video game hardware and software company. It is the successor to the company Shin Nihon Kikaku and presently owns the SNK video game brand and the Neo Geo video game platform. SNK's predecessor Shin Nihon Kikaku was founded in 1978 ...
for the Neo Geo arcade and home consoles in 1995. It is the sequel to '' The King of Fighters '94'' and the second game in '' The King of Fighters'' series. It is also the first game in the series to be ported to other home consoles besides the Neo Geo AES and Neo-Geo CD thus making SNK a
second-party developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...
, with versions released for the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
,
Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
and Game Boy. It was also rereleased in ''The King of Fighters Collection: The Orochi Saga'' in 2008 for the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
,
PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
and
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
. The game features a similar cast to ''KOF '94'' with the exception of the USA Team, which was replaced by the Rival Team. The plot features a new King of Fighters tournament once again promoted by the criminal
Rugal Bernstein ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fighti ...
, who wants to take revenge against Kyo Kusanagi, who defeated him in last year's tournament. The game also introduces a sub-boss character, Saisyu Kusanagi, who is the father of Kyo. ''KOF '95'' also introduces the fighter Iori Yagami, who becomes Kyo's rival in the series. One of the main focuses in the creation of ''The King of Fighters '95'' was the introduction of the Rivals Team, most notably Iori, who became one of the favorite characters from the staff. The game has received mixed reviews from various video games publications. Most writers have complained about the response from controls and long loading times from the PlayStation port. However, the introduction from the enhanced version of Rugal, Omega Rugal, as well as the differences between all the characters have been noted to be one of the best parts from the game.


Gameplay

The gameplay and rules are mostly unchanged from '' The King of Fighters '94''. The main addition is the introduction of the Team Edit feature, allowing the player to create a custom team from any of the game's twenty-four characters in addition to the pre-defined teams in the game. Through the main play mode, players must defeat all of the teams from the game in order to fight the bosses: the brainwashed Saisyu Kusanagi, followed by a stronger Rugal Bernstein.


Plot

''The King of Fighters '95'' marks the beginning of a story arc that later became known as the "Orochi Saga". However, the only elements from the Orochi Saga known in this game is the introduction of Kyo's rival, Iori Yagami, and Rugal's use of the snake demon Orochi power.
Rugal Bernstein ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fighti ...
, thought to have perished in an explosion in the previous game, had in fact survived and sent out invitations to the teams from the previous game signed simply ‘R'. Only one of the previous teams failed to attend the new tournament: the American Sports Team, now replaced by the "Rival Team" consisting of Iori Yagami,
Billy Kane is a player character, video game character created by SNK. He makes first appearance in the fighting game ''Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'' as the sub-boss from the game. In the ''Fatal Fury'' series Billy is the right-hand man from Geese Howard, ...
(from '' Fatal Fury: King of Fighters''), and
Eiji Kisaragi is a fighting game, fighting video game trilogy that were released for the Neo Geo (system), Neo Geo platform in the early 1990s. It was the second fighting game franchise created by SNK, following the ''Fatal Fury'' series and is set in the s ...
(from '' Art of Fighting 2''). Saisyu Kusanagi, Kyo's father, appears as a fighter for the first time (having made a non-playable cameo in ''KOF '94'') as a computer-controlled sub-boss character. After defeating Saisyu in the arcade mode, it is revealed that Saisyu was being brainwashed and that Rugal will fight once again as a boss character, but as an enhanced version named "Omega Rugal".


Characters

Japan Team (Hero Team) * Kyo Kusanagi *
Benimaru Nikaido ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fight ...
*
Goro Daimon ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fightin ...
Fatal Fury Team * Terry Bogard *
Andy Bogard The following is a list of video game characters featured in the ''Fatal Fury'' fighting game series developed by SNK. The series consists of the original ''Fatal Fury'', ''Fatal Fury 2'', ''Fatal Fury Special'', '' Fatal Fury 3'', ''Real Bout F ...
* Joe Higashi Art of Fighting Team *
Ryo Sakazaki is a video game character developed for the 1992 fighting game ''Art of Fighting'' from SNK. His name is most often written in kana, although in some games, kanji is used to write parts of his name. In the series, Ryo is a skilled martial arti ...
* Robert Garcia *
Takuma Sakazaki is a fighting game, fighting video game trilogy that were released for the Neo Geo (system), Neo Geo platform in the early 1990s. It was the second fighting game franchise created by SNK, following the ''Fatal Fury'' series and is set in the s ...
Ikari Warriors Team * Heidern * Ralf Jones * Clark Still Psycho Soldier Team *
Athena Asamiya is a fictional character originally from the former SNK's 1987 video game ''Psycho Soldier''. An esper, Athena is a descendant of Princess Athena from the earlier ''Athena'' game. She later appears in ''The King of Fighters'' series of fighting ...
*
Sie Kensou ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fightin ...
*
Chin Gentsai ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fightin ...
Korea Team *
Kim Kaphwan Kim Kap-Hwan (, ''Kimu Kaffan'', sometimes written as (''Kim Kap-hwan'')), usually written as Kim Kaphwan, is a fictional character in both the ''Fatal Fury'' and ''The King of Fighters'' series created by SNK. He is credited as the first ever f ...
*
Chang Koehan ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fightin ...
* Choi Bounge Women Fighters Team *
Yuri Sakazaki is a fictional character from SNK's ''Art of Fighting'' series of fighting games. She first appears in the original ''Art of Fighting'' being kidnapped by Mr. Big, a criminal from the city of South Town. The players, Yuri's brother Ryo and his ...
* Mai Shiranui * King Rivals Team * Iori Yagami (New Character) *
Billy Kane is a player character, video game character created by SNK. He makes first appearance in the fighting game ''Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'' as the sub-boss from the game. In the ''Fatal Fury'' series Billy is the right-hand man from Geese Howard, ...
(New Character) *
Eiji Kisaragi is a fighting game, fighting video game trilogy that were released for the Neo Geo (system), Neo Geo platform in the early 1990s. It was the second fighting game franchise created by SNK, following the ''Fatal Fury'' series and is set in the s ...
(New Character) Mid-Boss *
Saisyu Kusanagi ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fightin ...
(New Character) Final Boss *
Rugal Bernstein ''The King of Fighters'' fighting game series, produced by SNK, includes a wide cast of characters, some of which are taken from other SNK games. The story takes place in a fictional universe in which an annual series of 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 fighti ...


Development

The ''KOF '95'' project began with the concept of introducing Iori Yagami as Kyo Kusanagi's rival. As such, developers gave him traits to expand that relationship such as similar abilities and ancient rivalry between both of their clans. During the initial location tests to determine the popularity of the game, Iori was the character who stood out most, also becoming a favorite of the developers. The creation of the Rival Team was one of the things developers worked the hardest, focusing in their moves and lines. The character of Eiji Kisaragi was originally from ''Art of Fighting 2'' and the staff had to adjust most of his moves to balance him with the other characters. Following this game, several ''Art of Fighting'' characters were removed from each sequel with developers saying it was "thanks to KOF jinx." The sub-boss character, Saisyu Kusanagi, was never meant to appear in the game as the staff wanted to make so that he died in ''The King of Fighters '94'' during one of the cut-scenes from the Hero Team. However, Saisyu was added at the last moment to the game, becoming the sub-boss character. ''Fatal Fury'' boss character Geese Howard was meant to be playable in the game; various considerations at the time, however, led developers to abandon this plan. ''The King of Fighters '95'' was one of the first titles from SNK to be ported to the Sony PlayStation system. Chad Okada, a former member from SNK, mentioned it was one of his first works. He commented that he had to improve its marketability to the North American market. As a result, he added new options to the game that were not present in the original Japanese version such as selection from stages and improve the grammar and spelling, which was one of the biggest issues from the Neo Geo version.


Release

The original Japanese arcade version was released on July 25, 1995 and it was ported to the Neo Geo and Neo-Geo CD later that year. A port of the Neo Geo release was added to
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
's Virtual Console service on April 26, 2010. It is slightly edited, however; the blood is removed and Mai lacks her signature bounce, both in her fighting stance and win animation. Both of these aspects can be activated with a code, however. In 1996, the game was ported to the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
and
Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
. The PlayStation version was published on August 31, 1996 in North America and the PAL region by
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), is a multinational video game and digital entertainment company wholly owned by multinational conglomerate Sony. The SIE Group is made up of two legal ...
It featured a remixed soundtrack which took advantage of the Redbook audio format. The Saturn version (which required a
ROM cartridge A ROM cartridge, usually referred to in context simply as a cartridge, cart, or card, is a replaceable part designed to be connected to a consumer electronics device such as a home computer, video game console or, to a lesser extent, electroni ...
that came packaged with the game disc) was also released in Europe by
Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...
. The bundled ROM cartridge contains the majority of the character animations. It was the first video game to use a
CD-ROM A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains data. Computers can read—but not write or erase—CD-ROMs. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold both comput ...
and a ROM cartridge in tandem. The PlayStation version appeared in Europe ahead of the Saturn version due to a timed exclusivity deal between SNK and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. The "Playstation the Best" version was also re-released on March 28, 1997. It was also compiled in ''The King of Fighters Collection: The Orochi Saga'' in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
for the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
,
PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
and Wii. A Game Boy game based on ''The King of Fighters '95'' (''Nettō The King of Fighters '95'' in Japan) was published by Takara in Japan and by
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
in North America. It featured compatibility with the Super Game Boy, as well as introducing
Nakoruru is a fictional character in the ''Samurai Shodown'' (''Samurai Spirits'' in Japan) series of fighting games by SNK. She is one of the series' best known and most popular characters alongside its main protagonist Haohmaru, and has been introduced i ...
from the '' Samurai Shodown'' series as a secret character. A
Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...
port of "The King of Fighters '95" was released worldwide on October 12, 2017.


Related media

The game received a variety of licensed media released in Japan in 1994–1995: *Original soundtrack ''The King of Fighters '95'' (PCCB-00187) and arranged soundtrack ''The King of Fighters '95 Arrange Sound Trax'' (PCCB-00189), both released by Pony Canyon. *Guide books ''The King of Fighters '95 Graphical Manual'' (GMC-14) by Shinseisha, ''The King of Fighters '95 Neo Geo Hisshō Hō Special'' () by Keibunsha, and ''The King of Fighters '95 Perfect Guide Book'' () by Shinseisha. *
4-koma , a comic strip format, generally consists of gag comic strips within four panels of equal size ordered from top to bottom. They also sometimes run right-to-left horizontally or use a hybrid 2×2 style, depending on the layout requirements of ...
manga collections ''The King of Fighters '95 4-Koma Ketteiban'' () and ''The King of Fighters '95 4-Koma Ketteiban Side 2'' (), created by fans and professional artists and published by Shinseisha. *VHS video ''The King of Fighters '95'' () by Shinseisha. *Guide/art books ''The King of Fighters '95: Official Guide Book for the Ultimate Fighters'' () by Aspect and ''The King of Fighters '95 Complete Manual'' by Shinseisha. *Manga short story compilation ''The King of Fighters '95 Comic Anthology'' (), created by various artists and published by Shinseisha.


Reception


Sales

In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''The King of Fighters '95'' on their September 1, 1995 issue as being the second most-successful arcade game of the month. The Neo Geo AES version sold 108,883 cartridges in its first week of release in Japan, at a price of £160–200 ( at the time, or adjusted for inflation) per cartridge. The Neo Geo CD version also sold 142,825 copies in its first week on the market. They sold a combined 310,060 units in Japan. During its release week, the Sega Saturn port of the game sold 135,214 copies in Japan. As of 2004, the game sold 257,294 copies. The game also sold 145,389 units for the PlayStation in Japan, adding up to a combined total of 712,743 units sold in Japan.


Critical response

Upon release, ''
Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...
'' magazine called it "arguably the greatest 2D fighting game ever" made. ''The King of Fighters '95'' was awarded Best Neo-Geo Game of 1995 by '' Electronic Gaming Monthly'' in 1996. The four reviewers of ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' declared the Neo Geo AES version a solid improvement over the previous ''King of Fighters'', particularly applauding the addition of the team edit feature. Major Mike of ''
GamePro Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...
'' agreed that this was the game's best feature, but also expressed approval for the replacement of the U.S. team with the new "Rival" team and the control modifications. He did criticize that the game "didn't improve '94's graphics, it just added to them", but concluded ''King of Fighters '95'' to be "one of the best brawlers out there". A reviewer for ''
Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...
'' was unimpressed, however, remarking that "The idea behind fighting as a three-person team ... adds an interesting flare to the game, but the final result is still a one-on-one fighting game with nothing much new to offer the seasoned fighter." Reviewing the Neo Geo CD version, ''Maximum'' deemed that "SNK remain masters of the sprite-based one-on-one fighting genre, leaving all competitors way behind with ''King of Fighters '95''." They elaborated that the team combat makes for greater variety than the average fighting game, the team edit feature greatly increases the game's enjoyability and longevity, the unusually high difficulty of executing combos makes pulling them off more satisfying, and the animations are greatly improved from ''The King of Fighters '94''. The PlayStation version, however, was much less well received, as reviewers stated it has poor design in comparison to other fighting games from the same year.
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
criticized that the characters are not very responsive to controls and "even though these are difficult hurdles to jump, they're not impossible". However, they noted it to be a likeable game, saying it has "that 2D anime look that everyone loves". A reviewer for ''Next Generation'' said that the PlayStation version compounded the game's lack of fresh and original gameplay with long load times. Jeff Gerstmann from '' GameSpot'' also criticized the long loading times from the PlayStation version as well as how frequent they are since every round requires loading time.
Game Revolution ''GameRevolution'' (formerly ''Game-Revolution'') is a gaming website created in 1996. Based in Berkeley, California, the site includes reviews, previews, a gaming download area, cheats, and a merchandise store, as well as webcomics, screenshots ...
noted the game to be very entertaining but still not as good as other fighting games from the year it was released in North America. They criticized that the fighting system is very similar to other SNK games such as '' Fatal Fury'' and '' Art of Fighting''. However, Scary Larry defended the PlayStation version in ''GamePro'', saying it "plays well, looks good, and sounds the same as the arcade version. You could do worse."
1UP.com ''1Up.com'' was an American entertainment website that focused on video games. Launched in 2003, ''1Up.com'' provided its own original features, news stories, game reviews, and video interviews, and also featured comprehensive PC-focused conten ...
praised the introduction of Omega Rugal, noting him to be "one of the most stylish boss designs in fighting history", although players could hate him due to how difficult it is to defeat him. Rich Leadbetter of '' Sega Saturn Magazine'' stated that the Saturn port is nearly arcade perfect, the ROM cartridge enabling it to recreate the look of the arcade version with only brief load times. He found the level of skill and technique involved in the game to be both its strongest point and the main limiting factor on its appeal: "SNK fans swear blind that ''King of Fighters'' is far superior to ''
Street Fighter Alpha ''Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams'', known as in Japan, Asia, South America, and Oceania, is a 2D arcade fighting game by Capcom originally released in 1995 for the CP System II hardware. It was the first all new ''Street Fighter'' game p ...
'' (and its sequel) simply because the element of skill required is that much tougher - making the rewards that much sweeter. The majority of us are unlikely to reach that pinnacle of skill ... but the fact is that if you're good enough, it remains one of the greatest fighting games of all time." He added that while ''The King of Fighters '96'' was already out for the Saturn in Japan, the two installments are different enough from each other that it is worth getting both. IGN commented that the characters' designs and abilities are very similar to the ones from ''Street Fighter Alpha''. Jeff Gerstmann complained that the characters have unattractive moves as well and over pixelated sprites. 1UP.com praised SNK's characters designs and the addition of the team edit option, making the game a good competition for ''Street Fighter Alpha''. However, Game Revolution liked the large number of playable characters and the several options featured in the game such as the team fights and special moves. Game designer
Masahiro Sakurai is a Japanese video game director and game designer best known as the creator of the ''Kirby'' and '' Super Smash Bros.'' series. Apart from his work on those series, he also led the design of ''Meteos'' in 2005 and directed '' Kid Icarus: Upr ...
regarded the game as one of his favorite competitive experiences when being young. However, after realizing he had been defeating rookies, Sakurai decided that fighting games should also be accessible to newcomers.


Notes


References


External links

*
''The King of Fighters '95''
at
GameFAQs GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by Fandom, Inc. since October 2022. The site has a databa ...

''The King of Fighters '95''
at Giant Bomb
''The King of Fighters '95''
at Killer List of Videogames
''The King of Fighters '95''
at
MobyGames MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes nearly 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms. The site is supported by banner ads and a small ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:King of Fighters '95, The 1995 video games 2D fighting games ACA Neo Geo games Arcade video games D4 Enterprise games Fighting games Game Boy games Multiplayer and single-player video games Neo Geo games Neo Geo CD games Nintendo games Nintendo Switch games PlayStation (console) games PlayStation Network games PlayStation 4 games Rutubo Games games Sega Saturn games SNK games SNK Playmore games Takara video games The King of Fighters games Video games scored by Masahiko Hataya Video games scored by Yasuaki Fujita Video games set in Brazil Video games set in China Video games set in England Video games set in Italy Video games set in Japan Video games set in Mexico Video games set in South Korea Video games set in the United States Virtual Console games Video games developed in Japan Xbox One games Hamster Corporation games