The King of Fighters '96

Overview

The King of Fighters '96 is a 1996 fighting game. It is the third game in The King of Fighters series, following The King of Fighters '95. SNK's flagship series returns for another year. Many of the changes in this year's KOF release come in the form of improved graphics, sound effects, music and totally redone character sprites. The gameplay of the system has been altered with the addition of "Rush" multi-hit combos and new moves for practically every character. The storyline of the series receives heavy focus in this release with the Orochi Saga swinging into high-gear. The King of Fighters '96 has 27 regular characters plus 2 boss characters (who can be unlocked with the use of a code). Newcomers to the tournament include Mr. Big from the Art of Fighting series, the bosses from Fatal Fury (Wolfgang Krauser and Geese Howard), and completely original characters like Leona Heidern, Mature and Vice. Other features carried over from the previous year include the ability to choose between the default "Team Fighting" mode or the traditional "Single Fighter" style of gameplay, plus the "Versus" and "Survival" gameplay modes.

Developed by

SNK

Published by

SNK, SNK Playmore, D4 Enterprise

Facts

Game modes

Single player, Multiplayer, Split screen

Player perspectives

Side view

Themes

Action

Franchise

The King of Fighters

Series

The King of Fighters

Game engine

Neo Geo MVS

Release dates

• Arcade: Jul 30, 1996
• Neo Geo AES: Sep 27, 1996
• Neo Geo CD: Oct 25, 1996
• Sega Saturn: Dec 31, 1996
• PlayStation: Jul 4, 1997
• PlayStation 3: May 31, 2007
• PlayStation Portable: May 31, 2007
• Wii: Feb 15, 2011