The King of Fighters XIII
Encyclopedia
is the latest installment of The King of Fighters fighting game
series developed and published by SNK Playmore
. The game is set after the events from The King of Fighters XI
and is also the conclusion of Ash Crimson
's story arc
, which started in The King of Fighters 2003
. It follows another King of Fighters tournament secretly hosted by Those From the Past, the organization behind the events from the two previous games that are trying to break the seal from the demon Orochi and take its power.
It was released for Japanese arcades
on July 14, 2010, while ports for the Xbox 360
and PlayStation 3
will be released during 2011 in Japan and the United States, with Winter 2011 stated for the European version. The ports are notable for including more content to the original version such as new characters, stages and game modes. An iOS version of the game, titled The King of Fighters-i, was released in July 2011. The game was directed by Kei Yamamoto who wanted to bring elements from previous The King of Fighters titles and fix issues from the previous game.
: the Guard Attack system, the Critical Counter system, the Clash System as well as the dynamic, zooming camera. In their place, however, there are new systems that have been confirmed to be added; the first of the three is the new EX Mode, which convert each character's super moves into more powerful versions that allows one bar from the player's power gauge for EX Special Moves and two bars from the player's power gauge for EX Desperation Moves. Another new addition is the Hyper Drive mode, which gives the player unlimited use of Drive Cancels for a while once the Hyper Drive Gauge has been maxed, and the last new feature confirmed for the game is the Drive Cancel system, which opens up new combo possibilities. The game also marks the return of the multi-bar power gauge that was introduced in The King of Fighters '97
. In addition to standard and EX Desperation Moves, a new class of Desperation Move entitled "NEO MAX" are included in the game and require that three stocks of gauge be exchanged in order to perform one, making it similar to Hidden Desperation Moves (The King of Fighters 2002
) and Leader Desperation Moves (The King of Fighters 2003
). These can also be cancelled from standard Desperation Moves, making them similar to the "Dream Cancels" from The King of Fighters XI
.
The console version is based on the 1.1 update of The King of Fighters XIII arcade which fixed several issues from the original version. It will also contain a story mode that will be influenced by the player's actions with various perspectives being available. The mode is presented in visual novel
style alongside fights, something considered to be hard to include in the arcade version. Other modes to be shown are Arcade, Practice and Challenge. The online gameplay will be based on the one included in later versions of The King of Fighters XII.
and is the last game of the third story arc that started in The King of Fighters 2003
. The fighter Ash Crimson
has absorbed the powers from two of the descendants of the clans who sealed the Orochi away 1,800 years ago, Chizuru Kagura and Iori Yagami
, while Kyo Kusanagi
is to be his last victim. As his former comrade, Elisabeth Blanctorche, prepares to stop him, fighters receive an invitation to another King of Fighters tournament hosted by a person labelled as "R". The tournament is sponsored by Rose who is being controlled by "Those From The Past", the organization behind the two previous tournaments that has been trying to break Orochi's seal.
When the winning team reaches the game's end, Saiki, the leader of "Those From The Past" puts his work into motion. Saiki intends to use the energy expended by the winning team to enable him to cross time. However, as the fight rages, Botan notes that the gate that links them to the past is starting to close despite the battle. Before Saiki can act, he is ambushed by Ash Crimson, who steals his power. It is revealed then that, while Ash was enlisted by Saiki to obtain the Three Sacred Treasures to power the time gate, Ash had no intention of helping Saiki. Ash is suddenly overtaken by Saiki's persona, who then attempts to cross the time gate in Ash's body. The winning team pursues him into the time gate and the final battle of King of Fighters XIII begins inside the time gate. Saiki is defeated in the gate but persists on crossing over to the past, believing it means nothing since he can return to the past and then cross the gate again to attempt his plan anew. However, Ash halts his attempt and allows the gate to close, leaving Saiki trapped in the present. Furthermore, Ash reveals that he is a descendant of Saiki. By locking Saiki out of the gate, he denies Saiki's existence in the past and forces his own existence to cease. As Ash vanishes from the living world, the flow of time resumes.
, including the two console-exclusive characters, Elisabeth Branctorche and Mature. In addition, at the Akihabara event, three new characters were announced in the form of The King of Fighters '94
Women's Team (Yuri Sakazaki
, King, and Mai Shiranui
). Unlike The King of Fighters XII, all of the characters are organized into proper teams this time with the exception of Ash, who is now a single entry character.
On April 22, 2010, Famitsu
reported the addition of two new characters to the game: Vice for Iori Yagami's team and Takuma Sakazaki for the Art of Fighting team. The official website was soon updated with the changes as well as adding a storyline for Iori's team, and on the April 23, 2010 location test at Hong Kong, Hwa Jai from Fatal Fury: King of Fighters
has been confirmed to be in the game as the final member of Kim Kaphwan
's team. The first member of the final team, K', was revealed on April 30 with his addition to the roster page. Maxima was also revealed as the second member of K's Team via addition to the roster page on May 7 and one week later, the final character for K's Team, Kula Diamond, was introduced in the same way. Saiki, the manipulator behind the events of The King of Fighters XIII, appears as sub-boss while an alternate form of Ash Crimson appears as the final boss.
On June 28, 2011, Famitsu reported the addition of Billy Kane
from Fatal Fury: King of Fighters as a console version exclusive character. On July 29, 2011, the human form of Saiki was also announced to be playable, while the original Iori Yagami will be featured as downloadable content.
. Therefore, they listened to fans' suggestions during development of the game to incorporate them.
The staff in charge wanted to pay attention to the number of details given to the game's graphics. In regards to the story, they paid attention to its flow, mentioning the final version was not significantly different from the first one. Because the previous game, The King of Fighters XII
, suffered from various technical issues, developers also worked in fixing them to improve the gameplay. However, the initial arcade version from the game suffered from four notable bugs which lead to special rules forbidding players to use them in at Japan's Tougeki – Super Battle Opera fighting game tournament. An updated version titled "version 1.1" was later released for arcades, fixing all the bugs and issues from the original game.
In regards to choosing characters, developers wanted to include ones that would give a notable contrast and balance between teams rather than popularity within fans, thus expanding the "KOF-ism" theme. Characters like Kyo Kusanagi
were made to fight at short distances rather than his original forms from the series' first two games where he relied in attacks performed from distance in order to emphasize the balance within the cast. The first Neo Max technique made by the staff was Kyo's one. As a result, following Neo Max were made in order to be consistent with Kyo's Neo Max in regards to their style and damage. Returning characters such as the K' Team were adjusted so that they would play in a similar fashion to previous titles, which resulted in several revisions of mechanics. Furthermore, King and Mai Shiranui were made based on their Art of Fighting and Fatal Fury incarnations, respectively, rather than their The King of Fighters ones.
confirmed that the PlayStation 3
and Xbox 360
console versions is in the works and would be released on October 27, 2011 in Japan. However, in September 2011 SNK delayed the game's release date to an unspecified one from the same year, later leaving it to December 1, 2011. The ports are notable for adding several game modes not seen in the original version as well as new characters. Various new arenas were also added, with some of them being originally from the Art of Fighting
and Fatal Fury series. The others are based on places briefly seen in cutscenes from The King of Fighters. All of the characters had their movesets adjusted for better balance as a response to issues found in the arcade versions. Downloadable content has also been confirmed, starting with the original incarnation of Iori Yagami on December 7, 2011. Atlus
confirmed that they would publish the game on October 25, 2011 in North America. However, they later delayed it until November 22. Preorders for the game will include a 4-CD soundtrack from the series. In August 2011, the preorders for the game notably increased following the announcement. Rising Star Games
also confirmed they will release the game on October 28, 2011 in Europe. However, the release date was stated to be during Winter of 2011 by Rising Star Games.
An iOS version was also released on July 7, 2011 under the title of The King of Fighters-i. Kei Yamamoto was also in charge of this version, but the developed team consisted of another one that did not work in the arcade version. The staff had trouble adapting the game to the iOS due to lack of balances of moves and enemies' intelligences. The initial roster was reduced although six more characters became available by September 2011 alongside an updated version. Billy Kane was included as a result of his popularity within fans, although some were confused by the absence of Iori Yagami. Depending on the game's popularity, the staff may port it to other consoles.
. The gameplay was given major praise with critics from GameSpot
and 1UP.com
comparing it with critically acclaimed fighting games like Street Fighter IV
and finding the execution satisfying despite possible difficulties to newcomers to the franchise. The visual presentation was complimented to the point GamePro
stated that the game "has an incredibly distinct -- and incredibly beautiful -- visual style to it." SNK Playmore was noted to have listened to all the fans' concerns regarding the game as the character roster was increased, with the notable return of fan favorite characters. On the other hand, the game has received criticism as a result of the its story mode which is nearly inaccessible to those unfamiliar with the series as well as its use of illustration alongside large paragraphs telling the plot. Similar comments were given to the online modes as it lacked options to allow players to watch other online fights.
Fighting game
Fighting game is a video game genre where the player controls an on-screen character and engages in close combat with an opponent. These characters tend to be of equal power and fight matches consisting of several rounds, which take place in an arena. Players must master techniques such as...
series developed and published by SNK Playmore
SNK Playmore
SNK Playmore Corporation is a Japanese video game hardware and software company. SNK is an acronym of , which was SNK's original name. The company's legal and trading name became SNK in 1986....
. The game is set after the events from The King of Fighters XI
The King of Fighters XI
The King of Fighters XI is a 2D competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore originally released in as a coin-operated arcade game for the Atomiswave platform...
and is also the conclusion of Ash Crimson
Ash Crimson
is a video game character in The King of Fighters fighting game series developed by SNK Playmore. His first appearance was in The King of Fighters 2003 as the leader of its Hero Team. Ash is a teenager participating in the series' titular fighting tournaments employing pyrokinetic powers as part of...
's story arc
Story arc
A story arc is an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, boardgames, video games, and in some cases, films. On a television program, for example, the story would unfold over many episodes. In television, the use of the story...
, which started in The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003 is a competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore for the Neo Geo arcade and home platform. It is the tenth game in The King of Fighters series and the first KOF game to become a tag tournament as well as the first one to be published by SNK Playmore...
. It follows another King of Fighters tournament secretly hosted by Those From the Past, the organization behind the events from the two previous games that are trying to break the seal from the demon Orochi and take its power.
It was released for Japanese arcades
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
on July 14, 2010, while ports for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
will be released during 2011 in Japan and the United States, with Winter 2011 stated for the European version. The ports are notable for including more content to the original version such as new characters, stages and game modes. An iOS version of the game, titled The King of Fighters-i, was released in July 2011. The game was directed by Kei Yamamoto who wanted to bring elements from previous The King of Fighters titles and fix issues from the previous game.
Gameplay
The game removes some of the gameplay systems used in the previous gameThe King of Fighters XII
is the twelfth installment of The King of Fighters series. SNK Playmore announced that it is abandoning the Atomiswave system and is moving its most popular game franchises to the Taito Type X2 arcade system. KOF XII uses newly-drawn 2D sprites on 2D backgrounds...
: the Guard Attack system, the Critical Counter system, the Clash System as well as the dynamic, zooming camera. In their place, however, there are new systems that have been confirmed to be added; the first of the three is the new EX Mode, which convert each character's super moves into more powerful versions that allows one bar from the player's power gauge for EX Special Moves and two bars from the player's power gauge for EX Desperation Moves. Another new addition is the Hyper Drive mode, which gives the player unlimited use of Drive Cancels for a while once the Hyper Drive Gauge has been maxed, and the last new feature confirmed for the game is the Drive Cancel system, which opens up new combo possibilities. The game also marks the return of the multi-bar power gauge that was introduced in The King of Fighters '97
The King of Fighters '97
The King of Fighters '97 is a fighting game produced by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home console. It is the fourth game in The King of Fighters series. It was ported to the Neo-Geo CD, as well as the PlayStation and the Sega Saturn in Japan only...
. In addition to standard and EX Desperation Moves, a new class of Desperation Move entitled "NEO MAX" are included in the game and require that three stocks of gauge be exchanged in order to perform one, making it similar to Hidden Desperation Moves (The King of Fighters 2002
The King of Fighters 2002
The King of Fighters 2002 is a competitive fighting game produced by Eolith and Playmore for the Neo Geo. It is the ninth game in The King of Fighters series and the second one produced by Eolith and developed by SNK Neo Geo . The game was ported to the Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, and the Xbox...
) and Leader Desperation Moves (The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003 is a competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore for the Neo Geo arcade and home platform. It is the tenth game in The King of Fighters series and the first KOF game to become a tag tournament as well as the first one to be published by SNK Playmore...
). These can also be cancelled from standard Desperation Moves, making them similar to the "Dream Cancels" from The King of Fighters XI
The King of Fighters XI
The King of Fighters XI is a 2D competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore originally released in as a coin-operated arcade game for the Atomiswave platform...
.
The console version is based on the 1.1 update of The King of Fighters XIII arcade which fixed several issues from the original version. It will also contain a story mode that will be influenced by the player's actions with various perspectives being available. The mode is presented in visual novel
Visual novel
A is an interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics, usually with anime-style art, or occasionally live-action stills or video footage...
style alongside fights, something considered to be hard to include in the arcade version. Other modes to be shown are Arcade, Practice and Challenge. The online gameplay will be based on the one included in later versions of The King of Fighters XII.
Plot
The game takes place after The King of Fighters XIThe King of Fighters XI
The King of Fighters XI is a 2D competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore originally released in as a coin-operated arcade game for the Atomiswave platform...
and is the last game of the third story arc that started in The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003
The King of Fighters 2003 is a competitive fighting game produced by SNK Playmore for the Neo Geo arcade and home platform. It is the tenth game in The King of Fighters series and the first KOF game to become a tag tournament as well as the first one to be published by SNK Playmore...
. The fighter Ash Crimson
Ash Crimson
is a video game character in The King of Fighters fighting game series developed by SNK Playmore. His first appearance was in The King of Fighters 2003 as the leader of its Hero Team. Ash is a teenager participating in the series' titular fighting tournaments employing pyrokinetic powers as part of...
has absorbed the powers from two of the descendants of the clans who sealed the Orochi away 1,800 years ago, Chizuru Kagura and Iori Yagami
Iori Yagami
is a character from the SNK Playmore's The King of Fighters video game series that first appeared in The King of Fighters '95 as the leader of the Rivals Team. He is an iconic character of the series, and regularly appears on publicity material and merchandise. Iori is a central character to the...
, while Kyo Kusanagi
Kyo Kusanagi
is one of the main characters in SNK Playmore's The King of Fighters video game series; he was first introduced in The King of Fighters '94 as the leader of the Japan team. He is one of the iconic characters of the series and regularly appears on publicity material and merchandise. His name and...
is to be his last victim. As his former comrade, Elisabeth Blanctorche, prepares to stop him, fighters receive an invitation to another King of Fighters tournament hosted by a person labelled as "R". The tournament is sponsored by Rose who is being controlled by "Those From The Past", the organization behind the two previous tournaments that has been trying to break Orochi's seal.
When the winning team reaches the game's end, Saiki, the leader of "Those From The Past" puts his work into motion. Saiki intends to use the energy expended by the winning team to enable him to cross time. However, as the fight rages, Botan notes that the gate that links them to the past is starting to close despite the battle. Before Saiki can act, he is ambushed by Ash Crimson, who steals his power. It is revealed then that, while Ash was enlisted by Saiki to obtain the Three Sacred Treasures to power the time gate, Ash had no intention of helping Saiki. Ash is suddenly overtaken by Saiki's persona, who then attempts to cross the time gate in Ash's body. The winning team pursues him into the time gate and the final battle of King of Fighters XIII begins inside the time gate. Saiki is defeated in the gate but persists on crossing over to the past, believing it means nothing since he can return to the past and then cross the gate again to attempt his plan anew. However, Ash halts his attempt and allows the gate to close, leaving Saiki trapped in the present. Furthermore, Ash reveals that he is a descendant of Saiki. By locking Saiki out of the gate, he denies Saiki's existence in the past and forces his own existence to cease. As Ash vanishes from the living world, the flow of time resumes.
Characters
The roster of The King of Fighters XIII will feature all the characters who appeared in The King of Fighters XIIThe King of Fighters XII
is the twelfth installment of The King of Fighters series. SNK Playmore announced that it is abandoning the Atomiswave system and is moving its most popular game franchises to the Taito Type X2 arcade system. KOF XII uses newly-drawn 2D sprites on 2D backgrounds...
, including the two console-exclusive characters, Elisabeth Branctorche and Mature. In addition, at the Akihabara event, three new characters were announced in the form of The King of Fighters '94
The King of Fighters '94
The King of Fighters '94 is a fighting game released by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home console. It is the inaugural game in The King of Fighters series by the same company. The game was originally ported to the Neo Geo AES and Neo-Geo CD following its original arcade release...
Women's Team (Yuri Sakazaki
Yuri Sakazaki
is a video game character from SNK Playmore's Art of Fighting series. She first appears in the original Art of Fighting being kidnapped by Mr. Big, a criminal from the fictional city of Southtown. The players, Yuri's brother Ryo and his friend Robert Garcia spend the game searching for her...
, King, and Mai Shiranui
Mai Shiranui
is a player character in both the Fatal Fury and The King of Fighters series of fighting games by SNK and in related media, also appearing in a large number of other games...
). Unlike The King of Fighters XII, all of the characters are organized into proper teams this time with the exception of Ash, who is now a single entry character.
On April 22, 2010, Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
reported the addition of two new characters to the game: Vice for Iori Yagami's team and Takuma Sakazaki for the Art of Fighting team. The official website was soon updated with the changes as well as adding a storyline for Iori's team, and on the April 23, 2010 location test at Hong Kong, Hwa Jai from Fatal Fury: King of Fighters
Fatal Fury: King of Fighters
is a 1991 head-to-head fighting game released by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home platforms. Fatal Fury was SNK's first fighting game for the Neo Geo system and served as the inaugural game in their Fatal Fury series, as well as the first game to depict the fictional "King of Fighters" tournament...
has been confirmed to be in the game as the final member of Kim Kaphwan
Kim Kaphwan
Kap-hwan Kim , usually written surname first as Kim Kap-hwan, is a character in both the Fatal Fury and The King of Fighters series created by SNK Playmore . He is credited as the first ever fictional Korean character to appear in a fighting game...
's team. The first member of the final team, K', was revealed on April 30 with his addition to the roster page. Maxima was also revealed as the second member of K's Team via addition to the roster page on May 7 and one week later, the final character for K's Team, Kula Diamond, was introduced in the same way. Saiki, the manipulator behind the events of The King of Fighters XIII, appears as sub-boss while an alternate form of Ash Crimson appears as the final boss.
On June 28, 2011, Famitsu reported the addition of Billy Kane
Billy Kane
is a video game character created by SNK Playmore . 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, the crime lord from Southtown...
from Fatal Fury: King of Fighters as a console version exclusive character. On July 29, 2011, the human form of Saiki was also announced to be playable, while the original Iori Yagami will be featured as downloadable content.
Development
SNK Playmore first announced The King of Fighters XIII in February 2010. There was an official preview of the game that was held on March 25, 2010 at Akihabara. The game design director, Kei Yamamoto, states that he wants the game to be played by the fans of the series who would be able to use their experience from previous titles. Additionally, however, he does not want the game to be too similar to its predecessors, though he and his staff's aim for the game is to capture the charm from previous titles such as readdition of gameplay rules from older titles. The gameplay was also modified to have faster battles to be enjoyed by gamers. Therefore, Yamamoto labelled the theme of the game as . SNK Playmore president Ryo Mizufune expressed excitement for the game's release, commenting that they wanted to release a game that would surpass fans' expectations and could become as popular as The King of Fighters '98The King of Fighters '98
The King of Fighters '98 is a fighting game released by SNK released for the Neo Geo arcade and home console. It is the fifth game in The King of Fighters series...
. Therefore, they listened to fans' suggestions during development of the game to incorporate them.
The staff in charge wanted to pay attention to the number of details given to the game's graphics. In regards to the story, they paid attention to its flow, mentioning the final version was not significantly different from the first one. Because the previous game, The King of Fighters XII
The King of Fighters XII
is the twelfth installment of The King of Fighters series. SNK Playmore announced that it is abandoning the Atomiswave system and is moving its most popular game franchises to the Taito Type X2 arcade system. KOF XII uses newly-drawn 2D sprites on 2D backgrounds...
, suffered from various technical issues, developers also worked in fixing them to improve the gameplay. However, the initial arcade version from the game suffered from four notable bugs which lead to special rules forbidding players to use them in at Japan's Tougeki – Super Battle Opera fighting game tournament. An updated version titled "version 1.1" was later released for arcades, fixing all the bugs and issues from the original game.
In regards to choosing characters, developers wanted to include ones that would give a notable contrast and balance between teams rather than popularity within fans, thus expanding the "KOF-ism" theme. Characters like Kyo Kusanagi
Kyo Kusanagi
is one of the main characters in SNK Playmore's The King of Fighters video game series; he was first introduced in The King of Fighters '94 as the leader of the Japan team. He is one of the iconic characters of the series and regularly appears on publicity material and merchandise. His name and...
were made to fight at short distances rather than his original forms from the series' first two games where he relied in attacks performed from distance in order to emphasize the balance within the cast. The first Neo Max technique made by the staff was Kyo's one. As a result, following Neo Max were made in order to be consistent with Kyo's Neo Max in regards to their style and damage. Returning characters such as the K' Team were adjusted so that they would play in a similar fashion to previous titles, which resulted in several revisions of mechanics. Furthermore, King and Mai Shiranui were made based on their Art of Fighting and Fatal Fury incarnations, respectively, rather than their The King of Fighters ones.
Versions
SNK PlaymoreSNK Playmore
SNK Playmore Corporation is a Japanese video game hardware and software company. SNK is an acronym of , which was SNK's original name. The company's legal and trading name became SNK in 1986....
confirmed that the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
console versions is in the works and would be released on October 27, 2011 in Japan. However, in September 2011 SNK delayed the game's release date to an unspecified one from the same year, later leaving it to December 1, 2011. The ports are notable for adding several game modes not seen in the original version as well as new characters. Various new arenas were also added, with some of them being originally from the Art of Fighting
Art of Fighting
is a trilogy of competitive fighting game titles that were released for the 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 same fictional universe...
and Fatal Fury series. The others are based on places briefly seen in cutscenes from The King of Fighters. All of the characters had their movesets adjusted for better balance as a response to issues found in the arcade versions. Downloadable content has also been confirmed, starting with the original incarnation of Iori Yagami on December 7, 2011. Atlus
Atlus
is a Japanese computer and video game developer, publisher, and distributor based in Tokyo, Japan, best known for developing the console role-playing game franchise Megami Tensei. The first Megami Tensei was a Nintendo Entertainment System video game published by Namco based on a trilogy of...
confirmed that they would publish the game on October 25, 2011 in North America. However, they later delayed it until November 22. Preorders for the game will include a 4-CD soundtrack from the series. In August 2011, the preorders for the game notably increased following the announcement. Rising Star Games
Rising Star Games
Rising Star Games is a video games publisher formed as a joint business venture between Scandinavian distributor Bergsala and Japanese video game publisher and content developer Intergrow....
also confirmed they will release the game on October 28, 2011 in Europe. However, the release date was stated to be during Winter of 2011 by Rising Star Games.
An iOS version was also released on July 7, 2011 under the title of The King of Fighters-i. Kei Yamamoto was also in charge of this version, but the developed team consisted of another one that did not work in the arcade version. The staff had trouble adapting the game to the iOS due to lack of balances of moves and enemies' intelligences. The initial roster was reduced although six more characters became available by September 2011 alongside an updated version. Billy Kane was included as a result of his popularity within fans, although some were confused by the absence of Iori Yagami. Depending on the game's popularity, the staff may port it to other consoles.
Related media
An official guidebook from the series was published by Arcadia in Japan on August 6, 2010 under the name of "The King of Fighters XIII Master Guide." An official soundtrack was released on August 4, 2010. It is composed of two CDs, with the first one having fifteen tracks and the second thirty-seven. A 4-CD official soundtrack called "The King of Soundtracks" was included with the English pre-orders of the game.Reception
Following its release, The King of Fighters XIII received positive reviews with both of its versions taking an average of 80% in GameRankings and a 79 in MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. The gameplay was given major praise with critics from GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
and 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
comparing it with critically acclaimed fighting games like Street Fighter IV
Street Fighter IV
is a fighting game produced by Capcom. It is the first numbered Street Fighter game released by Capcom since . The coin-operated arcade game was released in Japan on July 18, 2008, with North American arcades importing the machines by August...
and finding the execution satisfying despite possible difficulties to newcomers to the franchise. The visual presentation was complimented to the point GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
stated that the game "has an incredibly distinct -- and incredibly beautiful -- visual style to it." SNK Playmore was noted to have listened to all the fans' concerns regarding the game as the character roster was increased, with the notable return of fan favorite characters. On the other hand, the game has received criticism as a result of the its story mode which is nearly inaccessible to those unfamiliar with the series as well as its use of illustration alongside large paragraphs telling the plot. Similar comments were given to the online modes as it lacked options to allow players to watch other online fights.