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PS2
King of Fighters Orochi Collection [Best]
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New,
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NCS
Synopsis
«©NCSX»
Delayed a couple of times, SNK Playmore finally
makes good and King of Fighters Orochi Collection
reaches the PS2 this week. The KOF games
included on the DVD are as follows:
King of Fighters '95
King of Fighters '96
King of Fighters '97
For a new type of KOF experience, an online mode is available for
battling against opponents through the KDDI Multi
Matching BB service.
Playing the games this morning, NCS found the loading times fast and the visual mimicry of the Neo Geo
originals nigh identical, down to the jagged text,
the thumping music, and the Neo-Geo-esque color
palette. A color edit mode is available to turn the
classic color schemes of recognizable characters
into something new and if so desired, something very
strange. The controls are responsive and we tested
the three games with the PS2 Neo Geo joystick for an
authentic blast to the past.
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NCS Game Notes & Spoilers
» In the title screen of the game, the familiar image
of Kyo Kusanagi hiding his face with a forearm is
placed next to the KOF logo. Do
nothing and a lightning laced intro starts for King
of Fighters '95. Leave things alone some more and an
automatic battle starts where Chang Koehan battles Iori Yagami in a rowdy bar while a band plays in the
background and hostesses travel back and forth. The
customers appear enraptured by the fighting in the
foreground. If you allow the intro to continue, a
sequence for KOF '96 appears followed by KOF '97.
» Upon pressing START, a game selection screen
appears which consists of four hexagons on the top
and five hexagons on the bottom.
TOP: KOF 95 / KOF 96 / KOF 97
/ ONLINE MODE
BOTTOM: LOAD+SAVE DATA or TOGGLE AUTOSAVE /
MAP
CONTROLS TO DUAL SHOCK / SET SCREEN POSITION
/ SOUND
OPTIONS / EDIT CHARACTER COLORS
Kyo in a bright green outfit makes him look like a
leprechaun wearing a headband... The Sound Option
allows for a BGM CHECK where all 73 tunes in the
game may be listened to. For fanatics, you may spool
all of the tunes to your iPOD.
The Default Controls are as follows:
SQUARE / Light Punch
X-BUTTON / Light Kick
TRIANGLE / Strong Punch
O-BUTTON / Strong Kick
R1-TRIGGER / LP + LK
L1-TRIGGER / SP + SK
R2-TRIGGER / LP + LK + SP
L2-TRIGGER / LK + SP
» Since the games are Neo Geo ports, press the
SQUARE button (for the Neo Geo "A" button) to
activate menu selections rather than the PS2 default
of "O" or "X" that you're all used to.
» Playing the games in sequence this morning
gives an idea of how SNK refined their craft through
the years and updated their presentation style. It's
unclear why SNK Playmore delayed this particular Neo
Geo Collection title but the final product plays
well and the action mimics the Neo original closely
in looks, feel, and speed. Unfortunately, SNK
Playmore neglected to include a gallery mode and
missed a chance to dig up SNK history and present
players with a treasure trove of old sketches,
artwork, and other old school data.
» The visuals hold up well under the harsh
scrutiny of our PS2's D-terminal signal. The colors
are vibrant but the jagged edges of the text and
backgrounds are evident and give away their 16-bit
heritage. The character portraits are also raggedy
like the original and higher quality video doesn't
clean them up. The voices are crisp and clear for
nigh perfect audio snippet samples. Along with old
school Street Fighter, the early KOF games represent
the fighting feast that we grew up on and getting
the first three KOF games on a single DVD is
convenient and a welcome addition to our library of
Neo Geo software.
King of Fighters 95
» NCS started with a game of KOF '95. Upon
selecting it, the crisp trilling Neo Geo music
plays (faithful rendition) followed by the classic 1995 KOF intro with hokey
introduction and ever lovin' characters as they
flash on screen. Iori has a flame bursting out of
his left hand. The sound conversion quality is
excellent
and mimics the thud and somewhat hollow resonant
quality of the original.
» Upon starting the game, an option menu may
be visited but
it only contains LEVEL SELECT from 1 to 8.
The 1 is for Beginners, 3 is normal, 4 is MVS, all the way up
to 8 for Expert.
» Starting a game will present the following
options:
Single Play / Team Play / Single VS / Team
VS / Single All.
» A simple tutorial teaches the button combos from A
to D before the bout begins. The controls are
seemingly very similar to the original KOF '95 but
unfortunately NCS didn't get a chance to fire up the MVS original
this morning. The voices of the fighters as they
grunt and yell are close to what we remember them to
be.
» The blood spills red and ripe when fighters are
smashed in the face and clocked with massive body
shots.
King of Fighters 96
» Starting a game presents the following options:
Team Play / Team VS / Single Play / Single VS
/
Survivor.
» In the OPTIONs menu, the level select from
1 to 8 appears again and a new option for Play Time
appears from 1 to 5. 1 is for SLOW and 5 for for
FAST. Just in case you're wondering 2 is for LITTLE
SLOW, 3 is NORMAL, and 4 is LITTLE FAST. The
operation mode of the game may also be toggled
between Japanese, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
» There's ruddy blood in KOF '96 but most hits
will show impact blasts rather than splashy crimson.
King of Fighters 97
» Starting a game presents the following options:
Team Play / Team VS / Single Play / Single VS
/
Survivor.
Options include:
Level Select (Difficulty from 1-8)
Play Time (Slow to Infinity)
Language (Japanese, English, Spanish, Portuguese)
Stage Select (Off or Japan, USA, Bali, China, Korea,
Monaco)
There's lots of impact blasts and the blood jets red when
released.
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This document is ©NCSX 2006. All rights reserved. No
reproduction in whole or in part of this document
may be made without express written consent of
National Console Support, Inc.
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