NOTHING'S GONNA STOP US, IT'S 1998
A true classic in SNK's vast library of stellar fighting games. KOF '98 used to be my favorite entry in the series, and while it isn't anymore, it's so hard to resist loving this game. It's the first of the franchise to be of the "Dream Match" flavor, giving a perfect excuse to crossover all these characters we've met and loved throughout the Orochi Saga arc. The pure abundance of special character intros adds so much personality, and this is tied with the variety of new remixes present for multiple different team setups. You can't NOT get hyped when whatever music track currently playing completely stops for Kyo and Iori to have their meetup followed up by Esaka Forever or Arashi No Saxophone 3 settling in.
Yeah it's a Dream Match, sure, there's no canon consequences to any of this. But it still feels so in character and has it's value to the series as a whole, representing what the Orochi arc was and is. After this, it was time for the NESTS Saga arc, a continuation with it's entirely own mood and gameplay mechanics. The game visually is also a big improvement over KOF '97, reshading the character sprites to be more colorful alongside the lush, varied backgrounds. The train station and boat dock in particular have such comfort and style to them, and make me think of SNK's golden days of background art. Mechanically the game still has that old fashioned KOF clunk, but it's endearing and still super entertaining. The Advanced Gauge will never NOT be awesome. The roster is also great, and about every character has two entirely different movesets if you hold start when selecting them. Yeah, this entry was the introduction of EX Characters! Cute little reprises of characters in previous entries, finally giving me that goofy triple Kyo kick action again.
This is certainly a special game, and it's earned it's iconic legacy in both SNK's history and the FGC. While I can't exactly recommend KOF as a series to everyone, if you had to start with one "classic" style entry, this is a great starting point.
ROUND 1
"The flames are calling you!"
"Then let it burn, as it demands."
READY.... GO!

Reviewed on Dec 05, 2022


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