King of Fighters XIII review: Sweep the leg
It's tough living in someone else's shadow. Your achievements may be numerous and impressive, but existing outside of the limelight can be disheartening after a while. Constantly fighting for relevance in a crowded genre is a consuming, arduous fight; one that SNK Playmore has waged ever since Fatal Fury: King of Fighters went toe to toe with Street Fighter II in 1991.
The result of that fight may be contentious in the mind of the fighting game community, but Joe Public and his Mortal Kombat Bluray feel otherwise; while series like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat invaded American pop-culture and became household names, King of Fighters continued to toil away in obscurity, releasing game after game for its dedicated cult following.
Things are different now, though. Street Fighter IV kick-started a renaissance in fighting games, reigniting the mainstream consumer's interest in the genre, which paved the way for impossibilities like Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and the incredibly successful rebirth of Mortal Kombat. In this new age of fighters, could it finally be SNK Playmore's time to shine? Will their latest entry, King of Fighters XIII, capture the minds and hearts of those unfamiliar with series?
Probably not. SNK Playmore remains so unplugged from what is happening in the rest of the genre that its latest excursion feels like an old friend, rather than a revolution. Because of this, however, King of Fighters XIII is the best KOF game ever made, despite the fact that it isn't as flashy or user friendly as its contemporaries.
The result of that fight may be contentious in the mind of the fighting game community, but Joe Public and his Mortal Kombat Bluray feel otherwise; while series like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat invaded American pop-culture and became household names, King of Fighters continued to toil away in obscurity, releasing game after game for its dedicated cult following.
Things are different now, though. Street Fighter IV kick-started a renaissance in fighting games, reigniting the mainstream consumer's interest in the genre, which paved the way for impossibilities like Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and the incredibly successful rebirth of Mortal Kombat. In this new age of fighters, could it finally be SNK Playmore's time to shine? Will their latest entry, King of Fighters XIII, capture the minds and hearts of those unfamiliar with series?
Probably not. SNK Playmore remains so unplugged from what is happening in the rest of the genre that its latest excursion feels like an old friend, rather than a revolution. Because of this, however, King of Fighters XIII is the best KOF game ever made, despite the fact that it isn't as flashy or user friendly as its contemporaries.
