Krohnen McDougall

Krohnen is a character from The King of Fighters series and a new character introduced in The King of Fighters XV. His official nickname is "Exceptional Esper".

He is voiced by Kenn (alias of Ken'ichirō Ōhashi).

Development
Krohnen's appearance shares numerous similarities with K9999 and Nameless. First alluded to in the PS4 datamining reveal of KOF XV, and was at first, theorized as an outright inclusion of K9999 in the game despite issues surrounding his character, he is often theorized as SNK's answer to fan clamor in bringing back K9999 to the series without the elements that makes his appearance risky.

The only official reaction that can be considered as a statement from SNK so far is Krispy Kaiser's reaction in SNK's official Discord channel, as seen below.

Personality
Similarly to a certain character, Krohnen is a very loud person with an extremely short temper. He hates Kyo Kusanagi and K' with passion and intensity. This time however, he claims he is not all about rage and claims to be a changed person.

Powers

 * Pyrokinesis - Krohnen can control fire, but his ability is quite limited in comparison to Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami or even K'. He can create fire to erupt from the ground in front of him, and attack with streams of fire in a slashing manner.
 * Polymorphic Arm - Krohnen can transform his left arm into an iron drill, a blade or a shotgun-like weapon.

Fighting Style
Krohnen fights with his polymorphic arm. The arm can transform into claws, blades of different sizes and shapes, and into a shotgun. He knows some basic fighting techniques.

Music

 * Liberty - The King of Fighters XV
 * KD-0084 - The King of Fighters XV (vs. K')

Games

 * The King of Fighters XV

Trivia

 * Krohnen has the attributes, moves and even mannerisms of certain existing characters from the series:
 * He has the primary color scheme, mannerisms and fighting moves of K9999 (a character removed from the series due to SNK's dislike of his design and controversy), with only the longer hair and shades setting them apart.
 * He also has some attacks and cybernetic themes found in Nameless.
 * He also seems to have elements from Alba Meira's design from the KOF: Maximum Impact series.


 * Immediately after Krohnen's reveal, SNK community manager Krispy Kaiser stated on the official SNK Discord channel, "I had to keep the lie going for years", implying that the legal issues around K9999 were faked to add mystique to the character.


 * Krohnen's name bears similarities to the German word "krone", which means "crown".
 * Krohnen's Japanese Katakana's spelling is a play off the word "Clone", with the difference of only one character place in it (Krohnen = /Clone = ).
 * Krohnen's name also could be a reference to Canadian film director David Cronenberg, one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation, infection, technology, and the intertwining of the psychological with the physical. Curiously, Krohnen, K9999 and Nameless shows this features in their move lists.


 * Three of Krohnen's traits all but confirm he is the possible evolution, if not the alter ego of K9999:
 * His intro with Kyo Kusanagi, during his reveal trailer, resembles K9999's special intro against Kusanagi, a character used in The King of Fighters 2002, and one of Kyo's various clones (and later an illusion character crated by Chizuru Kagura). This behavior is directly inspired from Tetsuo Shima's banter with Shotaro Kaneda.
 * One of Krohnen's generic victory quotes has him saying "Were you excepting me to be more hot-headed? Well, unfortunately for you, I've changed.", further suggesting that he is indeed K9999.
 * As the leader of the Krohnen Team (officially named as Team Krohnen), he has Ángel and. ironically, Kula under his wing. Ángel as a member makes sense and strengthens his identity as K9999, as the two are friends. However, Kula is a perceived enemy, basing on his prior interaction as K9999 in ''KOF 2001', with later joining the team as a possible protest against K'.


 * His biker outfit has the word "silber" written horizontally on the left side of his sleeve. This name is shared with Silber, the final boss of Buriki One, who made an appearance in The King of Fighters XI as a mid-boss.