The King of Fighters XV

"Shatter All Expectations."

- Tagline

The King of Fighters XV, officially abbreviated as KOF XV, is the upcoming fifteenth instalment of The King of Fighters series. It was officially announced at EVO 2019 and was originally slated for release in 2020. However, the date was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More details were revealed on January 7, 2021. In June of the same year, SNK announced that the game had been postponed once again and will be released in the February 17, 2022, due to the rising cases of COVID-19 and the state of emergency in Japan. The game will be released for PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S, Windows 10, Steam and Epic Games. The game will have crossplay between PS4 and PS5 and between Steam and Epic Games. This is the first canonical game of the series to have Rollback Netcode (and the second mainline game with this feature, the first being The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match).

This game is the second chapter of the fourth canonical saga for the series, and is the second SNK game to use the Unreal Engine graphic motor (Unreal Engine 4), the first being Samurai Shodown (2019). Yasuyuki Oda (Garou: Mark of the Wolves and The King of Fighters XIV) is the producer, Kaito Kusaka is the director, Eisuke Ogura is the creative director and Tomohiro Nakata is the main illustrator.

The promotion of the game is through trailers that were initially weekly, but due to the postponement of the game, they became biweekly. Starting with the 11th until the 35th Character Trailer (Yashiro and Ángel's reveal trailers, respectively), SNK would reveal the silhouettes of the next characters to be confirmed the day prior to the trailer's release. Other divulgation means are: a sketch of the newly revealed character (written and drawn by Tomohiro Nakata), the theme songs, idle poses and the story of the teams already formed (when was the case).

On October 27, SNK announced an Open Beta Test for SONY's PlayStation 4/5 systems, during the State of Play conference. The purpose of this test is to improve the game’s online functions and introduce the newcomer characters to the players. A PlayStation Plus subscription is unnecessary to enter. This beta was available from November 19 to 22. A demo was made available during the Tokyo Game Show, during the 4 days of the event. Both previews feature 8 playable characters, although they do not contain the same characters for each verison. Shun'ei, Kyo and Iori are the only characters available in the two first previews. A Second Open Beta is announced with the same purpose of the first, during the conference The Game Awards 2021, and was made available from December 17 to 20. Terry Bogard and Isla, characters available during the TGS demo, were present in the beta. All PlayStation betas lasted 3 days.

On November 30, 2021, SNK and Koch Media announced the Omega Edition of the game, only available in Europe. This version will be released along with the other versions, and includes: the main game, the first two DLC teams, the DLC costumes for Terry (MOTW costume) and Leona (KOF '96~2003 costume), three lithographs with artworks of Terry, Joe, Mai and Iori, a special slipcase with Iori's artwork (the same of his lithograph), the OST and an artbook with 119 pages, showing the charcaters' main artworks, renders and colors. In January 14, 2022, this version was announced for North America.

Story
Only the world's toughest fighters can duke it out in the largest martial arts tournament in the world.

Though a mysterious being called Verse destroyed the KOF arena, its threat was quelled thanks to the brave efforts of the winning challengers.

Time has passed since the closing of that tumultuous tournament, and the next KOF begins, backed by a new sponsor.

Meanwhile, Chizuru Kagura senses something interfering with the seal of Orochi, otherwise known as Gaia's Will.

She teams up with Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami to join the KOF and investigate.

Amidst these myriad motives, fighters resurrected after Verse's defeat also join the fray.

Once again, a storm is on the horizon...

Development
Due to positive response to the marketing of The King of Fighters XIV, director Yasuyuki Oda said in August 2017 that The King of Fighters XV was possible, but SNK also wanted to focus on other franchises. Oda, instead, worked in the spin-off, SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy, a female character-driven fighting game and a spiritual sequel of SNK Gals' Fighters. In December 2018, SNK revealed that the company was working on The King of Fighters XV, aiming to release it during 2020. Feeling the previous title had outdated graphics for a 2016 game, SNK chairman Zhihui Ge said that XV will use the Unreal Engine 4 graphic motor to provide a better presentation.

At the finals of EVO 2019, SNK announced that the game was in development. The title's creative director is Eisuke Ogura, who has previously worked as an artist on the series, beginning with The King of Fighters 2001. Most notably, he served as the main illustrator for The King of Fighters XIII and XIV. The director and producer of King of Fighters XIV, Yasuyuki Oda, will serve as the title's producer. The character design is being handled by Tomohiro Nakata, who also worked on The King of Fighters All Star.

Gameplay
In The King of Fighters XV, many mechanics from the previous game, The King of Fighters XV, return, such as Rush Combos. One of the new mechanics added is the Shatter Strike, serving as an alternate counterattack against any opponent.

The MAX Mode returns with the established mechanics from XIV, but with added tweaks. Now, the MAX Mode costs 2 bars of meter instead of 1. EX Special Moves can be used outside of MAX Mode, costing half a bar, and the character's attack and Guard Crush strength increases during MAX Mode. MAX Mode in this game also has a second version, labeled as MAX Mode (Quick). If the Player activates MAX Mode when they land a hit or guard against an incoming attack, the user will glow pink, and will activate MAX Mode (Quick). This allows you to combo immediately into the next action without leaving an opening; however, MAX Mode (Quick) does not increase its power for attacks and Guard Crushes, and has less duration than the normal MAX Mode. This variant of MAX Mode acts similar to how the Hyperdrive Mode from The King of Fighters XIII worked.

The Rush Mode Auto Combo mechanics is also updated, allowing the characters to perform a different 4th input/ender after rapidly pressing light punch three times:
 * Light Punch: Climax Super Special Move;
 * Light Kick: Special Move;
 * Hard Punch: Super Special Move;
 * Hard Kick: MAX Super Special Move.

Some game modes present in the previous game reappear in this game. Besides that, there is the addition of a new versus mode: the DRAFT VS., in which the players cannot choose the same character as his opponent.

Overview
KOF XV keeps the same voice cast from The King of Fighters XIV (between veterans and debutant characters). For characters that weren't in the previous game, some voice actors from KOF All Star return to voice their respective characters, with the exception of Chris (from Orochi Team) and B. Jenet (from Garou Team), who has different voice actresses than the one from the mobile game, and the newcomers Isla, Dolores and Krohnen McDougall. Ash Crimson, a returning character, remains with the same voice actor since his debut.

The new characters present in this game (all originals) are:

This game also has a profound change in Teams compared to KOF XIV. The new team formations are as follows:

Initial Team Roster
Initial teams confirmed for the game.


 * Note: Some parenthetical citations are sometimes Japanese team names, sometimes shortened team names.

DLC Team Roster
Teams released through Downloadable Content (DLC). All the characters are available through the Season Pass.

NPC Characters
Characters who appear as NPCs (Non-Playable Characters).
 * Clemence Bellamy (KOF Tournament Anchorman and Reporter)

Stage Cameos
Characters or elements who appear as cameos on specific stages.

Fatal Fury series

 * Michael Max - in the Beach Resort Stage
 * Richard Meyer - in the Pao Pao Cafe Stage
 * Bob Wilson - in the Pao Pao Cafe Stage

3 Count Bout

 * Terry Rogers - in the KOF Stadium Stage
 * Master Barnes - in the KOF Stadium Stage

Metal Slug series

 * Hyakutaro Ichimonji (presumably, along with other POWs) - in the Sahara Stage
 * Rumi Aikawa - in the Sahara Stage
 * SV-001 - in the Sahara Stage
 * Super Vehicle "Camel" - in the Sahara Stage

Story Cameos
Characters who appear as cameos in Team Stories.
 * Tung Fu Rue
 * Goro Daimon
 * Mature & Vice
 * Saisyu Kusanagi
 * Lilly Kane
 * Orochi
 * Takuma Sakazaki
 * Marco Rodrigues
 * Verse
 * Hein
 * Sie Kensou
 * Chin Gentsai

Stages

 * Note: With exception of the Hero Team Stage, all the stages revealed have some reference to the tournament or the series itself.

Teaser Trailers
Promotional trailers of the game.

Initial Team Roster Trailers
Characters with teams already revealed.

DLC Teams Trailers
Trailers of the DLC teams confirmed in the game.

Team BGMs
Music Themes of the Teams.

Idle Poses
Fighting poses of the teams (some with taunts and/or victory poses).

Drawing Video
A sample of the game and character's creation process.

TGS Special Program
A special program showing the mechanics and gameplay of the game, besides some new revealed characters.

Trailer Themes
Some themes played in the character/DLC content trailers are references to the characters' old themes in SNK past games. Below, the list:

Main Theme

 * Now or Never by Steven McNair

VS. Themes (Destiny Battle)
Just like the previous game, there are special songs that play during specific matchups.

Cosplay & Alternate Colors
Several alternate colors for the cast are homages to characters in other games or media. The list below charts costume outcomes from the alternate color options.

Trivia

 * The character 3D models are all cel-shaded, similar to the models of Samurai Shodown (2019) (the first SNK game to use Unreal Engine 4). However, the vast majority of 3D models have been reused and remodeled from The King of Fighters XIV and SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy. The exceptions are Chizuru, Yashiro, Chris, Ash, Isla, Dolores, Krohnen, Elisabeth, Jenet and Gato, who have their models made from the scratch.


 * This is the first mainline KOF game in 28 years where it doesn't feature Kim Kaphwan in the initial roster. The reasons are explained in the Secret Agents Team's Story and in Luong's interview with Clemence Bellamy, where she mentions he's currently training in the mountains with his master and her lover Gang-il, and is also seen in Kim Team's ending in the previous game.
 * The other probable main reason of the character's non-inclusion in the initial roster is due to the recent death of the real Kim Kaphwan, founder of Viccom, a Korean company that for many years licensed SNK's games.


 * This is the second game of the series where every act of the fight is narrated, the first being KOF XIV.


 * This game and The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match are the only games in the series to feature an updated version of a character that was removed in future appearances due to copyright issues and controversy.


 * Some team formations in this game evoke details from past games of the series (or from the other SNK 's franchises):
 * Benimaru teaming with the current protagonists is a callback to how he can often be seen in several story-relevant teams composed of varying members, of which many of them resulting in their canonical victories within the most of KOF tournaments (particularly with the Hero Team).
 * Certain special formations present in older KOF entries appear as official teams (the Sacred Treasures Team, the Super Heroines Team, and the Outlaw Team).
 * Similar to Fatal Fury Team's classic formation, the Art of Fighting Team 's formation in this game consists of the three main heroes who all debuted as playable characters in the first Art of Fighting game. It would mark the second time to have a team formation based on the playable fighters from the first Art of Fighting game since KOF 2000 (if counting Takuma Sakazaki as Mr. Karate).
 * Heidern's presence in the Rivals Team marks the second formation of this team with a character debuting from the first mainline game of the series (the first being Benimaru Nikaido in The King of Fighters XI).
 * The Krohnen Team resembles the NESTS Team 's formation in The King of Fighters 2002. The only difference is that one of the members of the former formation (K9999) is removed and swapped with a similar character (Krohnen).


 * Some team endings in the previous game make clear two current formations in this game:
 * The Sacred Treasures Team appear together during the Yagami Team's ending in KOF XIV. The three guardians find themselves near the crater where Orochi was found, in Hungary, and seal the evil entity away again.
 * The Ash Team appear together in the Official Invitation's ending. Kukri and Elisabeth are near to the creater where Ash is found, sleeping and unconscious, in Ukraine. The same scene can be seen in The King of Fighters: A New Beginning.


 * This game and The King of Fighters XI are the only mainlines game with profound team changes.


 * This game is the fourth KOF mainline game, and the third KOF canonical game to have another variant of Women Fighters Team, in form of Team Secret Agents, thus making the team the third all female teams to be another variant of the original team. The other games with other teams composed only of female fighters are The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match (with the Pretty Girls Fighters Team and the NESTS Team) and The King of Fighters 2003 (the High School Girls Team).
 * Athena's inclusion as a member of the Super Heroines Team was foreshadowed in two games prior through her dialogues against the members of the original Women Fighters Team (those being her XIII intro dialogue with King, and XIV win dialogue against Mai).


 * Several references to SNK 's game catalog can be noticed in many trailers for the game:
 * The Shibuya Crossing, in Tokyo, appears in one of the scenes of the first trailer of the game (when Benimaru and Kyo talk to each other) and in the Story Trailer (when Shun'ei and Meitenkun are seen in the street). This place also appears as a fighting stage in World Heroes Perfect.
 * When Clemence Bellamy appears in the first trailer, flashes of the Kagura Stadium (The King of Fighters '96's Sub-Boss Stage) appears.
 * In Terry's reveal trailer (Character Trailer #10), the formation of the Fatal Fury Team recreates the arcade cover of the first Fatal Fury game. Besides that, Kurikinton,a song from the arcade game, plays in a small match after the main trailer. Also in this trailer, the theme VS. plays before the match.
 * The Opening Theme of the first Art of Fighting game, Dragon and Tiger, plays in Ryo and Robert's shared reveal trailer (Character Trailers #16 & #17). Also in this trailer, the theme Wait, Yuri! plays during the team's formation.
 * In Ralf and Clark's shared reveal trailer (Character Trailers #19 & #20), they indirectly quote "Cross Changer" pose in their dialogue, a reference to Chojin Sentai Jetman, which both characters would perform as their special interaction in the last two games of the Orochi Saga.
 * In Story Mode cutscenes (more precisely, when the characters are in Shibuya), a poster of Athena Asamiya with her outfit in the previous tournament can be seen.


 * This game, along with The King of Fighters '98 (and its updated version), The King of Fighters 2003, The King of Fighters XI, The King of Fighters XII and The King of Fighters XIII, are the only games of the series in which the character BGM plays after the round is announced.


 * The win screens of this game are very similar to, and are likely inspired from the prominent Capcom fighting games Super Street Fighter IV and Street Fighter V, where the winning character performs a unique victory flourish as the in-game camera dynamically follows them in a cutscene-esque fashion before ending in a still scene featuring said character and their victory quote.
 * However, unlike the mentioned games, the victory quotes of each character are fully spoken by the characters themselves, a feature also seen in The King of Fighters XIV, SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy and Samurai Shodown (2019).


 * When the player chooses a team composed of the rightful members, their team emblem appears in the lower corner of the pre-fight screen. When the chosen team is random, however, an emblem of the series appears.
 * In Single VS., depending on the character chosen, the emblem of the team where he/she belongs appears in the middle screen.


 * This game is the only one in the series in which the narrator uses phrases in addition to the original narration, during the matches and the winner announcement.


 * This is the only game in the series to use the expression "Perfect Fight" in rounds.


 * Certain DLC characters released in the previous entry appear in canonical teams this time around. In the order of triailer's appearance, they are: Blue Mary and Vanessa (both in the Secret Agents Team), Heidern (Rivals Team) and Whip (K' Team).
 * Rock Howard and Ryuji Yamazaki, two other DLC characters released in KOF XIV, reappear as DLC characters in this game, this time being with DLC teams.


 * This game, The King of Fighters XIII and The King of Fighters XIV are the only games in the series which the characters say one of many specific quotes when selected.


 * This game, The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match, The King of Fighters XIV and The King of Fighters Neowave are the only games in the series to use the characters' full names in the select screen.


 * This game, The King of Fighters XIII and The King of Fighters XIV are the only games in the series with selectable character costume colors.


 * This is the fifth SNK game (fourth considering that KOF XIII was produced by SNK Playmore, albeit only EX-style of pre-existing characters) to use DLC content (in this case, DLC Teams and outfits).


 * This game, The King of Fighters '98 and The King of Fighters XIV are the only games in the series in which the defeated character's name appears dimmed on the fight screen.


 * This game, the two versions of The King of Fighters '94, The King of Fighters '95, The King of Fighters '96, the two versions of The King of Fighters '98, The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match and The King of Fighters XIV are the only games in f the series with stages associated to one or more teams.
 * In KOF '98/UM, however, this occurs only with the mid-boss teams.


 * This game, The King of Fighters XIII, The King of Fighters XI and The King of Fighters XIV are the only games in the series which the hero/protagonist and their rival/deuteragonist from the same saga/story arc are on a same team.
 * Interestingly, this only applies to the odd-numbered story arcs, those being featured in the Sacred Treasures Team (from the Orochi Saga, the first saga in the series) and Ash Team (from the Ash Saga, the third saga in the series).
 * The particular characters from the even-numbered story arcs, K' and Kula from the NESTS Saga (the second saga in the series), and Shun'ei and Isla from the Shun'ei Saga (the fourth saga in the series), oppose each other through different teams, instead.


 * With the exceptions of Shun'ei, Meitenkun, Kyo, Iori, Terry, Mai, Dinosaur, Antonov and the characters that weren't in the previous game, all the other characters retain the same Climax Super Special Moves in The King of Fighters XIV.


 * When a character defeats an opponent, the background screen radiates a color specific to the move used to defeat them, with those colors being:
 * Blue: if the opponent is defeated with a Special Move.
 * Red: if the opponent is defeated with a Super Special Move.
 * Yellow: if the opponent is defeated with a Climax Super Special Move.