The King of Fighters XIII

The King of Fighters XIII is the next installment in The King of Fighters series and will conclude the Ash saga. The theme for this title is "KOF-ism" or getting back to the heart of the series. The main objective of the game's new features is to appeal to the audience that prefers quick combos. Eisuke Ogura returns to do the character illustrations.

Known Info

 * Specials can have a "normal" or "stronger" version for each character called EX Special Move and EX Super Special Move respectively. EX attacks can add an extra frame of invincibility, boost the normal attack speed, add more hits, and other factors to a character's techniques. The cost for this technique is a partial drain of their power gauge.
 * A feature called the "Triple Cancel" allows players to unlimitedly cancel their character's moves to their whim. The ability to do so relies on the "Hyper Drive Gauge" that's above the power gauge, gradually draining it as the players cancel their moves.
 * "Hyper Drive Mode" is a tricky feature that can only be done once the Hyper Drive Gauge is at maximum. It's possible for players to perform an unlimited amount of Triple Cancels at the precise moment the gauge is filled. Although the effect is short and temporary, the feature allows otherwise unlinkable techniques to be used in one combo. Triple Cancels and Hyper Drive Mode are both callbacks to the system introduced in The King of Fighters 2002.
 * Guard escapes and counters now rely on the Hyper Drive Gauge rather than the power gauge.
 * There is a color select feature on the character select screen. There are various color options for each character, including Athena Asamiya's The King of Fighters XI and Kyo's The King of Fighters 2002 color schemes.
 * The "zoom" effect as seen in The King of Fighters XII has been removed and the general gameplay speed has been improved greatly.

Characters
The entire roster from The King of Fighters XII returns in The King of Fighters XIII, arranged in teams of three. The teams belonging to Ryo Sakazaki, Kim Kaphwan, and Iori Yagami only have two out of three players confirmed as of yet, and there is a whole new team confirmed but not revealed. Whether this new team brings back old characters such as K' or is a whole new team is still unknown.


 * More info from the preview footage shows the Women Fighters team, which has few differences from past King of Fighters titles:
 * Mai has a new idle stance, no major moveset changes, and reverted to her Fatal Fury outfit
 * Yuri has a new idle stance, and no outfit change (Moveset unconfirmed, as she was not showcased in the footage)
 * King has her Art of Fighting stance and outfit, and no major moveset changes.

Various shots of opening scenes reveal that Mukai and Rose Bernstein are returning.

Elizabeth Team

 * Elisabeth Blanctorche
 * Duo Lon
 * Shen Woo

Japan Team

 * Kyo Kusanagi
 * Benimaru Nikaido
 * Goro Daimon

Yagami Team

 * Iori Yagami
 * Mature

Garou Team

 * Terry Bogard
 * Andy Bogard
 * Joe Higashi

Kim Team

 * Kim Kaphwan
 * Raiden

Psycho Solider Team

 * Athena Asamiya
 * Sie Kensou
 * Chin Gentsai

Art of Fighting Team

 * Ryo Sakazaki
 * Robert Garcia

Ikari Team

 * Ralf Jones
 * Clark Still
 * Leona Heidern

Women Fighters Team

 * Mai Shiranui
 * Yuri Sakazaki
 * King

Single entry

 * Ash Crimson