Hwa Jai

Hwa Jai (ホア・ジャイ, Hoa Jai; หัว ใจ in Thai language) is a character from Fatal Fury who appears as a playable character once more in The King of Fighters XIII. The producer for KOF XIII stated that he was added to be the "surprise character" for KOF fans, keeping true to their theme of not always adding popular characters for the newer cast's balance. He thought Hwa Jai would be one of the most interesting characters for an appearance in KOF due to his detailed background history and previously lone playable appearance.

He is voiced by Hideo Egawa for his anime appearances and by Sōnosuke Nagashiro in The King of Fighters XIII.

Fatal Fury
Hwa Jai is a mighty Muay Thai fighter who resided in the callous Thailand jungle since birth. There he trained for most of his life to survive the jungle’s various dangers and was able to master his own "Dragon Kick". He is rather bad at holding his liquor and turns into a raging drunk with a few sips. After an incident where he almost killed three punks, he tries his best to swear off drinking.

He entered the Muay Thai world yet could never seem to defeat the rising star, Joe Higashi. After he resorted to a rather violent tactic in the ring, Hwa was kicked out of the circle. Haunted by the phrase "second to Joe", Hwa fled to South Town and was hired by Geese Howard. He faced off against his nemesis once more and, despite his training and his forbidden alcohol intake, Joe comes out the winner.

Shamed, Hwa Jai returned to the Thai jungle once more. Hwa Jai now lives a normal life training Muay Thai to those who, like he previously, strive to be the best. Eventually Hwa Jai’s rivalry with Joe ended with the two being sparring partners, and even friends, after Joe avenges him from Wolfgang Krauser, who left Hwa Jai in the hospital before the second tournament.

The King of Fighters
Hwa Jai's past employment with Geese is elaborated to have started due to him winning a tournament in Japan. After cutting his ties with Geese, he went back to his homeland. Despite what earlier accounts have implied, Hwa Jai hasn't made a comeback to the Muay Thai ring since then. Both he and Raiden were called to Southtown by Kim, who believes that they are wasting their talents and need to be "reeducated". Though Hwa Jai replies that he has already abandoned his "evil ways", he is convinced by the masked wrestler that entering with the famous Kim might be a good way to revitalize his reputation to the public. Hwa Jai also wants to use this opportunity to take another shot at his rival, Joe.

Personality
Hwa Jai longs to be the best Muay Thai fighter there is. To accomplish that, he must defeat his sworn enemy Joe Higashi. After being defeated by Joe in 1992's KOF, he and Joe eventually became friends. Now, he realizes that life isn't about winning and he and Joe support each other all the time.

His KOF counterpart is rougher than his Fatal Fury counterpart, talking in a more brutal and intimidating manner. Even though he claims to have changed, he is rather cocky of his skills and is ready to start a fight at any time. His friendship with Joe has also been abandoned, thinking that he still needs to defeat his rival in a match.

Powers
Hwa Jai does not have any powers but when he ingests the "Mysterious Liquid" (normal liquor in Japanese) he gains above average strength, stamina and speed, but seems to lose some reflexes.

Fighting Style
Hwa Jai uses traditional Muay Thai. Hwa Jai is only able to perform his special moves after using his "power drink". He would automatically do this after taking a significant amount of damage (around 1/2). His special techniques included a Flame Breath, a Twisting Punch attack, and the Rocket Kick, which launched him high offscreen.

Music

 * King Cobra ga Yatte Kuru (King Cobra is Finally Here) - Fatal Fury
 * Tame a Bad Boy - The King of Fighters XIII

Game Appearances

 * Fatal Fury — playable in the Super Nintendo version; left out of the Sega Genesis version due to memory constraints
 * The King of Fighters XIII
 * Garou Densetsu The Legend of Wild Wolf — one of Joe's arm wrestling opponents
 * Garou Densetsu Special — one of Joe's arm wrestling opponents

Cameo Appearances

 * Fatal Fury 2 — listed as one of the fighters beaten by Krauser
 * Fatal Fury Special — in Joe's ending
 * Fatal Fury 3 — in Joe's intros; appears in the background when facing CPU Joe
 * Real Bout Fatal Fury — in Joe's intros and ending
 * Real Bout Fatal Fury Special — in Joe's winpose
 * Real Bout Garou Densetsu Special Dominated Mind In the intro, fighting against Joe
 * Real Bout Fatal Fury 2 — in Joe's stage
 * The King of Fighters XII — as Joe's personal trainer in his profile story
 * The King of Fighters 2002: Unlimited Match — background cameo

Anime Appearances

 * Fatal Fury: Legend of the Hungry Wolf
 * Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture