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Series
Position in the series
Is it canonical?
Canonical entry number
Fatal Fury
8th
Yes
6th

Certainly, they existed... Those blinded by ambition. Those consumed with vengeance. But here, they do not exist. Only winners and losers here. For here, THE MIGHTY RULE!

-Intro

Yes, they do exist... Those who sacrifice all for their ambitions. Those who endanger all for the taste of revenge. Whose actions are just? Justice is not the issue. The victorious will survive. The vanquished shall fall. This is the only justice. For ten years later... THE MIGHTY RULE!

-Prologue

Legends don't die... They get better!

-Tagline

Garou: Mark of the Wolves (餓狼がろう MARKマーク OFオブ THE WOLVESウルブズ) or Fatal Fury: Mark of the Wolves for the Dreamcast release; referred to as Garou or MOTW for short, is the eighth and currently latest game in the Fatal Fury series. It is known for pushing the graphical capabilities of the Neo Geo past its limit, utilizing pre-rendered 3D graphics rasterized as sprites to give the illusion of 3D depth and semi-transparency, as well as its well-balanced roster of characters and highly technical gameplay.

In 2006, as part of SNK's celebration of the series' 15 year anniversary, a retrospective movie was made to take place shortly after. It recaps the events of the canonical Fatal Fury games: Fatal Fury, Fatal Fury 2, Fatal Fury 3, and Real Bout Fatal Fury; it is particularly notable for appearances or mentions of characters previously missing from the MOTW era, as Geese Howard, Duck King, Richard Meyer and Blue Mary. The main illustrations were done by Eisuke Ogura, and some illustrations were made by Tonko.

In December 2016, the game was released for three platforms: for PS4 and PS Vita, on day 3, and for Steam, on day 9. There was already another PC version, released by the Humble Bundle, in January of that year, and another released by GOG, in October 5, 2017. In May 11, 2017, as part of ACA Neo Geo, the game is released for Nintendo Switch.

In January 22, 2020, Code Mystics updated the online mode of the game to utilize GGPO, also known as "Rollback Netcode," attested as one of the most reliable online play protocols in the industry. The same process occurred with The King of Fighters '97, The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match, The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match, The Last Blade 2 and Samurai Shodown V Special (only on PS4). [1]

The main illustrations are made by TONKO.

Story[]

Set ten years after the death of the notorious crime lord Geese Howard, the city of South Town has become more peaceful. Now, the stage is in the neighboring city of Second South Town. A new fighting tournament called "King of Fighters: Maximum Mayhem" starts in the area, and several characters related with the fighters from the old era of King of Fighters tournaments participate within it.

Development[]

Multiple changes to Garou were made to show a bigger difference from previous games due to most characters being new. The character of Rock Howard was created by Nobuyuki Kuroki in 1998. Both he and Yasuyuki Oda wondered what type of hero would succeed Terry Bogard in Fatal Fury's latest game, Garou: Mark of the Wolves. While they were not confident with Rock, they still decided to make him as the new protagonist. Rock was designed to contrast previous 'masculine' Fatal Fury characters by giving him a more bishonen appearance, something Nobuyuki Kuroki felt the sequel needed to balance the cast and an issue he felt Real Bout suffered. Similarly, Hotaru was given a moe inspired look to balance the playable characters. Terry was also redesigned, labeled as "cool" by the SNK staff was because they thought Terry's previous look had become outdated. Kengo Asai, who previously worked in Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer, Money Puzzle Exchanger and The Last Blade, is also involved in development of the game.

SNK director Nobuyuki Kuroki stated in February 2020 that he is personally interested in 'reviving' Garou, whose supposed sequel suffered from development hell and cancellation, presumably due to SNK's financial predicament at that time (and its bankrupcty two years later). A sequel was confirmed to be in development on August 7 at EVO 2022. The teaser trailer of the project was released in August 5 at EVO 2023.

Gameplay[]

Garou-markofthewolves-s10

Gameplay of Rock vs. Freeman.

Garou: Mark of the Wolves general gameplay mechanics and art style are changed to more closely resemble SNK's The King of Fighters series using a similar button layout (Neo Geo A Button for weak/light punch, Neo Geo B Button for weak/light kick, Neo Geo C Button for strong/heavy punch and Neo Geo D Button for strong/heavy kick). However, chaining normal attacks into each other tends to be strict on timing, and may involve heavy usage of the recurring feint mechanic (Forward Input + Neo Geo A Button and Neo Geo C Button or Down Input + Neo Geo A Button and Neo Geo C Button) in order to cancel them smoothly, much like older games within the Fatal Fury series. Stage gimmicks and plane-changing, as seen in previous titles, were removed.

T.O.P. System[]

The Tactical Offensive Position System or T.O.P., is a new system. Before each match begins, the player is given option to adjust the T.O.P. meter's influence onto three different places on their character's life meter (beginning, middle, end). When a character's life meter reaches the white T.O.P. section, the character will flash with their HP bar's T.O.P. section turning orange, and enter a special state which will grant them the following advantages:

  • Increased damage output
  • Slow health regeneration
  • Ability to perform T.O.P. attacks, which often deal heavy amount of reduction to the defender's guard meter if blocked

Once the character's life meter falls out T.O.P. range, the character will lose these benefits.

Just Defense System[]

The Just Defense allows players to benefit from defending by activating it against incoming attacks at the last second within 7 frames. Players can perform Just Defense against any type of attack, even being able to Just Defend in midair despite the lack of air blocking. Just Defense has following advantages:

  • Small health recovery and Power gauge gain for each successful Just Defense activation.
  • Ability to Guard Cancel.
  • Guard durability does not decrease unlike when blocking attacks normally.
  • Less blockstun frames by 2 frames, which also results in less pushblock.
  • When done successfully, it is indicated by a larger blue-dome-esque flash effect upon impact of the defender and a different guarding animation.
  • Multiple successive hits can be blocked from continuous Just Defends rapidly like so, and it is possible to heal back into T.O.P. range and reactivate it once more (but on the flip side, also accidentally heal past its HP regen range and deactivate it).

It is comparable to the Street Fighter III series' Parrying, except the latter is more offense-oriented (done with a forward direction instead of back), has no pushblock, grants an attack reset and gives no life regeneration (along with only completely negating any chip damage from specials and supers). Additionally, a mechanic similar to Just Defense was introduced in Street Fighter Alpha/Zero 3 that instead reduces guard meter consumption, made visually prominent by a brief white flashing of the character if successfully done.

Characters[]

Overview[]

This game is noticeable for adding an almost entirely new cast of characters, with only one returning character. Due to being the main protagonist of the Fatal Fury series, Terry Bogard is the only veteran character present in the game. The new characters added to the roster are:

Rock001
Rock Howard, biological son of Geese Howard and protagonist of the game, has strong bonds with Terry Bogard, his adoptive father, and has had a huge opposition towards Geese since the death of his mother.
Jenet-garou
B. Jenet, the leader of the Lillien Knights, a group of pirates. She entered to the Maximum Mayhem to rob him of anything valuable that Kain R. Heinlein might be keeping in his mansion.
Donghwan-garou
Kim Dong Hwan, elder son of Kim Kaphwan, enters to the tournament to continue his father's legacy, although he doesn't take training too seriously.
Jaehoon-garou
Kim Jae Hoon, younger son of Kim Kaphwan, is very serious, diligent in his studies, and a charismatic man. He inherited from his father the strong sense of justice, and enters to the tournament to continue his legacy, like his elder brother.
Hotaru-motw
Hotaru Futaba, a girl daughter of martial artists, enters to the Maximum Mayhem for search her brother, in companion of her pet marten Itokatsu.
Gato-motw
Gato, a martial artist and criminal, who seeks revenge for the murder of his mother (killed by his father).
Tizoc-motw
Tizoc, A.K.A. The Griffon, a famous pro wrestler, who has gained exceptional favoritism amongst all children audience.
Butt-garou
Marco Rodrigues, A.K.A. Khushnood Butt, a Brazilian practitioner of the Kyokugenru Karate and disciple of Ryo Sakazaki, enters to the Maximum Mayhem to prove the might of his martial art.
Hokutomaru-garou
Hokutomaru, a practitioner of the Shiranui-ryuu Ninjutsu and disciple of Andy Bogard, enters to the Maximum Mayhem at the request of his master.
Kevin
Kevin Rian, a S.W.A.T. policeman, enters to the tournament to take revenge on the man who killed his partner, in the company of his colleague's son, Marky.
Freeman
Freeman, a serial killer, who enters to the Maximum Mayhem to kill stronger opponents. One of his victims is Kevin Rian's police partner.
Grant
Grant, the sub-boss of the game, is an old friend of Kain and Marie Heinlein, Rock's mother. He protected the siblings from the dangers of the slums under his real name Abel Cameron. He also is Kain's bodyguard.
Kain-garou
Kain R. Heinlein, the final boss of the game and host of the Maximum Mayhem tournament and Rock's uncle; decided to take Geese Howard's legacy and turns ruler of Second Southtown.

Official Roster[]

Returning Character[]

Terrygarou
Terry Bogard

New Characters[]

Rock-sprite3
Rock Howard (protagonist)
Jenet-sprite1
B. Jenet
Donghwan-sprite1
Kim Dong Hwan
Kimjaehoongarou
Kim Jae Hoon
Hotaru-sprite1
Hotaru Futaba
Gato-sprite1
Gato
Tizocgarou
Tizoc
Butt-sprite1
Marco Rodrigues (Khushnood Butt)
Hokutomaru-sprite1
Hokutomaru
Kevin-sprite1
Kevin Rian
Freeman-sprite1
Freeman

Bosses[]

Note: Both bosses are playable in all modes of the game.

Sub-Boss[]

Grant posing
Grant (Abel Cameron)

Final Boss[]

Snk-kain
Kain R. Heinlein

Stages[]

Note 1: The intros appears only in Story Mode. The Sub-Boss stage don't have an intro.

Note 2: Marky, the little boy who appears along with Kevin in Story Mode, isn't present in Versus and Practice Modes.

Warning: The sight of some stages can cause epilepsy.

Normal Stages[]

Stage
Stage Name
Home Stage
Description
Notes
Live House Old Line
Live House Old Line
Rock Howard
A parking lot of a show house, in the night. The fight takes next to some convertible cars. Can be seen light posts, the house with the words "R&B", "Glam Rock: 2nd South" and their name, buildings, one with the figure of a boy and the expression "Second South Town: Music Boy", a palm tree and a poster with the game's logo, besides people watching the fight. Cars can be spotted coming out of the parking lot.
  • Intro: A close in the stage until focusing on Rock.
The Freight Express running on the Countryside The Freight Express, in Second South's train station
The Freight Express
Terry Bogard
A freight train that runs through the city. He is carrying timber logs. Can be seen a wooden box, ropes, a tow bag and the expression "Runing Wild". The fight occurs while the sun rise, in the 1st round, with the train stopped in the waiting line in the 2nd round and a bridge in the final rounds.
  • Intro: The train passing by the rails.
  • Note: In the waiting line, can be seen people waiting, other train passing, the USA and the game's logo flags, buildings, light posts, a palm tree and a bridge.
The Lillien Knights' incursion on Blue Wave Harbor
Blue Wave Harbor
B. Jenet
A pier destroyed by the Lilien Knights' ship. Can be seen boats, the rest of the pier, little flags, the ship, small lights, a rudder, palm trees and some sailors. In the 1st round, can be spotted a woman trying to escape, but being stopped by a man on the ground; in the final rounds, the sailors with a looted treasure.
  • Intro: The pier being destroyed by the ship.
Oriental Casino Woo
Oriental Casino Woo
Kim Dong Hwan
A casino. The battle takes in front of the casino. Can be seen some people watching the fight, panda girls, one of the walking and vibrating all over the stage, shrubs, other budlings and neon signs, with the words "PANDA GIRL: SLOT MACHINE", the name of the casino, a Chinese girl with uniform and the expressions "TRIPLE ROSE" and "DRAGON SLOTS", besides a plaque with the words "PANDA GIRL: BINGO".
  • Intro: a close in some buildings until arriving at the stage.
Yok Chong Market
Yok Chong Market
Kim Jae Hoon
A big market of Korean items. The fight takes in the middle of a great celebration. Can be seen people cooking, serving food and eating, Taekwondo students (some dressed like Dong Hwan, other dressed like Jae Hoon) watching the fight, fruits, fowls and the main gate of the market, besides little flags (including South Korea flag), the Sin's Restaurant, Korean characters and bands. Depending on who's fighting on the stage, Dong Hwan himself may be there to cheer for his brother, and also be disappointed when he loses.
  • Intro: Jae Hoon greeting the player, while the students in the background clap. If Dong Hwan happens to be his opponent, the intro is extended to have Dong Hwan make an appearance picking his ear as he kneels down, and the students on his side cheering for his appearance in return.
Philanthropy Belfry, Daytime Philanthropy Belfry, Nighttime
The Philanthoropy Belfry
Hotaru Futaba
A terrace. Can be seen two giant bells, light posts, doves, yellow, blue and white flags and some houses and a river, in the background. In the first rounds, it's day and the bells ring; in the final rounds, it's night, can be seen a full moon, the bells are stopped and the posts are on, and can be seen bats. If a player taunts, the bells move and toll on the background.
  • Intro: The bells ringing and doves flying.
  • Note: When the fight starts, Hotaru wears a cape, which is taken by the doves; the bells' sprite animations are captured in 3D motion render image, as seen in the stage's daylight variant.
Garougato1bg Garougato2bg Garougato3bg
Barbaroi Falls
Gato
The waterfalls. The fight takes next to the stones. Also can be seen shrubs. In the first round, it's sunset; in the second round, night; from the final rounds, morning, and vice versa (only for the 1st and final rounds).
  • Intro: a close in the stage until focusing on Gato.
Garoutizocbg
Universal Arena
Tizoc
A big ring. Can be seen the crowd vibrating with the fight, a screen showing the active fighters, Tizoc and the crowd, plaques with the hour and the stage name and the game's logo in the floor of the ring. The billboard will show who's currently fighting on the stage, and more often than not, a footage of the crowd booing at the current player may be shown in view.
  • Intro: a close in the stage until focusing on Tizoc.
Garoubuttbg
Sarah Forest
Marco Rodrigues
A forest. Can be seen tree trunks felled, wood swings, a cabin, a band with the Kyokugenryu symbol, a wrecking ball, a dumbbell, clothing and some animals, including wolves, a hawk, bears, squirrels, rabbits, deers and a porcupine, besides some trees in the background. As the round progresses, several changes including the wrecking ball falling can be seen.
  • Intro: Marco and a bear training a karate move and, then, greeting each other.
Garouhokutomarubg
The accident at the crossing of 5th Avenue and 2nd Street
Hokutomaru
An accident and a big traffic jam, caused by Hokutomaru. Can be seen cars, a bus, taxis, traffic lights, light posts, some cameos and guards, besides buildings, with advertisings, SNK's logo, a photo of Andy and Mai holding hands and the covers of Real Bout Fatal Fury and Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers (the previous game).
  • Intro: the little ninja above a traffic light, looking both sides, and then falling to the ground, causing the accident and traffic jam.
  • Note: in each round, it's possible to observe more people and vehicles appearing on the stage, causing great chaos.
Garoukevin1bg Garoukevin2bg Garoukevin3bg
S.S.P. Maneuver Field
Kevin Rian
A military field in the middle of the desert. Can be seen a truck, crates, light posts and military bases. In the 1st and 2nd rounds, can be spotted a helicopter, that disappears in the final rounds. In the first round, it's sunset; in the second round, the sun is already set; from the final rounds, it's night.
  • Intro: a gate that opens the stage and helicopters flying.
Garoufreemanbglite
Free Field, Second South's Slums
Freeman
An abandoned neighborhood next to a train line. The fight takes under the line. Can be seen peeled buildings, a destroyed car, neon signs, a light post, smokes, a hydrant, a barrel and a tire. Also can be seen a person scavenging the trash, in the background.
  • Intro: a train passing by the stage.

Boss Stages[]

Stage
Stage Name
Home Stage
Description
Notes
Garougrantbglite
Training Grounds (Basement Palace)
Grant (Abel Cameron)
A basement. Can be seen a circle of pillars, fire pyres and astec stone faces and a skull in the center.
N/A
Garoukainbg
The Dark Palace
Kain R. Heinlein
The main balcony of a palace. Can be seen pillars and a dome structure, a flag, bands, a chess floor, a ladder, hawk statues, a portrait of Marie Heinlein, Rock's mother, painted at the background of the building, lights, and in the sky, a full moon and shooting stars.
  • Intro: a small close of the sky, descending to the point of the stage.

Gallery[]

Trailers[]

Cancelled Sequel[]

The game's sequel, tentatively titled Garou: Mark of the Wolves 2, was reported to be in the works on the Neo Geo system several times by Korean news sources. Since 2002, the project has been put on hold and eventually cancelled. According to Falcoon at the 2005 KOF Party, the game's sequel was around 70% percent complete by the old SNK staff. Ureshino reported that a new grappler character and Joe Higashi's apprentice were added to the roster, called Kuan Konta. Recently, new details about the sequel were revealed.

Critical Reception[]

Overview[]

In Japan, Game Machine listed Garou: Mark of the Wolves on their January 1, 2000 issue as being the most-successful arcade game of the month. GameSpot named Mark of the Wolves the best fighting game of 2001. It was nominated for the publication's annual "Best Game No One Played" and "Best Dreamcast Game" prizes among console games, but lost these respectively to Victorious Boxers: Ippo's Road to Glory and Phantasy Star Online.

Reception Table[]

Aggregation scores[]

Aggregator
Info
GameRankings
  • 89% (Dreamcast)
  • 77% (Xbox 360)
Metacritic
  • 86 (Dreamcast)
  • 77 (Xbox 360)

Review scores[]

Publication
Info
EGM
8/10
GameSpot
8,5/10
IGN
9/10
TouchArcade
Five Stars (iOS)

Award[]

Publication
Info
GameSpot
Best Fighting (2001)

Trivia[]

  • Just like Capcom's Vampire Savior, this is the first time SNK used the series' Japanese title name for a global release. Later console releases would restore the correct localized title, as seen in the game's Dreamcast release.
    • The game's proper English title can be seen in the rom tilesets, but for some reason, there is no way to make the game display it. The Dreamcast release uses a modified logo, replacing Garou with Fatal Fury, while retaining the Garou kanji in the logo backdrop.[2]

External links[]

References[]

Fatal Fury series
Main Fatal Fury - King of Fighters Logo Sprite Fatal Fury 2 Logo Sprite Fatal Fury 3 - Road to the Final Victory Logo Sprite Real Bout Fatal Fury Logo Sprite Real Bout Fatal Fury 2 - The Newcomers Logo Sprite Garou - Mark of the Wolves Logo SpriteFatal Fury: City of the Wolves
Remakes Fatal Fury Special Logo Sprite Real Bout Fatal Fury Special Logo Sprite Real Bout Garou Densetsu Special Dominated Mind Logo
Offshoots Fatal Fury - First Contact Fatal Fury - Wild Ambition Logo
Mobile Garou Densetsu Southtown AdventureGarou fighters KOF x FF logo
Pachinko Garou Densetsu: The Legend of Wild WolfSpecialSougeki Garou Premium logo
Compilations Fatal Fury - Battle Archives Volume 1 Fatal Fury - Battle Archives Volume 2
Film/Television Fatal Fury - Legend of the Hungry Wolf Logo Fatal Fury 2 - The New Battle Logo Fatal Fury - The Motion Picture LogoGarou Densetsu 15th Anniversary ~Memories of Stray Wolves~
Comics Bon Bon GarouGarou Densetsu: Aratanaru TatakaiThe Geese Howard StoryGeese in the DarkGarou Densetsu: Senritsu no MaohmachiGarou Densetsu StoryGarou Densetsu 3
Cancelled Garou: Mark of the Wolves 2
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