Yep, that was definitely the first KOF game.
It seems almost any early fighting game franchise starts with a rather rough first entry, and KOF is no exception. That being said, I don't think that KOF '94 is a bad game compared to many other first attempts in this genre.
KOF '94 is very basic with it's gameplay. The only notable things here being you can sidestep (light punch + light kick) which is mainly helpful for dodging projectiles, and you can also charge your super meter. Gaining meter in this game is rather weird, you can get it from blocking attacks or charging it yourself. When you reach low health and your bar flashes red, no matter where your meter is you have access to as many supers as you want, which sounds broken but against the computer it really isn't.
The main thing I like about this game is the presentation. Oh my God this game looks fantastic. Each stage has this opening transition which is really appealing, the psuedo-3D wall in the Mexico stage being my favorite. The character sprites look rather goofy compared to what KOF '96-'03 would establish, but since this is the first entry it makes sense for the art style to look a bit experimental. A visually fantastic game even all these years later.
But man, this game's soundtrack. The arcade ost is pretty good, but the arranged soundtrack? Pure bliss on my ears. For an early CD quality audio video game soundtrack, the actual instruments and such used here sound fantastic, and I believe are real instruments. It's a soundtrack that unexplainably gives me joy and other emotions, please experience it for yourself. The sound design is fascinating too, games on the Neogeo always had this satisfying crunch to it, and this game is a perfect example.
The main turnoff for this game is the difficulty. The AI even on the easiest setting can be absolutely atrocious, and you're locked to teams in this game, meaning you can't create your preferred setup. Some characters may give you more trouble then others, but it's when Rugal steps in that fairness is thrown out the window. Now, if you just crouch block and occasionally attack during his first phase, you'll do entirely fine. But that second phase is a total nightmare. I got extremely lucky and was able to time him out by being very careful with my sidesteps from his projectiles and retaliated accordingly. Some people can take up to an hour on this guy which I can't even imagine suffering through.
And so those are my main thoughts on KOF '94. KOF is undoubtedly one of my favorite video game series, and seeing its roots is fascinating. I would not recommend this game to any casual player, but if you're a decently big fan of the series, you owe it to yourself to beat '94 Rugal at least once.
To everyone who has been supporting my reviews, I give my greatest thanks. I never thought I'd make it this far and I hope that you'll continue to enjoy my reviews. Once again, thank you for reading, and I'll see you when I review The King Of Fighters '95.
It seems almost any early fighting game franchise starts with a rather rough first entry, and KOF is no exception. That being said, I don't think that KOF '94 is a bad game compared to many other first attempts in this genre.
KOF '94 is very basic with it's gameplay. The only notable things here being you can sidestep (light punch + light kick) which is mainly helpful for dodging projectiles, and you can also charge your super meter. Gaining meter in this game is rather weird, you can get it from blocking attacks or charging it yourself. When you reach low health and your bar flashes red, no matter where your meter is you have access to as many supers as you want, which sounds broken but against the computer it really isn't.
The main thing I like about this game is the presentation. Oh my God this game looks fantastic. Each stage has this opening transition which is really appealing, the psuedo-3D wall in the Mexico stage being my favorite. The character sprites look rather goofy compared to what KOF '96-'03 would establish, but since this is the first entry it makes sense for the art style to look a bit experimental. A visually fantastic game even all these years later.
But man, this game's soundtrack. The arcade ost is pretty good, but the arranged soundtrack? Pure bliss on my ears. For an early CD quality audio video game soundtrack, the actual instruments and such used here sound fantastic, and I believe are real instruments. It's a soundtrack that unexplainably gives me joy and other emotions, please experience it for yourself. The sound design is fascinating too, games on the Neogeo always had this satisfying crunch to it, and this game is a perfect example.
The main turnoff for this game is the difficulty. The AI even on the easiest setting can be absolutely atrocious, and you're locked to teams in this game, meaning you can't create your preferred setup. Some characters may give you more trouble then others, but it's when Rugal steps in that fairness is thrown out the window. Now, if you just crouch block and occasionally attack during his first phase, you'll do entirely fine. But that second phase is a total nightmare. I got extremely lucky and was able to time him out by being very careful with my sidesteps from his projectiles and retaliated accordingly. Some people can take up to an hour on this guy which I can't even imagine suffering through.
And so those are my main thoughts on KOF '94. KOF is undoubtedly one of my favorite video game series, and seeing its roots is fascinating. I would not recommend this game to any casual player, but if you're a decently big fan of the series, you owe it to yourself to beat '94 Rugal at least once.
To everyone who has been supporting my reviews, I give my greatest thanks. I never thought I'd make it this far and I hope that you'll continue to enjoy my reviews. Once again, thank you for reading, and I'll see you when I review The King Of Fighters '95.
Suck my dick Rugal
6/10
the cia should use this game's arcade mode as a torture method
it all began in 94
no pain again
Rugal is peak fighting game boss design. The guy rocks a red suit while beckoning you from his nimitz-class supercarrier with a fucking panther by his side.
No one comes close.
No one comes close.
Um dos jogos mais dificeis que me atrevi a jogar na minha vida
Ok it's important to note I was born in 1999 and so this game really made me realize how much of a bitch I am when I button mash and get my inputs read too easily. The presentation and sprites N shit are nice tho
a mano esse jogo é difícil que só a porra, mau feito mas revolucionário pra época então eu vou um 2.5 tranquilíssimo
Humble Beginnings! I really love the presentation of the first few KOF games thise stage Intros CAN NOT be beat. OST is yet again a banger.
for 1994, this is pretty damn good. i don't think it's aged particularly well, but it's still enjoyable to play in 2022, which can't be said of a lot of other fighting games. i know this is a series that's iterated on itself, so i'm interested to see where this series goes.
as an aside, rugal is a rite of passage that anyone who's even mildly interested in fighting games should beat at least once.
as an aside, rugal is a rite of passage that anyone who's even mildly interested in fighting games should beat at least once.
Rugal that type of mf to use soap as shampoo.
KOF 94 | MaraKOF%
Bacaninha até, não vou sair do meu lugar pra falar do carisma de Kof, pois já tá inerente desde o primeiro jogo.
BUT... a OST é meio bosta, gameplay é bem limitada (apesar de melhor que muito jogo da SNK), e cara, o esquema de time é criativo e serviu de base pro conceito da série inteira, MAS VÉI, pra que limitar pra só poder usar o time base KKKKK, e isso não vai mudar tão cedo.
Tirando isso, é um jogo bacana até, e o rugal é um boss clássico atemporal, apesar da IA burra e exploitável.
5/10
Bacaninha até, não vou sair do meu lugar pra falar do carisma de Kof, pois já tá inerente desde o primeiro jogo.
BUT... a OST é meio bosta, gameplay é bem limitada (apesar de melhor que muito jogo da SNK), e cara, o esquema de time é criativo e serviu de base pro conceito da série inteira, MAS VÉI, pra que limitar pra só poder usar o time base KKKKK, e isso não vai mudar tão cedo.
Tirando isso, é um jogo bacana até, e o rugal é um boss clássico atemporal, apesar da IA burra e exploitável.
5/10
inovador mas grande bosta
Foi o que deu inicio a essa grande franquia mas esse jogo era muito ruim, vamos ser sinceros. Eu nunca conseguia fazer nenhum golpe sequer os controles eram muito ruins.
Having played plenty of fighting games in my time, I have to say I'm rather unimpressed by the first entry of King of Fighters. The animations and characters feel stiff, the super moves are worthless throughout, and the final boss is extremely cheap. The only particular good looking characters are all from other SNK titles, and while it's a fun idea to see SNK properties interact like this, it largely loses appeal fast, especially if you don't know they are from different games. I don't think King of Fighters is inherently a bad game, just one that isn't worth playing in this day and age. There are far better fighters out there that are worth more of your time, especially in the King of Fighter's series.
Extremely significant and influential but also overly-chunky and unfun. KoF's three-character system already expects you to learn a lot, but forcing you to choose pre-made teams suuuuuucks.
A great start to the series but you can tell they still have ways to go. While it is very clunky, it still has a lot of charm that makes it worth revisiting every once and while.