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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
King Of Fighters 98 Version 2.0, March 8, 2009
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
1998: SNK releases King of Fighters 98: The Slugfest for the Neo*Geo. The 5th game in the series & has been a fan favorite since.
2008: SNK Playmore (successor company to SNK) releases King of Fighters 98: The Ultimate Match for the Taito Type X (arcade hardware). A PS2 version was released months later in Japan.
And now it's finally released in North America. So what's the different between this & the original game (which is in here as well)? They are:
9 new fighters that wasn't in the original game (the KoF 96 boss team, Kasumi, Eiji, Goenitz, Orochi, as well as Iori & Leona in their Riot of the Blood form), meaning that every fighter that appeared in 94 & throughout the Orochi Saga (95-97) are here. There are also new extra versions of King, Blue Mary, Geese, and Ryuji Yamazaki. King is based on her Art of Fighting 2 counterpart while the rest are hybrids of their appearances throughout the Real Bout Fatal Fury series. The returning fighters have been tweaked to give the game more balance with some given new moves.
In terms of game play, Extra & Advance Mode have also been mortified. The former's POW meter has been shorten (but it won't get any shorter when you lose a fighter unlike in the original game.) & it fills up quicker. There's also a new mode: Ultimate Mode which allows you to customize features from both Extra & Advance modes. Also unlike in the original game, any owned stock will be transferred to the next fighter. A big plus as you no longer have to worry about losing some & all your stock when you get K.O.ed.
Also, Omega Rugal's not the only final boss you can go up against. Depending on how well you play, you can also go up against Goenitz (& going up against the KoF 96 Boss Team prior) or Orochi (& fighting the Orochi Team prior).
The PS2 version has lots of choices for the solo gamer (it's still best to play with a friend) from Endless Survival, & Challenge Mode (with 30 different challenges). As previously mentioned, the original King of Fighters 98's in here as well, which I think is based on the AES version as there`s a vs. mode, survivor mode & you could even play as Omega Rugal too! Also there's no real loading & it lacks the audio miscues that exists in the PS2 Orochi Collection version.
I only have two issues with this game. One is the graphics. While the stages are very nice (& there's more of them here than in the original game & you can set them up in 2D or 3D), the sprites look like they haven't been mortified in years, if not over a decade. Nonetheless, this ain't Capcom Fighting Evolution! The other issue is the fact that there are no real endings. Even the intro to Omega Rugal & his ending scene when you beat him in the original game are omitted here.
Despite this, the Ultimate Match takes the original King of Fighters 98 game & makes it even better. In reality, it also makes the recently released King of Fighters Collection- The Orochi Saga somewhat obsolete as you'll getting the best elements of the first 4 games rolled up into this one. Plus, at $20, this is a steal. Add in unlockablies like hidden fighters, artwork, & game play video & you got a game that's a must for fans of the series, or 2-D fighters in general. With this out, & Samurai Shodown Anthologycoming out soon, how about bringing the recently released-in Japan, King of Fighters 2002: Unlimited Match to North America?
In addition to the game, you'll be getting a poster & a bonus CD. It's a data disc, so you'll need a PC to access it. It has wallpapers & a couple of trailers for this game & the upcoming King of Fighters XII.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great, worthwhile fighter, March 8, 2009
Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars
SNK Playmore's stream of budget-priced PS2 games continues with King of Fighters 98: Ultimate Match; which finds SNK's most popular franchise adding some new elements to an old, but great, installment of the series. Featuring the largest roster to hit the KOF series, King of Fighters 98 plays as well as just about any other KOF game, and features a deep and surprisingly balanced fighting engine and enough customization options to keep you busy for a while. Graphically the game hasn't aged all that well, but if you're playing King of Fighters 98, pleasing aesthetics aren't your priority. There's a bonus disc included as well, which features wallpapers and trailers of the upcoming King of Fighters XII here as well, all rounding out a nice package. All in all, if you're an old school fighting fan or longtime SNK follower, King of Fighters 98: Ultimate Match is plenty enjoyable, and is definitely worth your time.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic update to a classic 2-D fighter., June 1, 2009
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
KoF '98 Ultimate Match is a fantastic purchase for anyone still into fighters on the PS2. I've been playing this game non-stop with my friends since receiving the game. It's actually taken a lot of my time away from Street Fighter 4. The additional characters (Geese! and more) really make an old game feel awesome. You can turn on/off 3-D backgrounds, but I'd leave them on--they look great. One thing to do as soon as you receive the game: turn off the soft focus feature. The soft focus slightly blurs the characters to make them look smoother, but I find the game more enjoyable and better looking with all the characters in their full pixel glory.
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