Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves

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Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
Developer(s) SNK
Publisher(s) SNK
Director(s) Hayato Konya
Series Fatal Fury
Engine Unreal Engine 4 [1]
Platform(s)
Release2025
Genre(s) Fighting
Mode(s)

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves [lower-alpha 1] is an upcoming fighting game developed and published by SNK. It is the first new entry in the Fatal Fury series in 26 years, following the release of Garou: Mark of the Wolves (1999), and serves as a continuation of that game's story. The game is currently scheduled to be released in the first half of 2025 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S. [2]

Contents

Gameplay

Gameplay in City of the Wolves is similar to that of its predecessor, with combat taking place on a two-dimensional movement plane. Several mechanics from Mark of the Wolves are retained in City of the Wolves, including the T.O.P. system, renamed the "Selective Potential Gear" (S.P.G.) system; and the "Just Defense" mechanic, which features an expanded "Hyper Defense" variation designed to protect against attacks that hit multiple times. In addition to basic normal moves and special moves, players can also gain access to "Gear" super attacks by filling two meters at the bottom of their screen. Spending one meter will perform an Ignition Gear attack, while both meters can be spent to perform a more powerful Redline Gear attack. The most powerful super move, the Hidden Gear, requires both bars to be spent while the S.P.G. is active. [3]

A new mechanic introduced in the game is the "Rev System". Players can perform multiple types of Rev abilities, including "Rev Arts", enhanced versions of a character's special moves; "Rev Blow", an attack that can help put distance between the two characters; "Rev Accel", which assists in chaining attacks together to create combos; and "Rev Guard", a defensive block which pushes opponents away as their attack connects. Using these techniques will gradually cause the character's Rev Gauge to fill; when full, the character will enter an Overheat state and be unable to use any Rev abilities until it fully depletes. The affected player will be able to drain their gauge more quickly by actively approaching and attacking their opponent. [3]

The game offers two control schemes for players to choose from: "Arcade Style", which features traditional controls akin to previous entries in the series, and "Smart Style", a simplified control scheme that allows players to perform attacks and combos using only basic directional inputs and single button presses, though certain abilities are inaccessble in Smart Style. [3]

Playable characters

While the previous game, Mark of the Wolves, featured an almost entirely new roster of playable fighters, City of the Wolves marks the return of several characters from the earlier Fatal Fury games, along with new characters. The following characters have all been officially announced for inclusion by SNK, with more expected to be announced leading up to the game's release; newcomers are marked in bold.

Development

In 2005, during the KOF Year-End Party fan event, SNK illustrator Falcoon mentioned that a sequel to Garou: Mark of the Wolves was around 70% complete for the Neo Geo by the SNK team. Falcoon also confirmed that one of the new characters meant to appear was a student of legacy Fatal Fury character Joe Higashi. [9] In July 2006, SNK reported that they were still working on the sequel, saying that they would use modern high-resolution graphics instead of the resolution quality level seen in the original game. [10] During an interview in March 2008, SNK USA developers commented that there was not any concrete schedule of demands for the game and that they planned to make the sequel with some new technology. [11] In June 2016, SNK revealed artwork and sprites of the cast of the cancelled Neo Geo version. [12] SNK director Nobuyuki Kuroki stated in February 2020 that he was personally interested in 'reviving' the Fatal Fury series. [13]

During EVO 2022, it was revealed that a new Fatal Fury game was officially in development at SNK. [6] At EVO 2023, SNK announced the game's title to be Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, and revealed a first look at the gameplay, demonstrating it would be a 2.5D fighting game similar to their other contemporary fighting games Samurai Shodown (2019) and The King of Fighters XV (2022). [14] In March 2024, the game was officially announced for a 2025 release. Additionally, it was announced that City of the Wolves will be the first Fatal Fury game to feature an English-language voice track, and the first SNK game to do so since The King of Fighters XII (2009). [7]

Notes

  1. ↑ Japanese: 餓狼伝説 City of the Wolves, Hepburn: Garō Densetsu: City of the Wolves, lit. "Legend of the Hungry Wolf: City of the Wolves"

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References

  1. ↑ Life, Nintendo (2024-03-18). "Fatal Fury: City Of The Wolves Looks Slick As Heck In New Character Trailer". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  2. ↑ Romano, Sal (June 7, 2024). "Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves adds B. Jenet and Vox Reaper; confirmed for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, and PC". Gematsu. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Fanelli, Jason (2024-03-18). "Fatal Fury: City Of The Wolves Makes A Strong Case For The Series' Return After 25 Years". GameSpot. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  4. 1 2 Romano, Sal (2023-04-01). "New Fatal Fury / Garou game adds Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard, and Joe Higashi". Gematsu. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  5. 1 2 Fanelli, Jason (June 7, 2024). "Newcomer Vox Reaper And Series Vet B. Jenet Join Fatal Fury: City Of The Wolves Roster". GameSpot. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Reeve, Justin (2022-08-07). "Fatal Fury Series Returns After 20 Year Hiatus". TheGamer. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Romano, Sal (March 17, 2024). "Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves launches in early 2025". Gematsu. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  8. ↑ Makar, Connor (2023-04-27). "Marco Rodrigues is back in action-packed Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves trailer". VG247. Retrieved 2024-04-27.
  9. ↑ "2005 KOF-party". SNK Playmore . Retrieved 2009-01-24.
  10. ↑ "SNK Talking About the Future". psxtreme.com. 2006-07-25. Archived from the original on 2009-01-09. Retrieved 2009-03-12.
  11. ↑ "Interviewed at the SNK Offices in Wall, New Jersey on March 7th, 2008". snk vs. capcom. 2008-03-07. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-12.
  12. ↑ "新生SNKのモノ作りはここから始まる。「餓狼MOW2」の話題も飛び出した，「THE KING OF FIGHTERS XIV」開発陣インタビュー" (in Japanese). 4Gamer. June 13, 2016. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Feature: Samurai Shodown Director "Cried Out In Surprise" When He Saw The Switch Version". Nintendo Life. 21 February 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  14. ↑ Bankhurst, Adam (August 5, 2023). "Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Announced at EVO 2023". IGN. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
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