The King Of Fighters 2006

Another in the 1v1 fighting genre seeking to rekindle that original arcade magic of Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, King of Fighters 2006 (also known as KOF: Maximum Impact 2) brings a stunning roster of characters and solid mechanics to the oversaturated arena. Following in the footsteps of its 2D predecessors, and making the jump to 3D more successfully, this sequel brings some high-octane fights, power-ups, move-sets and more to help distinguish itself—but is it enough to stand out?

Who Will Be Crowned King?

The story of King of Fighters 2006 follows the brothers Alba and Soiree as they try to uncover the truth about the Southtown fighting tournament and who was actually behind it all? Was it, in fact, ‘Mephistopheles’ or some larger criminal syndicate?

As Alba defeated Duke (The King) in a fight, there are some tensions surrounding the entire ordeal—and Duke is a bit of a sore loser. With that in mind, the story plays out through fights featuring multiple characters of the monstrous roster, but the answers to the puppet-master set-up don’t all come from the game—as there is also an adjoining anime series and novel of this universe. That being said, the stories in fighting games aren’t often what holds people’s attention—the fighting is.

Fight, Fight, Fight!

While it doesn’t necessarily do too much to fundamentally change what makes this genre so popular, this game does offer extremely solid fighting mechanics, reactive inputs, and a lot of variety in the character choice (almost forty!). That being said, there isn’t weapons to make it stand out in the way Soul Calibur does, or memorable power-ups with distinct characters like Tekken. However, the game does come as somewhat of a conglomeration of those and a few others: Virtua Fighter and especially Dead or Alive come to mind—as this game features some, ‘well-endowed’, female character models. Although, where something like Injustice can get by with exciting characters and finishers—there isn’t much to set King of Fighters 2006 away from other games of the genre.

Worth the Time?

The biggest thing that limits King of Fighters 2006 is that, while it does everything solidly, it doesn’t do anything spectacularly. The characters function, but they don’t all distinguish themselves in their move-sets very well.

Most of the visuals colorful and the animations distinct—but, again, not amazing—even for the time they were made.

Pros:

• Solid move-sets and mechanics
• Huge character roster
• Varied environments
• Extremely original story

Cons:

• Nothing done spectacularly
• Forgettable cast
• Limited animations
• Lack of finishers

Known as Maximum Impact 2 in Japan, this 3D fighter sequel features largely the same cast and herky-jerky mechanics as the previous entry. The U.S. version loses online play, yet Terry Bogard's English remains intact. The unlocking of wacky and largely unpleasant costumes ensues.

Bottom line:

If you've ever said to yourself, "I wish King of Fighters could be more mediocre," then run, don't walk, to your local retailer.