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KOF: Maximum Impact 2

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The King of Fighters 2006
Developer(s)SNK Playmore[1]
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Masahiro Maeda
Producer(s)Falcoon
Designer(s)Takahiro Abe
Yutaka Kurozumi
Programmer(s)Kazuaki Ezato
Artist(s)Falcoon
Writer(s)Akihiko Ureshino
Composer(s)Toshikazu Tanaka
SeriesThe King of Fighters
EngineRenderWare
Platform(s)Arcade, PlayStation 2
Release
  • JP: April 27, 2006
  • NA: September 19, 2006
  • EU: March 23, 2007
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Up to 2 players simultaneously

The King of Fighters 2006,[a] known in Japan as KOF: Maximum Impact 2,[b] is a 3D fighting video game produced by SNK Playmore and released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. An updated version was released on both PlayStation 2 and arcades in Japan under the title KOF: Maximum Impact Regulation A in 2008. It is the sequel to KOF: Maximum Impact (2004), which itself is a spinoff of The King of Fighters (KOF) series.

Gameplay

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Plot

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Many contended that the illegal fighting tournament in Southtown was sponsored by the gangland syndicate "Mephistopheles" to achieve the annihilation of their rivals and procure some operating capital. After its "King," Duke, suffered defeat at the hands of Alba Meira in the finals, he and his organization vanished from Southtown. Meanwhile, the media, firmly under Duke's control, released a fusillade of sensational exposés based on information from confidential sources regarding their former oppressors. In spite of this new torrent of "information," almost no one knew that an even larger entity had been pulling Mephistopheles' puppet strings.

The truth behind the Addes organization name was only known throughout the dark recesses of the underworld. No one really had an inkling as to what this organization truly entailed. Now, another of Addes was to reveal a new battle royale. Invitations in white envelopes were sent to the world's mightiest, who will find the call to the battle by Addes irresistible.

As stated in Alba Meira's private novel by Akihiko Ureshino on the official KOF Maximum Impact 2 site (which serves as an official follow up to the story of KOF Maximum Impact 2), Alba was in fact the one who defeated Jivatma and Luise.[3] Soiree was kidnapped as a result of that and Alba has not seen him since then.

Characters

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The game features 24 initially selectable characters, as well as 14 secret characters (including the final boss), for a total of 38 playable characters. Some characters have special alternate versions that can be unlocked. New characters are marked in bold.

  1. ^ (KOF 2006, or KOF '06)
  2. ^ (KOF:MI2)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Hidden character
  4. ^ A version of Ralf who doesn't flinch when hit, and whose attacks do greatly increased guard damage.
  5. ^ Shares most of his moves (and a special intro) with Nagase.
  6. ^ Boss character
  7. ^ Kyo Kusanagi with a moveset based on KOF '95, and depicted in his outfit from the Orochi and NESTS saga.
  8. ^ Ryo Sakazaki's Buriki One version.
  9. ^ Terry Bogard's Garou: Mark of the Wolves version.

Revisions

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Regulation A

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A sequel (and update) to Maximum Impact 2, it was released for the Taito Type X2 arcade system in Japan on July 7, 2008. It is the only arcade release made for the KOF: MI series and includes Ash Crimson, Blue Mary, Makoto Mizoguchi from Data East's Fighter's History series, and newcomer Xiao Lon, who is a Hizoku Assassin like her agnate brother, Duo Lon, into its character roster. Regulation A is a remake of Maximum Impact 2, but with the classic 3-on-3 gameplay from the 2D KOF series added in hopes of winning over the series fanbase as well as new players.

Despite the addition of four new characters, Armor Ralf has been removed, as have several stages, as well as the story and challenge modes from Maximum Impact 2. In addition, all of the characters have lost half of their outfits in both normal and alternate types. Some new music has been added, including songs from the original Maximum Impact and Sengoku 3, in addition to new alternate versions of existing stages and a new stage for Makoto Mizoguchi.

The game was also released for the PlayStation 2 in Japan, on July 26, 2008. It was planned for release in the U.S. along with RA2, but was cancelled due to the timing of KOF XII.

Regulation A2

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A sequel to KOF: Maximum Impact Regulation A was announced for the PlayStation 2 and Taito Type X2 at the Tokyo Game Show 2007. Many believed that the game was put on hold due to the development of The King of Fighters XII, but it was later canceled.[4]

Reception

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The game was nominated to the "PSXE's 2006 Game of the Year Awards" in the category Best Fighting Game, but it lost to Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection.[11] Greg Kasavin from GameSpot ranked the game as good, giving it a score of 7.3 over 10. He commented while the game was highly improved from its prequel, it had many issues. Use of 3D graphics, although being praised too for being "good in most cases", did not make changes to fights in comparison to 2D games from the series. However, he praised the variability of playable characters with different moves as well as their alternative costumes.[9] 1Up.com reviewer Richard Li rated the game as B+. He also praised the use of alternative costumes, commenting they "make even the most seasoned fan chuckle." He praised the mechanics from fights by saying they are much better from the first Maximum Impact, allowing the players to use new tactics to defeat his/her opponent.[7]

The game sold 56,431 units in Japan.[12]

Anime

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The King of Fighters: Another Day
Japanese DVD cover art
ザ・キング・オブ・ファイターズ アナザーデイ
(Za Kingu Obu Faitāzu Anazādei)
GenreAction, Drama
Original net animation
Directed byMasaki Tachibana
Written byFumio Asanuma
Music byDaiki Kasho
StudioProduction I.G
SNK
Released December 2, 2005 – March 3, 2006
Runtime32 minutes (total)
Episodes4 (List of episodes)

The tie-in animated series, The King of Fighters: Another Day, was released in 2005-06.[13][14][15] The four-episode series was produced and animated by Production I.G, and revolves around the plot of KOF: Maximum Impact, along with some touches of the current storyline about Ash Crimson, who joined the MI gang in the arcade game, The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact Regulation A. The ONA series was included with the Japanese release of Maximum Impact 2.

Cast

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Character Japanese voice actor[16][17] English voice actor
Soiree Meira Koji Haramaki Ed Bishop
Kyo Kusanagi Masahiro Nonaka Andrew Roth
Iori Yagami Kunihiko Yasui Eric Summerer
Alba Meira Hiroyuki Satō Jayson Wooley
Mai Shiranui Akoya Sogi Sheryl Stanley
Rock Howard Eiji Takemoto Mike Lane
Lien Neville Fumiko Inoue Claire Caponigro
Athena Asamiya Haruna Ikezawa Lily Kong
Luise Meyrink Hiroko Tsuji Katrin Biemann
Maxima Katsuyuki Konishi Mike Jarmus
Ralf Jones Monster Maezuka Scott Casey
Terry Bogard Satoshi Hashimoto Tony Carroll
Billy Kane Seijirō Marc Donovan
Ash Crimson Sōnosuke Nagashiro Duke Clement
Clark Still Yoshinori Shima Sean Michaels
K′ Yuuki Matsuda Andrew Scott

Production

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Another Day was announced at Tokyo Games 2005.[18] It was directed by Masaki Tachibana.[16] aired in Japan through the internet on ShowTime and GyaO while it aired on TV via Animax and Kids Station.[19] The ending theme is "Regret" by Dakota Star.

No.TitleOriginal release date
1"All Out"
December 2, 2005 (2005-12-02)
The story starts after the events of The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact. After the demise of Duke and his gang, Alba and Soiree Meira now spend their days protecting the citizens of Southtown. During the night, a fire breaks out in the city. With Alba away at the time, Soiree leads the rescue effort and rallies the rest of their gang to help. After he saves a young girl from a burning building, Soiree fights Iori Yagami, who was searching for the cause of the fire. They continue their fight in a church until Soiree moves to shield the girl he saved earlier from the building's collapsing ceiling; they were rescued by the joint efforts of Athena Asamiya and Mai Shiranui. The scene shifts to dawn with Soiree digging through the rubble (trying to find Iori) until Alba informs him that Iori survived. Alba also shows that he had rescued the two last survivors of the fire - a couple of kittens. Relieved that everyone is safe, Soiree collapses, exhausted.
2"Accede"
January 6, 2006 (2006-01-06)
The second chapter begins with Rock Howard experiencing a nightmare of him fighting Terry Bogard in a situation that mirrors Geese Howard's death. He leaves the apartment he shares with Terry and sees the town in flames. A blue light beam fired over Geese Tower draws his attention, prompting him to head there to investigate. On the tower's rooftop, Billy Kane and Lien Neville, who was sent to kill people related to Geese, are fighting. Billy hangs her beyond the roof with his pole when Rock arrives at the scene. Disagreeing with Billy's insistence to drop Lien, Rock fights with him and rescues Lien from losing her grip from the roof's edge. Billy then claims that Rock shames the legacy of his father and decides to kill him and Lien. However, Lien calls for reinforcements and the roof is fired with the same beam from moments ago. Rock asks her if killing him would free him from the shadow of Geese. She answers that it is up to him. Inside the building, they see the remains of a wall where a portrait of Rock's mother was presumably displayed. When Rock returns home, Terry leaves him for a nap and tells Rock to wake him when breakfast is ready. Rock notices the picture of his mother underneath Terry's jacket, muttering thanks to Terry for his kindness.
3"In the Dark"
February 3, 2006 (2006-02-03)
At the beginning of the third chapter, we see K′ and Maxima sabotaging the tunnel system in Southtown (while the fire is raging), trying to find out the whereabouts of the "Kyo clone" and a kidnapped scientist called Makishima. However, Maxima trips some electric wires, plunging Southtown into a blackout and causing their covert activity to be noticed by Heidern and he sends Leona, Ralf and Clark to investigate. K' and Maxima attempt to elude their pursuers by boarding a subway train but Heidern's team catches up to them. Ralf accuses the duo of kidnapping the scientist and they start fighting. After 24 seconds of calculated fighting, Maxima grabs K' and escapes into another train going the opposite direction. There, they are reunited with the rest of their party, Whip and Kula.
4"All Over"
March 3, 2006 (2006-03-03)

Here is where the previous chapters' stories intertwine with Kyo Kusanagi rising from the city's rubble and rescuing a victim. He sees a green flame and knowing the source to be Ash Crimson, he gives pursuit. Watching atop a building, Ash drops a radio antenna from up there, forcing Kyo to defend himself with his flames. Alba arrives on the scene and, after witnessing this event, concludes that Kyo started the fire and fights with the supposed criminal. Amused, Ash watches them until Iori attacks him. Frustrated by the intrusion, he escapes with the fire in the city also vanishing along with him. Heidern's team of Ikari warriors watch Alba and Kyo's fight, which continues despite the fire's disappearance. Confusing Kyo for a clone, Ralf plots to attack him until Iori arrives and says that it is the real Kyo, stopping the fight afterwards. After he learns that Ash was the real arsonist, Alba apologizes to Kyo and the three fighters part ways. As the sun rises, Alba is shown finding the two kittens that he rescues in the first episode. The final scene shows Ralf asking if Kyo isn't really a clone while lighting a cigarette. Kyo, lighting his flame, asks Ralf if he would like to find out.

After the credits of this episode, there is a cutscene to the crumbled down church (where Alba, Soiree and the little girl are at the end of the first episode), in which Luise Meyrink appears (hinting the story will continue onward to Maximum Impact 2).

Home media

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The anime was released in Japan via DVD as a pack-in with the Japanese release of Maximum Impact 2 on April 27, 2006[20] under a retail price of 7, 140 Yen.[21] The DVD is region two-encoded, but has English subtitles and dub track.[20]

The U.S. marketing strategy of The King of Fighters: Another Day was far less accessible. Originally intended to be included with KOF 2006 as a pre-order/early buyer bonus for customers of EBGames and GameStop, the U.S. arm of SNK failed to ship out the discs in conjunction with its release. Several weeks later, after some complaint from angry fans, the bonus DVDs started showing up at EBGames and GameStop locations and in many cases were obtainable for previous buyers upon request, yet quantities were limited and many are still left without it despite their devotion.[citation needed]

The U.S. DVD comes in a square cardboard envelope. The DVD is region one encoded and includes both English and Japanese subtitles and audio, both in Stereo and Dolby Digital 5.1. Special features include commentary on all episodes, character design galleries for major characters appearing in the series, one trailer for the animated series and three Japanese commercials for KOF: Maximum Impact 2.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ "The King of Fighters 2006 - PlayStation 2 - GameSpy". ps2.gamespy.com. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  2. ^ "KoF: Maximum Impact 2 dated". Eurogamer.net. 2006-07-07. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  3. ^ "KOF Max Impact 2 Novel Translation (Alba Only)". 2007-04-17. Archived from the original on April 15, 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-28.
  4. ^ "system16.com". Archived from the original on 2011-09-22. Retrieved 2012-01-03.
  5. ^ "King of Fighters 2006". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 2009-03-11. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  6. ^ "King of Fighters 2006". Metacritic. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  7. ^ a b Li, Richard (2006-09-19). "King of Fighters 2006 (PS2)". 1Up.com. Retrieved 2009-01-15.[permanent dead link‍]
  8. ^ Albiges, Luke (2007-07-17). "King Of Fighters: Maximum Impact 2". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 2009-03-18. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  9. ^ a b Kasavin, Greg (2006-09-15). "The King of Fighters 2006 Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2009-01-14. Retrieved 2009-01-15.
  10. ^ "King of Fighters: Maximum Impact II". Power Unlimited (in Dutch). July 25, 2007. Archived from the original on August 17, 2007. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  11. ^ "PSXE's 2006 Game of the Year Awards". psxetreme.com. Archived from the original on 2009-03-06. Retrieved 2009-03-12.
  12. ^ "2006年テレビゲームソフト売り上げTOP500（ファミ通版）". Geimin. Archived from the original on 2012-05-06. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  13. ^ Ressler, Karen (11 January 2016). "Chinese Site: The King of Fighters Gets Animated, Live-Action Adaptations". Anime News Network. Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  14. ^ Potts, Kristina (Summer 2008). "Fighting With Animé". Video Game Collector. No. 10. pp. 22–23.
  15. ^ McDonough, James; Patyk, Adam (August 2006). "Animation Station - Fighters Club". Tips & Tricks. No. 138. p. 42.
  16. ^ a b KOF Animation game.snk-corp.co.jp
  17. ^ "【アニメ動画：The King of Fighters Another Day】ショウタイムでアニメ動画を見放題！＜Show Time＞". www.showtime.jp. Archived from the original on 21 July 2006. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  18. ^ "Igのゲーム･アニメの戦略 Kofアニメ化発表（9/16）". September 16, 2005.
  19. ^ "放送・配信情報".
  20. ^ a b "2009年[平成21年] | PRESS RELEASE | 株式会社SNKプレイモア". game.snk-corp.co.jp. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  21. ^ "Snkプレイモア、Ps2「Kof Maximum Impact 2」初回特典のアニメDvdの内容を発表".
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