King Of Fighters 12 (Xbox 360)
IGNITION Entertainment has once again wheeled out classic fighting title King Of Fighters.
The crowning jewel in the SNK stable is back with the usual three-on-three team system, with fights of up to five rounds and 20 characters to choose from.
The gameplay engine and graphics have been given a complete overhaul as the game tries to compete in the new market it finds itself in. Gamers demand excellence now and whilst this is a decent game which will thrill hardcore fans, there is definitely something missing for me.
Personally I really enjoyed the game. I have grown up with KOF and Streetfighter franchises and, despite the similarities, there are room for the two.
Would an outsider pick the game up and enjoy it as much? I'm not sure. The graphics may be artistically impressive and hand-drawn but for me they didn't look as brilliant as I expected.
I mainly blame this on the garish, vomit-inducing backdrops. They detract too much from the quality of the characters and interfere with the main action.
The gaming is also not as quick as I expected but it was by no means unplayable, quite the opposite.
It does very much feel like a redesign of the game but it is a very stable one for it to move forward.
The fact of the matter, though, is that this a work in progress is not as good as some brawling games on the 360... yet!
Older/Newer
« Scooby-Doo!:First Frights! (Wii) | New U: Fitness First Personal Trainer (Wii) »
Authors
Steve Wollaston - Sunday Mercury games reviewer Steve has been writing about video games for donkey's years. In fact he is probably far too old for it now which is why you will see a lot of reviews been done by kids... He has been nominated three times for Regional Games Journalist Of The Year at the Games Media Awards, but never wins. His major love is sports games and rates Sensible World of Soccer circa 90's as the greatest game ever made - closely followed by Championship Manager 2. Skyrim has currently taken over his life.
