Fans of one on one fighting games probably know the name King of Fighters quite well. If not, what kind of fan of the genre are you? Anyhow, this was the ninth game SNK released in the King of Fighters franchise and it returned the series to a more classic model. The last King of Fighters game to use the 3 on 3 fight model was 98, the three after took on a 4 on 4 model for some reason, this was also known as the “striker” period for the franchise. Things are back to normal here though.

Featuring over 40 characters across many different teams, King of Fighters 2002 is quite a mixed bag of content. It is interesting that there are so many fighters available, most are unique to each other in fighting style and certainly visual appearance. All of them are available in glorious pixels.

For purists, these ACA Neo Geo releases are probably not going to float your boat. These are recreations based on the original game so that achievements and on-line multiplayer could be easily added to the games. As with most recreations, there are going to be some things missing from the action.

Me personally, I was always more a fan of Capcom’s offerings in this genre, though SNK more than held their own with the scrolling brawlers in my opinion. I just could not get used to the wacky controller inputs required for special moves in SNK fighting games.
For those that love SNK fighters, here you go.

ACA Neo Geo The King of Fighters 2002 by Hamster Co.
Platform: Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
In App Purchases: No
Rated: T for Teen on both Nintendo Switch and Xbox One
Available now on Nintendo Switch and Xbox One, PlayStation 4 version link not available at time of writing.