Akihiko Ureshino (Japanese:嬉野 秋彦,Hepburn:Ureshino Akihiko) is alight novel author and game designer, born April 19, 1971, in theTochigi Prefecture, Japan. He wrote his first novel while he was attendingYokohama National University for a degree in Liberal Arts. He is known to JapaneseSNK fans for his game novelizations ofThe King of Fighters series and other games. He also partakes in the story development for the series, and is the one who usually writes the online novels found on the games' websites. Akihiko Ureshino's other works includeThe Black Steel Demon Crest Repairer,She is a War Fairy, andMephisto's Magic Bullet.[1]
Ureshino is known for writing severalThe King of Fighters works based onSNK games he also oversees. After working in 10KOF novelizations, Ureshino noted that SNK used leadsKyo Kusanagi andIori Yagami too much and believed they should be given a rest afterThe King of Fighters '97. Ureshino has mixed feelings with the twoGame Boy AdvanceThe King of Fighters spin-offEX. While he was still excited, when the main visual of the new character was presented to him, which was no longer even a rough draft, but was already solid. What was more, when reading the specs, Iori Yagami was the mid-boss andGeese Howard was the final boss. Ureshino was bothered with these choices as the staff explained the data was based on the DC version of TheKing of Fighters '99 and put intoThe King of Fighters 2000 system. However, they said that they wouldn't be able to touch deeply on the characters or story from the NESTS arc. The reluctance to touch the NESTS cast and instead focus on Orochi bothered Ureshino. The following year, on New Year's Day 2002,EX was released without any problems. However, the game's quality was terrible. He was also a member of the staff, but was only in charge of the text. He would never recommend it to anyone, and it was a terrible game that feels like a joke. However, he was proud of opposing the setting that Moe was Kyo's half-sister, whom Shibafune had created in America during his time as a warrior.[2]
During the early stages of development forThe King of Fighters '99, SNK planned to exclude Kyo and Iori from the game because its story was centered on new protagonist K', but they reversed this decision because "they couldn't leave these popular characters in limbo".[3] Kyo and Iori were supposed to disappear due to business reasons or the requests of enthusiastic fans, but in the end they have continued to appear ever since. After taking a step back in the "Nests Saga" they are then playing important roles in the "Ash Saga" inThe King of Fighters 2003.[4] The rival's relationship stood out early in the 1990s because it was weird to see characters interacting before a fight started. While Kyo and Iori are always arguing with each other, Ureshino was careful with how writing them to the point their introduction inThe King of Fighters '99 added a subtext of happiness of the two rivals meeting again, believing they had died inKOF '97.[5] The relationship develops over later games until the latestKOF XV from 2022 where Ureshino noted fighting Kyo was Iori's only desire in life and always wanted to join him to prevent his death.[6]
The problem is the positioning of these two within theKOF: Maximum Impact series. Ureshino noted that while Kyo was relegated to a more comical and minor role in the first game, the Meira siblings did not stand out as strong protagonists and wanted the original net animationAnother Day andMaximum Impact 2 give them a better portrayal.[7] SNK said that Terry's great popularity among players made him one of the most used characters for every installment of the series.[8] In the "Ash Saga" Kyo, Iori, and Chizuru's Three Sacred Treasures play a major role in the "Orochi demon Returns" type story, and in the previous "Nests Saga," Kyo was involved in the story to some extent, but not Iori, in terms of the connections with the new protagonist K'. However, the Miera brothers were the main focus of theMaximum Impact spin-offs relegating Kyo and Iori for the first time to minor characters. Both the Ash arc andMaximum Impact games were developed at the same time which resulted in Kyo and Iori still playing a major role in theAnother Day original video animation that promotesMaximum Impact 2.[4] In an interview, Ureshino stated that after he wroteThe King of Fighters '96 until2001 light novels, he was asked by a production company to write a novel onThe King of Fighters 2003. However, the project ended due to a loss of communication with him.[9]
Ureshino is also involved in theFatal Fury characters which he also oversees inThe King of Fighters.[10] He oversees a similar relationship in rivals but more brutal between heroTerry Bogard who seeks to avenge his father Jeff murderered at the hands ofGeese Howard. However, for upcoming installments, Terry only wishes to defeat Geese for his father's honor which accidentally leads to Geese's death inReal Bout Fatal Fury when Geese rejects salvation and dies, abandoning all connections he had and wanted to dissolve.[11][12] Though Ureshino has not talked about working in the upcomingFatal Fury sequelFatal Fury: City of the Wolves, he sees the older Terry fromGarou: Mark of the Wolves as a more fatherly character having issues adoptingRock Howard and trying his best to write them together inKOF: Maximum Impact which takes place beforeGarou under his own request.[13] Ureshino laments not being able to write his ownFatal Fury novels as SNK had been restrictingGarou novelizations was that they had already teamed up withKodansha and were planning to develop an official story calledGarou Densetsu Seiden on a large scale, whether as a comic or a novel. Ureshino thinsk that was probably why he had approached Gamest Z Bunko prior to this about a novelization ofFatal Fury 3 and been turned down.[14]
^Falcoon."February 2006 Entries".Falcoon Blog - KOF Maximum Impact 2 Develo-Diary (in Japanese). Archived fromthe original on March 8, 2008. RetrievedFebruary 21, 2008.
