| Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | KOF Studio |
| Publisher | SNK |
| Director | Hayato Konya |
| Series | Fatal Fury |
| Engine | Unreal Engine 4[2] |
| Platforms | |
| Release | April 24, 2025[1] |
| Genre | Fighting |
| Modes | |
Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves[a] is a 2025fighting game developed by KOF Studio and published bySNK. It is the seventh main installment in theFatal Fury series and the first new entry in 26 years, followingGarou: Mark of the Wolves (1999). The game was released forPlayStation 4,PlayStation 5,Windows, andXbox Series X/S on April 24, 2025.[3] Upon release, it received generally positive reviews from critics.
Gameplay inFatal Fury: City of the Wolves is similar to that of its predecessor, with combat taking place on a two-dimensional movement plane, though one stage does allow the use of the two-lane system from earlierFatal Fury games.[4] Several mechanics fromMark of the Wolves are retained inCity of the Wolves, including the T.O.P. system, renamed the "Selective Potential Gear" (S.P.G.) system; and the "Just Defense" mechanic, which features an expanded "Hyper Defense" variation designed to protect against attacks that hit multiple times. In addition to basic normal moves and special moves, players can also gain access to "Gear" super attacks by filling two meters at the bottom of their screen. Spending one meter will perform an Ignition Gear attack, while both meters can be spent to perform a more powerful Redline Gear attack. The most powerful super move, the Hidden Gear, requires both bars to be spent while the S.P.G. is active.[5]
A new mechanic introduced in the game is the "Rev System". Players can perform multiple types of Rev abilities, including "Rev Arts", enhanced versions of a character's special moves; "Rev Blow", an attack that can help put distance between the two characters; "Rev Accel", which assists in chaining attacks together to create combos; and "Rev Guard", a defensive block which pushes opponents away as their attack connects. Using these techniques gradually causes the character's Rev Gauge to fill; when full, the character will enter an Overheat state and be unable to use any Rev abilities until it fully depletes. The affected player can drain their gauge more quickly by actively approaching and attacking their opponent.[5] The game offers two control schemes for players to choose from: "Arcade Style", which features traditional controls akin to previous entries in the series, and "Smart Style", a simplified control scheme that allows players to perform attacks and combos using only basic directional inputs and single button presses, though certain abilities are inaccessible in Smart Style.[5]
In addition to the standard arcade mode, the game features a single player mode called "Episodes of South Town". This mode featuresRPG mechanics and has players selecting challenge missions scattered around a South Town map to earn experience points and additional skills for their chosen character.[1] Progressing in this mode will unlock new outfits, colors, and patterns with which to customize the characters in the "Color Edit" mode.[1] Music from otherFatal Fury andArt of Fighting games can also be played during battles or using an in-game jukebox.[1] The game supports online multiplayer, includingrollback netcode andcross-platform play.[1]
Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves features 17 characters in its base roster, with an additional five planned as part of its first season ofdownloadable content.[1] While the previous game,Mark of the Wolves, featured an almost entirely new roster of playable fighters,City of the Wolves marks the return of several characters from the earlierFatal Fury games, along with characters originating fromFatal Fury's sister series,Art of Fighting.[6]
City of the Wolves is the firstFatal Fury game to feature guest characters not created by SNK. Real life professionalfootballerCristiano Ronaldo and DJSalvatore Ganacci appear as playable characters in the game's base roster.[7][8] The first season of DLC also includes two characters fromCapcom'sStreet Fighter franchise.[9]
Newcomers are marked inbold, while guest characters are marked initalics.
A year after the King of Fighters: Maximum Mayhem tournament,[b]Rock Howard andKain R. Heinlein's investigations have determined the whereabouts of Marie Heinlein, Rock's mother and Kain's sister who was believed deceased. They learn thatMr. Big is holding her captive, demanding the legacy of Rock's deceased fatherGeese Howard as ransom. Rock goes to Geese's former right hand,Billy Kane, who reveals that among the items in Geese's legacy are the Sacred Scrolls of Jin, magic relics which he had preserved despite Geese ordering they be destroyed before his death.[c] Billy agrees to give Rock the legacy, but it is stolen by an unknown figure.
Days later, an invitation is sent out by Franz Stroheim for a new King of Fighters tournament in Second South Town, with the stolen legacy offered as the prize. During the tournament, Kain and Billy negotiate with Big for Marie's safe return and protect her from their enemies, such as Big's former underling Jack Turner, while Rock reunites with his adoptive father Terry Bogard and goes on to win the tournament. As the others return to Geese Tower with Marie, Jack appears and attacks Big, injuring Marie. Seeing this, Rock's intense emotions resonate with the scrolls, causing him to become possessed and forcing Terry and the others to fight him.
During the battle, Rock and Billy experience visions revealing that Geese left Marie to hide her and Rock from his enemies, and that a curse on the Sacred Scrolls of Jin allows those descended from the Jin family to be possessed by their ancestors; because Geese is descended from the Jins through his father Rudolph Krauser von Stroheim, he ordered the scrolls destroyed to protect Rock. Rock is defeated and returns to normal, and happily reunites with his mother while the others burn the scrolls. In the aftermath, Marie goes to live together with Kain, and Billy agrees to keep the rest of Geese's legacy safe. Terry, believing Rock is now strong enough to stand on his own, goes back to South Town, with Rock thanking Terry for raising him and promising to meet again.
In 2005, during the KOF Year-End Party fan event, SNK Playmore illustratorFalcoon mentioned that a sequel toGarou: Mark of the Wolves was around 70% complete for theNeo Geo by the SNK team. Falcoon also confirmed that one of the new characters meant to appear was a student of legacyFatal Fury characterJoe Higashi.[18] In July 2006, SNK Playmore reported that they were still working on the sequel, saying that they would use modern high-resolution graphics instead of the resolution quality level seen in the original game.[19] During an interview in March 2008, SNK Playmore USA developers commented that there was not any concrete schedule of demands for the game and that they planned to make the sequel with some new technology.[20]
In June 2016, SNK revealed artwork and sprites of the cast of the cancelled Neo Geo version.[21] SNK director Nobuyuki Kuroki stated in February 2020 that he was personally interested in 'reviving' theFatal Fury series.[22]
DuringEVO 2022, it was revealed that a newFatal Fury game was officially in development at SNK.[11] At EVO 2023, SNK announced the game's title to beFatal Fury: City of the Wolves, and revealed a first look at the gameplay, demonstrating it would be a 2.5D fighting game similar to their other contemporary fighting gamesSamurai Shodown (2019) andThe King of Fighters XV (2022).[23] In March 2024, the game was officially announced for a 2025 release. Additionally, it was announced thatCity of the Wolves will be the firstFatal Fury game to feature an English-language voice track, and the first SNK game to do so sinceThe King of Fighters XII (2009).[14]
Following a teaser in September 2024, professional athleteCristiano Ronaldo was announced as a playable character in March 2025.[24][7] Ronaldo's announcement was followed by confirmation of musicianSalvatore Ganacci as a playable character in April 2025, who also worked with SNK to incorporate music from several different DJs into the game's soundtrack.[25] Both announcements were met with backlash from fans and critics, with multiple outlets claiming the two felt out of place in the game, particularly givena history of controversies surrounding Ronaldo.[26][27][28][29][30] Several believed their inclusion to be the result of influence from theSaudi Arabian government, as SNK is owned by theMisk Foundation operated byCrown Prince of Saudi ArabiaMohammed bin Salman.[31][32][33][34]
The game was promoted as part of aboxing match betweenChris Eubank Jr. andConor Benn in April 2025; a trailer featuring the two boxers battling the game's cast was released to advertise the match, also featuringiShowSpeed andKSI.[35][36] In addition, the game was also promoted atWWE'sWrestleMania 41 event inLas Vegas on April 19, 2025, as Ganacci appeared on the stage performing an entrance forJey Uso's match againstGunther forRaw'sWorld Heavyweight Championship.[37] The game features an animated opening cinematic directed byMasami Obari, who previously directedFatal Fury: The Motion Picture (1994), with music by Ganacci.[38]
Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves was released forPlayStation 4,PlayStation 5,Windows, andXbox Series X/S on April 24, 2025.[1] It will only be available in a "Special Edition" format,[39] which includes the base game and the first season pass.[1] Players who pre-order the game will receive an additional costume for Terry based on his appearance inFatal Fury 2 (1992), along with three days of early access.[40] At the 2024Tokyo Game Show, it was announced thatKen andChun-Li fromCapcom'sStreet Fighter series would be added toCity of the Wolves as part of the first season of downloadable content, following Terry and Mai's similar appearance as DLC inStreet Fighter 6 that year.[9] The remaining three characters for the season were announced during the 2025 Evo Awards.[6]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 80/100 (PS5)[41] 79/100 (XSX)[42] 81/100 (PC)[43] |
| OpenCritic | 84% recommend[44] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Digital Trends | 3.5/5[45] |
| Eurogamer | 4/5[46] |
| Famitsu | 33/40[47] |
| HobbyConsolas | 85%[49] |
| IGN | 8/10[50] |
| Jeuxvideo.com | 16/20[51] |
| MeriStation | 8/10[52] |
| PCMag | 4/5[53] |
| Push Square | 7/10[54] |
| Shacknews | 8/10[55] |
| TechRadar | 8/10[56] |
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Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according toreview aggregator websiteMetacritic.[41][42][43]OpenCritic determined that 84% of critics recommended the game.[44] In Japan, four critics fromFamitsu gave the game a total score of 33 out of 40.[47]
During its first week of sales in Japan,Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves sold 5,067 physical units on PlayStation 5 and 2,599 on PlayStation 4. An additional 1,235 units were sold on week 2 resulting in initial physical sales of 8,901 units.[57]
FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves will only be available in this Special Edition format. There are no plans at this time to sell the base game and Season Pass 1 individually.
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