King of Fighters Maximum Impact 2

Some resent the spin-off - are they right to?
Version
 PS2		Developer
SNK		Publisher
SNK Playmore / Ignition / Atari		Genre
Fighting



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By Dominick Hardy

No-one can accuse SNK Playmore of doing things by halves. Faced with the unenviable task of either alienating its loyal and die-hard fanbase by updating the flagship King of Fighters franchise and moving into the 3D arena, or to remain resolutely 2D at the risk of seeming last-gen to the more casual gamers and would-be purchasing public, SNK took the bold step of doing both. Thus, the KOF franchise was splintered into two paths - Maximum Impact for 3D, and the regular KOF series for 2D.

"It's easy to see what KOF has taken from Dead or Alive - the titillation."

King of Fighters Maximum Impact 2 - if you hadn't already guessed - is the 3D iteration of KOF, and the second one at that, being a sequel to the original Maximum Impact. In the face of Tekken, Virtua Fighter, Dead or Alive and a host of other newcomers all wanting to be the undisputed king of beat-em-ups and all being 3D, it seems like a wise choice on behalf of SNK to attempt to compete on the same level.

And compete they have, taking the best bits of existing titles and blending them around their esteemed KOF franchise. But even with the right ingredients there's no guarantee you'll make the nicest cake. So, what do we have? A lemon meringue pie or a dog's dinner?

First thing's first, and it's easy to see what KOF has taken from Dead or Alive - the titillation. Yes, the big-bosomed ladies' breasts now move in a lifelike fashion. Probably. At least they move how we image a double D-cupped expert ninjitsu fighter dressed in a bunny uniform and kicking the stuffing out of us would move. OK, so we made the bunny uniform up, but the outfits are only slightly less outrageous and the rest still stands... or at least, jiggles. And with that out of the way, what about the game?

P L E A S E   V I S I T   O U R   S P O N S O R :

"Character models are chunky and heavyweight, lending a gravitas to the fights."

Graphically things are top-notch, as is the norm now that the PS2 is reaching the end of its life cycle and developers have learnt how to squeeze every last drop out of the hardware. The scene is set by a wonderful CGI intro which the rest of the game admirably lives up to. Character models are chunky and heavyweight, lending a gravitas to the fights.

The backdrops are consistently excellent, adding a sense of atmosphere with arena boundaries that are deformable, should you land a particularly heavy blow on your opponent and send him flying. There's also a surprising number of characters on offer - 24 initially, and several more to be unlocked. Each character also comes with an alternate version of themselves plus several colour options.

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