The King of Fighters '97

The King of Fighters '97 for Neo Geo is SNK's 1997 2D team fighting game, released first for the MVS arcade system before reaching the AES home cartridge and Neo Geo CD. The fourth annual entry in The King of Fighters series brings together combatants from SNK worlds including Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting, then places them in three-person teams for a worldwide tournament. It is also the closing chapter of the series' Orochi Saga, giving its arcade campaign a stronger story focus than a simple succession of exhibition bouts.

A match is fought with a selected team of three characters, one combatant at a time. Players use punches, kicks, throws, jumps, special moves and desperation attacks to wear down the opposing team, choosing when to preserve a fighter or turn momentum around with a gauge-powered offensive. The familiar King of Fighters format rewards learning how individual move sets complement one another, since a full team must be defeated before the next contest begins. Solo play follows the tournament ladder, while the Neo Geo game also supports competitive two-player matches.

KOF '97 lets players choose between two combat systems before assembling a team. Advanced Mode develops the style used in The King of Fighters '96: offensive actions fill its Power Gauge, stocks can be spent on Super Special Moves, and MAX state strengthens a fighter's offense and defense. Extra Mode deliberately recalls The King of Fighters '94 and '95, with a chargeable gauge and a different movement option. That choice makes this Neo Geo release a meeting point between the series' early rules and its newer mechanics, allowing familiar characters to feel different according to the selected system.

The roster combines returning regulars with important newcomers. High-schooler Shingo Yabuki enters as Kyo Kusanagi's eager admirer, while Yashiro Nanakase, Shermie and Chris form the New Faces Team. Blue Mary, Ryuji Yamazaki and Billy Kane arrive together as the '97 Special Team, linking the tournament more closely to Fatal Fury. Players may freely build an Edit Team from eligible fighters, and hidden character variations add further options, including a version of Kyo that retains moves associated with earlier King of Fighters games.

Its story centers on the danger behind the tournament. Kyo, Iori Yagami and Chizuru Kagura are bound to the conflict surrounding Orochi, while the New Faces Team has a deeper connection to that threat than its public role suggests. Team choice affects parts of the arcade route: some paths can lead to battles with Orochi-afflicted versions of Iori or Leona, and particular combinations unlock distinct endings. The Sacred Treasures team of Kyo, Iori and Chizuru receives a special conclusion, fitting the game's role as the finale to the arc begun in The King of Fighters '95.

SNK followed the original arcade release with Neo Geo AES and Neo Geo CD editions in 1997, then brought the game to Sega Saturn and PlayStation in Japan during 1998. Later releases have kept the original game accessible through collections, mobile versions and ACA NEOGEO, while The King of Fighters '97 Global Match added online play to a later edition. For Neo Geo fighting-game fans, KOF '97 remains a pivotal series installment: it preserves the fast team-versus-team structure of its predecessors while resolving a major storyline and offering two distinctly styled ways to fight.