![kof 97 combo kof 97 combo](https://wiki.supercombo.gg/images/a/ac/Characterselectkof97.png)
About that time, I got the idea to pick up the Japanese PS port of '97, just to see what I had missed, and I thought it was horrible. I picked up the DC port of '99 when it came out and thought it was pretty garbage compared to '98. Then it came out on Dreamcast and blah blah blah. Then in late '98 (maybe early 1999), a liquor store near the office I was working in got KOF '98, so I and a couple friends started playing that at lunch breaks. Because I did play '96 when it came out, but I wasn't even aware they had made a '97. I didn't have my homecart system anymore, it was years before I knew MVS was even an option for playing at home, the SNK games weren't getting domestic ports nor were there roms yet, and '97 (or late '96) must be the year the last arcades in my area finally finished disappearing. Probably part of it for me is that I didn't experience '97 until well after the fact. IMO, KOF '97 was the series' first major stumble.
![kof 97 combo kof 97 combo](https://img.youtube.com/vi/55NFGAMUaKs/0.jpg)
If '97 was someone's first KOF, or if they have good memories associated with it, then I can see that. I'd much rather play '95 or even '94 over '97. If there is one KOF (of the main series) that I might choose to never play again, it might be '99, but it would probably be '97. And gameplay-wise, it doesn't live up to '98. Music? Yeah, there are a couple good tunes, when they bother to have music at all.Īesthetic-wise, '97 is a giant step down from '96.
![kof 97 combo kof 97 combo](https://www.cyberfanatix.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/kof97-global-match.jpg)
And I think the theme park looks fucking stupid. It's bad enough to look like it belongs in 2001. Hell, the China stage might be THE worst of the series, at least out of the SNK installments. Terrible color choices, lack of visual depth, and shoddy parallax. There are a couple good ones, but also a few of the series' worst. And I don't think the level design is badass.