Considering the legacy of arcade fighting games, it was certainly a bold move to release a game called The King of Fighters. Game developer SNK, however, knew they had a winner on their hands. And while the debate may continue over which game truly deserves such a lofty title, one thing is clear – The King of Fighters, especially with a ten-year history under their belt is certainly a top contender.

Back in the day (1994 to be exact,) the fighting game was typically a “mano a mano” experience. The King of Fighters, on the other hand, offered three times the fun. The tournament, a remnant from the Fatal Fury series, now consisted of three-member teams, converging from all around the globe, and meeting in the ultimate fighting challenge.

All in all, there were eight teams of three to choose from, featuring familiar faces from such games as Art of Fighting, Ikari Warriors, Fatal Fury and Psycho Soldier (all from the SNK library) as well as some new challengers. Teams offered up one member at a time, and if he or she was defeated, the next member of the trio replaced them.

The tournament itself was the brainchild of notorious tycoon Rugal Bernstein, a formidable opponent in his own right. So much so that he didn’t even need the help from teammates; he could take on a group of three opponents all by his lonesome and give them a serious challenge. Luckily, players had an assortment of the typical combo and desperation moves in the arsenal, and once the “POW” meter at the bottom of the screen was at maximum strength, those coveted special moves were made available.

Perhaps the only major flaw in the game, one that players consistently whined about, was the inability to customize their teams, forcing them to go with the pre-determined lineups. To their credit, SNK, paid attention, and when The King of Fighters ’95 was released the following year, a team edit mode was made available, allowing players to concoct their own trio of competitors from a list of 24 available fighters. This fix was applauded by fans of the game and served to keep them coming back for each subsequent sequel. But it certainly wasn’t the only innovation on the horizon.

In 1996, SNK completely redesigned the combo system. The following year, they introduced a dual-mode system of “Advanced” and “Extra.” And also added some realism to the relationships of each of a team’s members. If team members happened to rub each other the wrong way, something clearly evident in their facial expressions, they were less likely to possess a spirit of cooperation, leaving their teammates out to dry.

SNK released The King of Fighters ’98: The Slugfest the following year, expanding the roster of combatants to 38. With so many to choose from, the game offered a “roulette” team edit mode, where it would randomly assemble a team from the available choices. Furthermore, the game attempted to minimize complete combat blowouts by awarding an advantage to any team that lost a member during the course of the competition.

The next year brought The King of Fighters ’99: The Millennium Battle. The roster was once again reduced to 28 fighters, but four-man teams were now available, sort of, with the fourth member acting as a “striker,” only stepping in to quickly assist from time to time. The Advanced/Extra modes were replaced with Counter/Armor modes. In the former, desperation moves were available at any time, and in the latter, players didn’t have to worry about being pushed out of position from their opponents blows.

Into the new millennium, The King of Fighters 2000 expanded upon the concept of the striker, which made these fourth members of the team available at any time. Strike Bombs could also now be quickly replenished by taunting your opponents.

Next up was The King of Fighters 2001, created for the Neo Geo, as well as the Dreamcast and Playstation 2 home gaming systems. The Tactical Order System was introduced in this game, allowing players to relegate which team members would act as full-time combatants and which would serve as their strikers, or they could simply go with a team of four fighters and no strikers. The disadvantage to this lineup was that the Power Meter took longer to fill up if no strikers were present on the team.

The following year, the ninth game in the franchise was released, getting back to the games earlier roots by eliminating four man teams entirely and bringing back some familiar fighters from yesteryear. SNK also added a Max Activation state, which temporarily increased a players offensive and defensive capabilities and armed them with a Super Special Move, and if that weren’t formidable enough, a MAX Super Special Move.

The King of Fighters 2003 retained the original three man teams, with a new twist – the ability to switch a fighter in the middle of battle, via a “quick shift” once the power meter gave a “Change OK” signal. Players also now had the ability to elect one of their team members the leader, thereby giving him access to some exclusive capabilities known as Leader Super Special Moves.

In 2004, SNK elected to finally conclude the practice of yearly releases for the game. Their new offering, released the following year, was called The King of Fighters XI, featuring an onslaught of new innovations, including the Quick Shift, Saving Shift, and Dream Cancel. Quick Shift worked in the same way as it had in the previous installation, Saving Shift allowed a fighter to be saved from being pummeled, and Dream Cancel actually allowed a player the ability to cancel a move, mid-stream, and replace it with a more powerful move, leading to devastating consequences.

After a more than ten-year legacy, SNK isn’t quite ready to throw in the towel just yet, preparing for the release of The King of Fighters XII. Interestingly enough, this new high-definition offering is being touted as “100% hand drawn” and will feature an increased 5 rounds per battle. If history is any indication, it will not be the last addition to this enduring series. And after more than 10 years of innovations in the fighting genre, it is becoming harder and harder not to conclude that this highly successful franchise may, in fact, be worthy of its lofty title.