SNK Playmore has announced via a series of new trailers that "The King of Fighters XIV" will be released for the PlayStation 4 in North America this coming Aug. 23. The game will be released in Japan two days later, Aug. 25, in what is one of the rare instances that a game launches in the West prior to being released in Japan.
As stated in a report from the PlayStation blog, the game will feature a large roster consisting of 50 playable characters. Series' regulars such as iori and Mai will be making a return but the game will feature several new faces such as "Samurai Shodown" character Nakoruru and the brand new character Shun'ei.
"The King of Fighters XIV" will be a return to form as it will be bringing back several of the older mechanics used in previous games such as the three-on-three team battles and the ability to chain three Super Special Moves into a single combo. Max Mode makes a return as well but has been improved to allow newer combo mechanics.
One of the newer mechanics is the Rush feature. Players can now simply mash the Square button to dish out a simple but quick combo. While this by itself may not deal a lot of damage it can be chained with special moves and other, more complex combos.
It will also utilize the PS4's full online capabilities to play against other gamers online. It is also stated that all of the PS4's online communication features will be utilized as well, allowing players to chat and voice-communicate with each other.
There will be a special pre-order edition that will also be available to those who purchase on the first day of release. Physical copies of this edition will come in a deluxe steelbook case with series' mainstay character Kyo on the cover. The Classic Kyo costume will also be featured as free DLC for all players during the game's first week after release.
