The King of Fighters '99 is an unlicensed fighting game published for the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis console by X Boy as a follow up to The King of Fighters '98.
A sequel, The King of Fighters 2000, was released the next year.
Overview[]
The King of Fighters '99 character select screen.
The game consists of 3-on-3 matches as the previous version did. Each character has their own special moves and one super move. New backgrounds exist and a few of the ones used previously have been altered significantly.
The controls are the same as '98. The A button blocks, B, & C punch and kick respectively. A super move can be done whenever the MAX icon flashes below your lifebar or if "Maximum" is set on the options menu. Throws are not implemented.
The endings are minimal, with a simple "Congratulation" screen with the character select portraits scrolling beneath it.
New Characters[]
Compared to The King of Fighters '98, Vega (M. Bison), "Cycl" (Cyclops), and "Ioro" (Iori) were added, but "Canme" (Cammy) was removed. The three new characters do not differ in movesets or abilities between the normal and Orochi versions. In this article, only the move lists of the three new characters will be discussed.
Vega / Orochi Vega
- Psycho Crusher - QCF + B or C
- Double Knee Press - QCB + C
- Vega Warp - QCB + B
- Psycho Shot - QCF, QCF + B
Note: Vega's standing punch, standing kick, and crouching punch are weak attacks if the forward direction is held down, otherwise they are strong attacks.
Cycl / Orochi Cycl
- Optic Blast - QCF + B or C
- Gene Splice - Forward, QCF + B or C
- Rushing Chop (pseudonym) - Forward, Back, Forward + B
- Mega Optic Blast - QCF, QCF + B
Note: Cycl has the fewest variations of normal attacks, with no distinction between weak and strong standing and crouching attacks, and similarly no distinction between vertical and diagonal jump attacks.
Ioro / Orochi Ioro
- 108 Shiki Yamibarai - QCF + C
- 100 Shiki Oniyaki - Forward, QCF + B
- 127 Shiki Aoibana - QCB + B or C
- Kin 1211 Shiki Yaotome - ???
Note: Ioro does not distinguish between weak and strong standing attacks, and similarly between vertical and diagonal jump attacks. Also, the input for Yaotome is apparently undefined and can only be done by an AI?
Music[]
All music used in this game was stolen from the unlicensed Mega Drive game Shui Hu Feng Yun Zhuan.
| The King of Fighters '99 | Shui Hu Feng Yun Zhuan |
|---|---|
| Title | Stage 3 |
| Round Start | Stage 1 |
| Treey / Ioro | Opening |
| Andy / Ryo / Takuma | Ending |
| Joe / Lobaut | Unused Music |
| Ryu / Vega | Stage 4 |
| Guile / Cycl | Stage 5 |
| Victory | Game Over |
Trivia[]
- Due to the five-character limit for character names, Takuma and "Lobaut" (Robert) are abbreviated as "Takum" and "Loba", respectively.
- The sprite for Cyclops, referred to as "Cycl" ingame, is the same sprite used in the SNES version of X-Men vs. Street Fighter. Because that game only used one punch and one kick attack, he is forced to have those same animations.
- Iori's, referred to as "Ioro" ingame, sprite is taken from either the Sony PlayStation or Neo-Geo version of The King of Fighter's 96, although it was ripped poorly and is a completely different size than all other fighters.
- Vega's (known as M. Bison in English versions of Street Fighter II) sprite is taken from Super Street Fighter II Turbo.
- "Canme" (Cammy) was removed for unknown reasons, but is only restored in the sequel; The King of Fighters 2000 for SNES. She is replaced with Ioro in the SNES version of The King of Fighters '98.
- Like most unlicensed games, this featured a copy protection scheme that rendered the ROM unplayable on copiers and emulators. The ROM did not work in any emulator until the protection scheme was emulated in HazeMD then used in subsequent versions of a few other Mega Drive emulators. Because the copy protection was simply emulated and not actually patched onto the ROM, as of this date only the original printings of the cartridge exist due to pirate manufacturers not having a patched ROM to produce carts with. The original ROM file was not properly patched until programmer D4S patched the ROM in 2011.
- The headshots plus the select screen background from the select screen are taken from The King of Fighters '97, for example: Ryu's headshot being an edit of Kyo Kusanagi's headshot.
- All of the new backgrounds are recycled from the SNES The King of Fighters' 98 , with the exception of the Women Team stage from KOF '96, which only appears in the SNES game.
Gallery[]
