City of the Wolves Interview — SNK Director Discusses Series’ New Direction – PlayStation.Blog

It’s been a while since the pioneering fighting game series Fatal Fury had a real new entry. Yes, characters from the Fatal Fury series have appeared in other games, but the last real Fatal Fury game, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, hit arcades all the way back in 1999. 25 years later, the Legendary Wolves are back in Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, ready to appeal to a new generation of fighting gamers and tie together plot threads that longtime fans have seen for decades.

To get a closer look at Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, we sat down with director Hayato Konya and art director Yoichiro Soeda to discuss the game’s development process, new and old faces, and what makes the game special.

A long-standing continuation in the making

Fatal Fury was one of the pioneers of the fighting game genre. The original game followed fighters Terry, Andy Bogard, and their friend Joe Higashi as they set out to avenge the death of their adoptive father. The game emphasized story and cinematics, ending with a shocking climax in which the villain Geese Howard fell from a skyscraper to his death. Fatal Fury’s gameplay has evolved a lot since then, but its emphasis on stylish and memorable characters, action-movie-inspired stories, and vibrant Southtown setting continue.

“From the beginning, we had the concept of Fatal Fury as a movie where the main characters have to fight the big bad guy,” Soeda said. “It was very popular and players wanted more, so we kept expanding with each game. At some point, Terry adopted Geese’s child, Rock, as his son. At that point, we didn’t know where that would lead.”

However, Rock eventually became the new face of Fatal Fury.

These wolves have a pack style.

One of the most striking elements of City of the Wolves is its bold, vibrant art style. The visuals are meant to evoke a fusion of American comic book art and Japanese anime, appealing to both old and new players.

“We wanted the characters to really ‘pop’ and be memorable. We think American comics do that well, and we wanted to follow that,” Soeda said. “Fatal Fury traditionally has an anime style. We felt that, for a modern audience, a combination of those two things would work for the game. Now we have it, and it looks great.”

One of the newest additions to City of the Wolves’ gameplay is the Rev Gauge, a special meter tied to new mechanics that allows for new attacks and movement techniques. The damage players can inflict by using Rev-enhanced skills like enhanced Rev Arts and Rev Accels to chain together damaging attacks is huge. However, the risk of using too much Rev and falling into a tiring Overheat state is also a concern.

“We wanted to give people the ability to use super moves, but not limit them to a single gauge,” Konya explains. “So we have two different gauges, which makes things a lot easier. Originally, there was no Rev Gauge–there was just a power gauge. That idea came from Fatal Fury: Wild Ambition, where you had a Heat gauge. We modernized it and made it more visually appealing and easier to use.”

Back Home in Southtown

One thing fans are eagerly anticipating is character reveals, both of old favorites and new faces. One example is the recent return of longtime fan favorite Mai Shiranui, with a new look. But even the new characters have connections to old favorites: the spunky young fighter Preecha is a disciple of the original hero, Joe Higashi.

“Garou left us with a lot of homework,” Konya said. “What happened to Hotaru and her brother? What’s going on with Kain and Rock? We wanted to focus on telling those stories until the end and make sure we wrapped up all of that. So we had a lot of work to do.”

SNK games also have a history of combining gameplay and storyline together, with plot events affecting character skills and abilities, and this continues in City of the Wolves.

“It’s been 25 years since Garou was released, and there are still a lot of people playing that game,” Konya notes. “But we consider the story very important. And if the story requires this person to lose their powers, lose their arms, then so be it. But because it’s a long-awaited game, we don’t want to change it so much that it alienates people who want to see these characters again. It’s a balancing act.”

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves will mark the series’ long-awaited return to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on April 24 next year. Don’t worry, Wolves fans. You won’t be hungry for long.