King of Fighters XII debuted alongside the playable Street Fighter 4 at the AOU show in Japan last month. Both games retained their traditional 2D gameplay (applause), but received significant visual upgrades that were immediately apparent.

While KOFXII maintained a more 2D look than SF4’s clearly 3D models, it was assumed by many that the game was still utilizing 3D assets or cell shading—however it was hidden. Prepare to be impressed, because according to producer Masaaki Kukino, this isn’t the case at all.

Kukino tells Kotaku, “The game is one hundred percent hand drawn. There is zero cell shading in The King of Fighters XII.”

SNK’s process involves taking original art drawn by hand, modeling it in 3D– allowing for greater detail in animations– then transferring it back into 2D for extensive frame-by-frame touch-up, including color and pixel-by-pixel details all done by the artist’s hand. Considering all the characters and backgrounds, the sheer number of frames to process is mind-boggling.

SNK’s devotion to the tradition of the genre is admirable and KOFXII must be a real labor of love for them. I cannot wait to see more of the game in motion and I hope that SNK gets the credit they deserve for this endeavor.

2D fighting games have been on the decline for some time, with their 3D counterparts being much more prevalent in arcades and on consoles. While games like Tekken, Soul Calibur, Dead or Alive and Virtua Fighter see updates and frequent sequels, fans of 2D fighters are still playing games like Street Fighter: Third Strike and Capcom Vs. SNK 2.

Seeing Street Fighter and King of Fighters re-emerge is really exciting. While fighting games have a notoriously heady learning curve for those without years of experience, 2D fighters can be more accessible. With online play being emphasized this generation, perhaps these two games can find a larger audience than they have in the past.

Source: Kotaku

Tags: 2d_fighters, 2d_fighting_games, 3d_assets, cell_shading, king_of_fighters_xii, labor_of_love, soul_calibur, street_fighter_third_strike

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2 Comments » subpop on March 5, 2008 5:48 pm Doing a little bit of searching can find you a very promising video. :) http://www.gametrailers…. Geoff H on March 7, 2008 9:33 am Yep, saw this from the AOU show. It’s the only vid currently out there of the game in motion I think. Definitely looks sharp! Let’s hope Yamazaki’s in. RSS feed for comments on this post. Comment Now Note: Commenting on Ripten does not currently require registration, however to be eligible for contests on the site, you must be a registered user. Name (required) Mail (will not be published) (required) Website Commenting Rules: No hate speech allowed. If you must argue, please debate intelligently. Comments containing selected keywords or outbound links will be put into moderation to help prevent spam. Ripten reserves the right to delete comments and ban anyone who doesn't follow the rules. Thanks. Notify me of followup comments Tired of the Goomba? Upload your own custom comment avatar.