King of Fighters 2006 for PlayStation 2 Reviews by Gamers

Probably worth renting as it has a lot of characters which is the good thing. Graphics are decent but not great. Gameplay is pretty good. Once you beat a story mode with the character you have chosen you can unlock new characters, new stages, new costumes. If you like fighting games, this game doesn't compare to Tekken 5 or Soul Calibur 3. King of Fighters is not worth owning but worth renting but you'll be disappointed if you love Soul Calibur 3 or Tekken 5.

While not offering the depth of the latest VF offerings, KoF MI2006 presents 3d fighting aficionados with something that KoF fans have enjoyed for years: unique characters and fast-paced action.

The story mode is fairly bare bones, but enough to keep your interest. Completing it also unlocks a costume for the selected character, so it's well worth pursuing, particularly late in the game.

The story comprises of a tournament (King of Fighters, anyone?). Within that, there is a preliminary text block explaining your character's past, and then after three matches there is a battle with a rival/friend that involves some voice-work and is overall enjoyable for most characters. Proceeding the boss battle, there is another cut-scene with more voice-work which is an appreciable reward for "winning" the tournament. Don't expect too much depth here, as it is a fighting game and if they're talking, then you can't be fighting.

The boss battle is normal KoF fare, which basically means the boss is overpowered with Super Combos that can literally rip away 60-70% of your life gauge if you're uprepared. If by this point you have not become acquainted with the new 3d dodge implementation, then you'll walk away well versed in its usage.

There are several additional modes, including a mission mode where you have to complete certain tasks such as "strike 10 times (easy)" to "Defeat this opponent who has twice as much life as normal and yours gradually decreases (even without taking damage)." The missions are skill building, and after spending some time there, you will be considerably better. There are also mini-games, including one where you have to defeat the tank from Metal Slug, which all sorts of amusing at times.

Overall, I can easily recommend it to both fans of KoF and fighting gamers alike. There's much more depth to this game than Mai Shiranui's jiggly chest: the fighting engine is solid and the fighters actually play differently from each other.