I still remember back in middle school, saving money from breakfast just to go to the arcade and put coins in, all just to play a few rounds of King of Fighters '97. Back then, Kyo Kusanagi's Orochinagi, Iori Yagami's triple Aoi Hana, and Goro Daimon's Arashi no Yama—every move was etched into my muscle memory. Now that I've downloaded 'King of Fighters '97 OL' on my phone, my first reaction was—wow, this feeling is just right! 😭
To be honest, when I first saw that it was officially licensed by SNK, I felt a bit uneasy. After all, over the years I've played too many mobile games claiming to be nostalgic, only to find they were all pay-to-win reskins, messing up classic characters completely. But when I started 《The King of Fighters '97 OL》, seeing that familiar character selection screen and hearing the BGM, I got goosebumps. Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, Chizuru Kagura, Terry, Mai Shiranui... seeing these old friends appear one by one really took me back instantly to my elementary school days, crouching in front of the arcade machine.
Of course, compared to the original King of Fighters '97, the mobile remake definitely has quite a few changes. The most obvious one is the control method. Previously, there was a joystick plus six buttons, and executing combos required smoothness and rhythm; for example, to pull off Kyo's 'Shining Tatsu' perfectly, you had to hit it fast and accurately to connect. Now, on the mobile touch screen, it has been changed to a virtual joystick plus virtual buttons, which is really hard to get used to at first, and it often feels like you can't pull off the ultimate moves. However, after playing for a while, I realized that the game has implemented a lot of assistance optimizations, such as directly binding skill buttons to moves for one-touch execution and cooldown indicators for skills. This is actually more friendly for players with less dexterity, but in the eyes of veteran players, this simplification does lose a bit of the sense of achievement from 'pulling off moves' back in the day.
Another thing is the skill system. In the original King of Fighters '97, each character only had a few special moves and super moves, and combos relied on the startup, timing, confirmation, and recovery, with battles depending entirely on prediction and reaction. The 'KOF '97 OL' introduced a multi-skill combination system, where each character can carry several skills and freely mix them, even chaining them together in combos. I tried Kyo Kusanagi and was actually able to link Ko Shoryu into O Shoryu and then into the MAX super move, creating combos far more dazzling than the original version. Honestly, the visual effects are spectacular, and the special effects are much cooler, but it still feels like something is missing from the original's straightforward and rugged fighting feel. In the original, a heavy punch followed by Musoku had that punch-to-the-body impact, a feeling that all these full-screen effects just can't match.
Another point that really touches me is the game mode and the payment model. The original King of Fighters '97 was an arcade coin-operated game, one versus three; if you lost, you tried again, relying purely on skill and strategy. But KOF '97 OL is free to download, yet those who understand know that it involves stamina, diamonds, and card draws, and characters need to be upgraded with fragments. Although it claims to be officially licensed, playing it still gives a bit of a 'money can make you stronger' impression. As an old player, what I miss more is the feeling that no matter who comes on stage, the competition is fair. However, if you look at it from another perspective, after all, mobile games need to make a living nowadays, and as long as they don't force spending too much, the nostalgia is still acceptable.
To my surprise, the game actually has a story mode, which ties together the big background story of The King of Fighters '97. Seeing the storyline of the fateful duel between Iori Yagami and Kyo Kusanagi, as well as the foreshadowing of the Orochi saga, really got my blood pumping as an old player. Back then, although I loved King of Fighters, I couldn't understand the story at all and only knew how to fight. Now the remastered version clearly tells the story, and the questions I had as a child are finally answered, which is kind of like a dream come true.
Overall, 'The King of Fighters 97 OL', as a modern remake, indeed captures the essence of the original version while adding quite a few improvements suitable for mobile platforms. For veteran players, the familiar characters, music, and moves bring back a flood of memories; for new players, the lower learning curve, satisfying combos, and gorgeous graphics make it very appealing. Although I still miss the days of battling friends in the arcade, being able to relive those youthful moments anytime on my phone is already very gratifying. 👍
One last thing: I still remember using Iori Yagami's combo set in high school to make my deskmate question life. Now I've practiced that same set again in 'The King of Fighters 97 OL'. Although I sometimes press the wrong button, that feeling—youth really is back! 🔥