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SNK Releases Playable Character Joe Higashi in Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Game; Launches Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle Game on Steam
posted on by Joanna Cayanan
SNK announced at EVO France on Saturday the release of Joe Higashi as a playable character in its Fatal Fury City of the Wolves fighting game, and the launch of Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle — the modern upgrade of the 1996 arcade game — on Steam.
Joe Higashi Launch Trailer Video English version
Joe Higashi Launch Trailer Video Japanese version
The game's crossover with Street Fighter includes characters Ken and Chun-Li. Both characters are a part of the game's season pass 1. Chun-Li will arrive in the game in winter 2025. The first season pass also includes MR. BIG, who is slated for early 2026. The game launched Ken as a playable character on August 3.
The game launched on April 24 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
The game added real-life DJ Salvatore Ganacci, professional soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, and Hokutomaru. Other returning characters include Terry Bogard, Rock Howard, Tizoc, Hotaru Futaba, Marco Rodrigues, B. Jenet, Kevin Rian, Billy Kane, Mai Shiranui, Kim Dong Hwan, and Gato. The game also includes the new characters Preecha and Vox Reaper.
SNK announced the new game at the EVO fighting game tournament in 2022. It is the first new game in more than two decades since the last installment.
Fatal Fury (known as Garō Densetsu in Japan) is one of SNK's most iconic fighting game franchises, and is the origin of some of the company's most recognizable characters, including Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard, Mai Shiranui, Blue Mary, Geese Howard, and more. Fatal Fury: King of Fighters debuted in arcades in 1991, and the latest installment, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, debuted in 1999. SNK's separate fighting game franchise The King of Fighters initially began as a crossover fighter for SNK's Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting franchises, and their characters have been mainstays in the long-running series until today.
The series inspired the Fatal Fury: Legend of the Hungry Wolf OVA in 1992, Fatal Fury 2: The New Battle OVA in 1993, and Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture in 1994. All three feature Masami Ōbari's character designs, with Ōbari also directing the third anime. Discotek Media has released all three anime.
The Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle game is part of SNK's "NEOGEO Premium Selection," a collection of NEOGEO arcade classics upgraded with new features.
The game's modern upgrade includes rollback netcode, which lets up to nine players mix it up in lobbies in multiple tournament formats, and a new Practice Mode where players can customize lab sessions complete with speed selectors, hitbox viewer, and more. The upgrade also includes the return of eight characters and two new fighters, resistance leader Rosa and cane-fighting crusader Kim.
Sources: Email correspondence, SNK's YouTube channel (link 2)
