The original King of Fighters game — yes, the one responsible for a franchise that just won’t die — is headed to the Wii today courtesy of the Virtual Console. So is Star Tropics, an NES original, but really, isn’t King of Fighters ’94 the big news here? The games will go live at 9am PST today. Full descriptions and Wii Points costs are below.
The King of Fighters ’94 (1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): As the first game in the long-running King of Fighters series, The King of Fighters ’94 brought together popular characters from other well-known franchises and pitted them against each other. Match warriors from Fatal Fury against favorites from its sister series, Art of Fighting. Or see if the casts of the Ikari Warriors and Psycho Soldier series better suit your fighting style. Plus, there’s a set of brand new characters, exclusive to the KOF series, who are willing to join the fray. But there’s a twist: Instead of the standard best-two- out-of-three-rounds fight setup, players choose one of eight teams, each made up of three teammates. To win, all members of the other team must be eliminated before your fighters are knocked out. Use the game’s power gauge to inflict maximum damage and end the round with a devastating finishing move. It’s a battle royal unlike anything else — a game whose inspiration is easily seen in the fighting games that followed it.
Star Tropics (1 player, 500 Wii Points): Step into the shoes of Mike Jones, a teenage star pitcher from Seattle who has come to the tropics to visit his famous archeologist uncle, Dr. Jones. After being told that his uncle has been abducted, Mike begins a perilous quest in order to rescue him and figure out the mysterious plot behind his disappearance. Luckily for Mike, he meets helpful villagers and finds more powerful weapons as he explores numerous locations and island-hops using his uncle’s submarine. You’ll never know what to expect next as the cosmic story unfolds over the course of eight action-packed chapters, ranging from Dr. Jones’ lab on C-Island to an alien spacecraft.