Diablo 4 is an interesting addition since its newest season, Sins of the Horadrim, goes live on the same day. Alongside a new seasonal questline, it adds Horadric Spells that can be customized with different Catalysts, Infusions and Arcana. Nightmare Dungeons will also get permanent upgrades, and the new Escalating Nightmares activity allows for tackling three in consecutive order.

The King of Fighters 15 is the latest in one of SNK’s fighting game franchises, with a launch roster of 39 different fighters, rollback netcode, and new mechanics. It’s no Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, but depending on who you ask, that’s probably a good thing.

Finally, there’s Jusant, DON’T NOD’s climbing adventure title that took many by surprise with its art direction, world-building and narrative. It’s a short but enjoyable experience – check out our review here. All three titles will be available until August 4th.

Coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the King of Fighters franchise, SNK established KOF Studio to “proudly carry on the 30-year legacy of SNK fighting games while also bringing forth a new revolution”.

Over on the studio’s official website, SNK writes (translation via Gematsu): “KOF Studio will proudly carry on the storied legacy of our iconic fighting game IPs while driving their evolution well into the future.”

For clarity’s sake, this is essentially the company formally renaming an existing development team already in charge of most of its major fighting releases.

As per the website, SNK officially attributes KOF Studio as the developer of The King of Fighters 15, The King of Fighters 14, SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy, and 2019’s Samurai Shodown, as well as the upcoming Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves and untitled Samurai Shodown action RPG. The former is due for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and PC on April 21.

🎊 KOF 30th Anniversary Project Part 30 🎊

To coincide with the 30th anniversary of THE KING OF FIGHTERS, we are happy to announce the establishment of KOF Studio!
KOF Studio will proudly carry on the 30-year legacy of SNK fighting games while also bringing forth a new… pic.twitter.com/VgSsWnn0bK

— KOF STUDIO (@KOFstudio_en) December 29, 2024

It includes Team Pass 1 and 2, the Fighter Pass, Mature and Vice, Terry Bogard’s Garou: Mark of the Wolves outfit, and Leona’s classic look. As for existing content, the base game is still $29.99 on all platforms. The Team Passes will remain at $15.99 each, while the Fighter Pass drops to the same (from $29.99).

The Ultimate Edition’s launch and no announcements for additional DLC characters seemingly suggest the end of support for The King of Fighters 15. It makes sense since Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves launches on April 24th, 2025, for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC, with three years of post-launch content planned. This includes guest characters like Ryu and Chun-Li from Street Fighter – head here for more details.

[KOF XV]
📢 Announcing THE KING OF FIGHTERS XV Ultimate Edition: a digital release that bundles ALL of the game’s DLC characters into one set! Available December 12!

Contains:
Base game + 20 paid DLC characters + 2 DLC costumes

Price:
$59.99 (tax included)#KOFXV #KOF15 pic.twitter.com/lVK295Q7WN

— SNK GLOBAL (@SNKPofficial) December 5, 2024

Introduced in The King of Fighters ’94, Mature specializes in slicing opponents with quick, claw-like strikes. Vice was introduced in The King of Fighters ’95 and possesses immense strength, focusing on throwing her opponents about. Both joined Iori’s team in The King of Fighters ’96 and subsequently met a tragic end, though they’re seemingly none the worse for wear.

Alongside Mature and Vice, SNK will release a balance patch containing adjustments for the existing roster. Whether they’ll be brought up to speed to compete with the duo remains to be seen, but it should shake up the meta.

The King of Fighters 15 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC. Check out our review here.

Mature debuted in The King of Fighters ’94, while Vice arrived in The King of Fighters ’95. While the former is ruthless, the latter is cruel, though both excel in slashing and cutting attacks. Mature is all about quickness, using Hakkeshu: Light for increased speed. Vice is a grappler, capable of slamming opponents regardless of weight and employing Hakkeshu: Darkness for super strength.

It’s unknown whether both characters will be available for free or purchase, so stay tuned for more details and their respective gameplay. The King of Fighters 15 is available for PS4, PS5, PC and Xbox Series X/S. Check out our review for the base game here.

Advance Strike require half of a Power Gauge bar, which refills if you successfully land it (even if the opponent is blocking). It causes a hard knockdown, allowing for follow-up attacks and combos. Though slower than Shatter Strikes, opponents that try to throw you while it’s active will fall to the ground vulnerable.

It’s an interesting system with a response akin to Tekken 8’s Power Crush but more aggressive and effective against throws. Stay tuned for more details on the update, including potential balance changes, when it arrives next week.

The King of Fighters 15 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review of the base game here.

Hinako Shijo will be added to The King of Fighters 15 in a week, on November 14. SNK has also released a trailer to show of the character and show her in action. You can view it below.

Hinako will be the final DLC character for The King of Fighters 15’s second season of post-launch content, which has previously seen the addition of six other characters (one of whom, Geonitz, was added to the game as part of a free update, with all the rest being part of the paid season pass). It remains to be seen what SNK’s plans are for the future of the game beyond Season 2.

The King of Fighters 15 is available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and PC.

Despite her size and demeanor, Shijo is skilled in sumo wrestling. She can throw opponents around, headbutt them and execute brutal slaps. Perhaps her strongest skill is ignoring the weight of her opponents to toss around those much heavier than her. We’ll have to wait and see how this translates into the current game.

The King of Fighters 15 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review for the base game here. With the Shijo’s release, the roster for Season 2 is complete. There’s no word on whether a new Season Pass and characters are coming, as SNK works on Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. Stay tuned for more updates in the meantime.

Debuting in The King of Fighters 2003, Duo Lon’s powers are tied to death, but he doesn’t reanimate corpses. Instead, he can teleport, decomposing and recomposing his body at will, and stretching his limbs for extra reach. He also moves fast and can call upon spirits to attack enemies.

This leads to some crazy combo potential, and it can be tough to counter Duo Lon when he’s on a roll. In addition to his release, SNK is also adding some balance adjustments, so stay tuned for details. The sixth and final DLC character in the current pass arrives this Winter.

The King of Fighters 15 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PS4 and PC. Check out our review here.

Duo Lon debuted in The King of Fighters 2003 in its Hero Team and is known as “The Silent Assassin.” Along with his knowledge of Kung Fu, he has necromancy powers to summon spirits, decompose his own body to teleport and create a shadow version that repeats his moves.

How much of this will carry over into The King of Fighters 15 remains to be seen, since the more contemporary titles toned down his move set. Nevertheless, he should be an interesting addition to the roster. Stay tuned for more details on his release date and the identity of the sixth and final paid DLC fighter.

The King of Fighters 15 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review for the base game here.