New Fatal Fury: it will be in 3D and it will not be about Garou Mark of the Wolves 2, SNK speaks

On July 7, SNK surprised everyone by revealing the development of a new Fatal Fury slash Garou. An announcement that made those present at the EVO in Las Vegas scream with joy, but also all the owners of a NeoGeo (real ones), the last episode dating back 23 years already. Apart from a slightly cheap teaser, SNK has remained very discreet about the project, but the presence of Yasuyuki Oda (the strong man of SNK's revival) at gamescom 2022 at the end of August allowed several media to ask him some relevant questions. This is the case of Andy Robinson, journalist at VGC, who had the privilege of spending a few minutes with him, in order to try to extract information from him on this new Fatal Fury. After returning to the career of Yasuyuki Oda, SNK's new ambitions since the takeover of a Chinese financial fund in 2015, and the arrival in the capital of Saudi Arabia, Andy Robinson returned to the title of this new Fatal Fury / Garou and whether SNK intended to resume elements that had been abandoned during the production of Garou Mark of the Wolves 2, in particular the characters that leaked a few months ago.

 

VGC: I'm sure you've seen that in May of this year, a debug CD from a developer appeared online, containing many details of a Garou Mark of the Wolves 2 supposed to be released on NeoGeo in the early 2000s. , including plans for six new characters. Naturally, many fans would like to know if you have any plans to include elements of this canceled game in the new Fatal Fury, or if it will influence the development of this new one. Game ?

Yasuyuki Oda: Obviously, there's a big gap between when it was created and what's happening today. The industry in general has changed a lot. What I can tell you is that we have completely redesigned the game, both the structure and the whole, the story as well, in order to ensure that we remain as faithful as possible to the series. There will probably be elements of that original design (Garou Mark of the Wolves 2, editor's note) that will survive in the new game, and maybe some things won't, but we're trying to find the right balance so that it also appeals to the new generation.

VGC: What can you tell me about the six new characters that were planned for Garou 2? Could we see some of them coming back?

Yasuyuki Oda: We can't say anything about the decisions made on the roster at this time, but the only thing that's certain is that it won't be called Garou Mark of the Wolves 2. It's a new Fatal Fury/Garo, and no one knows the real title yet.

VGC: Oh, so this is a game that's going to be more like the original Fatal Fury games?

Yasuyuki Oda : Oui.

 

Inevitably, with an absence of more than 23 years, the Fatal Fury series has fallen off the radars of young players, even more so if they have not experienced the NeoGeo era. It is therefore difficult for SNK to want to bet on a Garou Mark of the Wolves who will only speak to a handful of insiders. Which goes hand in hand with the question regarding the look and graphics of the game. Anyone who fantasized about a return to hand-made 2D is likely to cry all the tears in their body, this New Fatal Futy / Garou will opt for a 3D realization, like the latest SNK productions, easier to produce and less expensive to develop above all.