Lost In Translation/King of Fighters 2000, The

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The King of Fighters 2000
Manufacturer	SNK
Released	2000
Control Method	8-way Joystick 4 Button(s)
Main CPU	Neo-Geo 68000 (@ 12.000 MHz) Z80 (@ 4.000 MHz)
Sound CPU	Stereo YM2610 (@ 8.000 MHz)
Video Details	Raster (Horizontal) 320 x 224 pixels 59.19 Hz 4,096 Palette colours
Screens	1
ROM Info	28 ROMs 94,437,376 bytes (90.06 MiB)
MAME ID	kof2000 · kof2000n

About The Game

The King of Fighters 2000 is a one-on-one fighting arcade video game featuring 34 characters, plus the popular striker system, await to be selected to team up and defeat the mighty Zero and his incredible bladed coat!

Additional Technical Information

Players : 2

Control : 8-way joystick

Buttons : 4

=> [A] Weak punch, [B] Weak kick, [C] Strong punch, [D] Strong kick

Trivia

Noteable Characters

Ramon

This character was designed with one of Neo-Geo's major markets in mind, South America. He's a stout, masked wrestler who uses tricky body slam moves. These 3 points form the major concept behind the creation of Ramon. Ramon's designer at the time loved pro-wrestling fighting moves, and we remember him carefully studying these. The fruits of this labor crystallized themselves in the Lucha Dolore known as Ramon. With his use of 'Lucha Libre' moves and not those of traditional 'pro-wrestling', the staff team hope you can enjoy experiencing the attention to detail, intensity, and enthusiasm of Ramon's designer at that time.

Vanessa

Vanessa's entrance in KOF at the time put a stop to the parade of increasingly younger characters appearing in the game, especially the women characters who were all teenagers for the most part. This is the reason for creating the concept of a thirty-something woman who broke all the rules and overflowed with adult appeal. Her style has become the topic of many humorous comic strips. In her first appearance in the Sega Dreamcast version of KOF '99 as a Striker character, she was a bit irreverent. And in KOF 2000, she officially entered the tournament as a player character. Designers wanted to introduce her as a player character in KOF '99, but legend has it that she had to sit it out due to certain time constraints.

Lin

This character was selected out of the encyclopedic character background materials (whose volume would rival the Encyclopedia Britannica!) of the supervising planners. Lin is tied to the Flying Brigands 'HIzoku', who were introduced as a KOF side story in the NESTS Chronicles, but without the knowledge of the staff, and when Ron showed up in the ending sequence, there were some awfully surprised designers. With all the special moves and actions for this character the programmers and planners had a rough time working on this character. He brought tears to the eyes of the developers, but not for the usual reasons.

Seth

Seth was created as part of a set with Vanessa, appearing for the first time in the Sega Dreamcast version of KOF '99. His initial name was 'Dick'. The name had deep significance for his designer. Based on the strong wishes of the supervising designer, the powerful image of a big, dark, middle-aged man with a Mohawk haircut who used the arts of self-defense was decided on. Since Seth was created first, Vanessa's clothes were designed to match his. This made some people surmise things like Seth was Vanessa's husband.

Hinako Shijo

At first designers sought to create a character similar to Chie in the Japanese comic Jarinko Chie (Downtown Story) who used sumo moves. The supervising designer, however, succumbed to insistent requests to use 'a debutante', and Hinako gradually transformed into a wellborn young maiden. She was to fight barefoot, but that idea got eighty-sixed. The tape remaining on her fingers is a tiny remnant of her original concept. Since her appearance grew further and further away from that of a sumo wrestler, the names for her moves use those of actual sumo moves to preserve the essence of the sumo wrestler in her original character.

Kula Diamond

To add dimensions to the villainous NESTS organization of the NESTS Chronicles and excitement to the story, the need to create an enemy for the huge and individualistic K' arose. Manipulator of the 'Anti-K' Arts', her ice symbolizes the foil to the flames of K'. That's what Kula Diamond's all about. During production Designers elicited the opinions of newly hired female designers regarding Kula's mannerisms to "make her girlish gestures appropriately girlish" (but left the actual design work to the veteran supervising designer). Designers think we succeeded in faithfully depicting a 14-year-old girl... Asking Kula's designer about his impressions at the time, he immediately answered : "Kula had an easy delivery. She didn't give me any pain". The actual work appeared difficult, but it seems he enjoyed his work.

Candy Diamond

Candy is the robot you can see during Kula's Special Move displays, animated sequences, and as a Striker. Since Candy's not a player character she doesn't stand out like the other characters, but she does appear in the gut-wrenching episode that depicts her emotions for Kula when she's torched saving her mistress in the Kula ending of KOF 2000. If you haven't yet seen this, what're you waiting for? Hurry up and clear the game with Kula to find out!

Zero

Zero is the boss of Krizalid from KOF '99, but his position in a company would be similar to that of 'division chief'. Because of his black beard and noble manner, designers are sure he's regarded as a rather scary 'division chief' in the organization. His guiltless betrayal of Krizalid speaks volumes about his true personality, in stark contrast to his dislike of traitors listed in his profile. Incidentally, The names of some of Zero's moves come from the Japanese anime 'Hokuto no Ken'.

Diana

Diana's the Amazon featured in Kula's sequences. She used to be a top executive for NESTS but is portrayed as Kula's guardian in the background story. If you compared NESTS to a company... designers often use this metaphor, but designers don't have a clue which position would fit her or Foxy. Judging by her loathing of elite managers (college boys), designers could say she's a 'big-sister section chief' who climbed the corporate ladder with extremely hard work. Working with a "fabulous babe" boss like her would be whack (but a bit scary, though)!

Robert's 'Ryuugeki Ken' is a knock-off of the Sonic Boom (It isn't in "The King of Fighters '99 - Millennium Battle" because of its looks, despite the charging motion).

There are 2 symbolic things that tell you how the people at SNK were forseeing the end of their company. Kyo's theme is called 'Good Bye Esaka', Esaka is the avenue where the SNK building and Neo Geo Land are (Esaka means 'entrance to the hill'). The second thing is the destruction of the city that started all : South Town (Home of "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters" and "Art of Fighting" - however, note that in "Garou - Mark of The Wolves", Second South was rebuilt near South Town. Also noted is the fact that every Kyo theme before 'Tears' had 'Esaka' in it ('Esaka' in 94, 'Funky Esaka' in 95, 'Esaka?' in 96 and 'Esaka Forever' in 97).

The reason for those names is that in "The King of Fighters '94", Kyo's team stage is below a bridge in the Esaka area near SNK. In "The King of Fighters '95", they fight in front of Neo Geo Land, again, in Esaka in front of the SNK building. In "The King of Fighters '96", they fight in top of a bridge also in the Esaka area. In "The King of Fighters '97" there is no Esaka stage, however, this was supposed to be the last KOF as SNK planned to move to the Hyper NeoGeo 64, it was like a glorious farewell to KOF, however, things went different. Finally, in "The King of Fighters '98 - The Slugfest", the Esaka stage appears again; they fight below a bridge in front of the Neo Geo Land.

Origin of Alternate Strikers

• Another Benimaru (Benimaru) : Alternate art for Benimaru.
• Another K' (K') : Alternate art for K'.
• Another Robert (Robert) : Alternate art for Robert (inspired from the early "Art of Fighting" days).
• Athena (Athena) : Athena as she appeared in her first game, "Athena".
• Baijang (Chin) : (Not too sure, but it could be Tung Fu Rue's panda).
• Billy Kane (Andy) : "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters" (Andy is second banana for the good guys, Billy is second banana for the bad guys).
• Chizuru Kagura (Mai) : KOF, Mai's teammate in '97/'98.
• Chris (Whip) : KOF, part of the New Face Team.
• Cosplayer Kyoko (Shingo) : A girl dressing up as Kyo (in his old outfit), Kyoko is the 'feminine form' of Kyo (ie, what Christina would be to Chris) - Voice by Haruna Ikezwa.
• Duck King (Joe) : "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters".
• Duke Edwards (Ramon) : "Burning Fight" - Voice by Kong Kuwata.
• Eiji Kisaragi (Lin) : "Art of Fighting".
• Fiolina Germi (Vanessa) : "Metal Slug - Super vehicle-001".
• Foxy (Kula) : KOF, Kula's guardian.
• Gai Tendou (Takuma) : Main character in "Buriki One in Tokyo - World Grapple Tournament '99", where Ryo has a cameo - Voice by Nobuyuki Hiyama.
• Geese Howard (Terry) : Terry's old nemesis from "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters".
• Goenitz (Leona) : KOF, final boss in "The King of Fighters '96".
• Goro Daimon (Seth) : KOF '94-'98 (retired at the time to raise children).
• Kaede (Ryo) : "The Last Blade".
• Kang Baedal (Jhun) : Original design for Jhun - Voice by Eiji Takemoto.
• Kaoru Watabe (Bao) : KOF (Kaoru is an Athena fan who lost both her legs and her fan letter to Athena was what made her join the '97 tournament, Kaoru now has artificial legs, thanks to Athena) - Voice by Ayako Kawasumi.
• Kensou (Kensou) : Kensou as he appeared in his first game, "Psycho Soldier".
• Kim Dong Hwan (Chang) : "Garou - Mark of the Wolves", Kim's older son.
• Kim Jae Hoon (Choi) : "Garou - Mark of the Wolves", Kim's younger son.
• Kim Sue-Il (Kim) : "Kizuna Encounter - Super Tag Battle" - Voice by Yoshiaki Fujita.
• Lilly Kane (Hinako) : "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters", Billy's younger sister and Joe's girlfriend - Voice by Yumi Kakazu.
• Li Xiangfei (Kasumi) : "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters", Kasumi's teammate in '99.
• Mature/Vice (Iori) : Iori's teammates from '96/'98.
• Nakoruru (Yuri) : "Samurai Shodown".
• Rocky (Maxima) : Player 2's character from "Robo Army".
• Ryuji Yamazaki (Mary) : "Fatal Fury - King of Fighters", Mary's teammate in '97/'98.
• Shermie (Clark) : KOF, part of the New Face Team.
• Shishi-Ou/King Lion (King) : Main villain in "Savage Reign" - Voice by Katsuhisa Nakatsuka.
• Sho Kirishima (Kyo) : Original design for Kyo.
• Yashiro Nanakase (Ralf) : KOF, part of the New Face Team.

Maniac Striker Origins

• Another Iori (Iori) : Alternate art for Iori.
• Cool Choi (Choi) : Alternate art for Choi.
• G-Mantle (Ryo) : This character is King, appears in "Art Of Figthing 2" previous her battle in history mode.
• Neo & Geo (Ramon) : They are not the SNK mascots :), they appear in the game "Quiz Daisousa Sen - The Last Count Down", where they are the private eyes Neo MacDonald and Geo Kentacky.
• Their last names are a spoof to two Fast Food restaurant chains.
• Kentacky is the Japanese reading for Kentucky - Voice by Hiroyuki Arita.
• Rugal Bernstein (Kula) : KOF, considered to be the 'franchise boss' (much like Bison for SF).
• Saisyu Kusanagi (Kyo) : KOF, Kyo's father.
• Smart Chang (Chang) : Alternate art for Chang.
• Unknown (Kasumi) : "Art of Fighting", Kasumi's father (Ryuhaku Todo) - Voice by Arita Goto.

Leona, Ralph and Clark are playable characters in the Foma 90x Series Mobile Phones game 'Metal Slug Survivors'.

Sony Music Entertainment / Scitron released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (The King of Fighters 2000 - SCDC-00035) on 23/08/2000.

Tips and tricks

Enable the Mid-boss, Kula

Put the cursor on Whip, press Start, put the cursor on Vanessa, press Start, put the cursor on Seth, press Start, put the cursor on Maxima, press Start, put the cursor on K', press Start, put the cursor on Random, press Start, now press Up, Down. Kula appears below the Random icon in 2 secs.

Enable the Maniac Strikers

At the Striker Select Screen, highlight 'Another Striker', Press up, Left(x3), Right(x3), Down. These characters have Maniac Strikers : Chang, Choi, Iori, Kula, Kyo, Ramon and Ryo.

Todo as Special Striker

To use Todo as your stiker, select Kasumi, then do the secret striker code Up, Left(x3), Right(x3), Down. It will show a blacken version of Todo (Kasumi's father from "Art of Fighting").

Select Victory Pose

Press a Punch or Kick button immediately after your opponent is defeated.

Alternate Costume Colors

Highlight in order Kyo, Benimaru, K', Terry, Mary, Mai, Whip or Choi, then press C+D at the character selection screen.

Special Endings

Finish the game using one of these combinations to see the special endings :

1. Kyo, Iori, anyone except Kula and roulette selection.
2. Kula, any other characters.

Series

1. The King of Fighters '94 (1994)
2. The King of Fighters '95 (1995)
3. The King of Fighters '96 (1996)
4. The King of Fighters '97 (1997)
5. The King of Fighters '98 - The Slugfest (1998)
6. The King of Fighters '99 - Millennium Battle (1999)
7. The King of Fighters 2000 (2000)
8. The King of Fighters 2001 (2001)
9. The King of Fighters 2002 - Challenge to Ultimate Battle (2002)
10. The King of Fighters 2003 (2003)
11. The King of Fighters NeoWave (2004)
12. The King of Fighters Maximum Impact (2004, Sony PlayStation 2)
13. The King of Fighters XI (2005)
14. The King of Fighters Maximum Impact 2 / The King of Fighters 2006 (2006, Sony PlayStation 2)
15. The King of Fighters Maximum Impact - Regulation A (2007)
16. The King of Fighters '98 - Ultimate Match (2008)
17. The King of Fighters XII (2009)

Staff

Producer

Y. Inui

Director

Region Toyonaka

Chief Planners

T. Hosokawa

K. Hikida (Yanya)

System Editors

Kaede

Namarn

Sequence Chief

Tomonori Kamio

Sub Planners

Haruo Tomita

Y. Takshi

Syun-Jin

Godzio

H. Eguchi

Design Chief Front

Chikara Akane Y

Dear Tomchin

Design Chief Back

Manoru

Demo

Komantare Boo

Front Designers

K'

T. I-NO-U-E

Maxima

Shinsuke Yamamoto

Vanessa

T. I-NO-U-E

Ramon

Mitsuru Kawasaki

Benimaru

Miki Asakura

Shingo

Akiko Yukawa

Lin

Shio Shio Shio

Seth

Shinsuke Yamamoto

Terry

Styleos

Andy

Chikara Akane Y

Mary

Dear Tomchin

Joe

Hirofusa Satoshi

Ryo

Shinsuke Yamamoto

Robert

Shio Shio Shio

King

Miho Uematsu

Takuma

Miho Uematsu

Leona

Dear Tomchin

Clark

Megumi Endo

Athena

Akiko Yukawa

Chin

Miki Asakura

Ralf

Dear Tomchin

Whip

Dear Tomchin

Kensou

Mitsuru Kawasaki

Bao

Mitsuru Kawasaki

Mai

Chikara Akane Y

Yuri

Momo Kuri Sakura

Kasumi

Akiko Yukawa

Hinako

Miho Uematsu

Kim

T. I-NO-U-E

Jhun

Hirofusa Satoshi

Choi

A T

Chang

A T

Kyo

Styleos

Iori

Styleos

Kula

Megumi Endo

Zero

Chikara Akane Y

Back Designers

Factory

K

Garbage Dump

2047

Scrap Dump

Muneki Raishi

Desert

N. Morohashi

Korea

Manoru

Temple

Kane'

Aquarium

Nobuyuki Kobayashi

Demo Designers

M. Yokoyama

Yukinari

Tsugumi A.

Khozoh Nagashima (as K. -G4- Nagashima)

Op. Title

Takayuki Mizuno

Special Effects

Aooon

Tohru Nakanishi

Programmers

Souta Ichino

Abetak

Kohji Mannami

Sound

SHA-V

Zoe

Marimo

Usako-X

Tate Norio

Sampling CD

Samples courtesy of Spectrasonics' Distorted Reality, Distorted Realityz

Adjusters

T. Seko

Error Sawa 2000

Bug Checkers

Yuta Lix Sawad (as Lix)

Lumen Lunae

Jam

Garuru

Sakon

Hanayama Kaoru

Color Edit Contest

K'

Toraneko

Terry

Ai Haruyama

Ryo

Roias

Mai

Y. Yatsuda

Choi

Bakso CB

Benimaru

Yoshitaka

Mary

Ryui Akio

Whip

Yasunari Ito

Kensou

Minaminami

Kyo

Saori Abe

Voice Actors

K'

Yuuki Matsuda

Maxima

Katsuyuki Konishi

Vanessa

Kaori Minami

Ramon

Eiji Takemoto

Lin

Takaya Kuroda

Benimaru

Monster Maetsuka

Shingo

Takehito Koyasu

Seth

Hidetoshi Nakamura

Terry

Satoshi Hashimoto

Andy

Keiichi Nanba

Mary

Harumi Ikoma

Joe

Nobuyuki Hiyama

Ryu

Masaki Usui

Robert

Mantaro Koichi

Takuma

Eiji Tsuda

King

Harumi Ikoma

Mai

Akoya Sogi

Yuri

Kaori Horie

Kasumi

Masae Yumi

Hinako

Ayako Kawasumi

Leona

Masae Yumi

Ralf

Monster Maetsuka

Clark

Yoshinori Shima

Whip

Shiho Kikuchi

Athena

Haruna Ikezawa

Kensou

Eiji Yano

Chin

Toshikazu Nishimura

Bao

Kanako Nakano

Kim

Satoshi Hashimoto

Chang

Hiroyuki Arita

Jhun

Kazuya Ichijo

Choi

Monster Maetsuka

Kyo

Masahiro Nonaka

Iori

Kunihiko Yasui

Zero

Kinta Futogane

Kula

Yumi Kakazu

Duke/Baedal

Eiji Takemoto

Cosplayer Kyoko

Haruna Ikezawa

Daimon

Masaki Usui

Yamazaki

Koji Ishii

Kaede

Kouji Suizu

Yashiro

Makoto Awane

Chris

Rio Ogata

Nakoruru

Harumi Ikoma

Fio

Kanako Morizumi

Eiji/Goenitz

Yoshinori Shima

Geese/Duck

Kong Kuwata

Billy

Atsushi Yamanishi

Tendou

Nobuyuki Hiyama

Shermie

Hazuki Nishikawa

Kaoru

Ayako Kawasumi

Xiangfei

Mami Kingetsu

Lilly

Yumi Kakazu

Dongwhan

Jun Hashimoto

Syo

Mitsuo Iwata

Mature

Hiroko Tsuji

Rugal

Toshimitsu Arai

Saisyu

Keiichirou Sakaki

King Lion

Katsuhisa Nakatsuka

Foxy

Haruna Ikezawa

Sue Il

Yoshiaki Fujita

Jae Hoon

Hiroki Asakawa

Neo & Geo/G-Mantle

Hiroyuki Arita

Unknown

Arita Goto

Diana

Kaori Minami

Cabinet and Artwork

• 

  Neo-Geo arcade cabinet.

• 

  The King of Fighters 2000 marquee.

• 

  The King of Fighters 2000 flyer.

Ports

Consoles

Sega Dreamcast (2002)

Nintendo Game Boy Advance (2003, "The King of Fighters EX 2 - Howling Blood")

Sony PlayStation 2 (2002)

Sony PlayStation 2 (2003, "The King of Fighters 2000 & 2001")

Microsoft XBOX (2005, "The King of Fighters 2000 & 2001")

Sony PlayStation 2 (2006, "NeoGeo Online Collection Vol.5 : King of Fighters Nests Hen")

Others

Nokia N-Gage (2005, "The King of Fighters Extreme")

Soundtrack Releases

Album Name	Catalogue No.	Released	Publisher	Comments
The King of Fighters 2000 Arrange Sound Trax	SCDC-00041	2000-10-12	Scitron Digital Content, Inc.	CD version.
The King of Fighters 2000	SCDC-00035	2000-08-23	Scitron Digital Content, Inc.	2 CD version.
Shinsekai Gakkyoku Zatsugidan Final ~The 20th Century Memorial Best~	SCDC-00061	2001-01-11	Scitron	CD version.
The King of Fighters 2000 Drama CD	SCDC-00042	2000-09-20	Scitron Digital Content	CD version.
KOF 15th Anniversary Special Soundtrack	N/A	2009-07-30	SNK Playmore	CD version.

References

The contents of this page are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.
The sources used include MAME (version 0.113u2) and history.dat (revision 1.28 - 2008-10-18).
Please see http://www.arcade-history.com for credits.