The King of Fighters '98

Introduction

Following the conclusion of the "Orochi" saga (marked by the '97 tournament), SNK decided to release a new "dream match" (meaning the characters in the game are not bound by a storyline; evidenced by the fact that the Orochi team was still alive for this tournament). The gameplay featured the same selectable super meter system as KoF '97. In addition, SNK added the "Advantage" system that allowed the losing team to earn an advantage each round (extra stocks for Advanced mode or a shorter charge bar for Extra mode). Many consider The King of Fighters '98 to be their favorite KoF game due to its play mechanics and large roster. A remake of '98, dubbed "The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match", was released for the Playstation 2 in 2008. It added a new Ultimate style, new stages, and many new characters that were missing in the orignal '98. For all of this extra stuff, check below under the "Game Versions" section and click "Playstation 2".

Characters

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Japan Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Fatal Fury Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Art of Fighting Team |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Kyo Kusanagi
• Benimaru Nikaido
• Goro Daimon

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• Terry Bogard
• Andy Bogard
• Joe Higashi

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• Ryo Sakazaki
• Robert Garcia
• Yuri Sakazaki

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Ikari Warriors Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Psycho Soldier Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Women Fighters Team |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Leona Heidern
• Ralf Jones
• Clark Steel

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• Athena Asamiya
• Sie Kensou
• Chin Gentsai

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• Chizuru Kagura
• Mai Shiranui
• King

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Korea Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Orochi Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Special Team |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Kim Kaphwan
• Chang Koehan
• Choi Bounge

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• Yashiro Nanakase
• Chris
• Shermie

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• Ryuji Yamazaki
• Blue Mary
• Billy Kane

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Yagami Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Oyaji Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|American Sports Team |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Iori Yagami
• Mature
• Vice

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• Heidern
• Takuma Sakazaki
• Saisyu Kusanagi

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• Heavy D!
• Lucky Glauber
• Brian Battler

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Orochi Unleashed Team !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|Single Entry/ Boss |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Orochi Yashiro
• Orochi Chris
• Orochi Shermie

!style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Rugal Bernstein
• Omega Rugal
• Shingo Yabuki

|- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0; width: 126px"|EX Characters |- !style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0 1px 1px 0"|

• Kyo Kusanagi (KoF '95-Era)
• Terry Bogard (Real Bout 2-Era)
• Andy Bogard (Real Bout 2-Era)
• Joe Higashi (KoF '94-Era)
• Ryo Sakazaki (KoF '94-Era)
• Robert Garcia (KoF '94-Era)
• Yuri Sakazaki (KoF '94-Era)
• Billy Kane (Real Bout 2-Era)
• Mai Shiranui (Real Bout 2-Era)

|}

Notation

Controls and basic notation of KOF 98.

Joystick Notation

                    .- up (u)
                    |
  up-back (u/b) - 7 8 9 - up-forward (u/f)

       back (b) - 4 5 6 - forward (f)

down-back (d/b) - 1 2 3 - down-forward (d/f)
                    |
                    `- down (d)

Note: These numbers can be easily referenced by looking at your keyboard numpad. Think of it as a joystick/controller that is facing to the right. "5" is used to signify "neutral".

Motion Abbreviations

qcf - 236 - Quarter circle forward/Hadouken/Fireball motion - In one smooth motion move to down -> down-forward -> forward.

qcf - 214 - Quarter circle backward - In one smooth motion move to down -> down-back -> back.

hcf - 41236 - Half circle forward - In one smooth motion move to back -> down-back -> down -> down-forward -> forward.

hcb - 63214 - Half circle backward - In one smooth motion move to forward -> down-forward -> down -> down-back -> back.

dp - 623 - Dragon Punch motion - In one smooth motion move to forward -> down -> down-forward.

rdp - 421 - Reverse Dragon Punch motion - In one smooth motion move to back -> down -> down-back.

Charge - Hold the given direction (usually back/down) for around 1 second, before moving to the next command (usually forward or up a button).

tk - 2369 - Tiger Knee Motion - qcf, then move to up-forward.

Attack Notation

A - LP - Light Punch

B - LK - Light Kick

C - HP - Hard Punch

D - HK - Hard Kick

CD - Blow back attack, press C and D simultaneously.

P - Any punch

K - Any kick

Other common abbreviations

j. - Jump/jumping - Press up-back, up, or up-forward.

nj. - Neutral jump - Referencing specifically for directly upward jump, especially for specific attacks that only occur in this state.

sj. - Super jump - Tap down, down-back, or down-forward, then quickly press up-back or up-forward.

sh. - Short hop - Lightly tap up-back, up, or up-forward.

hh. - Hyper hop - Tap down, down-back, or down-forward, then quickly and lightly tap up-back or up-forward.

cl. - Close, as in a close normal attack.

cr. - Crouching, as in a crouching normal attack.

st. - Standing, as in a far standing normal attack.

f. - Forward, and relative to the direction the character is facing.

b. - Back, and relative to the direction the character is facing.

Gameplay Overview

Gameplay Overview of KOF 98.

• Gameplay Overview

Mechanics and Notes

Mechanics of KOF 98.

• Mechanics and Notes

Game Versions

• Arcade (MVS)
• Dreamcast (as "Dream Match 1999")
• Neo Geo (AES)
• Neo Geo CD
• Playstation
• Playstation 2 (as "King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match")

Additional Information

Dune's hitbox data - Not complete, but most of the popular characters are there. The first link for each character is the hitbox data (scroll down in the right frame), then movelist, then additional information.

YouTube - Yes, YouTube! Never forget this as a great resource to see many matches and learn from them.

MoFile - This is the Chinese YouTube basically. You might get a rough connection to there, so try to access during the day when it is late/early night in China. Here are some good accounts for videos to browse: Dove 三台野 鸿牛

Credits and Disclaimers

Extra things.

• Credits and Disclaimers

Tiers

[KoF 98 tiers] (taken from the latest Tougeki-Special Issue # 4)

A: Kyo, Daimon, Chizuru, Iori

B: Benimaru, Robert, Ralf, Chang, EX Yashiro, Chris, EX Chris

C: EX Kyo, Terry, Joe, Yashiro, Takuma

D: Ryo, Clark, Kensou, Yamazaki, Mary, Mature

E: EX Terry, EX Ryo, Leona, Athena, Chin, Mai , EX Mai, King, Choi, Kim, Shermie, Vice, Shingo, Saishu

F: EX Robert, Yuri, Heavy D

G: Andy, EX Yuri, Billy, Heidern, Brian, Rugal

H: EX Andy, EX Joe, EX Billy, EX Shermie, Lucky

The King of Fighters '98: The Slugfest