Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves recently launched its second season with the release of a big balance update and Kim Jae Hoon, and there’s plenty more in store for the game this year.
We recently had the opportunity to interview Fatal Fury Director Hayato Konya and new Producer Shinya Tamaki regarding the present and future of their fighting game.
In speaking with the SNK lead developers, we were able to hear more about their approach to the game’s second season in terms of balance and characters as well as some of the lessons learned from the first year.
Moreover, they speak on the Season 2 DLC choices plus the crazy DLC release schedule they’ve been on with nine character planned in nine months.
We did attempt to ask SNK about the sales and performance of Fatal Fury since launch, but they declined to answer those questions.
Please note this interview was conducted before the Season 2 reveal and the controversy surrounding AI video use in the trailer, so that was not discussed here.
You can find our full exclusive interview with Konya-san and Tamaki-san below.
DarkHorse: What are your goals for Fatal Fury Season 2 regarding balance, characters and how players approach the game?
Konya: One of our goals would have to be “evolution.” We are truly grateful that so many players enjoyed FF: COTW during Season 1 and provided us with such valuable feedback. By responding to that feedback, we are delivering an “evolved” Fatal Fury in Season 2. We truly hope you enjoy it!
DarkHorse: What are the biggest changes being made to Season 2? Why were those decided to put emphasis on?
Tamaki: To start off, we’ll be implementing a battle balance update to coincide with the start of Season 2. Some characters in Season 1 had designs that made it difficult to showcase their defining traits and strengths, so we want to create a game where these characters can more easily showcase their unique elements. The reason for this is that many players enjoy the battles, and we want to provide something that allows even more players to enjoy them than ever before.
Beyond the battles, we also have numerous initiatives planned for Season 2. We can’t share details just yet, but please look forward to them!
DarkHorse: What are some of the important lessons the team has learned in COTW’s first year?
Tamaki: One thing is the importance of delivering what our fans expect as quickly as possible.
We are truly grateful for all of the requests and feedback we received since the launch of FF: COTW. By addressing this feedback as we develop the game, we feel we are not only bringing joy to players but also achieving tangible results in improving the game’s quality. Moving forward, we will strengthen our development structure to respond even faster, delivering updates monthly in Season 2.
DarkHorse: How and why were the Season 2 DLC characters chosen, and is there anyone you’re particularly happy or excited about?
Tamaki: After developing Season 1, we’ve carefully considered which characters would be most fitting while also taking story elements into account. We also made our decisions based on the extensive feedback we received from players after the game’s release. We believe the lineup for Season 2 will bring joy to many players.
While we can’t choose any one character, we hope you’ll enjoy the secret characters and look forward to fans’ reactions when they are revealed.
DarkHorse: Since we can already fight Nightmare Geese as a boss, how much is he being changed to become a playable fighter?
Konya: Nightmare Geese was developed around the concept of making him capable of nearly everything achieved by previous series entries, with the aim to create a character with the performance and impact befitting his position as a hidden boss.
When considering him as a playable character, we established a new concept and customized him to focus on capturing Geese’s essence from his appearances in the Fatal Fury series. While we couldn’t simply replicate how he plays in his his boss character form, we believe players will still be able to fully appreciate their favorite attributes of Geese in this iteration.
DarkHorse: Judging by his aged appearance, does this mean Wolfgang Krauser survived the events of Fatal Fury 2? What went into giving Krauser a new design after all this time and why bring him back now?
Konya: Since this significantly impacts the story, I’ll refrain from spoiling why he was resurrected. However, regarding his visual design, since COTW takes place in a world where time has passed since the previous game, Krauser has been designed to reflect his aging appearance.
DarkHorse: One of our writers is a huge fan of Blue Mary. Could you please tell us something cool about her either in COTW or from the past that fans don’t really know about?
Konya: She’s a grappler character with many throws, and since it was all pixel art back then, each throw required creating unique damage animations for every character.
We put a lot of thought into her design—like using separate sprites layered on top to show characters entangled or grabbing each other. Despite these challenges, she became a popular character, so I feel it was worth the effort.
DarkHorse: Going back to Joe, you guys are planning to release 9 characters in 9 months, which appears crazy fast next to your contemporaries, so how is that even possible to pull off?
Tamaki: We’ve actually been working to strengthen our development structure since before the launch of the game, and we finally managed to achieve adding one character per month starting last October. We plan to maintain this pace as much as possible going forward.
DarkHorse: Speaking of guests, you guys have been releasing some teases and hints pointing towards a particular manga / anime “star,” so is there anything you can say about that?
Tamaki: We have nothing further to share at this time. We encourage you to speculate on the possibilities and look forward to the next update!
DarkHorse: How do you plan to entice new players to pick up Fatal Fury now? How about those who already have the game but fell off?
Tamaki: We will continue to implement regular updates to expand the game’s content and improve usability. While we cannot share details yet, we also have a major update planned. We believe we can deliver content that will make you want to continue investing time in FF: COTW, so we would appreciate your continued support.
DarkHorse: What are you still looking to improve or add to City of the Wolves in the future?
Konya: There are still many things I want to do and areas I want to improve. Not all of the requests we’ve received from players have been fulfilled yet, but we’ll keep developing steadily, so please look forward to it!
DarkHorse: Is there something you’d like to tell the fans now after finishing Fatal Fury’s first season and moving into its second year?
Tamaki: We at SNK are truly delighted to have delivered the Fatal Fury IP, which we have cherished for so long, to the world with this new title 26 years. We are deeply grateful for the joy expressed by our fans and the feedback we received from them during Season 1. This has reaffirmed our strong conviction that we must continue to share the wonderful world of Fatal Fury with even more people through Season 2 and beyond.
We will continue our dedicated development efforts to meet your expectations. Please look forward to the future growth of Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves.