The King of Fighters XIII

The King of Fighters XIII is the upcoming thirteenth installment of The King of Fighters series published by SNK Playmore. There was an official preview of the game that was held on March 25, 2010 at Akihabara. The game will also be the conclusion of Ash Crimson's story arc which started in The King of Fighters 2003. The game design director, Yamamoto, states that he wants the game to be played by the fans of the series who would be able to use their experience from previous titles. Additionally, however, he does not want the game to be too similar to it's prequels, though he and his staff's aim for the game is to capture the charm from previous titles.

Gameplay
The game retrains the same gameplay used in The King of Fighters XII. Three gameplay systems used in the previous game, the Guard attack system, the Critical Counter system and the Clash System have been removed, however, there are new systems that have been confirmed to be added to the game, the first of the three is the new EX Mode, which convert each characters' super moves into more powerful versions that allows one bar from the player's power gauge for EX Special Moves and two bars from the player's power gauge for EX Desperation Moves. Another new addition is Hyper Drive mode, which gives the player unlimited use of Drive Cancels for a while once the Hyper Drive Gauge has been maxed, and the last new feature confirmed for the game is the Drive Cancel system, which opens up new combo possibilities, the game also marks the return of the multi-bar power gauge that was introduced in The King of Fighters '97.

Plot and characters
The game takes place after The King of Fighters XI. The fighter Ash Crimson has absorbed the powers from two of the descendants of the clans who sealed the Orochi away 1,800 years ago, Chizuru Kagura and Iori Yagami, while Kyo Kusanagi is to be his last victim. As Elisabeth Blanctorche prepares to stop Ash, fighters receive an invitation to another King of Fighters tournament hosted by a person labelled as "R".

The roster of The King of Fighters XIII will feature all the characters who appeared in The King of Fighters XII, including the two console-exclusive characters, Elisabeth Branctorche and Mature. In addition, at the Akihabara event, three new characters were announced in the form of The King of Fighters '94 Women's Team (Yuri Sakazaki, King, and Mai Shiranui); the selection screen also shows space for 6 more additional characters. Unlike The King of Fighters XII, all of the characters will be organized into proper teams this time with the exception of Ash Crimson, who is now a single entry character.