[3D vs 2D] Character Comparison of The King of Fighters XV (vs KOF XIII) Side by Side | VCDECIDE

3D vs HD Sprite Comparison between the characters of the KOF XIII (2D) and the new KOF XV (3D).

- Technical data -
Full Game Name: The King of Fighters XV
Alternative Name: KOF XV/ KOF 15
Developer(s): SNK
Publisher(s): SNK
Release: 2010 (KOF XIII) 2022 (KOF XV)
Comparative Region: American Version
Genre: Fighting Game
Mode: Single-player or Multiplayer (Vs Local/ Online)
Comparison by VCDECIDE

[ZinhoMegaman]

In reality, the sprites from KOF XII/XIII are animated in 3D. SNK had some really heavy work to make all the frames, it's very crazy to be honest, but I admire them for doing this, too bad they didn't get the recognition they deserved.

[Nativefall]

Just a reminder, you will never see any sprite art better than this ever again in your life and SNK will never do it again.

[paperluigi]

Just a reminder that KOF XIII’s sprites nearly bankrupted SNK a second time, so it makes sense that they’d go 3D, since it’s less of a gamble and costs less than the spritework.

[RevengerPhoenix]

I remember when 13 released, they had a bonus for preorder with 4CDs with the best music of all kofs. I couldn’t buy it on release date. So I walked into the store a couple weeks later to buy the ps3 version. The store manager gave me the game with the preorder bonus. I was shocked and asked him why did I get a preorder exclusive. He told me I was the first person to even ask for the game. Nobody preordered it and nobody had bought it in two weeks. So they just wanted to get rid of the copies with the extra stuff. I was both happy and sad, because I got extra goodies, but I knew the game was gonna do horrible with sales. And I was right, it sold horribly, because the hype of fighting games was with SF4 and MVC3. People didn’t care for XIII and it almost made snk disappear. Now it’s too late to praise these graphics, when SNK learned the lesson to spend less and earn more with 3D. And XV already looks better than XIV.

[salttrader]

The pixel art was amazing! KOF 15 did a great job, but largely prefer the art for K' and King in XIII.

That said, May's face is weird in 2d.

[LucarioDXAuraStorm]

Man, I wish they brought back Ryo's tiger stance. That is waaaay cooler than this generic one he currently has.

[JigokuShoujoYuki]

What I most miss about the sprites is the color palette, the colors are so vibrant

[tailedgates]

What I wouldn't give to return to these sprites. <3 That being said, everyone in KOFXV looks so damn good! :D

[jayzus]

15 is a huge step up from 14 an looks amazing but I’ll always have wishful thinking for SNK to be financially stable enough to make another sprite animated game 🙏🏼

[Geneolgia]

In terms of proportions both are pretty close, but female characters in XIII tend to have bigger heads to look cuter and some male characters like Terry, Ralf and Clark are a mass of muscles, in XV both aspects are toned down but that's because you can get away with exaggeration in 2D way easier than in 3D.

[Gridscape]

As much as I love XIII and hi-res sprites I think these kind of deformed body proportions wasn't the best way to go for KOF, and I'm happy that XIV and XV at least made a correction.

[gamefreakDX]

Kula's change from 2D to 3D is rather interesting. Like traditionally, her 2D idle is really, REALLY still - only her hair and hands (and sometimes the wrists) have movement. The 3D titles have her animate a bit more, but her fist clenching is not as frequent.
I could see this as a personality change though since she's more... 'mature' I guess, in 14 and 15.

[PeterEgbuna-nebp]

Kof xv and kof xiii got my favorite artstyles in the series lol

[Soulxstar]

Estoy en la minoría aquí pero creo que SNK finalmente encontró el punto donde el 3d se ve bien, las sombras fuertes y el reflejo de la luz los hace ver brillante y claro.

[MasterSprintersan]

Before too much hate is said, yeah the 2D is better and all, but KOF 15’s 3D models look very dang awesome, too. Just saying.

[ChaosAngelZero]

Awesome, just what I wanted to see. Thanks a lot! :)

[DrSlump-fzki]

I still say KOF XIII’s sprites look better but XV is a strong second

[amestrisgone]

Characters that look better in XIII
King, k', kula and ash
Characters that look better in XV
Yuri, ralf, clark, robert, terry, athena, andy and joe

Everyone else looks about the same quality

[stolasthegreatprince]

KOF XIII sprites are a work of art. I'd rather have 2D models instead of 3D ones without a doubt.

[ElMerioBros]

LOBAT!

I love the 95 voices. Terry and Ryo looks badass on XIII.