Are we experiencing a new ‘Golden Age’ for fighting games? With Evo 2023 wrapping up, and major releases coming from some of fighting games’ most beloved franchises, I start to wonder how this brave new world compares to the decades prior. Don’t worry, I’m not just yelling at clouds…

The SNK Neo Geo MVS arcade board had already become a legendary platform for games, with a lifespan dating back to 1990! The platform had featured series such as Fatal Fury (1991), Samurai Shodown (1993), Metal Slug (1996) and The Last Blade (1997). Perhaps the most successful and most loved of all the Neo Geo series of games however, is The King of Fighters…