The Addis gang, which has long controlled Southtown, has been struck a major blow. Their leader, Fate, has been killed by Duke, leader of the newfound Mephistopheles gang. The subsequent warfare between the two gangs has decimated Southtown. In the midst of all this chaos, a new fighting tournament has begun, with claims that it is being sponsored by the Metatron Foundation charity. Twenty fighters step up to the challenge.

KOF: Maximum Impact - Maniax is the first 3D iteration of the venerable King of Fighters series. The game features fourteen returning characters:

• Athena Asamiya
• Clark Steel
• Iori Yagami
• K'
• Kyo Kusanagi
• Leona Heidern
• Mai Shiranui
• Maxima
• Ralf Jones
• Rock Howard
• Ryo Sakazaki
• Seth
• Terry Bogard
• Yuri Sakazaki

Six new combatants are also available:

• Alba Meira
• Chae Lim
• Duke
• Lien Neville
• Mignon Beart
• Soiree Meira

Maximum Impact also features four distinct modes of play:

• Story Mode - Choose a fighter and guide them through a series of fights in the tournament.
• Versus Mode - Face off against an opponent in a 1-vs-1 or 3-vs-3 team match.
• Mission Mode - Go through a series of missions with unique setups and goals in an attempt to unlock additional game features.
• Time Attack Mode - Face the clock as you race to defeat a string of opponents.

Online multiplayer over Xbox Live includes head-to-head fighting, re-match (instantaneously battle your opponent again and again) and a tournament mode. There are also four different jump attacks per character and a new sideways move. During gameplay, you can pause the game and take photographs from all angles with the stop action camera. You can review all aspects of the characters in the profile mode, and you can even choose between English and Japanese language in each battle. As an added bonus the PS2 version includes a bonus dvd with making-of videos and behind the scenes interviews.

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