With the 4th full character trailer just out-a freaking amazing glow-up of Iori Yagami(as if this man needed any more glowing up, they may have reached Peak Yagami with this one), I started to look at maybe, just maybe, trying to pick apart some more of the mechanics.
(Just look at him.)
So all of the trailers have some bits and pieces of stuff.
Shun'ei's, I'll be honest, was hard to really get anything with. We know he has an upgraded Climax with much better animations, though!
Next up was Meitenkun's trailer. It had more detail in it-but was still pretty vague on mechanics. We did, however, get a couple of hints from it.
1. Possible max mode activation, with a faint blue glow(to be honest, max mode being in I feel was all but given, anyway-but see Benimaru's trailer.)
2. Unknown at this time if EX moves could be done out of max mode.
3. CD wallsplat still a thing.
It was hard to glean much more from this from this trailer, but it was something. We also couldn't tell yet if his desperation/climax was a new upgraded animation, or if we get a low health variant? That's something to think about.
THAT said, Benimaru's trailer here proved more fruitful in terms of mechanics.
There did indeed seem to be EX's done out of max mode; and linking the three supers at the end-and the level 1 DID NOT END THE MODE-in fact, none of them did, and he was able to do a level 1, 2 and 3 back to back certainly shows us that something is up with this mode, among other things.
We can't figure out if this is a max mode that cuts down the cost of supers or what. Technically speaking, if this was done at NO cost interruption or other mechanics involved, this would be a seven bar affair at the end(1 bar Max Mode, 1 bar level 1, 2 bars 2, 3 bars Climax.) Lowering the cost of supers in Max Mode would work; someone also suggested the possibility of a 2nd bar for desperation/Climax attacks, which could ALSO work if they went this route, and fit this criteria, without having the supers having lowered costs(1 bar max, 1 bar 1, 2 bars 2, for a 4 bar affair, plus a Climax if the Climax is on another bar.)
But, again this is all speculation; it's simply two options out of several. It wouldn't be the first time KOF used another 'bar' or resource for something-Striker Bombs were their own resource, and in XI, Skill Stocks were a thing(you needed them for super cancels, tag attacks, save shifts and Dream Cancels.) For all we know it could be the classic '10% Unlimited' deal of some games of old, which means he'd be able to fire off a climax at the end(I don't THINK this is it but it's worth at least glancing at the option.)
Now that brings us to Iori's trailer. We see more clearly EX moves out of max mode, a pretty incredible new Climax(which I think is a new climax and not like a cinematic one), and EX into a regular super(which I'm guessing will run you a bar and a half to two bars, I'd guess.)
So a short list of what we have to glean so far:
-Thanks in particular to Benimaru's trailer(perhaps a little to Meitenkun's), we know there is A Mode at least. We dunno if there's more than one type of mode('99 and '00 had two, Armor and Counter!), but we know there's A Mode. Maybe called Max, maybe something else.
-CD Wallsplat. Pretty standard from 14.
-Are these new Climaxes just new, awesome animations or some sort of cinematic variant?
-We know you can fire off EX's in or out of said modes(if Meitenkun was indeed in the mode.) We dunno what they cost. A bar? Half a bar? I know 'half a bar' I've seen suggested by a lot of people, so perhaps they listened.
-There is *something* up with the Supers. We know they don't end whatever mode it's called, you can shoot them off back to back, but we don't know how we go about this yet; as said, I made a few suggestions from what I've seen people discuss.
I still have a feeling that the website could get some hints on it? I'm not sure.
Some of the little other bits we pick up are nice; like Iori apparently comboing his cl. C into his f.B, which if he can combo into his hcb+K he might be able to combo into dp+C as well which is often used for super cancels. I do sort of wish they'd drop the system already, but this is fun too. Iori's trailer was H Y P E. I mean he's one of my Big Three, along with Adelheid and Ralf in terms of my fav team, so I am super excited to play him even just based on this.
Oh yeah his taco looks as hilarious as ever. Like, you don't lab vs. the taco. You simply get it to the point where you're a bit less deer in the headlights and you resign to your fate faster. ;)
This isn't a particularly long blog or anything, more or less just me listing the stuff as it comes out. I think I'll now just make small updates as we get new trailers.
(As for who I think will be with Iori? If we don't get some variant of 3 Sacred Treasures or Kusanagi-Yagami, I will be VERY surprised. I mean I don't see them doing a trailer this hype and following it with what would be a giant deflation with his tired old team that is going nowhere narratively; I CAN see them maybe coming up with another interesting team for him, though. In any case, I do think, given by how they're advertising all of this, Iori will be getting a different team and it'll be hype.)
Still drawing my prayer circle for Adelheid, btw. Don't deny me my best team in the best looking KOF yet.
(It's a circle. It counts.)
