Developed and published by SNK for their Neo Geo arcade platform on September 24, 1992, Art of Fighting began a new series of fighting games for the company, who has already established their path with the release of Fatal Fury one year prior. Art of Fighting was set as a prequel to that series; taking place in the fictional city of South Town, the game saw protagonists Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia, friends and rivals who are practitioners of the Sakazaki family’s Kyokugen Karate fighting school, undertake a dangerous quest through the crime ridden town to find and rescue Ryo’s younger sister Yuri from the dangerous mob boss, Mr. Big, and to also find out what happened to their father, Takuma. What set the original Art of Fighting apart from other fighting games was its presentation: massive sprites, a strong cinematic soundtrack, a story mode where only Ryo and Robert were playable characters, and its cinematic presentation of its storyline, with characters that had more developed personalities, unique fighting styles, and cutscenes that advanced the story, were a far cry from Capcom’s Street Fighter II, which was also released in 1991.
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