KOF: Maximum Impact

KOF: Maximum Impact
Japanese PlayStation 2 box art for KOF: Maximum Impact — Maniax, featuring Soiree, Alba Meira and Lien Neville
Developer(s)Noise Factory
Publisher(s)
Producer(s)Masahiro Maeda
Programmer(s)Kazuaki Ezato
Hiroshi Hishikawa
Yasuhiro Kurahashi
Nobuhisa Shinoda
SeriesThe King of Fighters
EngineRenderWare
Platform(s)PlayStation 2, Xbox
ReleasePlayStation 2
  • JP: August 12, 2004
  • NA: October 12, 2004
  • AU: February 10, 2005
  • EU: March 4, 2005
Maniax
  • JP: March 23, 2006
Xbox
  • JP: June 23, 2005
  • NA: June 28, 2005
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

KOF: Maximum Impact is a 2004 fighting game developed by Noise Factory and published by SNK Playmore for the PlayStation 2. An enhanced version was released in 2005 for both the Xbox and PlayStation 2, subtitled Maniax. Marketed as a spin-off of SNK's major fighting series The King of Fighters (KOF), whence many of its characters originate, Maximum Impact also contains elements of the Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting series. Maximum Impact is the first 3D fighter made by SNK since 1999's Fatal Fury: Wild Ambition and Samurai Shodown: Warriors Rage.

While the version released in the U.S. featured an English dub that was met with much derision (with IGN's Jeremy Dunham going so far as to label it "piss poor"), further releases for the Xbox and PAL PS2 add a choice of English and Japanese language options. The Xbox version also includes an online match mode where matches could be fought between players via Xbox Live. The game was followed in 2006 by KOF: Maximum Impact 2.