TL;DR: Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is a thrilling, heartfelt return to Southtown after 26 years. A stylish visual upgrade, inventive battle system, rich lore integration, and a killer soundtrack make this a celebration of SNK’s legacy. But questionable cameos, connectivity quirks, and missing features leave room for future updates.

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves – A Return to Southtown That Feels Like Home (Mostly)

Let me take you back to a hot summer in the ’90s when the arcades reeked of adolescent sweat and Mountain Dew, and fighting games were more than just games—they were life. While Street Fighter II raged through every pizza joint on the East Coast, I was the kid huddled in the corner of a smoky arcade, eyes glued to a Neo Geo cabinet, hands blistered from trying to perfect Terry Bogard’s Power Geyser. That was Fatal Fury, and it was mine.

So when SNK announced they were dusting off the leather jackets and returning to Southtown with Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, 26 years after Mark of the Wolves, it felt like hearing from an old friend. A friend who’d been through some stuff, maybe tried their luck in some crossover gigs, but who was finally ready to come home.

And damn if it isn’t good to have them back.

The Wolves Are Back – And They’ve Been Lifting

Let’s get this out of the way: City of the Wolves is gorgeous. SNK went full comic book with this one, not in that overdone cel-shaded way but in a hyper-stylized, Saturday-morning-cartoon-on-steroids aesthetic that pops off the screen. Every victory pose, every Hidden Gear move, every smirk from Rock Howard feels like it’s ripping right off the page.

Terry, Mai, Billy Kane—they’re all back, and not just in “we added them because nostalgia” form. These aren’t dusty mannequins pulled from a ’90s closet. They’re reimagined, revitalized, and in some cases, more dangerous than ever. The new designs are bold without feeling disrespectful to what came before. And the newcomers? Mostly hits, though some additions feel like they wandered in from a Fortnite crossover by mistake (more on that later).

Gameplay: REVving the Engine

The real meat here is the battle system, which feels like SNK’s answer to Capcom’s Drive mechanics from Street Fighter VI. Only it’s more grounded in defense, with mechanics like REV Guard negating chip damage (finally!) and the cinematic spectacle of Hidden Gear Desperation Moves kicking in when you’re teetering on the edge.

It borrows from the T.O.P. system of Mark of the Wolves, now called SPG (Selective Potential Gear), giving you a reason to plan your health bar positioning like a chess master. The REV system allows for interruption combos, chaining, and overheating that punishes button mashers. It’s the kind of design that welcomes newcomers with a nod but tells veterans, “Hey, there’s depth here if you want it.”

Not quite Guilty Gear Strive levels of complexity, but enough tech to make combo nerds sweat with excitement.

Back to the 2-Lane Future

In a move no one expected but everyone secretly hoped for, SNK brought back the classic 2-Lane System—yes, the very mechanic that made Fatal Fury feel like it existed in another dimension (because it kinda did). You can once again hop into the background to dodge projectiles or outmaneuver an overeager opponent.

It’s a smart bit of nostalgia-meets-utility that adds a refreshing bit of chaos to every match. That said, the feature is criminally underused in the current stage selection. More stages utilizing this would’ve pushed the envelope further, but SNK promises they’re coming.

Southtown Stories: Lore, Endings, and RPG Side Quests

The writing’s sharp, and the payoffs in Arcade Mode are some of SNK’s best in years. Plot points seeded as far back as Fatal Fury 3 are brought full circle, and I’m not ashamed to admit I got a little misty during Rock’s ending.

Episodes of South Town, the RPG-lite campaign, gives characters meaningful side stories. Think Street Fighter VI‘s World Tour, but with less open-world fluff and more purposeful design. It’s not flawless—builds from this mode don’t transfer outside it—but it adds a ton of flavor to the cast. And those deep-cut character interactions? Pure fanservice in the best way.

Soundtrack: A Love Letter to SNK Fans

There are 350 tracks. Let me repeat that: three hundred and fifty. Every Art of Fighting, Fatal Fury, and even Neo Geo Pocket Color track is here. No unlock gates. No DLC traps. Just pure auditory nostalgia with modern flair.

Then there’s the DJ collaboration mode. Salvatore Ganacci’s training theme channels that early-2000s lo-fi synth energy in a way that makes me want to shadowbox in cargo pants. It’s weird, wonderful, and fully optional if it’s not your jam.

But… Ronaldo?

Okay, now we have to talk about the elephant in the gi: cameos. While I’ve long accepted that fighting games are prone to cross-brand madness, seeing Cristiano Ronaldo and DJ Ganacci on the roster is… odd. They play fine, but lore-wise it’s like throwing John Cena into Virtua Fighter. Why? How?

SNK clearly wanted some meme fuel or viral buzz, but it clashes with an otherwise tightly woven narrative and legacy. Not a dealbreaker, just… weird.

Multiplayer and Online Woes

Offline versus mode? Tight. Special rules mode? A blast. Crossplay? Functional.

Online, however, has hiccups. Wired connections sometimes stutter, and room resets during character switches are tedious. There’s no avatar-based lobby system either—a feature nearly every major fighter now includes. And connecting via Wolf Tags (i.e., numeric codes) feels like AOL Instant Messenger in the age of Discord.

These things can—and should—be patched. But for a game this high-profile, it’s surprising they weren’t polished for launch.

Character Confusion and Guide Gaps

SNK has always had a bit of a “figure it out yourself” attitude, but in 2025, that just feels out of touch. Want to know if your character’s a zoner, rushdown, or grappler? You won’t find it in-game. No archetype tags, no in-client guides, and nothing except combo missions and some external YouTube uploads.

It’s frustrating, especially for newcomers. Street Fighter VI nailed this with transparent character roles and tutorialized progression. SNK needs to catch up here.

Verdict: The Return We Waited For (Mostly)

There’s no sugarcoating it—this game rules. SNK didn’t just make a sequel; they made a love letter, an homage, and a bold new chapter. City of the Wolves is a reverent revival that understands what made Fatal Fury special, while also modernizing just enough to bring in a new generation.

But it’s also a game of missed potential: underused mechanics, clunky online systems, and a baffling absence of in-game guidance.

Still, if you’ve ever yelled “BUSTAH WOLF!” at a CRT screen or spent nights humming the Southtown theme, this one’s for you. And if you’re new? There’s no better time to run with the pack.