Top 25 Neo Geo Games of All Time

Metal Slug is a 1996 run-and-gun arcade video game originally developed by Nazca Corporation and released by SNK for the Neo Geo MVS. It is the first installment in the eponymous series. Set in 2028, players assume the role of Peregrine Falcon Strike Force soldiers Marco Rossi and Tarma Roving in a fight against the Rebel Army led by Donald Morden and overthrow his coup d'état to prevent a New World Order.

“METAL SLUG 3”, the masterpiece in SNK’s emblematic 2D run & gun action shooting game series, still continues to fascinate millions of fans worldwide to this day for its intricate dot-pixel graphics, and simple and intuitive game controls!

“METAL SLUG 2”, the 2nd entry in SNK’s emblematic 2D run & gun action shooting game returns to the battlefield on the Steam gaming platform!

One year after the events of Metal Slug 3, the world is trembling under the new threat of a mysterious but deadly cyber virus that threatens to attack and destroy any nation's military computer system. With Tarma and Eri unable to help due to their own assignments in the matter, Marco and Fio are called in to investigate the situation and are joined by two newcomers, Nadia and Trevor. In their investigation, the group discovers that a terrorist organization known as Amadeus is behind the nefarious plot and that they head into battle against Amadeus' forces, hoping to destroy the cyber virus before it gets the chance to wipe out the entire world's military computer system

The King of Fighters '97 is a 1997 fighting game produced by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home console. It is the fourth game in The King of Fighters series. It was ported to the Neo-Geo CD, as well as the PlayStation and the Sega Saturn in Japan only.

The All-Star dream battle is here at last: It's King of Fighters '98! Here come 38 of your favorite characters from the King of Fighters series. Your favorite characters and teams are back! Filled with new surprises like the Roulette Team Edit and Advantage System, King '98 will pop your cork with unrelenting excitement! The King of Fighters '98 is the fifth game in The King of Fighters series by SNK.

Windjammers (also known as Flying Power Disc in Japan) is a fast paced sports arcade game released by Data East on the Neo Geo arcade system in 1994 and later on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on June 22, 2010. Following the bankruptcy of Data East, the intellectual rights for this game were acquired by Paon. It was delisted in Japanese Virtual Console for the Wii on December 24, 2013, making it the only delisted Neo Geo game for the Wii Virtual Console. The game mechanics are essentially the same as Pong or air hockey, where players continuously shoot the disc at the goal zone of the opponent attempting to score. The game can be played against the computer or in a 2 player versus.

The final King of Fighters game released by SNK in its original state, The King of Fighters 2000 expands on the story and gameplay presented in The King of Fighters '99. This year's tournament is sponsored by the Ikari Warriors in an attempt to discover more about the NESTS organization, and to derail the plans of potential NESTS agents K' and Maxima. Not everything is as straight-forward as it usually is, however, and even the Ikari Warriors themselves are at risk of being betrayed from within by the end of the tournament. The King of Fighters 2000 features an improved Striker call system with the Active Striker System, which allows the player to call his Striker character in any situation, whether he is attacking or being attacked by the opponent, allowing him to use their strikers in combos. Moreover, in addition to the numerous nostalgic SNK characters returning as Another and Maniac Strikers, KOF 2000 welcomes newcomers such as Ramon, Vanessa, Seth, Lin, Hinako Shijo, and Kula Diamond.

One of SNK's legendary fighting game series has made a return! In Samurai Shodown II, you can take on one of the roles of 15 warriors as you fight your way through the land to defeat the evil Mizuki! Slash, kick, and slice your opponents in half...do whatever it takes...live by the sword, and die by its blade.

"The King of Fighters '99: Millennium Battle" is the sixth game in The King of Fighters series by SNK. Unlike in previous games of the series, there are four characters per team instead of three, with the fourth serving as a "Striker", a fighter whose function is only to enter a match, attack the opponent and leave without replacing their teammates. In total, there are seven teams, each containing four characters, four Team Edit characters and a boss.

Bust-A-Move (also known as Puzzle Bobble) is a real-time puzzle game in which the player controls a device called "pointer" at the bottom of the screen, aiming and releasing randomly colored bubbles upwards. Depending on the aiming, the bubbles may float up directly or bounce off the walls, changing their trajectory. The goal is to aim the bubbles in such a way that they will touch identically colored ones. When such bubbles form a group of three or more, they pop and disappear from the screen. If the ceiling of the area is covered by too many bubbles, it will gradually descend; the game is over when it nearly reaches the player-controlled pointer. Should the player fail to release the bubbles within a specific time limit, they will be released automatically, unaffected by the pointer's aiming.

Samurai Shodown IV: Amakusa's Revenge, also known as Samurai Spirits: Amakusa's Descent in Japan, is the fourth in SNK's flagship Samurai Shodown series of fighting games. Chronologically, it is the second and final chapter of a story between Samurai Shodown and Samurai Shodown II, with Samurai Shodown III being the first chapter.

In early Japan, a man named Shiro Tokisada Amakusa preaches a heretic religion. Little does anyone know that Amakusa is really a servant of the evil Ambrosia, who took over Amakusa's body. Ambrosia wishes to shroud the world in darkness. Now, choose between 12 warriors (and 3 bonus characters) to fight for the honor of destroying Amakusa, and fulfilling a mission.

The GRANDMOTHER of all battles! 15 of the FATAL FURY series' top stars gather in the match of the millenium! Use the resurrected Geese Howard and Wolfgang Krauser in a dazzling arena! All you have ever wanted in a fighting game is here in FATAL FURY SPECIAL!

The King of Fighters '96 is a 1996 fighting game. It is the third game in The King of Fighters series, following The King of Fighters '95. SNK's flagship series returns for another year. Many of the changes in this year's KOF release come in the form of improved graphics, sound effects, music and totally redone character sprites. The gameplay of the system has been altered with the addition of "Rush" multi-hit combos and new moves for practically every character. The storyline of the series receives heavy focus in this release with the Orochi Saga swinging into high-gear. The King of Fighters '96 has 27 regular characters plus 2 boss characters (who can be unlocked with the use of a code). Newcomers to the tournament include Mr. Big from the Art of Fighting series, the bosses from Fatal Fury (Wolfgang Krauser and Geese Howard), and completely original characters like Leona Heidern, Mature and Vice. Other features carried over from the previous year include the ability to choose between the default "Team Fighting" mode or the traditional "Single Fighter" style of gameplay, plus the "Versus" and "Survival" gameplay modes.

Samurai Shodown III was to be the start of a bold new direction for the franchise. The most obvious difference between this game and the others in the series is the notably darker aesthetic. The more light-hearted characters (Earthquake, Cham Cham, and Gen-an to name a few) from the previous games have been excised, and even the kabuki master, Kyoshiro Senryo, received a redesign, transforming him from a flamboyant stage performer into a grim-faced, muscular man. All of the characters have been completely redrawn. The animation is very smooth for all characters, another departure from the graphical style of the second game.

The King of Fighters '95 is a 1995 fighting game produced by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home console. It is the sequel to The King of Fighters '94 and the second game in The King of Fighters series. It is also the first game in the series to be ported to other home consoles besides the Neo Geo AES and Neo-Geo CD, with versions released for the PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Game Boy. It was also rereleased in The King of Fighters Collection: The Orochi Saga in 2008 for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable and Wii. The King of Fighters '95 introduces Kyo Kusanagi's rival Iori Yagami, and firmly places Kyo as the main character for the rest of the series. The gameplay of The King of Fighters '95 is essentially unchanged from the previous title, though it does introduce the "team edit" concept which would remain as a standard feature of the series. Using the "team edit" feature, it is possible to create a totally customized team using any of the available fighters, or use one of the default teams if you wish.

After Geese Howard's death in the original Fatal Fury, a mysterious nobleman becomes the sponsor of the new "King of Fighters" tournament. This time, the tournament is held worldwide with fighters around the globe competing. As the single player mode progresses, the mysterious challenger begins defeating the participants from the previous Fatal Fury game, searching for the man responsible for defeating Geese.

Rugal Bernstein is an incredibly rich and notorious arms and drug trafficker, as well as an incredibly skilled and ruthless fighter. Having become bored with the lack of competition, Rugal decides to host a new King of Fighters tournament. Rugal has his secretary travel to eight destinations around the world and invite fighters to his new tournament. Unlike the previous KOF tournaments depicted in the Fatal Fury series, the new King of Fighters is a team tournament, with eight teams of three, each representing a different nationality, participating this time. Most characters come from other SNK games, such as Team Italy, which is composed of three heroes from the original Fatal Fury: Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard and Joe Higashi. The two heroes from Art of Fighting (Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia) are featured along with their mentor and Ryo's father (Takuma Sakazaki) make up Team Mexico. Team Korea features Kim Kaphwan from Fatal Fury 2 as the leader of two convicts he's trying to reform Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge, while Team England is a mix of female fighters from Fatal Fury 2 (Mai Shiranui) and the Art of Fighting series (Yuri Sakazaki, King). The two heroes from Psycho Soldier (Athena Asamiya and Sie Kensou) form Team China along with their mentor, Chin Gentsai. Similarly, Team Brazil features the heroes from Ikari Warriors (Ralf and Clark) along with their commanding officer Heidern. Additionally, the game features two teams composed entirely of original characters: Team Japan featuring Kyo Kusanagi, Benimaru Nikaido and Goro Daimon, and Team USA composed of Heavy D!, Lucky Glauber and Brian Battler.

The game brings back the team play composed by three characters each that was a tradition in previous games. The game has also several important changes in the gameplay, like the "Free Cancel System" or "Max Mode System", the "Quick Emergency Evasion" and "Quick MAX Mode Activation", aside from the countless changes in each character's special moves and their properties.

Fatal Fury is a fighting game developed by SNK and released for arcades in 1991. Players choose from a roster of martial artists and compete in one-on-one battles using punches, kicks, and special moves. The game introduced a two-plane fighting system that allows characters to move between foreground and background lanes. Its story follows Terry Bogard and his allies as they challenge the crime lord Geese Howard.

The second installment in the AoF series added the "rage gauge"; similar to the "spirit system" of its predecessor, it limited the use and effectiveness of special attacks. The game's story is set a year after the original. Geese Howard, a rising star in South Town's criminal underworld, calls fighters to the city for a new tournament, "The King of Fighters." Howard was the final boss and series villain of SNK's other fighting game franchise Fatal Fury (though he is a secret boss in this game), whose story took place over a decade after the events of Art of Fighting. Art of Fighting 2 was the only time Yuri Sakazaki was a playable character in the series. It also marked the only time that she donned her trademark outfit, which was made famous in The King of Fighters series. This game also marks the debut of Takuma Sakazaki without his Mr. Karate persona, as well as Eiji Kisaragi, who both appear in the King of Fighters series. Ryuhaku Todo, the first boss in the original AOF, is the only character dropped; all characters are playable from the beginning. The final boss is always Mr. Big, though as mentioned earlier, an extra match will be played against Geese Howard if the player unlocks him through good performance. This game is also notorious for its difficulty, with it being referred in many fighting circles as having some of the toughest opponent AI in a fighting game.

This fighting game began the story of the Sakazaki family and Robert Garcia. Yuri Sakazaki has been abducted by Mr. Big to punish her father, Takuma, and her brother, Ryo. To rescue her, Ryo and Robert must take on numerous enemies around South Town, eventually reaching the mysterious Mr. Karate. The passion of the game’s creators is evident in the unique game play elements introduced. These include an energy gauge that is depleted every time a fighter uses a special maneuver, Desperation Attacks that are usable only when a fighter’s health is low, and camera zooming that adjusts on the fly as fighters move around the stage. All these features ensure that players use strategy and tactics, rather than simply mash buttons. Adding to the mix are little touches such as characters showing cuts when they are injured and voice-over samples during cut scenes. Can you perfect the art of fighting and save Yuri?