The King of Fighters 2001

The King of Fighters 2001 is a 2D fighting game that relies on teams composed of four characters used to defeat the other teams by using combat combos and special moves. Like in the previous game, the battles are between teams of four. Introduced in this game is a "Wire Damage" feature, which has two forms: Critical Wire for offense and Counter Wire for defense. The Wire Damage attack knocks the opponent to the other side of the screen, bouncing them back towards the user, which makes them vulnerable to further attacks and combos. Super Attack moves can generate major fast effects when Wire Damage is executed. Instead of a strict "three fighters and one striker" format, this installment introduces the Tactical Order System, which allows the player to designate characters as combatants or strikers. Before each match, the player forms a team composed of any combination of one to four fighters and zero to three strikers. The number of strikers on a team affects the length and number of stocks of the player's Power Gauge. Teams with no strikers will have a longer Power Gauge to fill and can carry only one stock, while a team with only one fighter and three strikers will fill their Power Gauge quicker and carry up to four stocks. One stock is needed to summon a striker, perform a guard or super cancel, a blow-away attack, or a Super Special Move. MAX-level Super Special Moves requires two stocks to perform. Players can now cancel an attack into a Striker Summon with the use of a Cancel Striker, while some characters now have Wire Whip techniques, which will send an opponent flying into the air and arrive at the other side of the fighting area.