Art of Fighting Anthology announced for PS2

SNK fighting fans, take note: your favorite company has a whole heap of compilations to offer you this summer. Today, SNK Playmore announced their intentions to publish Art of Fighting Anthology, a comprehensive package containing all three Art of Fighting titles that played Granpappy McFireball to SNK’s now-immortal King of Fighting series.

Don’t be expecting a remake or online play, however; by the looks of the low native-resolution screens (check the gallery), Anthology looks to be a purely emulated deal and is likely to appeal more to hardcore SNK fighting fans than a broader audience looking to experience something new. Also en route for the PS2 is Fatal Fury: Battle Archives Vol. 1, a compilation of the first four Fatal Fury games.

I know it’s a pain in the ass to bring these older titles up to speed, but Capcom set the bar awfully high with Street Fighter Anniversary Collection. Will SNK’s foray into nostalgia-induced impulse buys fare as well for Art of Fighting?

Hit the jump for SNK Playmore’s press release.

SNK Announces ART OF FIGHTING ANTHOLOGY for the PlayStation®2 System
Collection Includes Complete ART OF FIGHTING Trilogy

Wall, NJ – Apr 13, 2007 SNK PLAYMORE USA CORPORATION, the U.S. publishing arm of the SNK PLAYMORE CORPORATION, today announced ART OF FIGHTING ANTHOLOGY for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system.

ART OF FIGHTING ANTHOLOGY is a comprehensive collection featuring the entire ART OF FIGHTING trilogy. A total of 33 classic SNK characters are included, each with their own fighting styles and unique moves. ART OF FIGHTING was SNK’s second fighting-game franchise, set in the same universe as the FATAL FURY franchise, and serving as a prequel to the FATAL FURY saga. The ART OF FIGHTING series improved upon the tried-and-true 2D-fighter combat system with a spirit gauge that gave each player the ability to perform special attacks, as well as an innovative graphical-scaling camera system.

“With both ART OF FIGHTING ANTHOLOGY and FATAL FURY: BATTLE ARCHIVES Volume 1 making their first North American appearances on PlayStation 2 system this will be a memorable summer for SNK fans,” said Ben Herman, president of SNK PLAYMORE USA CORPORATION.

ART OF FIGHTING ANTHOLOGY will be available for PlayStation 2 system in May 2007.