The King of Fighters XV, the next entry in the popular fighting game series by SNK, will not release this year, the publisher confirmed today.

　　Game Producer Yasuyuki Oda explained in a new message shared today that the next entry in the celebrated fighting game series has been delayed to the first quarter of 2022 due to the current pandemic impacting the development timeline that was set at the beginning.

　　There are many fans who are anticipating the release of KOF XV in 2021, however at this point in time, we unfortunately have to announce that KOF XV will now be launching within the 1st quarter of 2022. 

　　The development timeline we set out to reach in the beginning has been affected by the ever-still rising cases of COVID-19 within Japan. We have made the ultimate decision in the end that the product’s quality must come first, and so with that decision comes an altered release window.

　　We sincerely ask for your kind patience and understanding as our development teams continue to work hard on KOF XV as we draw closer to its release.

　　The King of Fighters XV is currently in development for yet to be confirmed platforms. It will release in the first quarter of 2022 worldwide.