Here’s a good gauge at how the latest SNK fighter’s tier list will pan out.

SNK has released an updated version of the Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Matchup Matrix, which determines the win/lose ratio of the cast against each other via SNK’s official data in-game. Basically, a high percentage means a high win rate against the opposing character (sans mirror matches) when you read the chart from left to right. For example, Rock’s win rate against Terry is 46.82%, meaning he is at a slight disadvantage against Terry in terms of moves and playstyle. Conversely, Rock’s win rate against Tizoc is 57.87%, which puts Rock at a slight advantage due to his mobility and combo damage.

Based on the chart, we have determined a number of standouts:

• Hokutomaru and Kain are the best characters with a high win rate, with the former having the most red-highlighted win rates against all fighters. Both characters require high levels of execution, but they have the best moves, footsie and zoning tools, and mobility around. So far, these two have little to no disadvantages against the rest of the cast.
• Following just behind the top two are Billy Kane, Kevin Rian, Ronaldo, and Terry Bogard. Maybe it’s the fact that most of these picks are legacy characters old-school players are good with, but you’ll definitely be seeing more of these characters in high-level Ranked play.
• Tizoc is the worst on the win/lose ratio list, with his worst matchup being Hokutomaru (66.16% in the ninja’s favour).
• The best and most-used character in Smart Style is Terry Bogard, with the most wins. We’ve played a lot of Smart Style Terry, and he is a beast in Ranked.

Our takeaway so far? There aren’t any win/lose percentages that go beyond 70% or higher, so one can say that Fatal Fury: COTW is balanced. It still needs work for some characters like Mai and Tizoc, but older games had it worst. We’re past the days of “Sagat VS Zangief in Street Fighter IV” balance issues.

With the exception of Terry, every other character’s Smart Style mode needs work and fixing . SNK may need to start making Smart Style viable just like how Street Fighter 6 Modern Controls panned out.

Fatal Fury: COTW is out right now for PC and consoles. For more on the game, check out our review and tier list.