Laggia talks KOF and Another Eden: “The story will make you fall in love with the KOF characters again.”

Another Eden: The Cat Beyond Time and Space's crossover with The King of Fighters (KOF) is now in full swing! Laggia, the SNK World Championship 2023 winner and a member of Wright Flyer Studios, played a pivotal role in bringing Terry Bogard, Kyo Kusanagi, Mai Shiranui, and Kula Diamond into the world of Another Eden. We sat down with Laggia for an interview about KOF: Another Bout and more!

In his interview with esports.gg, Laggia revealed that he has been with Wright Flyer Studios since 2020, balancing roles as a game designer and esports player. As the SNK World Championship winner and a fan of the franchise, he described the crossover as a clash of worlds. However, since he's familiar with both titles, it was satisfying to work on.

"This crossover was a clash of worlds for me," Laggia said. "The title I've played competitively and the title I work on as a developer. It was unexpected for sure, but I'm familiar with both titles so it was satisfying to work on. Another Eden's crossovers have always been top-notch, incorporating not only the crossover title's characters, but also the world-building and core elements, so I wanted to make sure that this crossover would live up to those expectations."

Laggia talked about transforming a character into one who fits into the world of Another Eden as well. For example, in Another Eden, each character has a different weapon type. One of which is "Fists." Since the playable characters from KOF all use "Fists" as their weapon, this aligns well with the Another Eden's mechanics.

He worked with the animation team to ensure that each character's movements and skills matched their personalities as well. BON, a caster, also helped with the crossover. Together, they both focused on keeping everyone true to their character.

"There are three different eras in Another Eden — Antiquity, Present, and Future — and this crossover takes place in a KOF tournament in the Future era," Laggia added. The time-traveling theme allows the KOF characters to naturally join the Another Eden cast and go on adventures together.

Since this crossover is Another Eden's inaugural collaboration with a fighting game, the team felt it was essential to get the battle aspect of everything right. For example, Another Eden has the "Another Force" mechanic that's in the form of a meter gauge. Once the meter gauge is full, a player can deal high damage to an opponent using skill commands within a limited time.

"We thought we could utilize this mechanic to create a fighting game-like experience, and came up with the gauge for MAX MODE," Laggia explained. "Once the MAX MODE gauge is full, it can be activated and will allow players to input commands. Chaining inputs correctly will unleash powerful Special Moves and Super Special Moves."

He continued, noting that the crossover offers a fun and challenging battle experience. "Apart from all of this, I worked with the rest of the team on adjusting skill animations and effects for the KOF characters, as well as integrating the KOF gauge system into Another Eden, so that Another Eden players and KOF players alike could enjoy the battle system," he added.

In terms of his favorites, Laggia told esports.gg that he likes Kyo Kusanagi and B. Jenet from KOF XV. However, keeping personal preferences aside, he does enjoy playing as Kula in the crossover.

"As a player, Kyo Kusanagi and B. Jenet are characters I used a lot in KOF XV, so I feel attached to them," he said. "Putting that aside, I think it's Kula. I personally like her character and her story in KOF. I also made sure that I put those personal opinions aside when I worked on development."

Apart from the aforementioned character animations and battle system, Laggio also wants players to look forward to the story featured in the crossover. To him, that's one of the best parts in any role-playing game (RPG). 

"I think players will have fun seeing the KOF characters interact with the Another Eden characters, and the story will make you fall in love with the KOF characters again," he said.

Laggia revealed that the KOF collaboration was unexpected, but he believes it turned out well. Another Eden has previously collaborated with notable RPGs such as Persona 5 Royal, Chrono Cross, and Octopath Traveler, however, as mentioned, this marks the first fighting game crossover. Laggia said he's curious to see how crossovers with other genres might unfold.

As for parting words, Laggia encouraged folks to either give Another Eden a try or return to if after a break. It's a great time to do so because joining the game means perks, benefits for inviting friends, and more. He then added that he's excited for the upcoming Shadow of Sin and Steel set.

That's all for now. Another Eden is a free-to-play game that's available on PC, Android, and iOS. Stick around on esports.gg for more news and updates across the fighting game community (FGC) and beyond!