King (SNK)

King (Japanese: キング, Hepburn: Kingu) is a character from the Art of Fighting fighting game series introduced in 1992. King is a bartender from South Town whom the protagonists Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia face when in search of Yuri Sakazaki. King eventually helps them, and her character is expanded in the sequel Art of Fighting 2, where she is driven by the desire to heal her ill brother Jan. King is also famous for being the leader of the Women Fighters Team from The King of Fighters series, ever since its debut in 1994's game The King of Fighters '94. While she maintains good relationships with fellow teammates Yuri and Mai Shiranui, she often joins the Art of Fighting Team, composed of her members from her original series. Additionally, King has appeared in crossovers that SNK has developed alongside Capcom and adaptations of Art of Fighting and The King of Fighters.

The character of King was created by SNK under the idea of disguising a female fighter among several male fighters from Art of Fighting. Inspired by Grace Jones, King's design has changed from a manly woman to a more feminine individual in later products. This is more notable in The King of Fighters, where she was mainly included as a sign of SNK being more aware of promoting more female characters in their IPs. Critical response to King was initially ambiguous due to her desire to hide her gender in Art of Fighting, leaving multiple interpretations about her identity, but was still praised for development across The King of Fighters due to becoming a recurring character and developing an appealing Muay Thai move.