Rugal Bernstein
Rugal Bernstein is a video game character created by SNK. First introduced in
The King of Fighters '94, he is a recurring boss in the
The King of Fighters fighting game series. As the host of the tournaments from
The King of Fighters '94 and
'95, Rugal plans to turn all the competitors from the tournament into stone statues as part of his collection. Despite his death in
'95, Rugal is still featured in following
The King of Fighters titles which do not contain a storyline. He has also been featured in the
SNK Vs. Capcom as a boss character. His character has also appeared in other media related to
The King of Fighters franchise, including comic adaptations and
The King of Fighters live-action film. As the first boss character from
The King of Fighters, the SNK staff created him to be one of the most difficult characters to defeat. His Omega Rugal form from
'95 has been noted by the staff to be their favorite boss to the point they added him in the Dream Match titles. Publications for video games and other media have provided praise and criticism for Rugal's character.