Ignition Entertainment has announced that The King of Fighters XII will be released in North America and Europe in 2009. The highly anticipated fighting game is expected to be released on PS3 and Xbox 360.

For the first time in the franchise, KOF XII has undergone a complete graphical overhaul. All sprites used over the last 14 years have been dropped and replaced with new high definition, high resolution sprites on detailed 2D backgrounds, drawn 100% by hand.

“Dreams never die!” said Ajay Chadha, President of Ignition Entertainment. “I’ve been a huge The King of Fighters fan since 1994 when the game first debuted and I know original fans will be as excited as I am about this groundbreaking installment of this very popular series. And just as importantly, The King of Fighters XII should be a treat for the new gamers who’ve just been introduced to the hugely popular franchise.”

Yet more King of Fighters is heading for us, courtesy of SNK Playmore. The series publisher has announced KOF XI, the eleventh entry in the series for release on the PS2 later this Fall. The game expands on the franchise’s formula with new strategic options like Quick Shift and Saving Shift, as well as match-deciding factors like Judgment Indicator and Dream Cancel. Additionally, the title also offers extra characters, bonus stages and brand-new music.

They also announced another fighting game - NEOGEO Battle Coliseum, which is also due out on the PS2 later this Fall. The game employs a two vs. two tag-team battle system allowing players to switch characters during play and perform team attacks on their opponents. The game includes 40 characters from various franchises like Metal Slug, Samurai Showdown, Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting, among many.

Kotaku recently had the chance to visit the SNK Playmore HQ in Japan, getting to play with Falcoon, the creator of King of Fighters Maximum Impact, and chat with the Marketing Manager of the company. It’s an interesting read, but the most attention-grabbing part comes when the author asks about SNK’s stance on PS3.

“My first impression is that it’s expensive. The PlayStation 2 is good enough. It’s small and cheap. For us, for manufacturers, we have to invest in a new system, and the PlayStation 3 is a risk. There won’t be enough consoles at launch. Few consoles mean few software sales. We need to wait three or four years. Maybe 2009-2010 is a good time to release a game for the PS3.”

Basically, the company doesn’t intend on supporting the PS3 in the near future, though it has expressed interest in developing for Nintendo’s Wii. SNK currently plans on launching Metal Slug Anthology as a launch title for the Wii.