King of Fighters XV is already a tight, frame-data-friendly 2D fighter with solid netcode by SNK standards, and Team Pass 1 is the first post-launch character injection that serious players need to evaluate honestly. The pass bundles two teams: Team GAROU and Team SOUTH TOWN. If those names mean something to you, you already know why this exists. If they don't, quick primer: these are characters rooted in the Fatal Fury and South Town side of SNK's universe, and they bring move sets and playstyles that feel distinct from the base roster rather than being palette-swap fillers. Team GAROU carries the aggressive, rushdown-adjacent DNA you expect from that lineage. Movement options feel purposeful, and the pressure tools are the kind that reward players who have actually put in lab time rather than mashing specials. Team SOUTH TOWN leans into a different rhythm, with characters that reward neutral reads and spacing discipline. Both teams fit cleanly into the KOF XV engine without feeling bolted on, which is the baseline requirement for paid DLC fighters and something not every developer clears. On the competitive side, the question is always whether new characters shift the tier ceiling hard enough to matter for ranked play. These additions are competitive without being immediately broken on release, which is probably the best outcome. The cross-platform multiplayer implementation in KOF XV means your pool of opponents when you main a new DLC character is not artificially restricted, and that matters for how fast you can actually get reps in against real humans rather than spending all your time in training mode talking to yourself. The honest downside here is context-dependent. If you are not already invested in KOF XV and have not put time into the base game, a character pass is the wrong entry point. This is pure expansion content, priced for existing players who want more roster depth. The value calculation also depends on how many of the six characters you plan to actively play. If all six appeal to you, the pass format makes straightforward sense. If you want one or two, check whether individual purchases are available before committing. For players who are genuinely active in KOF XV ranked and want to stay current with the competitive meta, Team Pass 1 is a reasonable addition. The characters are well-executed, the netcode holds up well enough for online play to actually be worth your time, and SNK has shown they care about keeping this game alive. That is more than you can say about a lot of fighting game post-launch support. Fred, Scout Team