SNK entered into bankruptcy while "The King of Fighters 2000" was still in development, resulting in glitches and bugs remaining in the game because staff members—most notably producer Takashi Nishiyama—left the company before the game was complete. SNK attempted to add further depth to the NESTS cast with K's new enemy Kula Diamond; other new characters like Vanessa and Seth were intended to attract different audiences. The PlayStation 2 version of the game was released in North America in a two-in-one bundle with its immediate sequel, "The King of Fighters 2001", as the first two games to be published by SNK Playmore USA.