Pocket Fighter

"Somehow Capcom made Street Fighter cute."

I never had the opportunity to play Pocket Fighter at the arcades since, at the time of its release I was no where near any arcades of note, so I was excited when I learned of its looming release on the Playstation. I had no idea what to expect from the game, all I knew was the characters looked like they game straight from Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo. While this might be good for a few laughs and had a sort of eye-raising appeal to it, would it actually make a worthwhile fighting game?

Pocket Fighter doesn't have a single base story, but rather several small stories, each one centered around the character you choose. This should come as no surprise to anyone who has played a Capcom fighter before, or even fighting games in general, as this genre tends to favor a common thread between the character's plots rather than an overall tale. Pocket Fighter spices thing up a bit, as each character has nothing to do with the other characters in the game. Furthermore, each of these individual stories are rather funny (or stupid, depending on your point of view), lending to the almost child-like nature of the game.

Graphically, Pocket Fighter offers the same quality of animation, color, and flair that we've come to expect from Capcom. The backgrounds are excellent and humorous, with literally hundreds of little things to see and laugh at during the course of a match. Each of the game's dozen characters are SD (super-deformed) versions of fighters from other Capcom titles. This style lends itself to much comedy while adding a new level of detail to the facial expression of the various combatants. Of course, there is also the plethora of special effects (or 'flash' if you will) that will have you 'ohhhing' and 'ahhhing' as they explode onto your television screen.

The sound for Pocket Fighter is kind of basic. It adequately does the job it's supposed to do, but it doesn't have the extra push that most of the newer Capcom games seem to have. The music is cute and funny, but gets a tad sickening after you hear it too often. On the other hand, the sound effects are hardly even noticeable, save for the occasion cry of surprise from one of the fighters. Basically, it's not too bad but it's not even close to usual Capcom standards.

Pocket Fighter pretty much controls like any other Capcom fighting game as far as feel is concerned. It strays from the normal 3-punch/3-kick formula by taking away some of the complication of multiple attack levels and adding a few more buttons for other things. A certain level of strategy is introduced to the control of your fighter by the unique (yet simple) combo system that borrows a little from Star Gladiator. It may take a while to adjust, but once you get used to its stylized layout, Pocket Fighter is an enjoyable playing experience.

Attention now needs to be called to the fresh design aspects of Pocket Fighter, more specifically, the way the game is played. This crazy little title employs a new way to throw out those all-powerful special attacks- that of collecting colored gems and raising attack levels so they become more potent. You will also find special items scattered around the fighting arenas (or tossed down from the sky) that add to the frenzy of playing this game. These items can be used offensively (such as blowing up your opponent, freezing him/her, or setting him/her on fire) or defensively (more life, slowing things down, or protection). The addition of these new elements lends much to the old Street Fighter formula, creating a different level of strategy to the genre.

Not too many bonuses found in Pocket Fighter, but you will see there are a couple of hidden characters. One of them is, of course, the now infamous Akuma while the other is Dan (of all frickin' people). Akuma brings with him undisputed raw power, though he is a little weak on the defensive side, while Dan delivers to us his usual level of stupidity and pointlessness. I wish there were a few more extras for the home version, like a couple of more exclusive characters, but no such luck. While I don't know if this is true of the U.S. version of Pocket Fighter, if you buy the Japanese version of this game you get a few rounds of Rival Schools thrown in for good measure.

While Pocket Fighter is far from perfect, it is original enough to warrant a purchase from even the most hardened of fighting game fanatics, despite its simple and care-free appearance. Once you cut to the heart of the game, you'll find a deep fighter with plenty to offer that'll keep you coming back for more.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/12/09

Game Release: Pocket Fighter (US, 1998)