Pocket Fighter is a two-player fighting game of humorous proportions. The look and feel of the game is quite reminiscent of Street Fighter Alpha 2. All of the characters are depicted in a state of what is known as Super Deformed; or SD for short. The cast consists of 12 characters primarily based on Capcom's SF cast with a few taken from Darkstalkers and the sleeper fighter, Warzard. The game's engine is based upon a four button system: Taunt - used to tease your opponent, Punch, Kick and Special. Many of the characters special moves and signature attacks have been retained. Certain aspects such as high jumping, dashing, and counters have been implemented, which adds a considerable amount of gameplay and strategy.

Gamers, do NOT underestimate the level of enjoyment and fun that can be derived from this game. Pocket Fighter's fighting system looks simplistic, but be warned, even die-hard gamers can find it challenging. The Supers system is similar to the engine from the Street Fighter Alpha series. As with any Capcom title, where would a SF adaption be without the gameplay? An ingenious concept in my opinion. The 3 gauges are empowered by collecting gems, respectively for the Punch, Kick, and Special buttons. To maximize your Super bar in order to unleash Supers(and more powerful Special Moves); you must unleash effective combos. This introduces the Flash Combo system. I've found these combos to be more effective and actually, are the highlight of the game. Flash Combos are activated by a systematic combinations of Punch, Kick and occasionally the Special Button. Unleashing these combos cause your character to transform into numerous characters. Some are quite familiar as they are actual cameos of popular Capcom characters. Examples such as Felicia becoming Sasquatch or Chun turning into Jill from Resident Evil are just some of the characters you'll see present; experiment to find other cameos and combinations.

At random moments in the game, characters will hover from across the screen and drop items. These items are used to knock down your enemy and is activated by the Punch and Kick buttons simultaneously. Effects such as stoning your opponent or turning them to ice are all depicted in a humorous style, and also change the animations of certain specials moves. Counters are activated by collecting Crash gems and require you to block and reverse the attack by tapping back in unison with the special button. If you miss, it will result in the character going into a 'failed counter' animation and can be quite deadly if your opponent takes advantage of it. Other minor aspects such as reversals, air blocking, and the standard chains are present and give precedence to various attacks. Finally, the Special button, plays an effective part in the overall gameplay. This function not only doubles as a button for combos, but also acts as a Guard Crush; meaning it will nullify your opponents defenses and release any gems they have collected. The duration of the button will determine how effective your attack is and the amount of gems which will be extracted. This function, like the Flash Combos, also has its degree of humor. Ken for example will transform to a cowboy riding a horse, Zangief transforms into a wrestler, and Lei-Lei can be found attacking you in a nighty. Whoo hoo!

Now one aspect worth mentioning is, just how solid is this conversion? Pretty solid, as this is the PlayStation version being addressed. I can still recall how many of my friends and colleagues were very skeptical at the very fact that I bothered to purchase it. However, I can look back and laugh now, because the game is really awesome! From the moment you power up the Pocket Fighter to be introuduced to a cool new Capcom intro, you'll find the intro is retained perfectly in resolution and overall quality. Then there's the Options menu; wait, what's this? You'll find quite a number of nice features exclusive to the home versions. The first is known is likened to a 'virtual pet' mode. Yes, as in Tamagotchi...but the actual phrase which is depicted on the screen is actually: Tsukutte. This mode is hosted by Tabasa who will ask you several questions (I am guessing your favorite food and stuff :P ). Based upon your answers, this will define your character's attributes such as whether your character will be defensive, utilize a majority of Flash Combos, or other techniuqes. Unless you are fluent in Japanese, you'll get discouraged from this mode and merely skip it over. However, there's a mode that doesn't require comprehension of Japanese and is a great bonus for PlayStation owners; Rival Schools. A playable demo has been placed on the disc and also comes with a short 3 minute teaser and an on screen menu (sorry, Japanese). Nontheless, it's great to see that Capcom was able to include this and still deliver a great game. The animation is all present with no loss of frames; even at the highest setting. Plus the load time is the average load time as in respects to the PSX version of Street Fighter Alpha 2. Pretty tolerable and definitely enjoyable.

Other features found which can be accessed are the Training, Survival and of course; Versus modes. Here's where Capcom once again delivers a great bonus for home users. When playing in either mode, you have the option of selecting the speed, and the number of gems or items which you can start off with during the initial round. This adds a nice level of strategy and serves as a unique handicap against seasoned or beginner players. The controls are very responsive, yes, even on a Sony stock pad. You won't be tossing your controller out on this game, unless of course Dan kills you with an Elvis attack, that's intriguing to say the least. Sound effects are exactly as the arcade, and all of the Flash Combo animations are retained perfectly. Survival mode is a feature which I believe all fighting games should include and Pocket Fighter is no exception. The level consists of a long board which your character ventures through battling against all 11 opponents, facing Akuma at the end. The graphics are very sharp and like the standard stages...have a series of cameos of characters from popular Capcom games and a few obscure. The music though, if you are the meticulous type, will probably make you a bit unsettling. As a whole, it's a great mode to play and you may find this mode to be a bit more challenging in comparison to the standard mode. Apparently exclusive to the import, voices have been included in the intro and ending sequences for the Arcade Battle Mode. One note, which I put under much scruntiny, was that the 'Around the World' screen and a death animation appeared to be taken out. Memory limitations? Doubtful, but it's an aspect which can be overlooked.

Overall, Pocket Fighter is a good solid conversion, and represents the one of the few examples of the PlayStation not hindered by its RAM limitations. Though die-hard fans may choose to wait for the Saturn version. However, players which only have the luxury of owning one system need not worry about missing out on any features...as reportedly, the Saturn version will only serve to improve the load times and animation by use of the RAM cart. Plus, with the exclusive demo of Rival Schools, the PSX version comes away as a game worthy of your purchase, and your sense of humor! Rush out and get it today.

· · · Bahn