Pokemon: Close Combat (demo version 10c) - The Path (Blaziken)

Download the game here: https://www.mediafire.com/file_premiu...

Pokemon: Close Combat is a 2D fighting fangame using creatures (*ahem*, Pokémon) from Nintendo and Game Freak's aforementioned popular media franchise. Developed by BattleCapacity (which previously made a fighting game featuring fan-made Pokémon), this rather simple fighting game was originally released around February 2023 - being currently developed with new playable Pokémon and balance changes - and also features a diverse cast of Fighting-type Pokémon who appear in this game with an equally unique hand-drawn animation style.

The (aforementioned) simplicity of this game could be found in the game's limited amount of notable mechanics. In terms of controls, you have one single attack button (A) with additional attacks possible through adding a directional input, a special move button (B), and a parry button (C) that is also used to do grabs (press forwards/backwards + C). Special moves are done from pressing a direction + the B button, with EX special moves (using up a bar of meter) and super attacks (two bars) requiring either additional inputs or a motion input. Meanwhile, you gain one bar of meter by either grabbing the opponent or knocking them down using sweep attacks.

Other notable mechanics include a guard meter that could result in a guard crush if depleted by blocking too much (leaving you wide open to attacks), a guard cancel burst (press A+B+C (or D) during blockstun) that uses up a bar of meter but is useful for moving your opponent away and resetting to neutral, in addition to the C Cancel (press C during certain moves), the game's move-cancelling technique which uses up two bars (though refunding one bar if it's successfully done) and is useful for extending combos for damage (or blockstrings for more pressure). Don't really have much else to say about this game, it's pretty fun and the fact that Blaziken (who is used in this playthrough) could run in this game makes it the better fan-made Pokémon fighting game (over Type WIld. Heard that it got a reboot or resumed development, but I wonder how has it progressed...)

The game's singular "arcade mode", The Path, has you and your chosen Pokémon enter "The Path of The Fist", embarking on a journey with significant challenges ahead to impede your goal of pushing your Pokémon to the limit... which is basically the game's excuse to have you do Pokémon battles (in this case, playing as your chosen Pokémon to defeat the CPU's own Pokémon). You don't even see anyone representing The Path congratulate you in the end.

What you do see if you were brave enough to defeat every opponent without losing a single round, however, is Gorochu, a scrapped Pokémon that would've been the evolved form of Raichu and the final evolution of Pikachu (before Pichu came along in the second generation of mainline Pokémon games, as Gorochu was originally conceived in the first generation of these games). But yeah, Gorochu's back and with a vengeance, as he effectively is a boss character here. Tons of damage that could melt your health bar (or guard meter if you're blocking), quick recovery on its special moves so it could be difficult to punish Gorochu, quicker wakeup animations to effectively punish your combo enders on hit, his super attack being an unblockable bolt of lightning that tracks to your location - to say that Gorochu is quite difficult would be a bit of an understatement.

What holds Gorochu from being insanely cheap (a la most final bosses from SNK-developed games) is the fact that Gorochu leaves itself wide open several times, allowing you to punish it - for example, Gorochu's advancing attack where it rushes in with a flurry of punches could be punished by an aerial attack, which could be followed up by a combo. You effectively have to play patiently to beat Gorochu, punishing it for messing up while avoiding its attacks to not be guard crushed. Defeating Gorochu (even with continues, as I found out during testing) would put you to the "Hall of Fame" - a QR code containing a link to a website where you could register yourself and be eligible to several exclusive community events, though I'm not sure if these events are a thing. I'm not gonna show that QR code either lmao you need to SUFFER with me and like everyone else who fought this god damn fucking boss akwkfsiwnk2idndiwk