Pocket Bravery Review

Pocket Bravery is a 2D pixelated fighter with Neo Geo Pocket aesthetics. The game offers a decent variety of fighter with some actually unlockable(!) as you progress through story mode. The game’s combat is inspired by classic 2D fighting franchises such as Street Fighter and Fatal Fury.

The control scheme is pretty simple: weak/high punches and weak/high kicks. The characters can also dash forward and backward to dodge attacks. There’s also the traditional jumping but you can also do a boosted jump for extra in-air mileage. You can also grab and throw your opponent. Using the throwing button when enemies are about to hit you allows you to counter and get out of a sticky situation. Akin to SF, your character has a special attack meter that once filled up allows you to pull off devastating special attacks.

Additionally, if you time the grab move perfectly, you can counter your opponent in the midst of attacking. The game is jampacked with game modes. Along with the story mode, which allows you to get a glimpse in the characters’ stories and get a grasp on the controls, players can jump into Arcade, Versus mode, Tutorial, Practice, Survival, Time Attack, Trials (challenge mode where you need to pull off the combo on-screen), Rainbow Edition, Hot Pursuit.

The game looks great; I love the old school NeoGeo pocket aesthetic. But making it HD for current platforms feels like stretching it a bit and taking away the little something that makes it special. Pocket Bravery is also highly colorful. Each character is uniquely designed and has a handful of color scheme to choose from for battle. Each level represents a different country with its own theme and the level is pixelated details is surprising. The voiceover is just there; doesn’t add anything. Also the soundtrack is a bit underwhelming and forgettable.

While new entries in the 2D fighting genre is always welcomed, Pocket Bravery has some problems. The first being the hit detection. Enemies can still hit you when you’re not even in range of their limbs, also attacks will hit if you jump over the opponent. Another nuisance is the feel of the game. Characters also feel like they are wearing cement boots and doesn’t feel as responsive as it should for the genre.

Additionally, the dash movement works when it wants to. The accessible control scheme doesn’t work either. It’s supposed to make combat simpler for newcomers and while reducing special moves to a single button press… but it doesn’t work. It just removes your characters’ special moves whereas your opponent can still use them. While the d-pad of the Xbox Series controller isn’t ideal, it’s easy to pull off Hadokens in Street Fighter. Moves that require the same input in Pocket Bravery are near impossible to pull off.

I was actually looking forward to Pocket Bravery. I remember pre-ordering it like over two years ago when it was announced. But oh boy, the final result is highly disappointing. While the quantity of content is through the roof and is surprisingly as more diverse (if not more than) Street Fighter VI, the gameplay and feel of the game feels off and semi-responsive; complemented by cheap A.I.. Considering the price tag of this and high quality fighters available on Xbox, it’s hard to recommend Pocket Bravery.