Fighting games on the Nintendo Switch have proven to be a successful fit. We have seen titles like Mortal Kombat 11, The Street Fighter 30th Anniversary collection, Guilty gear, BlazBlue, Dragonball FighterZ and more come, butt there are even more fighting games that would be good for the system. There are many classics like Rival Schools or Power Stone that would be an amazing fit, but there is one from Capcom that stands out as a perfect game for the system.
Pocket Fighter, or Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix as it was also known, was a fighting game like no other. It was A Capcom crossover game featuring characters from Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter III, Darkstalkers Red Earth and more. It featured the chibi (super deformed) versions of the characters that were first seen in Super Puzzle Fighter. Despite giving the game a bit of a kiddie appearance, Pocket Fighter was anything but a kid’s game. There was an incredible amount of depth within, and was great for people new to fighting games due to its design setup and a unique control scheme that was easy to learn but difficult to master,. The game used different types of characters, such as all around, skill, and power types, and also used a unique gem system similar to Marvel vs Capcom Infinite. The game was whacky and zany and characters would have transformations such cosplaying as other characters in their moves, such as Chun Li appearing as Jill Valentine, and Felicia dressing as Mega Man among others.
Even more than most fighting games, Pocket Fighter was fun and extremely energetic, which earned it the approval of longtime Capcom fans and new fighting game players alike. It is my opinion that the Switch would be the best place for the game to receive a new incarnation. The console has a strong emphasis on co-op which and with the unique button system used in the game, the Joy Cons would be amazing for two player action. If there is a new entry, we could see more Capcom characters join the fight, as well as more cosplay, such as newer characters from Capcom’s other fighting games or even from newer Capcom games in general. This is not even getting into characters that haven’t appeared in years and could use some spotlight.
A big reason I feel this is a good fit for the Switch is due to it being a hybrid type game. It is both for experts who can play it competitively in a hardcore fashion, but while the same time being great for newcomers, and in the end offers much to both groups. This is the exact type of game Nintendo seems to want on the Switch, so it just feels right. The art style would look amazing in either docked or handheld mode and not suffer due to its stylized nature as some other fighting games do. Best of all, is that this would be a good way to bring people back to fighting games, especially on Nintendo systems. It would also be great to have for modern eSports, just for how insane it is.
