Super Smash Bros. is one of the most successful and lauded video game franchises of all time, so anybody would love to cash in on it. Intellectual property rights and a bunch of basic legalese get in the way of that, obviously, but that didn’t stop a Chinese game developer from having a go at making their own version of the game, boldly titling it Pocket All-Stars Smash Bros.
The mobile game uses a bunch of characters from the Smash games—Mario, Mega Man, Link and whatnot—but it really doesn’t know how a knock-off is supposed to work.
Most obviously, the gameplay isn’t even close to an approximation of what Smash is all about. Instead of a fast-paced fighting game, Pocket All-Stars Smash Bros. is a collectible card-based and turn-based RPG, where players navigate an overworld, battle enemies, and earn upgrades to their attributes.
Most knock-offs usually skip a bunch of arduous graphic design steps by straight up stealing the art from their source material, but the folks behind this game went through the trouble to recreate all the character art. Admittedly, it actually looks pretty nice and faithful to the originals, but it’s an odd thing to spend time on when you’re not even using your own IPs.
Check out 26 minutes of gameplay footage below, and if you find yourself in China (and have a firm enough grasp on the Chinese language), let us know if this title is a must-have for you, since it was released over there last week.
Image: HayatoStudio
