Pocket Bravery

Lore & Background

Pocket Bravery originated from the disappointment with the development of the game Trajes Fatais, on which producer Jonathan Silva had previously worked. After leaving that project in 2020, Silva met Anderson Halfeld and founded Statera Studio. They initially planned a game called Bravery in the style of The King of Fighters XIII, but lacking manpower, they created a simpler 'pocket' version inspired by SVC Chaos, Neo Geo Pocket games, and Pocket Fighter, with visual hints of Metal Slug and Scott Pilgrim. The development was turbulent due to lack of funding and distrust from the gaming community following controversies around Trajes Fatais. The studio launched an Indiegogo campaign using an all-or-nothing format, offering rewards such as beta access, digital artbooks, and the chance to create a character. The campaign succeeded, funding the release and ongoing DLC support.

Reader's Guide

Pocket Bravery is significant as an indie fighting game that successfully navigated community skepticism and funding challenges to deliver a retro-inspired experience. Its gameplay features four main attack buttons inspired by The King of Fighters, along with a Breaker system from Breakers, and additional mechanics like grab, combo breaker, and elemental attacks. The game includes four bars per character: stun, health, power, and elemental. It offers seven modes including story, arcade, combo factory, training, gallery, versus, and online multiplayer with rollback netcode. The plot follows Nuno Alves, a former member of a terrorist group called Pack, who escapes captivity with a mentor named Lobo and seeks revenge against the leader Hector. The game launched with 13 playable characters, three unlockable, and two planned season passes featuring guest characters from Breakers and other Statera games. Its legacy lies in restoring player trust through transparency and delivering continuous post-launch content.

Did You Know?

• The game was announced in April 2020 and had two beta phases: a closed beta on August 10, 2022 for donors, and an open beta the following day.
• Pocket Bravery features a character named Jorge Chagas who plays a role in Story Mode, and his theme 'Goodbye Osasco' is a homage to Kyo Kusanagi's theme from The King of Fighters.
• The Season 1 DLC was released for PC in 2024 and for consoles later in 2024, including four characters: Rick Johnson, Brandon Carter, Dvesha, and Camille Leclerc.
• Son Ji-Sung was originally planned for Season 1 but was moved to Season 2, with his spot filled by Nuno's doppelganger Dvesha.