That Ain't Falco: Brawlout Smashing Into 2017

It's a little-known fact that the 'platform fighter' genre began on ZX Spectrum in 1988 with Bash Bros: Drop the Boy, a game by Luke Goss hidden on the B-side of Bros's second single. But the band's collapse saw the Bash Bros rights fall, through a series of unlikely events, into the lap of Nintendo - who rebooted it as Super Smash Bros. The series may never return to its roots on PC but we are at least getting more Broslikes round our way. Look at Brawlout [official site], announced today for release in 2017:

It's a bit Bros-like but more of a Broslikelike than a Broslike. As developers Angry Mob Games explain:

"The platforming elements and win conditions were inspired by Super Smash Bros, while the various combat moves and ground combos were largely inspired by more violent fighters, like Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, switching to a Looney-Toons sense of violence."

It's largely the usual dealio: duff up dudes in 2D arenas with platforms to jump on and be knocked off. It'll support up to eight players in online and local play, and have a singleplayer campaign as well as ranked online tournaments.

Brawlout is due in 2017, some time before April. But if you're going to Evo, you'll be able to have a bash this weekend in the indie showcase.

Luke Goss later pinned his star to another fighting game series, starring in the Tekken movie as Steve Fox.