Slap-Happy Smackdown

Slap-Happy Smackdown
Developer(s)	Nano Inc.
Publisher(s)	Nano Inc.
Platform(s)	Xbox One, PS4
Genre(s)	3D, Fighting

Slap-Happy Smackdown is a melee 3-D fighting game made by Nano Inc, released for PS4 and Xbox One in late 2016. Greatly inspired by games such as Power Stone 2 and Tom and Jerry: War of the Whiskers, it features a diverse and distinct cast of characters, with over 20 playable characters, ranging from cute and cuddly to dreary and dastardly, fighting it out in arena-like stages.

Gameplay

The player(s) are taken to three-dimensional stages, where they can move around and explore feely. You can execute a combo of fast 'light attacks' and some 'heavy attacks', as well as dish out some damage with each characters unique special attack- although every character's movepool is different, and have different strengths and weaknesses. Also, every character has a 'super move', which are extremely powerful attacks that can be achieved by filling up their superbar that can be filled by dealing out hefty damage to their enemies, collecting items and 'taunting' their opponent, which is a short (but time-consuming on the battlefield) process that leaves the user open to any players around. Each player has a lifebar, deplete enough of your opponent's lifebar and they lose a life. The battle isn't over all players, except one, has lost all their lives.

Stages are interactive and dynamic, constantly changing as the battle progresses. Most, if not all, of the stages follow a simple formula: they have three sub-stages within them. For example, in The Enchanted Forest level, players start off in the middle of the woods. After a set amount of time, all the players have to advance to the left to avoid getting crushed by giants, before finding a Magic Hut, where the remainder of the battle takes place. Stages are also littered with melee weapons, and projectiles for players to use, such as: tree branches, mini-guns, giant hammers and more. Also, itemboxes are occasionally found, with non-damaging items such as protection (e.g. Shield) or health recovery items (e.g. Sweets). Stages may also come with their own unique fixtures, such as turrets that you can interact with and use.

Game Modes

Single Player

In Classic Mode, it plays fairly similar to Super Smash Bros; you can select a character, changing the difficulty as you please, and you fight through ten rounds of randomized one-on-one battles. You can only battle characters you already have, and the tenth round is a boss battle against Giant Robot. If on Very Hard Mode, he's joined by another (though smaller) robot, nicknamed Mrs Robot- the difficulty is relatively the same in this round, until you destroy Mrs Robot, which makes Giant Robot go berserk, and get exceptionally stronger. The Battle Types include:

1. Regular Battle is the most common Battle Type, which is a simple one-on-one. The opponent is randomized, and the battle takes place in said opponents signature stage.
2. Team Battle is where the player fights two randomized CPU characters, while working with another computer teammate. The ally and opponents are all randomized, and the battle takes place in either one of the opponents signature stage.
3. Multi-Character Battle is where the player will fight ten variants of a character, although separately in groups of three. They all have a lower handicap than usual, so they are all easier to KO and harder for them to KO the player too.
4. Free-for-All is where the player must fight three characters in the player's character's own signature stage. The opponents won't start targeting the player specifically until one is killed. 
5. Super Battle is where the player battles a discoloured purple version (getting progressively darker the harder the mode is set) of one of the characters. The character is super-powered, being both faster and stronger than normal. The opponent is chosen randomly, but the stage is always the same: some strange void, standing on a silver platform. Unlike other stages, this one can't be played outside of Classic Mode and doesn't change at all during the Battle. This battle is always the second to last battle, and precedes the Robot boss.

In Challange Mode, you can select any character you have, and each character has about ten challenges each. The challenges give you rewards, such as: new items available, new alternative costumes, new menu background themes, sometimes new characters and occasionally brand new game modes.

Multiplayer

In Versus Mode, you can fight other players or computer player opponents, up to four fighting. The player can set the teams and characters, as well as the CPU's characters and theur skill level. Like in Super Smash Bros, the player can pick the number of lives, or pick the time limit. The player can turn off items if they like, and can regulate the items that go into each match.

In King Of The Hill, the objective of this mode is to stay atop of a hill. The longer you stay up on the hill, the more points you receive, although the twist is, the more points you have, the less damge you give. The player with the most points by the end of the round wins. Players can change the time limit as they please, amount of opponents, and their opponents skill level(s).

Controls

= Movement

= Jump

= Light Attack

= Heavy Attack

= Special Attack

= Block

+ = Super Move

Characters

Default (TBA)

Little Red (The Adorable Danger) is one of the default characters, and the youngest character in the game, being eight. She's one of the faster characters in the game, and her heavy attacks do hefty damage. However, her light attacks are weak and she takes more damage when hit than others. Her special attack is throwing apples. She is inspired by, and based upon, Little Red Riding Hood.

Trigger-Happy (The Gutsy Gunner) is one of the default characters in the game, and is a gun-obsessed maniac. He's one of the more well-balanced characters, his light attacks and heavy attacks being more typical. However, his light attacks are shooting his opponents with his golden-gun, rather than close-combat. His heavy attack is charging up his gun for a strong attack. His special attack is spinning in a circle, shooting in rapid succession, hurting anyone close by.

Ramona Dame(The Elegant Fighter) is one of the default characters, and is an heiress, inheriting billions of dollars from her father. She's one of the slower characters, and her heavy attacks are less powerful than some other characters. However, her light attacks are more powerful than everyone else's, and she can take more damage than most other characters. Her special attack involves hiding in her umbrella, which not only blocks attacks, but reflects all projectile attacks/items.

Eugene The Librarian (The Boring Battler) is one of the default characters, and is- as his name implies- just an average librarian. He is one of the weaker characters, both his light attacks and heavy attacks being less powerful than most others. However, he receives less damage when hit, and is naturally faster than all the other characters. His special attack is to charge a powerful kick.

Kay-Oh (The Knuckleheaded Knock-out) is one of the default characters, and an athletic player with more brawn than brain. She is one of the strongest characters, and receives less damage when attacked by opposing players. However, Kay-Oh is one of the slowest characters, and her light attacks are clumsy. Her special attack is a counterattack.

Paige Turner (The Comic-book Competitor) is a default character, and is an overweight, geeky man-child who still lives in his parents house. He is one of the stronger characters, and his heavy attacks do hefty damage. He can also take less damage than other, but his light attacks are clumsy and can often miss the target, and he is very slow, compared to characters like Little Red and Eugene The Librarian. His special attack is to bounce forward, attacking with his gigantic belly.

Diana Roberto (The Sturdy Stay-at-home Mum) is a default character, and is an overstressed mother of three rowdy children. She is one of the more well-balanced characters, being averagly fast and her heavy attacks are as you'd expect them to be. However, her light attacks are slightly weaker, but she can also endure more than the average person. Her special attack is charging up a hit, with her vacuum cleaner.

Unlockable

Roxanne Roll (The Super-powered Punk) is an unlockable character, who can be unlocked by completing Ramona' s Classic Mode on the hardest difficulty, and a rebellious and out of control punk. She is one of the faster characters, based on her erratic lifestyle, and her light attacks are stronger than most people's. However, her heavy attacks are slightly weaker than other people. Her special attack is slamming her guitar on the ground violently. Unlocking her unlocks her story in Story Mode.

Liam and Corey (The Indestructible Duo) are an unlockable pair of characters, who can be unlocked by completing Eugene' s Classic Mode without losing a life, they are identical twins who fight together as one person. Due to this, they are a very balanced team; averagely strong, averagely fast and can take damage averagely. Their special attack involves Liam hitting the opponents with Corey. Unlocking them unlocks their story in Story Mode.

Ol' Granny Gump (The Skilful Senior) is one of the unlockable characters, who can be unlocked by completing Little Red's Classic Mode without losing a life, and is an elderly lady with a spring in her step. She is, ironically, the fastest character in the game, with relatively powerful heavy attacks too. She can take damage averagly, too, but her light attacks are where she falls flat- having the weakest light attacks of them all. Her special attack is pinching her opponents cheek, stunning them temporarily.

Armageddon (The Nasty Knight) is an unlockable character, who can be unlocked by completing Kay-Oh's Classic Mode on the hardest difficulty, and is the Black Knight from the Nether regions. His heavy attacks are extremely powerful, but his light attacks are lacklustre. However, he's also very slow, compared to characters such as Little Red and Roxanne Roll. 

Astro Supernova (The Galactic Grappler) is one of the unlockable characters, who can be unlocked by completing Liam and Corey's Challenge Mode, and is a galactic Superhero from Sector 17, Generica galaxy. He is, like Trigger-Happy, a shooter character, and has the same light and heavy attacks (except with his wrist-laser). However, his light attacks are weak, and he takes more damage when he gets hit- although he makes up for this with a strong heavy attack (if fully-charged), and being faster than other characters. His special attack is dropping small bombs, but only one at a time. His stats are similar to that of Little Red, while his moveset is similar to Trigger-Happy.

Ani Mei (The Quirky Combatant) is an unlockable character, who can be unlocked by beating Roxanne Roll as Ramona Dame five times in King of the Hill, and is a Japanese princess from the magical land of FriendshipVille. She is one of the faster characters, matching with Roxanne Roll in terms of speed. Her light attacks do quite some damage, and her heavy attacks aren't bad either. However, she takes significantly more damage than others when hit. Her special attack is a twirl, similar to Trigger-Happy' s, sending out a small blast of rainbows around her.

Stages

Default

Stage	Description
	Enchanted Forest is one of the default stages in the game. Players start off in a clear area in the middle of the woods, which is littered with weapons: tree branches (weapon), magic fruit (special items), rocks and apples (projectile). Then, the feet of a giant come crashing down from the left, forcing the players to travel right. The players must occasionally jump over holes in the ground (falling down a hole will just cause the player to respawn, no lives taken, although damage will be taken). Finally, the players come across a magic hut in the woods, where the players will fight it out for the remainder of the battle. Inside the hut are: broomsticks (special items), magic potions (special items) and furniture (projectile/weapon).
	Molten Madness is one of the default stages in the game. Players start off at the top of a volcano, the area is very desolate aside from the players. There is only the occasional rock (projectile) to be used as a weapon. There is the crater at the top, which leads into the volcano. Players can knowck others into it, causing them lots of damage (although they'll respawn, without losing a life). Then, the volcano begins to erupt, forcing the players to race down the volcano path. The occasional molten rock flies down from above, so the players will have to watch out. Finally, the players jump over a dry moat, which captures all the lava. The players, straight after, arrive at a beach, where the remainder of the battle takes place. The area is covered in items: surfboards and toy shovels (weapons), coconuts (projectiles), and fruit (food).
	Carnage Cavern is one of the default stages in the game. Players start off on an icy plain, and much like of Molten Madness, it is rather desolate of any items, minus some icy rocks (projectiles). Soon enough, the ice begins to crack, sending the player(s) freefalling down inside the mountain. The players have to manoeuvre around carefully, although slightly clumsily- you can't jump when freefalling, nor can you use your supermove. Finally, the players land on an ice glacier floating on the water, inside the mountain. The only weapons around are: icy rocks (projectiles) and buckets of cold water (special items).
TBA	Mall Brawl is one of the default stages in the game. More info to be added later.
TBA	Western War Zone is one of the default stages in the game. More to be added later.

Unlockable

Stage	Description
	Unicornucopia is an unlockable stage, that can be unlocked by completing all of Ane Mei's challenges in Challange Mode. More info to be added later.
	Plasma Platform is an unlockable stage, that can be unlocked by winning 10 rounds of King Of The Hill as Astro Supernova. More info to be added later.
TBA	Electric Mayhem is an unlockable stage, that can be unlocked by completing all of Roxanne Roll's challenges in Challenge Mode. More info to be added later.

Gallery

This is Little Red, how she appears in the game.

A sketch of what Liam looks like, without Corey.

This is a sketch what Corey looks like, without Liam

Trivia

1. Some of the names are puns, for example:
   1. 1. Paige Turner is based on the phrase 'Page Turner'
      2. Roxanne Roll is a play on the words 'Rock and Roll'
      3. Ane Mei is a play on the term used to refer to Japanese animation, 'Anime'.
      4. Kay-Oh is based on the abbreviation of the phrase 'Knockout', or 'K.O'.
   2. Some of the names are refrences, too:
      1. Eugene The Librarian is a refrence to the persona undertaken by Adam Gitlin, on Britain's Got Talent.
      2. Roxanne's signature stage, Electric Mayhem, is a refrence to the band in The Muppets.
      3. Ani Mei's signature stage, Unicornucopia, is a combination of Unicorn (a mythological equine with a horn, which is often seen as girly), and Cornucopia (which is a symbol of nourishment and plenty). This is refrencing how utopian the stage is.