Although EVO 2017 came and went over the weekend without an announcement from Nintendo regarding another entry in the Super Smash Bros. franchise, another developer stepped up yesterday with a reveal of its own that could temporarily sate fans of the Big N's fighting game franchise. As it so happens, the team at Wavedash Games have a project in the works that could be seen as a stopgap of sorts, as the company has unveiled the title Icons: Combat Arena by way of a gameplay reveal trailer.

As seen below in the gameplay reveal trailer for Icons: Combat Arena, the free-to-play platform fighter is basically Super Smash Bros., but with all-new original characters and stages featuring no Nintendo branding whatsoever. Interested parties will be pleased to learn that the forthcoming game from Wavedash will have its open beta hosted on Steam later this fall, but no specific date has been given.

For those unaware, the creative team behind Icons: Combat Arena is comprised of some of the people behind the popular "Project M" mod, which was a mod for Wii game Super Smash Bros. Brawl to make the title more like its predecessor, Melee. Ultimately, it was canceled a couple of years ago by the team for undisclosed reasons. However, one thing that may have factored into the mod’s termination was the group's announcement of new projects being built "from the ground up," with Icons: Combat Arena likely being the game that ceased Project M's production.

When it comes to Icons: Combat Arena's gameplay, it's basically a platform-based fighter that is heavily influenced by Super Smash Bros. As seen in the above trailer, many of its characters have move sets similar to those on the standard roster for Smash, with players also being able to battle off the stage and charge back on, hang off of a level's ledges, and considering the name of the dev team, wavedashing can be done as well.

As of now, reception for Icons: Combat Arena is mixed to say the least. According to a plethora of comments on the trailer's YouTube page, many fans are less than impressed with the title's sound and animations. More specifically, though, users have commented that its near-exact replication of Super Smash Bros. is disappointing. With any luck, Wavedash Games will be able to tweak the title to the fans' liking following the upcoming beta.

The Super Smash Bros.-like Icons: Combat Arena is set to have its open beta sometime during fall 2017.

Source: Wavedash Games – YouTube