Fraymakers

Fraymakers is an upcoming indie crossover fighting video game developed by Team Fray and published by McLeodGaming. Developed by a team partially consisting of current and former Super Smash Flash 2 developers, the game is a "platform fighter" in a similar vein to SSF2 and features a large cast of characters and stages hailing from independent game franchises such as BIT.TRIP, Downwell, Octodad, and Rivals of Aether. Touted as "the Infinitely Replayable Indie Platform Fighter", it is included with a development tool called FrayTools that allows for streamlined creation and implementation of custom-made content.

Announced on September 10, 2020 under the codename McLeodGaming Next and formally revealed the following month, Fraymakers was revealed to be McLeodGaming's newest platform fighter following the success of SSF2. A Kickstarter campaign showcasing the game was launched on November 18, 2020, and it reached its goal of $46,000 within three hours. An early access version of the game is set to be released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux through Steam in early 2022, and to Kickstarter backers in March of that year. A Nintendo Switch release of the game is also planned.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Fraymakers is heavily inspired by that of the  series of games, in that it is a platform-based fighting game where up to four players are tasked with knocking their opponents outside the boundaries of the stage. Each player has a damage total represented by a number that starts at 0 and increases as damage is taken. As players take more damage, attacks will knock them progressively farther away, making it easier to be launched off the stage. Players are generally able to recover back onto the stage upon being launched off, but failure to do so will lead to them falling out of bounds, resulting in a KO.

Like in the Super Smash Bros. games, the controls in Fraymakers are simplified compared to traditional fighting games, with most attacks being performed by pressing one button and holding in a direction. Players are able to move and jump freely across stages and platforms. One button is used for standard attacks including several grounded attacks and five aerial attacks. Another button is used for four special moves, which are more unique than the standard attacks and generally have more complex functions. A third button can be used to hold a shield out in one direction, which can block attacks but leaves the player vulnerable on the other side. Pressing the shield button and the special move button together will perform a parry against an incoming attack, leaving the player vulnerable if mistimed. When in mid-air, players are also able to use an airdash to gain momentum in any direction and cancel it into an aerial attack.

Each playable character features unique attacks from one another, along with differing properties such as running speed and weight. In addition to choosing a playable character, players are also able to choose one of many Assists to summon during battle, each of which performs a unique function and can be used after filling a gauge by attacking opponents. There is also a variety of optional items that can appear randomly around the stage for players to interact with.

Playable characters
Fraymakers is currently planned to feature nine characters hailing from differing independent games, with additional characters being planned depending on the stretch goals reached. Each character is designed to have a unique and distinct playstyle while also carrying attacks from their source franchises.

Below is a list of the six characters currently confirmed for the game.

Assists
In addition to its playable roster, Fraymakers is set to feature a wide array of Assists to be called upon mid-battle. Each playable character is able to be selected as an Assist, and there is a large selection of guest characters to be featured exclusively as Assists. Currently, fifty Assists are planned for the game, not counting playable characters.

Below is a list of the twenty characters currently confirmed as Assists for the game.

Stages
Currently, eleven stages are planned to be made available in Fraymakers for players to fight on. Much like the characters, each stage hails from an indie game and features references to their original games. Each stage will also have optional stage hazards that can change the mechanics or layout.

Below is a list of the three stages currently confirmed for the game.

Custom content
Many of the assets in Fraymakers are built using FrayTools, a custom cross-platform development tool that comes included with the game. Because of this, players are able and encouraged to use FrayTools themselves to modify the game by creating their own custom content, including playable characters, Assists, stages, items, game modes, and even menus. In addition to the user interface offered by FrayTools, players are able to test and adjust their custom content from within the game itself through a custom sandbox. Once custom content is complete, players are able to upload it for other players to browse in-game and download for themselves, and it can also be loaded directly from files.