A new title boasting graphics strikingly similar to generations one and two of Pokémon has stirred up some controversy after launching a demo via Steam.

'HUEMON' is a strategic title about collecting, raising, and battling creatures born from 'Color' known as 'HUEMON'. Set on the uncharted continent of 'DITHMA', where the world has yet to be fully painted with color, players explore villages, caves, forests, and coastlines to unravel hidden secrets and solve environmental puzzles. Along the way, players uncover a plot to drain the world of its color and interact with various characters for advice.

Battles take place in 5v5 team formats on a grid-based battlefield. Moving far away from simple stat checks or relying solely on overpowered skills, meticulous positioning and movement dictate victory or defeat. Players must control the flow of combat by deploying HUEMON with diverse traits and abilities, such as leaping over allies, pinning enemies to specific tiles, or swapping positions with teammates to pull them out of sticky situations. A deep understanding of health and status ailment systems is heavily required.

HUEMON are divided into three color attributes—Red, Green, and Blue—which dictate their combat tendencies. Red brings raw offensive power, Green handles healing and buffing allies, and Blue puts foes to sleep or forces them off the battlefield. Each attribute has distinct habitats, with Blue residing mostly along coastlines, Green in forests and fields, and Red in caves. Players can scout opponent compositions beforehand and swap side decks right before battle to gain the upper hand.

While the overall game structure and team-based combat system sport some differentiated elements, the game's graphics and sprites are facing heavy scrutiny. The grass, rocks, trees, and buildings look remarkably similar to those found in generations one and two of Pokémon, and the human character designs also strongly evoke the classic Pokémon series. Although the asset data is not entirely identical, critics point out that the overall resemblance is awfully high.