Nintendo's refurbished 'Punch-Out' is a contender t's been nearly 25 years since 'Punch-Out' fans donned the green gloves for the first time, and the video game is still swinging.
The boxing simulator that started as an arcade game, and served as an anchor for virtually all of Nintendo's home systems, has finally arrived on the Wii. And thanks to the motion sensor-friendly console's controllers, you can deliver that jab to King Hippo's gut with a lot more gusto.
Little Mac is back to jab and upper-cut his way to the championships in 'Punch-Out' for Wii.
Game geeks old enough to remember the green-grid fighter and the Little Mac character he would become will find a lot familiar about this new incarnation. The set up is the same, and many familiar friends from past 'Punch-Out' versions return, including Piston Honda, Von Kaiser, Mr. Sand Man and Great Tiger.
The tricks to taking them down are also the same. Pop Hippo in the pie hole, and you can deliver a series of jabs to that bandage X on his belly button. Wait for Bear Hugger to wag his tongue at you, then deliver a cool upper cut to nab yourself a star, good for a powerful punch that'll knock him silly.
You make your way through several circuits until you get to the championship round against... well, you can find that out for yourself (and don't expect to see 'Iron' Mike Tyson flashing his gap-tooth smile in this outing).
Visually, 'Punch-Out' is a leap forward for the series. It's cartoonish style works perfectly with its tongue-in-cheek approach to boxing. Plus, as you pound into your opponents, you see results of your damage appear as bruises and bandages on their body and face.
The controls, while taking advantage of the Wii's motion sensors, remain the same as previous versions of the game (you can even go old school and drop the motion for some button pushing, if you feel nostalgic). One may have expected - as this reviewer did - that the new version would mirror control options from the Wii Sports boxing game. But 'Punch-Out' remained true to its origins, a theme many of these updated video games seem to use.
To help enhance the experience, those with the Wii Balance Board can use the exercise platform as a means of dodging punches, adding a nice tough of realistic movement to the action.
Overall, there is something satisfying about delivering a few pop shots to the often arrogant villains of 'Punch-Out.' This is one remake worth getting in the ring for. VIBE ON!
Posted By: Devon Marshall
Friday, June 5th 2009 at 8:02PM
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