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Nintendo: Virtual Console Reviews

Mario Golf ^VC

Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask ^VC

Review

Super Punch-Out!!

87%

Format Virtual Console

Developer Nintendo

Publisher Nintendo

Genre Sports

20-Mar-2009 Nintendo delivers a knockout punch to VC fans

12 Comments

As you probably already know, Nintendo is resurrecting the classic Punch-Out!! series by releasing an all-new instalment in May. We can't wait because we love Punch-Out!!, and even though its star Little Mac made a recent cameo appearance in Super Smash Bros Brawl (and an older cameo in Fight Night Round 2 on the GameCube), there hasn't been a new "proper" game since Super Punch-Out!! hit the SNES fifteen years ago. So to get us in the mood for the upcoming release of the new Wii version, and to introduce younger gamers to the series for the first time, Nintendo has released that very SNES classic for download on the Virtual Console.

Super Punch-Out!! is actually the fourth game in the series, after two arcade games and an NES game (which is already available on Virtual Console). Much like its predecessors it puts you in the role of Little Mac, a reasonably lightweight and fragile boxer, as he fights his way to the top of the World Video Boxing Association. To do this, he has to defeat sixteen opponents, each of whom have their own special attacks and unique personality.

Out For The Count
The thing that makes Super Punch-Out!! interesting (along with the rest of the games in the series) is that it's not a realistic boxing game as such: if you go into a fight planning on throwing tactical punches and working on body parts to try to cut your opponent open or reduce their stamina so you can finish them in the 10th round, you'll be flat on your backside before you can say "float like a butterfly".

Instead, the key is to study each opponent and the way they move in order to figure out their weaknesses. One fighter, for example, will always throw two left jabs in a row: once he throws one, you'll know to dodge the second and give him a counter-punch to do damage. This makes things more entertaining than you might think: each opponent is almost a reaction-based puzzle in which you have to figure out what attacks he uses, how to spot and dodge them, and how to capitalise on them to attack him back with counter-punches.

As with the other games in the series, the opponents in Super Punch-Out!! are the real stars of the show. Each is dripping with personality and they're likely to have you chuckling away in between the inevitable bouts of cursing you'll unleash as they give you a sound thrashing. Characters like Bob Charlie (a Jamaican reggae-loving boxer who bears more than a passing resemblance to Bob Marley) and Dragon Chan (a Bruce Lee lookalike who attacks you with flying kicks while his trainer shouts instructions to him in Chinese) have you eagerly playing through the game just to see who you'll fight next.

Super Punch-Out!! is a hilariously addictive game and a superb way to prepare for the upcoming Wii title, which essentially offers a modern-day look for the same gameplay style. It remains one of our favourite SNES games, and is highly recommended for anyone who never got to play it the first time around.

Chris Scullion