My Played Video Games Review: Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

Punch-Out!!, which was originally titled Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, is a boxing- based fighting video game developed and published by Nintendo in 1987 for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) (Japan first as Famicom game)) but was released in 1990.

I remembered the fun times I had during the early 1990s playing this enjoyable video game with friends. Bets were placed on who could proceed the farthest in the game.

The Story

You play as an aspiring teen-aged boxer from The Bronx, Little Mac, who tries to take his boxing skills to the top. Go through 13 tough matches in the minor, major and world circuits until the ultimate challenge - the World Video Boxing Association title fight against the newest WVBA Champ - Mr. Dream (Mike Tyson)!

The Graphics and Sound

The game boasts top late 1980s graphics, and for that time, they are excellent. The boxers look clean and cartoony. Each one looking different. There is a crowd in the background, with some movement, and they do camera flashes when you win. Faces shown between rounds are quite well done.

In between circuits, you get a nice animated scene showing Little Mac and Doc Louis doing the jogging training like in the Rocky movies. The animations are great throughout the game.

The game sounds would be like what you would expect to hear in a boxing game in a synthesized way. The cartoony punching sound effects are pretty good and satisfying.

The music is good but a little repetitive; you kind of ignore it as you play the game.

The Gameplay

Punch-Out!! has a very simple but deep battle system. Pressing left or right makes Mac dodge, punch with A or B, block with down on D-pad, hold Up while pressing A or B to do head punches, and special uppercut with the start button. There is no movement for moving around the ring.

The controls are quite simple and responsive. Even though they are simple, the game itself is difficult as you progress. Your opponents slowly decrease their charge-up time and by then, you are relying on your fast reflexes in order to dodge their attacks.

Your opponents are rather unique. Many got their own unique "special attack", requiring you to learn from their pattern before you can counter-attack right. But beware! Some of these opponents are mighty cheap.

The game is addictive. Even if you have beaten the game, you will find yourself wanting to play it again. You will just want to start from the beginning and play in a different way possible.

My Verdict

There are only a few good boxing games and this is one of them. The developers should be praised eternally for this video game gem. It might be cartoonish and silly. Yet I keep coming back and wanting to play it again after awhile and have a good time doing it.

This one is really a NES classic so get it if you can. Or do it cheap using NES emulators. Good luck then on getting that world championship title.

Let's keep on gaming in the free world!