Punch-Out!!

Reviewed by:
Gerasimos Manolatos

Price: $49.99

The Skinny: Everything that was old is new again! The boxing game that nearly ruined our childhoods returns to ruin your adulthood. Battle through 12 classic Punch-out characters and a few new contenders all the way to the top. Cut us, Doc!

The Good: From the ring introductions to the training cutscenes, everything about the game screams vintage and fans of the original should have no problem getting accustomed to the flow of the game. (Fan service, like the return of Little Mac's pink jumpsuit and croissants popping out of the Frenchman Glass Joe's body when knocked out, are plusses.) Returning are remixed versions of the original title's catchy songs and the cel-shaded artistic design makes for an above average conversion from the 8-bit world of yesteryear to today's next-gen graphics. (Although the caveat is that this is a Wii-exclusive game—expect there to be moments of not-so-eye-pleasing jagged caricatures and such.) A new added momentum-swinger is a save maneuver your Lilliputian-sized fighter can randomly activate after a third knockout. You bounce back off the top rope, steady yourself, and then, with Hogan-esque flair, hulk up for one more go at it. Whacha gonna do, brutha, when Little Mac runs wild on you?

The Bad: We would've loved to have seen an appearance from Mario as the referee, but, alas, we can't get everything we want. More concerning are the motion controls which aren't as responsive as the game requires them to be. You'd do well to go into the settings and change them to the much simpler classic version. There is also an option to use the Wii Fit board for dodging, but you already took our advice to stay fat, right?

Other Modes: The main attraction is the Contender Mode which will have you fight through the Major, Minor, and World circuits like in the original. Then, the game flips the script a bit, rehashing the previous fights but with a few challenges added on. Glass Joe, for example, changes up his punch timing and returns with head gear that leaves him impervious to shots to the head. There is also a head-to-head mode for offline multiplayer, and a gallery section that allows you to see all of your unlocked cutscenes from the career mode.

Buy, Rent, or Disembowel: No need to strafe and dodge your Wii anymore. Go pick it up.

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