It’s been 15 years since we’ve played a new Punch-Out game (Super Punch Out for the SNES) and after skipping the N64 and Gamecube lifecycles, Nintendo fans can rejoice in nostalgic nirvana because Punch-Out is hitting the Wii console this summer. Everyone’s favorite underdog, Little Mac, is back to take the crown, with his chocolate bar loving manager, Doc Lewis, in his corner.
Pull out your Virtual Console pads or turn the Wii remote sideways (ala NES style) and relive the simplistic control scheme of the original, or take a shot at the title using the Wii remote and nunchuk. But honestly, after experiencing the motion sensing fun factor of Wii Boxing, would you really stick to the original control format? I didn’t think so!
Nintendo got a few new tricks up their sleeves this time around. Enhance your skills by practicing against holograms of your opponents and test your in-ring swagger through a number of different game modes. More boxers are on the bill, eliminating the repetitous rematches we’ve endured from the NES and SNES days. Choose from infamous characters like Glass Joe, King Hippo, Von Kaiser and possibly Doc himself. Hey, the creators might even allow us to pick one of the most difficult bosses in gaming history—Mike Ty…hiccup…I mean Mr. Dream. Ninendo’s keeping their entire boxing roster on the hush-hush for now.
Only a few weeks left (May 19th) before we put Little Mac’s heart to the test. Until then, check out the footage that sucker punched audiences at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) last month:
