Page 16 - OSG Presents Classic Gamer Magazine #7

NES Era
NES Era

Classic Sports Report:

Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!

By Scott Marriott

Before he was a convicted felon,
before he chomped off Evander Holy-
field's earlobe, and before he promised
the press he would consume an oppo-
nent’s children (presumably with a nice
Chianti), Mike Tyson was congenial
enough to be welcomed into the world of
Nintendo. The publisher’s first licensed
athlete was an obvious choice in 1987:
Tyson was an imposing, unstoppable
force inside the ring, displaying a devas-
tating combination of power and speed.
It was never a question if Tyson would
knock out his opponent, just how quickly
it would occur. Nintendo signed the
speech-challenged heavyweight to en-
dorse its first NES boxing game, the
home version of the Punch-Out!! ar- were colorful and action-packed, albeit
cade series. with distinctly different approaches.
The rare endorsement was promi- What was striking about Punch-Out!!
nently featured in a commercial, with was its large, cartoon-like graphics --
Tyson sitting in a dark room before a hands down the best looking version of with movement inside the ring. The fo-
wall filled with television sets. The cam- the sport up to that point. It also avoided cus is simply on the one-on-one con-
era was positioned behind the seated the trap previous boxing games, includ- frontation, the most exciting aspect,
Tyson, with the boxer aggressively ing Ring King, would fall into: rapid but- allowing players to throw multiple punch
swaying from side to side as if desper- ton tapping, with a little more rapid but- types (left or right body blows and jabs
ately in need of a bathroom break. As ton tapping for good measure. Ring to the face), block, and evade.
Iron Mike rocked in his chair, action King and Activision’s Boxing (1980) Of course, for fans of the two arcade
shots of the game’s characters ap- were certainly fine attempts, but each titles, a few concessions had to be
peared on the wall of screens. Tyson resembled electronic versions of Rock made to deliver the game to the small
concluded his fidgeting by spinning the ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots with the ability to screen.
chair around to face the viewer, reveal- move back and forth. They were physi- The “biggest” difference is the pro-
ing a rather sinister looking grin. “Now cally tiring. tagonist, dubbed Little Mac, who is Lilli-
you’re playing with power,” the an- This is not the case with Punch- putian in size compared to his oppo-
nouncer said, as a low-pitched laugh Out!! Non-stop button mashing will have nents. While this would normally be dis-
bellowed out, ostensibly from the nor- you kissing canvas within seconds, and tracting, the equivalent of Emmanuel
mally squeaky-voiced Tyson. there is some quick thinking involved, Lewis taking on Richard Moll in Fox Ce-
Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! was though some may argue it’s a pure lebrity Boxing, the small size gives play-
released in October 1987, a month after reflex response. To its credit, Punch- ers an unobstructed view of each oppo-
another arcade boxing game hit the Out!! solves one of the great problems nent’s repertoire of moves. Each colorful
NES, Data East’s Ring King. Both titles in video game boxing by doing away boxer (some were pulled from 1984’s

Classic Gamer Magazine July 2004 16