Punch Out - Wii

Punch Out! (Wii) hopes to bring the feel of the classic NES and SNES franchise up to the modern age. Most of the beloved villains of yesteryear make a return in this reboot from Glass Joe, the games iconic first round boxer to Aran Ryan an Irish boxer who demands the player use cunning and perfect timing to beat. In this version  the game play is nearly identical to past iterations, players are required to learn the opponents timings and "give away" moves to duck, dodge and block all the while landing return blows to reduce the other boxers health bar and ultimately earn a Knock Out (KO).

For anyone wondering if this new version has opted to appeal to the casual audience by "dumbing down" the difficulty be assured that Punch Out! (Wii) is still "Punch Out" after all these years. Each boxer has a unique set of moves that you must master in order to defeat them, some requiring precise dodging. While some of the first boxers will present no problems to anyone familiar with the series, once you enter the second circuit prepare to be challenged!

One of the hardest parts of the previous titles has been retooled slightly in this updated version. No longer are you required to start from the very beginning after losing a bout. The game saves your progress after each win allowing you to come back and pick up right where you left off. This may seem like a nod to the casual audience but in reality I believe it ultimately gave the developers room to make each individual boxer harder than their predecessor.

To anyone new to the series, Punch Out's story revolves around up coming boxer "Little Mac" who is just starting out in his boxing career managed by long time friend "Doc Louis". In between rounds Doc will help Mac by offering hints and tips about his opponent and ways to defeat them. While small cut scenes play between circuits in traditional Punch Out fashion depicting Mac and Doc training for the next round of opponents. 

Punch Out (Wii) was developed by Next Level Games with famed producer Shigeru Miyamoto  leading them and was released on October 27, 2009

In an interview with GameInformer.com Shigeru Miyamoto talks about Mario Galaxy 2 and some of the changes that are going into it, as well as why Nintendo decided to do the unusual and release a second major title in a series on the same hardware.

Thankfully my most hated feature has been reworked, gone is the dreaded hub system of accessing levels. In it's place is the familiar over world system first seen in Super Mario World for the SNES, as well as an upgraded version in New Super Mario Bros Wii.

While I enjoyed the 3D freedom and artwork in Mario Galaxy 1, I often times found myself at a loss as to where I was supposed to go next. I can remember a couple times, once I made it off the "ground floor", spending 4 or 5 minutes just wandering around the ship trying to figure out where to go next.

Another one of the subjects Miyamoto discusses is the inclusion of Yoshi to this title. Including some examples of controlling your dino friend by using the Wii mote as a pointer to direct Yoshi where to try and eat something, or to spit it back out.

On a final note, my wife will be pleasantly surprised to know there has been some extra camera work done in order to help remove the motion sick feeling some gamers get when playing 3D games. While I suffer from occasional bouts of motion sickness playing first person shooters, Heather will get queasy much much quicker. Hopefully the new camera tweaks pay off so I can try and convince her to be my co-pilot.

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