Nostalgia Trip: Mike Tyson's Punch Out! (NES)

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Mike Tyson's Punch Out is the greatest game on NES. No other term should be used besides that. Made in the prime of the NES (1987), the game features a little shrimp named "Mac" who adopts former booze-hound and heavyweight Champion Doc Louis as his corner-man to take on the best fighters in the world.

 

The game is HEAVY in the stereotype department. You have an alcoholic russian (whos name was changed to make it more kid-safe), a Nazi German, Pussy Frenchman, and a Spanish lethario. Included were three United States fighters, who are all about 56x better than everyone combined, including the man himself, Kid Dynamite, the one, the only, Iron Mike Tyson.

 

The game is fun for all ages and has quite simple button control. Each fight lasts 3:00 minutes per round (3 Rounds total) with a speeded up clock that makes it more like 2:00, and will depend on sharp skills and reflexes to be the champion.

 

The game is seperated into three divisions: The Minor Circuit, The Major Circuit, and The World Circuit. The Minor Circuit consists of Champion-Piston Honda (from Tokyo, Japan, and has a terrible Japanese dictionary), #1 Ranked-Von Kaiser (get it? Kaiser?! HAHA!), and #2 Ranked-Glass Joe, the glass-jawed frenchman with a pathetic 1-99 record. Rumors are he beat himslef to get his first win.

 

After breezing through those bunch of losers, you'll come to the Major Circuit. Champion-Bald Bull with the drooping forehead that would make Abdullah The Butcher laugh, #1 Ranked-Great Tiger who bears a strange resemblance to Von Kaiser, #2 Ranked-King Hippo, who is a fact guy and should be recognized from the Captain N whatever cartoons. And finally, the #3 Ranked Don Flameneco, who dances like a queer and hits on Mario in between rounds....that is if you don't knock him out first.

 

Finally, the world Circuit, and you'll see some repeats. The Champion-Super Macho Man is roided up like he's Billy Graham, and would turn completely gray in 7 years for the Super Punch Out release. #1 Ranked-Mr. Sandman, who has a weird fasination with making stupid jokes about sleeping. #2 Ranked-Don Flamenco...yeah, he's back, and tougher than before, which isn't saying much. #3 Ranked-Bald Bull comes back, but at least he's man enough to show his ugly face than to cover it with a mask with an "X" on it. #4 Ranked-Soda Popinski is a lot of fun. Anyone who wants a laugh should check the I-mockery.com site for the funniest "interview" ever. And finally, #5 Ranked-Piston Honda, who is still Japanese and still a piece of cake.

 

If you are able to beat everyone, you will get to the Dream Fight...against Mike Tyson. Tyson will do his beat to make you look like any of the opponents he beat the shit out of in 1 minute from 1985-1987, throwing non-stop dynamite uppercuts that will knock your sorry ass down in one shot. To be honest, playing this game on a Emulator is HARD, because of the reaction time from the keys. If you're lucky (or just know his left-right-left-left-right-right etc. paterns) you MIGHT be able to win by a Decision.

 

I must've played this game hundreds of times, and it still never gets old. The graphics are fun, the fact you get to make every other country look like weak pathetic fools (MORTAL KOMBAT II LINE~!) is even more fun. Too bad you can't play as Mike Tyson here...or anyone else for that matter.

 

Hopefully, this game will make it onto GBA, but most likely, it will be the Tyson-less version with Mr. Dream as his replacement (a white Mike Tyson with the same move-set etc.). Now, onot playing Fire ProWrestling 2 on GBA with my Punch-Out edits.

 

Anyway, who is everyone's favorite opponent to fight, dumbest stereotype character, and the toughest?

 

My favorite is of course, Mike Tyson because I've always been a fun of his (even if he is a scumbag).

 

Dumbest stereotype is Piston Honda. The fact he uses words (or company names) as "japanese sentences" is just stupid.

 

Toughest fight....probably Mr. Sandman since he's always a bitch to beat.

[Guest Coffey]

007-373-5963

 

I'll take that code with me to my grave.

 

Mike Tyson has some secrets about him as well. For example, you can hit him in the head twice after each lightning uppercut. If you dodged the uppercut the same way that he threw it (for example dodge left if he comes with his right (so that it's your left)) and your punches will do more damage. Once the round hits 1:30 in time (halfway through the round) he'll quit throwing the lightning punches and start throwing hooks. You can hit him in the head after each one the same way that you did with the lightning punches. The same damage trick applies as well.

 

You should never beat Tyson by decision, but you can win by TKO in the first round.

 

You should check out some Mike Tyson's Punch Out speed runs. They are pretty fun to watch.

 

My favorite opponent is the first time you fight Don Flamingo. Doing the left, right trick on him is just hilarious. He's shocked and appalled that you would repeatedly hit him in the mouth (which he never closes). The toughest fight is easily Tyson. Although the second Flamingo is no joke, nor is anyone after him (Sandman & Macho).

 

The dumbest character is easily King Hippo. Mother-fucker just hops around like a ree-ree. Then you beat him because he's too worried about pulling up his pants to defend himself. Great Tiger comes in a close second though. Why the fuck did they have to make some dude basically teleport? I mean, the Bull Charge was hokey, but the Tiger Punch is dumb as shit.

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Eh...I'm not the cheating type to win super-fast. Takes away from the win if it's too quick.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

I've still never beaten Tyson. Every 6 months or so I start working towards it and get really close but ultimately get distracted by something else.

[Guest Coffey]

How is it cheating? It's a part of the game. It's just the Mike Tyson strategy. Each character has a specific weakness. For example, Von Kaiser's cut, or hitting Honda mid Piston Charge.

[Guest Dynamite Kido]

Funny thing is, I have a friend that looks exactly like Don Flamingo......and no, we never let him forget about it.

[Guest Fook]

Favourite opponent - Soda Popinski

 

Easiest - Don Flamenco (first time)

 

Hardest - Tyson (duh). Besides him, Super Macho Man (I hated those damn super spins)

 

Dumbest Stereotype - Great Tiger

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

How is it cheating? It's a part of the game. It's just the Mike Tyson strategy. Each character has a specific weakness. For example, Von Kaiser's cut, or hitting Honda mid Piston Charge.

I know it technically isn't, but it's just not as fun....plus the fact I have a shitty memory. (I always forget to punch the body of Sandman when I don't play for a while)

[tbondrage99 0]

I used to play this game when I was a kid and could never get past Don Flameneco (The first fight with him) but hey I was a kid, what can you expect? Now fast forward until only 3 years ago when I get to College, I now have a friend who brought in his NES, with 100 games or more (at the very least!) among them my old friend Mike Tysons Punch Out. I start to play it and I soon get obsessed with it, I had to beat Mike Tyson. After playing for only a day I was already able to get to Super Macho Man who would become the bane of my existance in this dammed game. I probally foungt the son of a bitch about a million times in the coming 2 weeks and was only able to beat him a grand total of 2 times, Everyone else on the game I would be able to beat without even getting hit once but as soon as I got to Super Macho Man I would always be in the fight of my life coming out on the loosing end all by 2 times, those 2 times I did get to face off against Mike Tyson I was clobbered. Eventually I just gave up, I know when Im beaten.

[Guest wildpegasus]

This is generally viewed as one of the best games ever and one of the tougher ones as well but above all that it's undeniably one of the best for replay and pure fun. I'll never forget the time SuperMachMan used his spin punch at least 13 to 14 times on me in a roll. That is no lie. I finally went down with my mouth just open with amazement at what I'd seen. Sodapop, the sandman, bald bull and Mike Tyson were all challenges as well. I had never beaten this game originally and came back to it years later to take Tyson down which I ended up doing a couple or few times. What a game. I love everything about it. The quotes, the training the music, the charactors, the intensity of the game play, the strageties -- everything.

 

I want to take a survey here. How many people answered the phone while they were in a middle of a fight? Remember, there was no pause option during a fight!

[Use Your Illusion 0]

Believe it or not, I've never played this game.

 

HAVE I NOT LIVED!?

 

A pox on my Sega fanboy early years.

 

UYI

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

"Fuck the phone, I gotta beat Tyson". I would wait until the mid-round breaks if I had to do something important.

 

I'm very supersticious when playing games. I like playing alone, because if anyone disturbs me, I just lose focus and get killed.

 

For example, I was playing Rocky on PS2, and was kciking Dragos ass. All of a sudden, I got disturbed, and he knocks me down 20 seconds later.....when I had full health!

[Use Your Illusion 0]

Wow, you really suck.

[The Metal Maniac 0]

Believe it or not, I've never played this game.

Oh my God, you poor unfortunate child...

 

I still remember finally figuring out the timing to beat Bald Bull. I was estatic when that fucker went down. Eat shit, Bull!

 

I never really got much farther then like, the Sandman. But question: Wasn't the Mr. Dream version the original?

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Wow, you really suck.

You suck more for never playing Punch Out. Sega-fucker!

 

I never really got much farther then like, the Sandman. But question: Wasn't the Mr. Dream version the original?

 

The Dream version was released in 1990 when the contract with Tyson expired. And since he was no longer champion, they didn't bother to have it resigned, so they just turned him white and called him Mr. Dream.

[Use Your Illusion 0]

I stand defeated.

[NoCalMike 0]

I am assuming everyone knew the trick of pressing the "select" button between one set of rounds, to make your energy go up.

 

 

When I was eleven, me and my friend had a game genie and we beat Tyson for the first time.

[Scroby 0]

The 2nd bald bull always kicked my ass. Thats the only guy I really had trouble with, before Mike Tyson everyone else I just walked through.

[Guest Suicide King]

Yes, the second Bald Bull was a bastard and a half. I am sad to say that I never managed to defeat Tyson myself although I took everyone else to the cleaners. It ranks among my greatest disappointments that the pretend fighting between myself and Tyson always ended exactly the way a real fight would.

[Scroby 0]

It ranks among my greatest disappointments that the pretend fighting between myself and Tyson always ended exactly the way a real fight would.

 

You know how a real fight between myself and Tyson would end up? Me running the hell away.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

My proudest moment was my TKO of Tyson in round 3.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

I'm pretty sure the only time I beat Tyson was by decision.

 

And Soda Popinski was a piece of cake. Knocked that sucka out the 1st time I faced him. I always have trouble timing Bald Bull's bull charge, but other than that, Super Macho Man and Tyson are the only guys I have/had trouble with.

[Guest MikeSC]

You want sad? I had a friend who couldn't beat Glass Joe.

 

Seriously.

 

Would get KO'd by him half of the time --- and if I didn't see it, I'd have thought it wasn't actually possible.

-=Mike

[Guest Coffey]

Yeah, I recall Super Macho Man spinning fourteen times on his Super spinning punch against me. That was the first time that I ever beat him. My brother was my witness. He was like "maybe he'll spin until the round ends?" and I said "then I'm winning by decision, because he ain't hittin me!"

 

Good times.

 

I remember having to read Nintendo Power magazine to find out how to beat both King Hippo and the Bald Bull.

 

I didn't know that it was possible to beat Tyson by decision. You'd have to know him down, what, two times in each of the three rounds?

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

I didn't know that it was possible to beat Tyson by decision. You'd have to know him down, what, two times in each of the three rounds?

Knock him down at least 4 or 5 times.

 

My strategy was to just counter and attack. I never went for stars because I have no clue what timing I had to do on what punch to get them, and if he got me in the exhausted he went into uppercut mode (I'm not sure if the R2 & 3 U-Cuts are 1 hit KOs, because I always avoid them).

 

I hated those bastard jabs he would do until you were exhausted. IF you didn't block, he'd just pummel your ass, and if you did it would still take a bit of energy away.

[Slayer 0]

IIRC, you couldn't beat Sandman or Super Macho Man by decision, but you could beat Tyson with 5000 pts

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

IIRC, you couldn't beat Sandman or Super Macho Man by decision, but you could beat Tyson with 5000 pts

I think that's right, but I'd have to double check to be sure. I'm also sure that other than King Hippo, another boxer never gives up stars.

[Guest Coffey]

If you watch the Mike Tyson's Punch Out speed runs, you'll see that most boxers can give you stars. It takes 18:30 to beat the whole game. The run in broken down into individual fights against each character for easier downloading. The "runs" can be found here. Just go to the "Time Attacks" section and Mike Tyson's Punch Out should be in the top left.

 

A breakdown of the times (time units = game seconds):

 

Glass Joe: 0:42

Von Kaiser: 0:37

Piston Honda: 0:51

Don Flamenco: 0:13

King Hippo: 0:45

Great Tiger: 0:59

Bald Bull: 1:15

Piston Honda (2): 0:55

Soda Popinksi: 1:00

Bald Bull (2): 1:32

Don Flamenco (2): 1:32

Mr. Sandman: 2:51

Super Macho Man: 1:19

Mike Tyson: 2:52

[Slayer 0]

I'm gonna have to check that out when I get home. I figured everyone was beatable in the first round, but I never was able to do so

 

At least it's not like SPO where everyone can be beaten in under 30 seconds

[Guest Coffey]

There's actually a faster fight versus Mike Tyson, but you can only download it with Bit Torrent. It can be found here. It beats Tyson by TKO in 1:27.