GDC 09: Punch-Out! Impressions
After getting a passing look at Nintendo's Punch-Out! for Wii at their GDC expo booth I knew that I had to take some time and come back to get my hands on the demo. Up till now we've only seen a couple of promising trailers, but attendees of GDC can play through a short circuit of fighters to get a feel for the game. The demo includes three classic fighters, Glass Joe, Von Kaiser, and King Hippo, as well as a brand new character, Disco Kid. The thing that immediately struck me is how faithful the 3D visuals are to the 8 and 16-bit source material.
The controls are simple and responsive. Using a control scheme very similar to Super Punch-Out!, the Wii update sprinkles in some motion controls in a few (but prominent) spots that make sense. Obviously we're going to be engaging in fisticuffs with the Wii remote and nunchuk's motion, but you will also see motion come into play when Little Mac has knocked down an opponent. By shaking the controllers as the very "not Mario" referee is counting, players are able to gain a little bit of their health back. Shaking is also used when Little Mac is reaching for the ropes himself. Dodging is thankfully handled by the analogue stick, allowing players make some carefully executed evasive maneuvers.
The overall gameplay experience feels very similar to the classic originals. Beating an opponent into a bruised pulp through brute force isn't going to work very long, and just about all of Little Mac's foes will require a little bit of pattern recognition in order to achieve a knock out. The process may require some trial and error, but the demo was forgiving enough not to make this an issue. The Wii update doesn't reinvent the wheel, but is a very apt use of Nintendo's back catalog. It may not revolutionize the series' core game design in the way that Metroid Prime or Mario 64 did, but the demo proved that sometimes Wii developers don't have to start from scratch when bringing a series back to life.
Punch-Out! will be released in late May this year in North America.
Game-Boy
Posted to GDC, Hot Stuff, Video Games on 27 March 2009
· Comments (5)
Other stuff like this: demo, gdc 2009, impressions, nintendo, punch-out
I'm probably the only one who'll admit this, but I know I'm not the only one out there with a thing for Little Mac.
I'm probably the only one hoping for a Classic/Gamecube controller control option, but if there is one I'm so buying this.
@ Shin: While I was told there was a classic control option, I wasn't able to check it out. But no worries, it's there.
Why do I feel like the only one who wouldn't take a free copy of this game even if it had $20 bill attached to it?
Hated it in the arcade days and ever since.
Awesome, looks like I need to pencil in some training time...
(queues up Bill Conti's "You're The Best")