Mike Tyson’s Brunch-Out!

Although school is running me ragged, I’ve still found time to play the new Wii Punch-Out!! in my spare time and actually made it to the end of the first round of career mode. I have lots of thoughts and impressions I’d like to share, but unfortunately I don’t have the time at this point to do so. Plus, I want to try out playing the game with the Wii Remote used as a NES style controller and the motion boxing while using the balance board before I post. I also need to play a bit more of Head-To-Head too (because from my limited experience from it, it plays differently than the main game somehow; either that or I suck!).

In the meantime, I thought I’d post a little video featuring “Iron” Mike Tyson. Yes, he’s not in the new game; moreover, he’s completely unaware of the latest Punch-Out!!even existing. Still, I couldn’t resist posting a little ditty called “Mike Tyson’s Brunch Out.” It’s episode 5 of the series “Meth Minute” by animator Dan Meth. Enjoy!

Max

Punch-Out!! Commercials

Hey-o! I’ve been crazy busy of late and recovering from a hard drive wipe, but hopefully I can get back into the swing of things soon. It was my birthday yesterday, and one of the gifts my beloved Maureen got for me is a Punch-Out!! pre-order. I’m super stoked, and now thanks to Dustin pointing them out, here is two of the new commercials associated with the game, one more of a tutorial of sorts, showing that the game is not completely motion controlled (as in Wii Boxing in Wii Sports) where you can use the joystick on the nunchuck to block, dodge and punch upwards. Check out the commercials for a laugh, then head over to the official Punch-Out!! Nintendo site, where they’re continuing to reveal characters every week that will appear in the game. Lucky for us older players, it looks like quite a few familiar faces will be coming back for another round, including Bronze Tiger, Piston Honda (now Piston Hondo to avoid confusion with the car company), and Bear Hugger.

We can start punching it up next week!

I should have some other stuff for the blog soon, including a look at Wii Fit and some other good stuff. Like J, “soon” is a relative term for me too with school nearing the end of the quarter and getting crazier all the time.

Max

Morgan Webb Plays Punch-Out with Jimmy Fallon

Call me crazy, but to see Morgan Webb come out and demo the new Punch-Out!! on Jimmy Fallon's new late night gig with Ice-T and Elmo in the audience just seems a little over the top to me. But, it happened last week, so now that I've found a clip of it, I have to share it with you.

Ouch! Jimmy! Either the motion controls for this are going to be a monster, or Jimmy hasn't played much of the Wii yet. Either/or, it's a fun new early look at Punch-Out!! in action!

Max

Just a Smidgen More on Punch-Out!!

I showed my recent articles to a friend who told me it seems I’m a wee bit excited for Punch-Out!! for Wii. Yes, it’s true. Nintendo and Next Level Games are producing something really exciting here. Thanks to it being released at GDC, I can present to you the formerly Nintendo Channel-exclusive trailer mentioned Monday for your viewing pleasure.

In other exciting news, IGN has the scoop that my beloved Super Punch-Out!! will be available on Virtual Console next week, Monday, March 30th. Hell yes! It will be just the training I need to get in the mood for the new game.

Max

UPDATE! More Punch-Out!! Wii Details

Following up on Monday’s Punch-Out!! story, GoNintendo has grabbed some more info from a press release that was briefly on Nintendo Europe’s site before being pulled. Here’s the quick nitty gritty:

• The game will not support the balance board. There will be motion controls however, with the Wii remote and Nunchuck.


• Another mode of control will be to hold the Wii Remote sideways and play NES style.


• Don Flamenco has been announced as one of the returning characters. There will be 13 opponents in all (it seems small to me, but then again, that’s a good number for a Punch-Out!! game, considering you fight 3-4 guys a circuit). I’m hoping for Bald Bull to make a comeback. J has told me repeatedly he’s praying for Super Macho Man to return.


• Nintendo will apparently be revealing the identities of these 13 opponents one at a time, every week until the game comes out.


• Best of all, there will be a two-player head to head mode where you and a friend can slug it out. Sweet!

Maybe I’m too excited for this game, but it’s currently the next big thing due from Nintendo and it’s one of my favorite franchises (more due to Super Punch-Out!! than the original). Just trying to keep you all in the loop—something that Captain Cragen from TV’s Law & Order: SVU is always asking his detectives to do. Seriously. Like once an episode.

Max

NEW Punch-Out Teaser/Info on Nintendo Channel!

Ho boy, last week was a disaster for me in terms of my online set-up. I switched internet providers for all of about 24 hours after all the problems it caused, and was only today able to get my Wii hooked back up with my wireless router. Anyway, once I did, I checked the Nintendo Channel and much to my excitement was a new, Nintendo Channel exclusive, teaser trailer for one of my most anticipated titles of 2009: Nintendo’s new Punch-Out! for Wii.

It seems everything old has been made new again, as the game clearly stars Little Mac and Doc is back training him too. There were even shots of Mac training: jumping rope, hitting the heavy bag, lifting weights. These are probably just cinemas, but it’d be neat if they were in-game mini-games or something; whatever they are they looked cool, and Doc was audibly encouraging Mac through each exercise. Best of all is that the classic scene of Doc riding his bike with Little Mac jogging behind is shown, recreated down to the pink sweats! Awesome!

Then Mac is seen battling a bevy of familiar faces: Glass Joe, Von Kaiser, King Hippo… but then, what’s this? A new face! Someone called “Disco Kid” makes an appearance. So this may not be just a remake, but a re-imagining as well. Then Little Mac fights King Hippo, knocks him out, and is hoisted to Doc’s shoulder.

Not too much else to report. I still don’t know if there will be optional balance board controls for this or not. I also don’t know how many new boxers there will be, though I’ve heard there is a female boxer. At any rate, May 18th can’t come soon enough! Just figured I’d share the news with those of you out there without the Nintendo Channel.

Max

Lotsa Reasons I’m Stoked about the Wii Right Now

I can’t post about my 360 anymore—and it better not give me any more reason to. So while Dustin and J are happily in the PS3 club, and I’m overcoming the bitterness of 360 problems galore, I’m looking more to Maureen’s and my Wii, our “first child” (we actually call it that, as it was the first thing, let alone game console, that we bought together), with a list of why I’m excited about it and will be playing it increasingly over the coming weeks and months.

• No More Heroes 2! - I’ve just come back to the original and am still wrapping it up, but I’m thrilled there’s more assassination adventures ahead. Suda 51 wanted to do a sequel, and while the over-the-top gore fest for Wii only received a lukewarm reception (at least in sales), I’m stoked to see Travis Touchdown back in action, becoming the franchise character he deserves to be. More laser sword fighting and toilet squat saving? Yes please!

  
  



• SIN & PUNISHMENT 2!!! – Sequel to one of my favorite games ever. I think I said enough about it here and here. October 2nd, 2008 will go down in history as not just the day Biden handed Palin her ass in the VP debate, but the day my dream of more Sin & Punishment Treasure goodness came true.


• Nintendo Club coming to North America by year’s end – Oh hell yes, finally we can get some good swag outta buying Nintendo Wii (and DS) games, much like Japan does. Gamers in the know of the Nintendo Club have always cast a jealous eye to the East, but now we’re going to get some excellent goodies. At least we better get stuff that’s comparable to all the treats Japan’s Nintendo Club has sent out. This will be a really effective way to strengthen Nintendo’s customer loyalty a great deal.


• The chance of Monster Hunter 3 coming Stateside – I know the other Monster Hunter games haven’t received the biggest reception in North America, but the third one should definitely come over here, mainly because it’s an opportunity to fill the gaps in the Wii’s lacking core library. A cool game like Monster Hunter could gain attention with the few offerings for hardcore gamers. Hopefully, the reportedly clunky controls will get tweaked a bit before the game’s release.


• A Punch-Out!! remake! - I loved Punch-Out and loved Super Punch-Out even more. It is not a franchise that has deserved to languish as much as it has. But now with Wii-motion (AKA “waggle”) on the scene, it’s a perfect time to bring it back. Yeah, so far it looks to me a straight remake of the original, and I’m hoping for new characters (maybe a versus mode, a la Wii Sports' Boxing), but look at this way: I’m in my 30’s now and played Punch-Out as a kid on the NES, even in the arcade. Kids today have no idea who Little Mac, King Hippo or Bald Bull are. If this is what it takes to get the franchise going again, I’m all for it. Plus, I know I’ll have fun with it no matter what—especially punching the croissants and loaves of French bread outta Glass Joe. Sure it doesn’t make sense, but does it have to? It’s awesome!

  
  




• Mad World – Thank goodness for Platinum Games, former members of the beloved & brilliant Clover Studio. Clover made some of the best action games ever, and Platinum looks to continue down this path. Mad World looks great, almost a combination of Clover’s own God Hand and Frank Miller’s gritty Sin City (both comics & film). It is uber violence that even puts No More Heroes to shame with its sadism and unflinching chainsaw beat-‘em-up action. I don’t know when this is coming out, but it’s not soon enough.


• Animal Crossing City Folk – I have no illusion that City Folk is anything more than just another rehash of pretty much the same game. Still, I love Animal Crossing, from designing super hero clothes for my characters to growing orchards upon orchards or just decorating my house. The big reason I’m excited is that I’m sure Dustin and his fiancée, Rose are going to get it and we’ll be chatting it up as we visit each other’s towns. Maureen is reluctant to try it, but I’m hoping she’ll become an addict like me after she gives it a chance.


• Rygar: Battle of Argus – Yeah, I know it is basically the PS2 game all over again, with a couple of improvements, motion controls, and an anime-ized makeover for Rygar. Thing is, I never played much of the PS2 version, and what I did play, I loved. Rygar is a great franchise, and I liked him in the arcade and on the NES in my younger days. It’s almost kinda cool that the excellent PS2 game is getting a makeover for a new audience. Plus, an action game can’t hurt the Wii lineup.


• Games I’ve ordered – I ordered Wario Land Shake It and Sambo De Amigo from Super-Fly Comics & Games. They’re having some problems with their distributor, but I’m happy to wait for now (gives me a chance to save up!). Wario looks like great fun and Samba is an old friend made new again.


• Games I’m playing – I’ve been delving into Wii Okami and returning to No More Heroes, plus I’ve just received a great amount of games back from my niece and nephew, including Super Mario Galaxy. I’m going to be sinking time in all three, as well as polishing Sin & Punishment skills on the VC.


• Wii Fit – I can’t find it anywhere, but my sister got it for her family and I’m hoping to play it with them. Also, hopefully I can score a copy for Xmas. It will be good to do some low impact exercises, lose a little weight, and help establish a healthier lifestyle, things the game has allegedly done for many people.


• House of the Dead: Overkill – I nearly forgot to mention this one. House of the Dead 2 was the reason I bought my Dreamcast (a Japanese one no less with guns made by Sega), and I still play it on my Wii on the House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return. I thought that House of the Dead 4 might come to Wii after playing its gun-shaking control in the arcades. Instead it turns out that there’s now a brand new House of the Dead game, and it looks fucking phenomenal. Maybe I’m sold on the game because of its Grindhouse-like trailer, but from the trailer, one can see that revolvers are used in one scene, automatics in another. This would make it the first HOTD game with weapon switching in the arcade mode. It also looks like a prequel (again, with the 70’s feel of the trailer). It drops in February, and I know Dustin is really stoked about this one too.



• Greater Wii suppy – More supply means more people with Wiis. My buddy Aaron went hunting one yesterday and found one at the first place he looked, so I look forward to playing Smash Bros online with him. I’m also happy that people who have wanted to have one forever will finally have a better chance of landing one.


• My Wii has never broken down on me – Had it since launch. It’s locked up a couple times, but nothing console killing. I've transported it all over the place, including Super-Fly Comics & Games for "Free Wii Play" days where customers can come in and play. Still, it's shown no wear and tear from this. Recent posts made by me should indicate why this is so exciting to me...


• I’ve only had to call Nintendo’s Customer Service Line once regarding the Wii - and it was about a controller connectivity issue, which the automated troubleshooting tips provided a fix for.

I know that’s more than enough to be excited about, but the Wii has been a great system, and I’m happy to see so many great things in the pipeline for it. It’s also nice to look at it and respect the hardware, despite lack of HD (not that I have an HDTV), as being reliable and capable of yielding so much fun.

Max