The Punch!! Bunch

In the US, the Punch-Out franchise requires little introduction. Even though until recently it boasted only two home-console entries in the series (Punch-Out!! for NES and Super Punch-Out!! for the Super Ninty), and went without issue for some 13 years, it seems to have somehow remained firmly lodged in Americas' collective gaming subconscious.

Not so over here in the UK. Aside from diehard Nintendo fans, few British gamers seem to have any recollection of Little Mac's 8 and 16-bit exploits, which may go some way to explaining why the spanking new sequel (also called Punch-Out!!) for Wii has apparently sold less than 40,000 units in the three weeks since launch. Keep in mind that these are just sales estimates based on incomplete data, but it still hints a general lack of enthusiasm in the EU for Nintendo's latest franchise reboot. Thankfully, it's done far healthier business in the states, shifting a very respectable 156,000 copies in just two weeks. This isn't a mind-blowing figure, but it's certainly not bad for a series that has been out of the spotlight for so long.

Unlike much of my european brethren, I'm a big fan of the series and picked up Punch-Out!! soon after launch, and I can happily report wholehearted agreement with the unanimous praise it has received from the global gaming press. The guys at Next Level Games have done an absolutely magnificent job of bringing Punch-Out into the twenty-first century, blending its infuriatingly addictive gameplay (a heady mix of pattern-memorization and lightning-fast reflexes, if you were wondering) with some of the best visuals yet to grace the Wii.

The larger-than-life characters you box against are mostly sourced from the NES original, but have been given a fantastic cel-shaded look that is brought to life with some of the most fluid and charismatic animation I have ever seen in a game.

Next Level has also done a great job of getting the difficulty curve just right, giving the player a gentle introduction to the game's mechanics with the likes of the cowardly Glass Joe and showboating Disco Kid before they slowly ramp it up. Indeed, some of the later fighter's tactics are utterly fiendish, with insane attacks you must first outsmart and then outpunch. Every fight brings something new to the ring, keeping what is essentially quite a simple idea constantly fresh and challenging.

It's a good length, too. I've had it for some two-odd weeks now, and I still haven't finished it. I'm close, but there are still a few agonizingly tough fights ahead of me before I can truly be crowned the undisputed Champion of the world's whackiest boxing leauge.

I can only hope we won't have to wait another 13 years for Punch-Out's next round.