Power Punch II
A boxing game that took its fighter from Earth to the stars.
Power Punch II is a boxing video game developed by Beam Software for the Nintendo Entertainment System, released in North America in June 1992. The player controls Mark Tyler, an undefeated heavyweight champion who is taken into space to fight alien opponents. The game is notable for its troubled development, having originally been conceived as a Mike Tyson title before Tyson's arrest led to the removal of his likeness.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Beam Software
- Publisher
- American Softworks (NES); Piko Interactive (Windows)
- Producer
- Sue Anderson
- Programmer
- Andrew Bailey
- Artist
- Greg Holland
- Composer
- Marshall Parker; Gavan Anderson
- Genre
- Sports (boxing)
- Modes
- Single-player
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Mark 'Tough Guy' Tyler is the undefeated heavyweight champion of Earth, holding an Olympic gold medal and a 33-0 record with 30 knockouts. After he and his manager boast that no one can stop him, an alien promoter for the Intergalactic Boxing Federation picks up the broadcast. Tyler is taken into space to fight the universe's best and defend his earthly title.
Development and release
Power Punch II was developed by Melbourne-based Beam Software. The project was originally titled Mike Tyson's Intergalactic Power Punch and was to star boxer Mike Tyson as the player-controlled protagonist, similar to Nintendo's Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!. A prototype was shown at the Winter 1991 Consumer Electronics Show. The game was released in North America by American Softworks as Power Punch II, despite not being an actual sequel. There is conflicting information about Nintendo's involvement; some sources claim it was a co-production that Nintendo distanced itself from due to Tyson's legal issues, while others dispute this. In 2009, a playable prototype ROM of Mike Tyson's Intergalactic Power Punch was released online.
Reception
Power Punch II received middling reviews upon its 1992 release. GamePro noted slightly above average graphics and challenge but criticized the limited moveset and repetitive gameplay. Nintendo Power's George Sinfield found the visuals mediocre and the controls unresponsive, while Rob Noel called the gameplay inconsistent and unfair, suggesting it should be easier for beginners. Retrospective reviews have been more negative. Andy Slaven described inexcusably bad graphics and horrible control, and Retro Gamer called it a terrible attempt at Punch-Out!! in space. Charles P. Gill of Hardcore Gaming 101 said the graphics suited a 1986 release rather than 1992 and that the gameplay was boring and massively frustrating.
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