Video Game / Super Punch-Out!! (1994)

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Super Punch-Out!! is the fourth game in the Punch-Out!! series, developed by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in October 24, 1994 in North America, with a European release on February 10, 1995 and a Japanese release on March 1 of the same year.

This game played closer to the first two arcade titles than Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, opting for a third person perspective and restricting the fights to a single three-minute round. While it doesn't retain the characters that were new to its immediate predecessor, it brought back most of the arcade characters and introduced new ones, including the champion Bruiser Brothers, Rick and Nick.

Followed 15 years later by Punch-Out!! (2009)

Super Punch-Out!! contains examples of:

• Acrofatic: Mad Clown in Super Punch-Out!! may be fat, but he is also acrobatic enough to retreat by doing a few backflips.
• All Chinese People Know Kung-Fu: Dragon Chan (Hong Kong) and Hoy Quarlow (Beijing). Both rely on kung fu-based attacks despite being boxers, and the latter isn't even dressed with boxing clothes.
• Anti-Mentor: Glass Joe is known for being the worst boxer in the franchise. That being said, he's the one who trained Gabby Jay how to box. Gabby Jay's only win is against his own mentor, and his record ends up being about the same.
• Artistic License – Sports: Hoy Quarlow deserves special mention for violating every single rule listed above at the same time. His outfit is illegal (too loose, without a clear line marking his waist; the long pants and slippers are also against real-world boxing rules), his hair is illegal (long hair and long beards are both not allowed), and every single one of his moves is illegal (his punches are all illegal backhands, palm strikes, and shoves; some of his moves have him turning his back to his opponent, which is considered a forfeit in real boxing if done too much; even his leaps are too high and could be considered leaving the ring and forfeiting the match; and that's not even counting his staff, an obvious foreign object). Plus he should have retired nearly forty years ago. There is literally nothing boxing-legal about him at all.
• Battle Theme Music: There is a different battle theme for each of the four circuits. Each boxer has a unique theme on the pre-fight stats screen.
• Berserk Button: Narcis Prince really doesn't like being punched in the face.
• Bilingual Bonus: The cornerman for Dragon Chan in Super Punch-Out!! calls out advice to him in Mandarin.
• Cane Fu: It's more of a staff, but Hoy Quarlow uses his with gusto.
• Catchphrase: The boxer (whose identity is subject to inconsistent veracity) is fond of saying "Piece of cake!" when he KOs his opponent without being knocked down.
• Classic Cheat Code: In 2022, it was discovered that the game contains a code that unlocks a Free Play mode. This mode in itself contains a code that allows a second player to control the opponent.
• Combat Pragmatist: Masked Muscle, who includes headbutts and spitting in your face in his boxing repertoire.
• Company Cross-References: Names like Wario or Zelda would appear on the tables for best times.
• The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard: There are characters who obviously break boxing rules, like Dragon Chan's kicks (imported from the arcade game), the Bruiser brothers' elbow strikes, and Hoy Quarlow attacking you with a staff instead of his fists.
• Dance Battler: Bob Charlie's moves are rhythm-based and Heike Kagero employs kabuki tactics.
• Defeating the Undefeatable: Nick Bruiser has a 42-0 record before losing against you. To add insult to injury, according to Official Nintendo Magazine, he then lost again. To Glass Joe. His twin brother Rick is almost undefeated, having lost only to Nick.
• Determinator: Gabby Jay, much like his trainer Glass Joe, has a 1-99 record but refuses to give up.
  Gabby Jay: I'll never retire! I can win at least once more. Come on!
• Disc-One Final Dungeon: World Circuit. There is a fourth circuit unlockable by having an official 4-0 record on the other three circuits.
• Expy: Gabby Jay in Super Punch-Out is a Glass Joe expy, right down to the country of origin, despite saying "Come on!" in a Southern United States drawl. In fact, his only win in 100 fights came against Glass Joe.
• Fat Bastard: By the standards of the more rotund opponents, Mad Clown employs dirty tricks such as throwing balls after juggling. Still, Bear Hugger is not above taunting you.
• Fighting Clown: Mad Clown is a boxer complete with the makeup.
• The Fighting Narcissist: Narcis Prince, who, true to form, goes completely apeshit if you manage to punch him in the face.
• Final Boss: Super Macho Man, though there is a True Final Boss in Nick Bruiser.
• Gameplay and Story Integration: It's mentioned Glass Joe’s sole win was against Nick Bruiser (how, no one can say). Sure enough, checking the default leaderboards for Nick shows a "G. Joe" as the lowest entry.
• Gorgeous George:
  • Heike Kagero is an effeminate boxer on the World Circuit with bishonen traits aplenty. He has a slim build, lilac trunks and matching lipstick, long silver hair which he uses as a lethal weapon, and skips back and forth when he knocks you down. And he gives a Noblewoman's Laugh when he wins. According to the manual, Kagero was actually trained in kabuki (specifically the balletic arts of Nihon Buyo) before taking up boxing as a means of defending himself.
  • Narcis Prince on the Special Circuit shows this via the blonde hair, and absolute rage he flies into, should the player manage to hit his pretty face.
• A Handful for an Eye: Masked Muscle, who cheats repeatedly. One of his moves is to spit in your eye, making everything blurry and preventing you from attacking for about ten seconds.
• Head Swap: Bald Bull/Mr. Sandman once again, as well as Gabby Jay/Bob Charlie, Bear Hugger/Mad Clown, Piston Hurricane/Aran Ryan, Dragon Chan/Heike Kagero, Masked Muscle/Super Macho Man, and the two Bruiser Brothers. The only characters with unique models are Narcis Prince and Hoy Quarlow.
• Healing Boss: If you perform a KO punch on Aran Ryan, he'll follow up with a clinch that heals him while lowering your own health.
• I Let You Win: Rick Bruiser's record is 41-1, and his only loss is to his brother, Nick Bruiser. However, Rick Bruiser claims he let his brother win their match, and that he's really the best.
• Improbable Weapon User: This being a boxing series, it shouldn't feature weapons other than fists and gloves. Nevertheless, in Super Punch-Out!!, luchador/boxer Masked Muscle uses (illegal) wrestling techniques, Dragon Chan uses Jeet Kune Do, Heike Kagero attacks with his Bishonen hair, Mad Clown has his juggling balls, and Hoy Quarlow likes to hit you with his walking stick repeatedly. It might be easier to mention the boxers that fight fair. And of course, the ref will never call them on it.
• Kevlard: Bear Hugger and Mad Clown, both fat boxers, are nearly immune to body blows. You have to punch them in the head to damage them. Punching them in the stomach results in a boing, and the boxer mocks you. If they taunt, their midsection is vulnerable, and hitting it will stun them.
• Lethal Joke Character: Mad Clown is pretty hard to begin with, but he's a clown that can literally curb stomp you if you're not careful.
• Mind Screw: One of the top fastest times against champion Nick Bruiser is Glass Joe. Because of this, people are starting to say that Joe's one win was a fluke win against Nick before the Bruiser Bros. went pro.
• Minor Injury Overreaction: The primary tactic involved in fighting Narcis Prince is first hitting him in the face, which enrages him and causes him to use a series of attacks that can be easily countered.
• My Rules Are Not Your Rules:
  • Dragon Chan uses kicking attacks.
  • Masked Muscle spits in your eyes and headbutts you.
  • Hoy Quarlow fights with a walking stick.
  • Heike Kagero attacks with his hair.
  • There is a hidden Level Select cheat (discovered 28 years after the game's release!) that also allows a second player to control the enemy boxers. Some of their moves function differently when used by a player, some can't be used at all, and Mad Clown has a move that can only be used when being controlled.
• Nerf: Happens to all three veteran characters as seen on the cover. Bald Bull is demoted to the champion of the Minor Circuit; he is notably much slower and easier to beat than in Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!. Mr. Sandman (who is usually the champion or at least the runner-up of the World Circuit in other games) is only the champion of the Major Circuit, and consequently this marks his weakest incarnation. Super Macho Man didn't have a tier downgrade (he's still the World Circuit champion, like in his past appearances), but he's still easier than in other games.
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: Bob Charlie, if in name only.
• No Fair Cheating: If you use a Game Genie or Pro Action Replay with a career, you won't be able to access the fourth and final circuit. An Emulator/Console Game Genie code now exists to reverse the disabling effect.
• No-Sell:
  • Try to land a body blow on Bear Hugger or Mad Clown, and it will do nothing. The two will also taunt you afterward.
  • Aran Ryan's gimmick is that standard punches don't faze him - they do only scratch damage. He's something of a Wake-Up Call Boss, forcing the player to get better at counter-punching (counter-punches do full damage to him).
  • When you land jabs and hooks on Nick Bruiser, the dour expression on his face never changes. However, he's taking normal damage from the punches even if he's acting like he doesn't.
• Noblewoman's Laugh: A rare male example; this is a Verbal Tic of Heike Kagero's.
  Hoo, hoo, hoo, hooo.
• Old Master: Hoy Quarlow, who fights with a staff!
• One-Hit KO:
  • It is possible at some point to throw this in any fight. When you punch your enemy enough times within a short enough time window, they will become dizzy and will come back and forth dazed. If the player unleashes a super punch and it lands on the opponent right as they waddle back into range, no matter if it's Gabby Jay or Nick Bruiser, they'll be instantly knocked down. Plus if knocked down this way, they'll usually stay down for longer so you can recover more health, and they'll get a significantly smaller health refill than usual upon getting back up.
  • The Piston Hurricane fight allows Mac to hit a literal one hit KO.
• Palette Swap: Gabby Jay and Bob Charlie, Bear Hugger and Mad Clown, Piston Hurricane and Aran Ryan, Bald Bull and Mr. Sandman, Dragon Chan and Heike Kagero, Masked Muscle and Super Macho Man, and the two Bruiser Brothers (sharing their own model). The only original palettes are Narcis Prince and Hoy Quarlow.
• The Paralyzer: The Bruiser brothers can render one of your arms useless for ten seconds, making it impossible to punch with it or to block. The arm thus "broken" turns red until it heals.
• Parts Unknown: The Bruiser Brothers weren't given a specified location in their bios.
• Polar Opposite Twins: The Bruiser Brothers. Rick Bruiser is outgoing and hot-blooded, while Nick Bruiser is quiet and cold.
• Prolonged Video Game Sequel: There are 16 challengers across four circuits — the most unique fighters of any Punch-Out!! game.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: A surprisingly not Color-Coded for Your Convenience example: The Bruiser Twins - Fiery red Rick with speed and overwhelming power on his side, and cruel blue Nick with the grim inevitability of a glacier (while lacking all the warmth) and, uh, even more overwhelming power on his.
• The Stoic: Nick Bruiser, the Final Boss . Hardly ever changes expression while fighting, even after being hit in the face. Only getting hit with a super punch will faze him.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Gabby Jay. French nationality (though he looks and sounds like a Southern USA Colonel for some reason), a 1-99 record, first opponent in the game, just like Glass Joe. It is Lampshaded, too, since Gabby Jay is Glass Joe's pupil and his one win was against Glass Joe.
• Timed Mission: You are given only 5 minutes to beat your opponent and if it rounds out, you lose.
• True Final Boss: Nick Bruiser is the champion of the brutal Special Circuit, which can only be unlocked by winning the other three circuits without losing against any opponent. Nick borrows many attacks from his brother Rick (being his Palette Swap also helps), but he's much stronger and eager to use his most dangerous attacks (including his One-Hit KO special move) more often.
• Turns Red: Mr. Sandman's gimmick is that he doesn't use his full power until he's been knocked down twice.
• Vague Age: The age of Rick Bruiser and his brother, Nick, is listed as ??.
• Wake-Up Call Boss:
  • Dragon Chan, due to his habit to attack with kicks.
  • Aran Ryan is the first boss you need to use the super-punches on.
  • Piston Hurricane. He's much more aggressive than Gabby Jay and Bear Hugger, he's also quicker than the two, can also counter punch should be player be goaded into punching him during a taunt, throws uppercuts everytime he or the player gets back up and his Hurricane Rush is bad news for unprepared players.
• Worthy Opponent:
  • Hoy Quarlow says that he enjoyed fighting with you and invites you to fight with him again sometime.
  • Rick Bruiser says he's okay with having lost to you; his brother Nick, however…