Sound:  
The sound in Punch King is average at best. The sounds are basically set up into three categories: effects, music, and announcer. The sound effects are pretty much what you would expect from a Game Boy Advance boxing game. The punches emit that all too familiar punch sound. The bell is, well, what you would expect a bell to sound like, and the crowd – is absent. The music, like the characters, emulates the country that you are in. Each theme does sound somewhat similar, but at least the music is bearable. The announcer does an excellent job of calling the shots. There’s not really much more that could be done to improve the sound in Punch King, but it does fit the game nicely.

Gameplay:  
For those of you who did not understand the meaning of the word “barebones,” here is a little more detailed explanation of what I was trying to convey.

Punch King’s gameplay is void of any real variety. Here’s the breakdown:

Arcade – Take your boxer around the world, fighting 12 different opponents to become the world champion.

VS – Choose an opponent and fight a single round to hone your boxing skills

Survival – Like any survival mode in any game, take on an opponent, and if you win, you go on to the next fight with the same amount of energy you left the previous fight with.

That’s it. Three modes of play are all we are given in Punch King. This greatly diminishes the replay value of the game. Honestly, how many times can someone go through the same 12 boxers before it starts to get a little tedious? Each gameplay mode is pretty basic – no surprises here, folks. The only note to point out is that once you defeat a character in Arcade mode, he becomes available to fight in VS mode. Sure, it keeps the replay value steady, but once you defeat all 12, there’s not much else to do.

I’m sure we all know the object of boxing – to knock out your opponent. In Punch King, there are two ways to get this done – knock your opponent to the mat three times within three rounds, or KO him. Your character has three meters: health, stamina, and KO. Health is just like any health meter – every time you’re hit, it goes down. When it empties, you hit the mat. Your stamina meter goes down every time you throw a punch, whether or not you land a hit. When it starts to flash, you cannot throw any punches, and need to switch to defense until your stamina recovers. Every time you land a hit, your KO meter rises. Every time you take a hit, it goes down. When your KO meter reaches the top, you are in berserker mode and cannot lose any stamina. If you knock your opponent down while your KO meter is all the way up, you automatically win the round.

The combination of these three modes makes for an exciting gameplay experience, and had it been tweaked a bit, would have made for an excellent game. Unfortunately, the main hindering factor of Punch King is found in our next section.

Control:
The control in Punch King is the worst part of the game. I’ve said it many times before, but I shall reiterate: a game can be perfect in every way, shape and form, but if the control is bad then the game is unplayable. Now, Punch King is not unplayable, but problems in the control and collision detection make it somewhat frustrating.

The controls are, once again, much like any other boxing game. The B button is a left jab, the A button a right hook. By using the D-pad up or down in combination with the B or A button, you can execute uppercuts and body blows. Pressing up on the D-pad blocks your head, down blocks your body, and pressing down twice makes your character duck. The L and R buttons are used to dodge left and right. The controls are fairly responsive. At times, there is a delay when you press the button, but most of the time you will have no problem landing a punch.

The real problem lies in the collision detection. Many times have I found myself trying to block or dodge, but am still knocked to the canvas by a punch that should have missed. Not only that, but the AI “cheats” at times, by either hitting you just as you get up or right after the round ends. This is extremely frustrating, and can almost drive you to the point of calling a 65-mile-per-hour meeting between your Game Boy Advance and the wall. Even when you do figure out your opponent’s attack scheme, they can still land in some cheapies here or there. If only the game had been given more time for fine-tuning in the control department, then it could have been excellent. But alas, it is not.

Multiplayer:
What’s this? A boxing game with no multiplayer?! Why, oh why was no multiplayer mode added to this game? This just reiterates my point that the lack of gameplay modes in Punch King makes for a reduced replay value. But for those of you who either have friends with no GBAs or no friends at all, you should have no problem with the fact that there is no multiplayer mode in Punch King.

OVERALL:
This game is added to my list of woulda’s, coulda’s, and shoulda’s. Punch King had the potential. Unfortunately, annoying collision detection and lack of multiple gameplay modes hindered animated characters and well thought-out gameplay. Boxing fans may enjoy this game, but for those of us who are just looking to pound some foreigners would probably have more fun working for the Department of Immigration.

 

The Lowdown on  Punch King Aesthetics: Very Good Control: Below Average Gameplay: Average Multiplayer: Sound: Very Good Innovation: 4/6 Lasting Appeal: 2/6 Overall: Average! "An Average Game"