Yes, we know that the day after Christmas Day is named as it is because it was the day that the rich would box up gifts for the poor, and not in honour of the punch-based sport, but it’s the same word, innit? So here are our top 5 boxing games…
We also know that we did a post about a boxing game on Boxing Day last year, but we love a bit of video game pugilism!
1. Punch-Out!! (NES) (1987)
A cavalcade of colourful cartoon characters await to be punched in the face, and indeed, to punch you in the face. This seminal NES version combines elements from the 1984 Punch-Out!! And Super Punch-Out!! arcade games. The US version of the game was originally released using the name of a certain ear-biting sex offender.
2. Rocky (PlayStation 2, Xbox, Game Cube, Game Boy Advance) (2002)
This movie license arrived some 26 years after the release of the film on which it’s based, but it was worth the wait, giving you the chance to put yourselves in Rocky Balboa’s gloves and play through his career. “Adriaaaaaan!” To be fair, it wasn’t even the first Rocky game to be released, with the Master System receiving a game based on the movie in 1987.
3. Frank Bruno’s Boxing (ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, MS DOS) (1985)
This is basically an unofficial port of 1984’s Punch-Out!! For computers, and starring panto luvvie and HP sauce enthusiast Frank Bruno, know wot I mean, ‘arry?
4. Ready 2 Rumble Boxing (Dreamcast, PlayStation, Nintendo 64, Game Boy Color) (1999)
Although not part of the Punch-Out!! Series, this game brought cartoon boxing into the 3D polygon era of 32-bit and above machines.
5. Punch-Out!! (Wii) (2009)
Perhaps unfairly, we’ve decided to include this sequel to Punch Out over the SNES version. The Wii entry into the Punch-Out!! series brought the console’s motion controls to the cartoon fisticuffs, resulting in a stunning-looking game that was a real knockout in the gameplay department, too.
As you can see, our favourite boxing video games tend to be those of the lightweight cartoonish Punch-Out!! variety, which is why the original Punch-Out!! just had to be crowned as our undisputed boxing game champ, with one of its sequels making the undercard, as well as a couple of games inspired by its light-hearted take on macho violence.
There’s probably an argument to be made that this year’s more heavyweight contendor Undisputed should’ve made this list, but, if we’re honest, even though it looks fantastic, we haven’t actually got around to playing it yet!
