Ever since I first started playing NES games, this has always been one of my favourites. For one thing, the gameplay is really addictive. Feeling just as much like a puzzle game as it is a sports game, the player follows the patterns and reacts quickly in order to damage the opponent. This formula works really well. As you play more fights, you are introduced to different challenges that keep you on your toes. Like how Bald Bull 2 can only be knocked down with a star, or how they start adding attack that can one-shot you.
There's also a bunch of small things that I find enhance the experience. The cartoony animations of the characters has always been funny. Seeing them go from stone-faced or even cocky to being completely dumbfounded upon getting stunned adds life to the game. Another aspect I respect is the high-risk, high-reward moments where the more challenging strategies can lead to greater benefits. Characters like Piston Honda, Great Tiger, and Mr. Sandman have attacks that do tremendous damage when hit by them, but if you know how to act against them, can lead to a big payoff or even an instant knockdown.
The ONLY thing stopping me from giving this a perfect score is Tyson himself. While the other fights in the game are relatively simple and can be learned after a couple rounds, Tyson is just way to unforgiving. The fact that his one-hit KO punches can randomly delay means those with bad reaction times have practically no chance of getting very far in the fight.
There's also a bunch of small things that I find enhance the experience. The cartoony animations of the characters has always been funny. Seeing them go from stone-faced or even cocky to being completely dumbfounded upon getting stunned adds life to the game. Another aspect I respect is the high-risk, high-reward moments where the more challenging strategies can lead to greater benefits. Characters like Piston Honda, Great Tiger, and Mr. Sandman have attacks that do tremendous damage when hit by them, but if you know how to act against them, can lead to a big payoff or even an instant knockdown.
The ONLY thing stopping me from giving this a perfect score is Tyson himself. While the other fights in the game are relatively simple and can be learned after a couple rounds, Tyson is just way to unforgiving. The fact that his one-hit KO punches can randomly delay means those with bad reaction times have practically no chance of getting very far in the fight.