Punch-Out!! (Wii)

Punch-Out!!
Developer: Next Level Games Publisher: Nintendo Platforms: Wii, NVIDIA Shield Released in JP: July 23, 2009 (Wii) Released in US: May 18, 2009 (Wii) Released in EU: May 22, 2009 (Wii) Released in AU: August 27, 2009 (Wii) Released in CN: December 5, 2017 (Shield) This game has hidden development-related text. This game has unused graphics. This game has unused music. This game has unused sounds. This game has regional differences. This game has a notes page

To do: English, Spanish, and French text differences between the US and European versions. Possibly unused audience models. The portraits for fighter health bars seem to have additional details that go outside of the frame. Some boxers in the VS screen have animations for parts of them that are outside of the frame (ex. Title Defense Von Kaiser's legs), while others have no offscreen animation whatsoever. These animations are impossible to see without camera hacking. US version of the JoeTemplate action replay code, if possible. Several unused opponent animations.

After fifteen years, Punch-Out!! finally returned to stores, bringing the familiar boxers back into the ring once more. It also introduced an official two-player mode and a few internet memes.

Sub-Pages

Notes

Unused Content

Unused Fighter

The game references an unused fighter - JoeTemplate. When loaded into the game, he appears as unique otherwise unused model of what looks like an older version of Soda Popinski with slightly differing animations, but doesn't have a moveset defined and just stands still.

You can fight against him in the European versio by using the code below (replaces Glass Joe):

CC330F00 476C6173
04330F00 4A6F6554 
04330F04 656D706C
04330F08 61746500 
04330F0C 4A6F6554 
04330F10 656D706C
04330F14 61746500 
04324F60 6172742F
04324F64 66652F6C
04324F68 6F616469
04324F6C 6E670000
04324F70 00000000
0431DFC0 54726169
0431DFC4 6E696E67
0431DFC8 2F747261
0431DFCC 696E696E
0431DFD0 675F7072
0431DFD4 655F6669
0431DFD8 67687400

Unused Fighter Data

If Giga Mac, Little Mac, and the H2H version of Little Mac are spawned as opponents in the single player mode, it is revealed they actually have a defined AI and fight back, though they will not get back up if they are knocked down.

(Source: Skawo)

Unused Transition

Found in the NIS/Transitions folder is a bundle of files called chocolate_transition_1. If another transition is replaced with it, the game shows a bunch of "Doc's Remedy" chocolate candy bars covering the screen and then disappearing.

(Source: Skawo)

Unused Graphics

Found in the characters folder is an unused question_mark model. This could've been used instead of the silhouettes in career mode, or as the character model for the random fighter in last stand.

(Source: Skawo)

Under the art/fe folder is a file called mc_banner.tpl, which features the GameCube banner image for Super Mario Strikers, another title developed by Next Level Games.

Unused Dialogue

Note that some of the following exerts can be heard in the game's sound boards, but are never used in normal gameplay.

Don Flamenco

Flamenco has an exert that goes entirely unused.

Audio	Transcript	Translation and Comments
	Qué mal.	"That's bad." A cue for an unknown attack.

Several of Flamenco's lines were also re-recorded or re-worked.

Unused	Used	Transcript for Unused Dialogue	Transcript for Used Dialogue	Translation and Comments
		Ajá...¡Olé!		A more dramatic version of Don Flamenco's entrance in Contender Mode.
		Olé.	¡Olé!	The attack cue for Don Flamenco's left hook was going to have a bit more flourish to it.
		¿Quieres más, eh? ¿Quieres más?	¿Qué pasa? ¿Quieres más?	"You want some more, huh? You want some more?" "What's wrong? You want some more?" Another taunt for when Little Mac has been knocked down.

Super Macho Man

Macho Man also has some attack cues that go unused, some of which hint at moves that never made it into the final game.

Audio	Transcript	Comments
	Cover shot!	Perhaps an alternate cue for one of Macho Man's uppercuts.
	Curtain call!	A cue for an unknown attack.
	Psych, baby!	A cue for some sort of fake-out punch. Super Macho Man has unused fake-out animations (likely for his Title Defense fight, where fakeouts are commonly used by opponents) where this sound effect may have been used.
	Rats!	Would have been used for when an attack was missed.

Doc Louis

Mac's trainer has some unused "tips" for the Great Tiger fight(s).

Audio	Transcript
	Hey, Mac baby! Make this cat purr! Tickle his belly with a Star Punch!
	Alright Mac, listen up! Great Tiger can do anything! Anything!

(Source: Mysteryman95)

Unused Music

An unused looping track. Like many of the game's tracks, it's loosely based on the main Punch-Out!! theme. Its purpose is unclear, but it sounds similar to the music used for the Wii Fit Tutorial.

Remasters of the tracks from the NES version of Punch-Out!! for starting a round, winning, losing, and getting a game over that doesn't come to use at any point. They sound as if they are related to the Minor Circuit, which is odd since circuits don't normally have these tracks; the character-themed music is used instead. In fact, there is no variations at all of the music for starting a round in the final game.

(Source: TheRedPriest and Splashman)

Localization Note

Found immediately after the copyright notice string ("All Rights, including the copyrights of Game, Scenario, Music and Program, reserved by NINTENDO.") in ukenglish.loc is a note for the game's localization teams:

Do not edit this. Only english is needed.

Obscured Graphics

To do: Specify manga source volume(s). Was this only altered in the Japanese version? Add the manga cover and the generic manga images, since they're also obscured.

Between rounds in Title Defense, Piston Hondo is shown reading a manga. While a few of the panels inside can be seen normally, most of them cannot. By either moving the camera (such as with Dolphin) or ripping the textures from the disc, it turns out the manga he's reading is Sailor Moon (albeit with the panels rearranged a bit compared to the source material).

This was changed to a generic manga in the Japanese version.

(Source: Shesez)

Debugging Features

The game has a multitude of debugging switches, but they're disabled in the final release. To re-enable them, open the game's main.dol and search for "/General/Build Info". Change the first instance of this into "/User" (remember to null-terminate the string). This only works in the European version of the game.

You can now add the switches into the datetime.ini file in the game's ini folder. The format of the switches is as follows:

Switch name = value

The switches referenced by the executable:

• GDCDemo (true/false) - Enters the GDC Demo mode; game locks you into career mode and ends after the minor circuit.
• Smoke Test (true/false) - Prints a string on the screen that counts down time. After the time finishes, a string confirming the completion of the test is printed.
• Smoke Test Duration (eg. 100.0) - Sets the duration of the smoke test
• Soak Test (true/false) - The game will control Little Mac on its own during fights
• RunFESoakTest (true/false) - The game will control the in-game menus on its own
• FESoakProfileNumber (eg. 3) - Sets which save data profile is used during the FE Soak Test
• FESoakCornermanTime (eg. 100) - Sets how long the game spends in the cornerman sequences
• FESoakDeleteProfile (true/false) - If true, the FE Soak Test will first delete the selected profile.
• FESoakScript (exhibition/championship/headtohead) - Selects which soak test script to load.
• FESoakLosses (true/false) - If true, Soak Test will lose HP when hit, else will be invincible.
• FESoakScreenShots - Function unknown. Presumably meant to take in-game screenshots and write them somewhere?
• UnlockForExhibition - Function unknown.
• SkipFE (true/false) - Skips the title screen and starts a fight immediately.
• SkipFeRandomizeDefender (true/false) - If SkipFE is enabled, the started fight's opponent is randomized.
• SkipFeDefenderName - (e.g DonkeyKong, GlassJoe) Selects the opponent.
• SkipFENintendoLoop - Function unknown.
• SkipFeCircuit - Function unknown. Seems to crash after every fight
• SkipFeUseHeadgearAssist - If SkipFE is enabled, makes Little Mac use the headgear accessory
• SkipFeControls - Function unknown.
• SkipFeUseOldRing - Function unknown.
• CrowdMax(e.g 20) - Sets the maximum number of people in the crowd.
• RecordGamesToDisk(true/false) - Writes a play_rec.dat file to title\00000001\00000002\data, but the file seems too short to actually contain a whole game's replay data...
• draw_replay_bar - Function unknown.
• gpu fifo - Function unknown.
• DisablePunchTargeting - Function unknown.
• UseNetworkPacketRecorder - Function unknown.
• AIVersusAI(true/false) - Just like "soak test"?
• ExtremeMode(true/false) - Enables the extreme mode (which is used in the final game, but this method of accessing it isn't)

(Source: Skawo)

Debugging Files

Along with .debug files for every .data file in the game, there is also a debugeffects file which holds seemingly random textures, including a Mario Kart-esque banana:

Internal Name

Internally, the game is referred to as Hippo, a reference to the Minor Circuit Champion.

Oddities

• Disco Kid's files are internally labeled as kidquick, indicating that he was originally intended to be Kid Quick from the 1984 arcade game.

Regional Differences

• In the North American version, there is a chance that title defense Soda Popinski will stay down on the sixth knockdown, resulting in a knockout. However, this is not the case in the European version, meaning the player can only win by TKO or decision.
• In the Japanese version, Mac waits for the opponent to fall to the mat before backing up. In the North American and European versions, Mac immediately backs away once the opponent's health bar is down.
• Interestingly, in the Chinese Nvidia Shield TV version, every fighter has a unique icon. Even Mac and Giga Mac have them! However, the credits are from the English version, meaning that Doc Luis doesn't get a unique icon.
• Some characters have different audio played in different cutscenes. Such as Mr. Sandman in his pre-fight cutscene, Piston Hondo in his TKO/KO animation, and contender Mr. Sandman's victory cutscene.
• The rotating stars present in the post-fight stats screen of the North American and European versions of the game are not present in the Japanese version.