Nintendo’s Punch-Out!! was one of the most iconic arcade and console fixtures of the early '80s, migrating from coin-op to the NES, where it was remoulded as Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! and bestowed a Rocky-esque narrative around up-and-coming challenger Little Mac. Since Super Punch Out!! and the Wii’s original entry, however, it’s a series that, in stark contrast to its emphasis on fast footwork, has slouched for modern movement. And, with Nintendo reluctant to step back into the ring, Argentina’s Purple Tree Studio is now fixing to become the new victor of an undernourished franchise.
Thunder Ray’s musculature is cut and framed entirely around the Punch-Out!! formula, to the point that anyone claiming Nintendo’s cease-and-desist manoeuvres are overly aggressive might want to reconsider their stance; they're still a far cry from toppling Capcom from the shutdown podium. There is little in the way of modern bonuses or extra modes here, just three difficulty settings to work through that save your progress and allow you to go back and revisit previously felled challengers. This works well if you’re struggling on a higher difficulty, allowing you to drop back to Rookie settings, for example, to learn the patterns more effectively.
The game’s presentation is superb, with a graphical style that really pops, flows, bobs, and weaves, full of artistic expression and stylistic grace. It combines its darker narrative with comical animation very effectively, and while some may feel the Flash in it, most will no doubt enjoy its thick, cartoon weight and ultra-violent affectation. The colours are rich and there’s a dab of filter grain added to the backgrounds to enhance the flavour. It’s bloody, too, Thunder Ray’s face pulping up, blood spattering the ring and screen extremities, and your adversaries literally exploding with Hokuto no Ken inspiration in a fountain of viscera.
The story goes, told through narration over pretty panel art, that Thunder Ray, an undefeated champion on Earth, is suddenly zapped across the universe to battle opponents in an intergalactic ring. The roster is drawn from champions across the galaxy, of all shapes and sizes, opening up a whole new creative angle on the Punch-Out!! formula. These foes don’t fight human-fair, rather using telekinetic powers, shields, and mighty powered-up supers to smash you into the countdown phase. It's the Space Jam of the Punch-Out!! world, and more thematically accomplished with it. The structure of the game is as one would expect, except there are no bouts, as such, rather just a face-off that results in a knockout for either you or your opponent. Knock them down three times and victory is yours; see yourself toppled three times and it’s back to the title screen for another try.
The game expands on Punch-Out!! where controls are concerned by having four attack buttons: left and right low blows and left and right head punches. We’re yet to figure out why this was necessary, as most of the game revolves around the classic dodge and retaliate system, and, seeing as there isn’t much difference in which standard attack you choose, the four buttons instead of two overcomplicates things slightly. There’s also a charged punch which deals slightly more damage, but is slower to start up, engaged by holding a shoulder button. While these charged punches are useful for felling your opponent more quickly, they need more tactical strategy to land, and should be threaded between a volley rather than used constantly.
Directional controls allow you to dodge left and right, duck downwards, or block, each having use in avoiding damage from specific attacks. And, as is expected, each opponent is navigated by learning their attack repertoire, seeing the cues, and responding with the right defence. Successfully avoid a regular, mega, or mammoth attack, and there’s a window of opportunity to smash back, and, once your super bar is topped up, you can unleash a devastating finisher of your own. This super-attack gets stronger as you progress through the game, bolting on additional bars. Play a game of patience and skill, and you can charge up three in a row for a major face-buster.
Thunder Ray is a short game reflective of its very reasonable $14.99 price. It might seem tough, but considering your title is only eight fights deep, it’s over fairly quickly. What initially seems overly challenging actually reveals itself to be entirely less demanding with a little practice. Some matches, even halfway through, seem to buck the difficulty curve, and you can find yourself in surprise and unexpected victories. To this end, Thunder Ray is not a Nintendo game in execution: it doesn’t have the same kind of exactness. That’s not to say it’s not well-formed; Purple Tree Studio's new twists work well; there's just more leeway in it than with Punch-Out!!’s utterly clinical demands. The enemies are inventive and occasionally monstrously huge, requiring you to identify dodge openings and strategies, but they can also succumb to a fudged and cheap early win. This is, of course, less commonplace on Beast difficulty, the toughest of the three options.
We went back to the original NES Punch-Out!! for comparison. While the movement there is knife-edge taut, allowing you to land a blow and almost instantaneously dodge with a sense of blistering speed, Thunder Ray’s animation frames are more elongated and don’t allow for frame-cancelling. That means when you’ve thrown one to the head, you need to wait a split second to return to neutral before making your dodge. Now, this isn’t being overly critical, or even critical at all: it all still holds together very well in its assembly; but, if you’re wondering why it doesn’t have quite the same snap, this is the culprit. The enemy attack animations allow plenty of time for you to dodge, the only issue is knowing when that is, especially with very drawn-out animations. It's not always clear, for example, when Mr. Pega, the sixth combatant, will actually strike after he coils up like a spring, expands and rotates, and flops in your direction. To that end, it's quite a different dodging experience to the likes of Piston Honda's flurries or Nick Bruiser laying a sudden smackdown on you. Additionally, while it’s heavy hitting, your super attacks don’t feel as solid or satisfying, somehow, as those in Super Punch-Out!!, when the jaw felt truly busted by that charged-up gunshot blow.
Finally, when your energy is low, the screen zooms in and the colours bleach to signify your fading energy. During this state your health slowly regenerates and you can come back out of the daze if you can hold out for long enough. It's a novel idea, but we’re not convinced the zoom-in entirely works. It brings dramatic tension, but the cropping of the screen and the whiteout of the colours make it altogether more difficult to make a comeback. Unless you know your opponent’s movements down-pat (and, if you do, it’s unlikely you’ll be in this state at all), it can be hard to make a recovery from this position later in the game.
Conclusion
Thunder Ray isn’t perfect, but it is very good. The feel of the blows and the creativity of your opponents are very nicely executed. It’s missing the minute precision of Punch-Out!!, but it’s close enough, and while you can occasionally win matches at higher difficulties with a certain amount of luck, you’ll get the most from the experience by mastering each opponent and earning a true sense of boxing accomplishment. Being able to toggle between difficulties and going back to previous opponents is great, and the entire thing feels polished and flashy. It could have been more elaborate, featuring more modes, and bonuses, but, as it stands, it’s a brief but solid tribute for fans of Punch-Out!! to enjoy knocking into next week.
Comments 21
Good, still way better than the other mediocre animal Punch-Out clone out there.
The art style and animation look great.
Will surely be checking this one out.
Seems like a fairly fun romp! I’ll have to wishlist it for now. Perhaps if it had more combatants in it I’d be quicker to jump on a purchase. Maybe DLC in the future with additional fights?
I’ve only played one decent punch out clone, 3ds rage of gladiator, or something like that. It was a lot of fun and played very well, but it still wasn’t punch out.
Wii punch out is def my favorite and I’d love to see either a port or a new entry.
I think that'll do me as a Punch Out! fan. The lack of precision may grate in tougher stages but it readsa like it's a lot of fun which is the main thing. I'll download it off the wishlist ASAP.
(Agree with thoughts on Rage of the Gladiator another good if imperfect Punch Out clone previously on Wiiware and on the 3DS eshop, if I remember correctly!)
Cheers for the review.
I'll be checking this out soon. Love anything that resembles punch out.
Looks like a game worth getting as a time killer. If they ever do make a sequel I hope they at least had more game modes and optional motion control compatibility via PS Move or Switch joycons.
@VideoGameBoy On account of the lack of “perfect” games.
@Maxz couldn’t have said it better myself
Pass. This looks neat, but seems to lack the campy charm. I'm sure it'll be a very nice boxing game.
Only 8 matches long? I am definitely waiting for a sale. Even $7.50 seems too expensive.
@Donutman Rage of Gladiator! I need to finish that one!
A bit too short of an experience but goes to show we need a proper Punch-Out on Switch.
@Donutman Dang you mean to tell me that Rage Of Gladiator was also on 3ds? If I knew that I would’ve gotten it when I had the chance, loved it on Wii
I'm getting this 100%
But... Why is he purple?
@BirdBoy16 I didn’t know it was on Wii I saw it’s also on mobile but I would never play any game that requires precise timing on a touchscreen.
@Captain_Toad I know ive played that one few times over, but I can’t go back to a 3ds after using a switch. I never even finished samus returns in a hope it will get a switch port someday
Thanks for the review, this one I wanna try out though I will wait for a sale.
Im going to pick this up today, I love the style of it! Punch Out but with a modern twist. I heard it doesn't play as good as Super Punch Out but its still fun and cheap so I'm still getting it. Plus if it sells well Nintendo might take note and bring back Punch Out (would be sick with the joy cons)
I bought Thunder Ray on Playstation 5 now that it's out on PS4. This review is spot on after playing through the game on both contender and beast difficulty. The Thunder Ray development team Purple Tree needs to fix the severe input delay immediately. It literally ruins Thunder Ray. You can't react because punches come out significantly later than when you pressed the button. Causing double punch inputs, which then puts you in position to not be able to reactively dodge the enemies attacks because your punch came out in your dodge window. It really ruined the smooth fun experience I was hoping to have with Thunder Ray. It adds a extra layer of artifical difficulty because you are fighting with the controls and trying to time attacks based on latency instead of reacting or playing sharp at times. These type of Punchout like games are suppose to be snappy and responsive. Button presses for the basic attacks need to be 1:1 not coming out late. Nobody enjoys a laggy or unresponsive fighting game of any kind. If you press the button on time you're late. If you press early you might be on time smh. It's really frustrating how they'd go for unresponsive controls like that in a game like this.
The worst part about it is Purple Tree, the creators and developers of Thunder Ray are a low budget off brand game development studio. So, you can't even find a proper website or a Discord to send them constructive feedback or report bugs. Wait until this game is 4.99 or less before you purchase this wannabe punch out knock off unresponsive piece of crap. As you can read, I am a little pissed to say the least! Unless, this issue gets fixed don't buy Thunder Ray!!! It's basically visually pretty indie crap from a developer that has no customer support or feedback forum in place.
@Hellooooo_Nurse Hopefully they'll fix that soon
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