Punch-Out! Game Guide: Title Defense Mode

Title Defense Mode Major Circuit: Piston Hondo & Bear Hugger

The fighters you faced last time in the Major Circuit of Punch-Out! are back for a little revenge and to take Little Mac’s title away. They have been training hard and have a few new moves to throw at Little Mac, so you’ll need to be at your best to beat them again.

Piston Hondo hasn’t really changed that much from the last time you beat him. He’s faster this time and he’ll try feinting with his punches more this time. He’ll delay his uppercuts occasionally and feint with one hand and then punch with the other. He’ll also use his Hondo Rush more often as well.

Bear Hugger went out and got himself a little friend, a squirrel. This new pet is also Bear Hugger’s new weakness, since its appearance signifies alternate moves before he throws them. The squirrel will pop out if Bear Hugger is gong to fake his Bear Hug or its new delayed version, the Catch and Release. A squirrel sighting before his left hook or overhead punch signifies that the punch will be delayed.

Title Defense Mode Major Circuit: Great Tiger & Don Flamenco

Great Tiger has gone out and totally retrained himself for his next Punch-out! with Little Mac. This time he has four regular punches, each of which is preceded by the gem in his turban shining a certain color. If the gem shines red, Tiger is about to hit you with a left jab. Blue indicates that he’s about to throw his fast left uppercut and you should dodge to the right. The gem will flash gem just before Tiger throws a delayed right uppercut that hits hard. His fourth punch he only starts using after you knock him down the first time. This is a double-fisted sweep that you must duck under to avoid and is preceded by the gem flashing white. Tiger will occasionally back up and launch into a series of two to four attacks in a row. Lastly, Tiger’s new and improved Rushing Magic Dance involves him sending two copies toward you at the same time. Dodge the solid one each time and then duck when Great Tiger himself comes at you with a spinning punch.

Title Defense Mode World Circuit: Aran Ryan, Soda Popinski & Bald Bull

Little Mac has to defend his title against the best in the world of Punch-Out! again and this time they have a few new punches and moves to put him in his place.

Aran Ryan has all of the same punches as he had the first time, only this time he’ll counter punch you when you try to counter punch him. So before Little Mac can land combos, he’ll need to counter-punch and then dodge Ryan’s counter. Ryan will also throw another quick counter punch after you finish your combos. Ryan also has a new special attack, in which he swings a glove attached to a rope. He’ll show you the pattern before he steps in for the attack, a series of sweeping and overhead swings. You need to duck the side to side sweeps and dodge the overheads. Lastly, whenever Ryan gets knocked down, he’ll throw a cheap shot rope swing just before dropping.

Soda Popinski is faster, but other than that he’s the same. The main difference in this fight is that the length of your combos after dodging one of his punches is determined by how many punches you dodge after you get hit. The more you dodge his blow, the longer your combos can be when you counter. Soda’s rage uppercuts have increased to a total of six possible punches.

Bald Bull has gotten tougher, now he can only be knocked down by a Star Punch. He’ll also alter the timing on his punches to throw off the timing of your dodges. To counter this, always wait until he flashes red before dodging.

Title Defense Mode World Circuit: Super Macho Man & Mr. Sandman

Super Macho Man attacks are revamped versions of the original moves you saw the first time you battled him in Punch-Out! He has changed the comments you were using as verbal clues to time his punches and he’s faster this time. Once you knock him down the first time, he’ll begin using his two new attacks. These attacks are spinning uppercuts that come from right or left.

Mr. Sandman has the power of Mike Tyson and the charisma of Muhammad Ali. This time he’ll wink at you and raise his glove slightly and then instantly throw a powerful uppercut from the same side. He only uses this attack at certain times but each time he uses it he’ll add one more uppercut to the series. He’ll always alternate sides until he gets five punches in a row, at which time he’ll start to double up his punches.