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This is he code used to get directly to Mike Tyson in Mike Tyson's Punchout (which was later renamed Punchout, with Tyson replaced by a white boxer). The key to defeating Tyson is to avoid the lightning-quick uppercuts he throws for the first 1:30 of the first round. Get hit with any of these punches... you go down. Afterwards, just hang around and pick up points - you only need 5000 to win by decision.

I just recently beat this game.

I owned/played it when I was younger, and I could never get past Mr. Sandman, he lead me into many punches that I should've been able to avoid. I guess I just didn't have the proper video game training at that point. Since then, I've played all kinds of beat 'em up games. I've played Mortal Kombat, Killer Instinct, Fatal Fury, Tekken, and Street Fighter II, as well as the majority of their sequels and spinoffs. I'd put my hand to any of these games that I could get a hold of.

Then, quite a way down the line (a month or so ago, to be exact), I realized that I still hadn't taken down "Kid Dynamite." This disturbed me. In addition to not having finished it, I had forgotten the code, formerly memorized by heart, to fight Tyson. I played my way to the end of the game, only having one hang up, on Soda Popinski, the Sloshed Soviet. Fortune smiled upon me, and I beat him the second time around. My reflexes had improved greatly and I made it all the way to the top without getting game over.

That was, until I got to Tyson, of course. He schooled me like the bitch I was. The last code you get in the game also takes you to Super Macho Man, not Iron Mike himself, so I had to beat Supes every time I wanted to get to Mike Tyson. My sense of timing was failing me all over the place. It was pathetic.

I got online, nabbed the code to fight Tyson directly, and I proceeded to play game after game, desperately trying to grasp on to something, anything. Am I really a gamer if I can't beat Mike Tyson's Punch Out? I told myself that I wasn't, that I'd failed, and that I must redeem myself before I could face my Playstation - and, god forbid, my computer - again. I played this game for hours, resetting everytime Tyson would take me down early, because Lil' Mac can't get knocked down more than 5 times by Tyson and still get up, even though the game will taunt you by letting you try. Eventually, and by the decision of Mario, I won.

That wasn't enough though. I continued playing until I could beat Tyson without him knocking me down at all. I doubt I could do it now, but I had the timing of his 1st 1:30 memorized, so I could make it to the 'real fight' with as little damage as possible, and proceed from there.

I still haven't been able to knock Tyson out, although the technical knockouts have and will continue to abound. If anyone has, and can tell me how to score a 'KO' on Mike Tyson, /msg me, please.

DJuxtaposition's tips for beating Mike Tyson's Punchout

  • Don't get hit for the first minute thirty. Mike'll take you down in one hit every time. When he flashes, dodge. Some people will tell you not to even try to hit him, but if you want a knockdown in the first round (and you do, because each knockdown makes your opponent get back up with less life), you'll want to hit him. I say, drag out the hits if you can (wait till the last moment), and then you'll have wasted a little of his punch time. If you don't swing at all, he'll recover faster, and get to throw more of those lightning fast punches.
  • Mike Tyson's moves are fast and he swings hard. Don't get discouraged if you lose a few times, or if you get knocked down when you thought you were doing good. If anyone's beaten this character on their first try, I'd be surprised, and saddened.
  • In the second round, Tyson will try (I'm not sure when) a real bitch of a special move. He actually has a punch that doesn't have any warning, and it hits multiple times. Take the first hit like a man, and then start blocking.
  • He also has a special punch like Piston Honda, only his doesn't let you actually dodge. Block the punches to reduce the damage as much as you can (he's never knocked me out when I had a quarter bar of life left with this, as long as I blocked every shot), then wait for him to do a flash uppercut. After the first 1:30, these are your 8 hit bread and butter moves.
  • You get a little bit of life back when you hit him, so don't go crying if he hits you, unless he's already knocked you down four times, and you were about to get a TKO.

Let's have a good clean fight! Now come out punching!

Update: Tyson can be KO'ed... I read all about it on Gamefaqs.com, and if you have the ambition and skills for it, I'd say give it a try (I haven't the ambition, and possibly not the skills for it, so I haven't bothered, myself). Apparently though, it takes a little luck too, as you have to knock him down twice each round, and at the proper time (for the 2nd knockdown) in the third round.

Mike Tyson's Punch Out!! (or Punch Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream...more on that later...) has stood the test of time since its 1987 release on the NES for a number of reasons. Its cartoony graphic look, the still-innovative gameplay which combined fighting games (still a very new concept in ‘87) with adventure aspects that took you through fighter after fighter and of course, one of the most famously difficult games to defeat in video game history. Yet, one thing I love about the game is just how interesting each of the characters are and how the game’s story represents that of an actual young underdog boxer rising to fame the story of the game. While some have complained over the game's stereotypes (the "drunk" Russian, the narrow-eyed Japanese man) and the story may be a little too Rocky-esque for a film, it's definitely a story worth telling filled with characters worth knowing about.

First there's the character you play as: Little Mac. A 17 year old rookie fighter from the Bronx who is vastly undersized (107 pounds and very, VERY short) to be a prize fighter, but definitely has the heart of a champion. He works with Doc Louis, a portly black trainer who is seen between rounds giving Mac advice and training Mac between circuits by pacing him on his bicycle as he runs behind him in New York City. These two have teamed up to try to complete an impossible dream, win the World Video Boxing Association title for a shrimpy 17 year old kid.

"Make it quick... I want to retire!"

The first fight Mac can get is against a French never was named Glass Joe. Probably named this way for his "glass jaw" that's so easy to hit. At 38 years old, he'd be past his prime for a great fighter, but he never had a prime, compiling a career record of 1 win, 99 losses. This first fight is a common type of fight in boxing, pitting a washed-up old man against a rookie fighter to see if the old man can still fight and if the rookie has a future in him at all.

"I was a boxing teacher...at the military academy!"

After Mac beats Glass Joe, he takes on the 42-year-old German boxer Von Kaiser. He's old, but unlike Joe, he once did have a semi-successful career and still has a respectable record in the ring (23-13 with ten knockouts). And while Joe only had 3 pounds on Mac, Kaiser outweighs him by 44 pounds.

"Sushi, kamikaze, fujiyama, nipponichi..."

Once Mac has taken down Kaiser, he gets his first real challenge as a pro. The reigning Minor Circuit Champion Piston Honda. At 28 years old, Honda is in his prime. He towers over Mac, outweighs him by 64 pounds and has an intimidating record thus far (28-1, 18 knockouts). Hailing from Tokyo, Japan, he provided one of the game's classic quotes: "I'll give you a TKO from Tokyo!"

"Hey! Mr. Referee Mario I like your hair!"

After taking the Minor Circuit title, Mac has to face Don Flamenco in the first fight of the Major Circuit. Flamenco is a young (23) flashy Spaniard, who takes the ring in the second round dancing with a rose in his mouth and ends his dance with an intimidating uppercut into the air. His record of 22-3 with 9 knockouts is impressive. But even more impressive is when you rematch with him later in the game, his 4th loss to Little Mac isn't added! What nerve! (Or, what a glitch!).

"I have my weakness. But, I won't tell you! Ha, ha, ha!"

King Hippo is the second fighter to face Mac in the Major Circuit. What exactly is he a king of? Who knows. As a matter of fact, a lot about this Hippo character is a mystery. His age and his weight are never revealed. All that's revealed is that he hails from Hippo Island in the South Pacific, and that all 18 wins in his 18-9 record have come by knockout, making him the only fighter in the WVBA to have all his wins come by knockout (not counting Mr. Dream). During the fight, if Little Mac can't beat him in the first round, he would desperately ask Doc for help to beat King Hippo. Doc's response of "Join the Nintendo Fanclub today!" is still remembered as one of the most shameless bits of product placement in a video game.

"Beware my tiger punch."

Hailing from Bombay, India and sporting a badass turban in the ring, Great Tiger was already well-trained in forms of black magic at the age of 29. Such skills had already lead him to a professional record of 24-5 with three knockout wins.

"My barber didn't know when to quit, do you?"

The reigning Major Circuit Champion Bald Bull towers over Little Mac. The 298-pound fighter from Istanbul is still fighting in his mid-30s, and doing a damn fine job. With his 34-4 and stunning 29 knockouts, he had rightfully earned his title. Doc comes through for Mac the biggest during this fight, when he tells him to stand-up to his intimidating Bull Charge.

"I can't drive, so I'm gonna walk all over you."

After a rematch with an improved Piston Honda to open the World Circuit, Mac fights this interesting character. Hailing from Moscow, U.S.S.R (ah, the 80s...), Soda Popinski, a drunk Russian who packed a wicked jab behind his drunken stupor. It's worth noting that his name was Vodka Drunkenski in the very-different 1984 arcade version that preceded this game...so that isn't "soda" he's drinking there. He had used his strange, dance-like steps in the ring and his...um...pink skin, to his advantage. Compiling a 33-2 record with 24 knockouts and like Bald Bull, was still kicking around at age 35. This fight was followed by yet another rematch, with the once-terrible-now-incredible Don Flamenco.

"Bedtime for Little Mac!"

From off the rough streets of Philadelphia came Mr. Sandman. At 31, he'd amassed a 27-2 record with 21 knockouts and took his nickname from his ability to make fighters "go to sleep" in the ring.

"My super spin punch is totally tough!"

One had to wonder what exactly the story with the reigning World Circuit Champion Super Macho Man was. He was listed as a 27 year old from Hollywood, California...yet his photograph showed him with long gray hair and looking old and grizzled. Yet immediately upon entering the ring, he had long BLACK hair and looked much more youthful. Conspiracy? Botox? Who knows! At 35-0 with 29 knockouts, he's the first undefeated fighter Mac encounters in his adventure. His Super Spin Punch was imitated during many playground fights in the late 80s/early 90s and to this day his bouncing large chest muscles, that can be aptly described as "muscular breasts," still amuse gamers worldwide. If he defeated Mac, he would have the nerve to walk up to Mac lying on the floor and howl a deep long laugh. Yet in this story, Mac has the last laugh...as the newspaper headlines read...

KO NEWS - April 7th, 1987
A NEW CHAMP! "Last night we found a small but great champ, his name is Little Mac."

While Mac had three trophies lining his shelf, he still had to take on one last fighter...and this is where things get tricky.

"They say I can't lose. I say you can't win!"

Yep. It's Mike Tyson. And not that Tyson we know today, who quits in the 7th round against Kevin McBride, this is 1987 Tyson. 31 wins! No losses! 27 knockouts! Straight out of Catskill, New York, the 21 year old Kid Dynamite himself! The man who was the youngest world heavyweight champion in history (a record he still holds). Gamers agree, he's one of the hardest bosses in all video game history. If he lands one blow you hit the mat hard. If you manage to beat him, he congratulates you with his statement: "Great fighting!! You were tough, Mac!" And then, to break the fourth wall, Tyson lets you know he's "Never seen such finger speed before."

And then, the game, and Mac's journey ends. But that isn't QUITE the ending...

"Everyone knows you're a transvestite and you love me. I'm gonna make you my girlfriend. I can't wait to get my hands on a pretty thing like you" -The REAL Tyson to Donovan Ruddock before a 1991 fight

In the early-90s, as Tyson's real life took a downhill slide. The end of a messy marriage to Robin Givens, being arrested for raping Miss Black Rhode Island Desiree Washington and various tangents in the ring such as the one listed above. Thus when Nintendo's license with Mike Tyson expired, they decided it was a wise PR move to replace him with a tamer, fictional character. His replacement, Mr. Dream was a white guy who faught exactly like him and the game became Punch Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream. Hailing from "Dreamland," Mr. Dream boasted a 99-0 record, all coming on knockouts. And while this is the only recall of its kind, to this day many Nintendo fans complain that Mr. Dream was a big cop-out by Nintendo. They could've created a better fill-in character, especially when Mr. Sandman had the whole "sleepy/dreamy" thing in the game already. Despite this famous recall, Codemasters has since released boxing games featuring Tyson in 2000 and 2002.

As an amendment to this fine tale: despite the popularity of the character Little Mac, he's never appeared in any other games other than Punch Out!!, the Super Nintendo sequel Super Punch-Out!! and a very well-received cameo in the 2005 GameCube title Fight Night Round 2. This is puzzling, since Nintendo has created the successful fighting series Super Smash Brothers which features various characters from popular Nintendo games. Yet they've somehow never figured that Little Mac, a character famous for being in a fighting game, should be in any of these games. Even more puzzling is why characters who have little reason to be fighting, such as Mr. Game & Watch, Dr. Mario and The Ice Climbers, are in such games and Little Mac isn't.

”Let's keep it clean, now come out boxing!!”

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