After the announcement that “Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream” would be added to the Nintendo Switch Online NES library, the 1990 game gained relevance again.
The attention even reached Mike Tyson, the former American boxer who appeared in the original version, titled “Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!,” as the final opponent faced by protagonist Little Mac.
He was included in the game because he was considered one of the greatest boxers of all time and was at the height of his career when the game was released in 1987. It was therefore a good marketing move.
Surprised by the change, Mike responded to the game's announcement on Twitter in a joking tone:
https://twitter.com/MikeTyson/status/1113880346997792769
Mr. Dream? Tell @NintendoAmerica who people remember when they hear “Punch Out.”
https://twitter.com/MikeTyson/status/1113893284781461504
I heard @Nintendo was making the new “Punch Out” without even contacting me. It will not be the same. My knockouts made the game. This is ridiculous.
What Mike Tyson may not have realized is that this new version of Punch-Out!! has existed since 1990 and is only being re-released. The Punch-Out!! franchise has remained alive ever since, receiving new games for consoles such as the Super Nintendo and Nintendo Wii. In fact, the protagonist Little Mac's most memorable appearance in recent years has been as a fighter in the Super Smash Bros. series since 2014.
The series continued with new releases, such as Punch-Out!! for Wii in 2009.
The boxer may not have known about the end of Nintendo's contract with him, which led to his replacement by fighter Mr. Dream in a new version of the game. At the time, the decision not to renew the contract was made because Mike was no longer at the peak of his career and replacing him would reduce costs.
Mike obviously made the comments without bad intentions and was treating everything as a joke, but perhaps this will lead Nintendo to re-release the game that includes the boxer as well.
