Pato Box Review: A Stunning Punch-Out

It’s intense to think of the infamous boxer that goes by the name Little Mac. A small guy with a big heart becoming one of the most successful games ever on Nintendo. Was it the game, was it figuring out the rhythm and patterns or was it the size of the fight in the dog? To date, it has now become about the fight in the duck.

Pato box is about a duck, a boxer… A boxer with a head of a duck sitting at the top until he is betrayed by his own organization Deathflock, who’s looking to not only end his career but kill him. He’s touched by an angel name Faith who stitches him back up and gets him back on his feet. And it’s from here that Pato Box becomes even more intriguing.

Like Punch Out, Pato Box relies on rhythm mechanics but with a few twist. For example, you still have to time your blocks and dodges in order to land the right punches and combos. But when have you ever had lightening bolt thrown your way or fought a chef in the kitchen? It’s up to you to dodge bombs and more while looking to take down the kaneiving organization.

And as the action doesn’t all happen in the ring, you’re introduced to a 3D environment as well full of puzzles every which way. This is what to love about this boxing puzzle-adventure, a wide variety of gameplay with 7 bosses that intensify the further you progress. As a fan of Punch Out, I began to feel like I received the sequel I always wanted with a deeper story than simply climbing the ranks.

As you take on each boss, don’t expect an easy fight as Bromio kicks up the difficulty and the battles are unforgiving. It’s straightforward kick ass or get ass kicked; and when taking some of the loses it may become infuriating coming so close to victory only to accept defeat.

Visually, I equally loved the Noir style graphics giving Pato Box a fun, dark atmosphere that told the story even before the characters did. I do wish the game would have allowed voice commentary to sell the story just a bit more rather than reading text box throughout.