If the idea of Punch-Out!! set in a gladiatorial arena where you fight minotaurs and snake women sounds ridiculous, that's because it is. But as Ghostfire Games has proven to me with a demo of its upcoming WiiWare title, Rage of the Gladiator, it actually kind of works.
In development for WiiWare, the game is a first-person perspective fighting game that takes a lot of cues from Nintendo's arcade-style boxing game. You play as Gracius, a gladiator fighting for his life in an arena where he'll be faced with everything from the Medusa-like Sea Witch to a fire breathing dragon.
At its core, the game feels a hell of a lot like Punch-Out!!, with dodging and weaving of attacks, and pattern memorization to defeat some of the game's wild combatants. While the game can be played in a number of different styles (including sideways remote for a classic feel, or remote and nunchuk combo), Ghostfire was showing off the nunchuck Wii Remote/Wii MotionPlus combo, which gave the combos a more one-to-one feel -- I swung up with the remote, Gracius swung up; I hammered down, Gracius followed suit.
You can also unleash Magic (lighting attacks, for instance) and furious combos by using energy gained from landing successful blows. And unlike Little Mac from Punch-Out!!, you'll also be able to upgrade Gracius' abilities using an RPG-like skill tree; you'll spend points gained for defeating bosses to get new combos and make Gracius more powerful.
For a WiiWare title, the game sounds like it'll be pretty robust -- the game only features 10 combatants (and one "final" boss), but offers you the ability to battle these combatants a second time, each with new powers and patterns. Ghostfire is even offering up an incentive mastering the game: The first person in North America to unlock the ultimate "Brutal Victory" combo (the game's ultimate, final prize) will get their name in a future Ghostfire game, as well as receive real-life, gladiator equipment.
You know you want that stuff, so limber up -- Rage of the Gladiators hits WiiWare on March 15.
Contest:
10:40 AM on 02.25.2010 | 
Those enemy designs are moderately awful, though.
As for the character designs, I actually like the visual style of the game. I know it's a WiiWare title, and I think for a WiiWare title it looks really great.
Also, it's 11 characters with the main boss, but then you can replay the same characters, they'll just be using different moves. I also like how you can build up different Offense, Defense, or Magic attacks in the game.
I just wish we had a set release date for this game!
I think this trailer was actually released before they even had WM+ included as a control option.
The game will have three control options:
Classic Punch-Out style, with Wii remote held sideways
Nunchuck and Wii Remote(no WM+)
and
Nunchuck and Wii Remote(with WM+)
For more info on the game, with more videos, visit:
http://www.ghostfiregames.com/gladiator/rage-of-the-gladiator/