Lost NES Prototype Missing Iconic Character Found

A rare and valuable prototype of one of the most famous NES games of all time has made its way online, notable for omitting the character from its title.

Nintendo has had terrible luck when it comes to leaks, with numerous unreleased and unfinished games making their way online. These have ranged from early versions of Super Mario Bros. to Pokémon games featuring monster designs never meant to be seen by the public.

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out was one of the most beloved games of the NES era, and it had a bizarre history tied to its branding. It turns out there is more to the story than people realized, as explained on The Video Game History Foundation YouTube channel, as a prototype without Mike Tyson has been discovered.

A Version Of Punch-Out Without Mike Tyson Has Been Found

When Punch-Out was first revealed, it was just called Punch-Out. Mike Tyson was added later as part of a deal to use his likeness, which was only temporary, as later versions of Punch-Out had to include a new character, named Mr. Dream.

A prototype version of Punch-Out was sold at auction for $45,000. This is an extremely early build of the game in which most of the characters weren't even finished. Details for this prototype can be found on The Cutting Room Floor, but the most important part is that Mike Tyson is nowhere to be found, nor is Mr. Dream.

While Mike Tyson might not be there, there are other characters who don't appear in the final game who are mentioned, including Rockyhead and Mongol Khan. It's unknown if these were cut characters or original names. It's possible that Rockyhead was the original name for Super Macho Man, but was changed to avoid similarities to the Rocky movies.

It's fascinating to see these glimpses into early Nintendo games, especially from an era with little documentation. With Punch-Out, fans can see what the game would have looked like had the Mike Tyson deal fallen through.