Disco Kid

Disco Kid
Punch-Out!! character
Disco Kid, as depicted in Punch-Out!! for Wii. Designed by Eddie Viser.
First game	Punch-Out!! (Wii)
Designed by	Eddie Viser
Voiced by	Donny Lucas

Disco Kid (ディスコ・キッド, Disuko Kiddo) is a fictional African American boxer in the Nintendo-produced video game Punch-Out!! for Wii. He was designed by Eddie Viser and voiced by Donny Lucas. He is described as flamboyant and as a fan of clubbing, disco, and exercise. He is the only character introduced in the Wii entry of the Punch-Out!! franchise, which mostly featured characters from Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).

Disco Kid has received generally positive reception. He has been praised for fitting in well with other Punch-Out!! boxers by Kotaku and The Escapist, though the editor for the latter website wrote that the character lacked strong connections to disco. He has been compared to the character Carlton Banks from the sitcom Fresh Prince of Bel-Air by both 1UP.com and ESPN. He has been called a stereotype of black people, though GamesRadar's Brett Elston wrote that his stereotypes were milder than most other characters in the series.

Concept and appearances

Disco Kid is one of only two new characters to appear in the Wii video game Punch-Out!!, which consists of mostly characters from Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System. He was designed by Eddie Viser and voiced by Donny Lucas.^[1] He was one of the first characters revealed in the Wii Punch-Out!!.^[2] He is characterized as flamboyant with a high-pitched voice and an affinity for clubbing.^[3]

Reception

Disco Kid has received generally positive reception. Numerous critics felt that Disco Kid fit in well with the characters returning from previous games, including Craig Harris, Oli Welsh, Ricardo Madeira, and DJPubba.^[4][5][6][7] GameSpot's Tom Mc Shea felt that he lacked the charm of the returning characters but had a flashy style.^[8] The Escapist's John Funk questioned what made him "disco", and wrote that more could have been accomplished by having "more sequins on his shorts".^[9] The Escapist's Jordan Deam wrote that Disco Kid's poses added to the "visual lexicon" of the series.^[10] 1UP.com's David Ellis and an editor for ESPN.com compared Disco Kid to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air character Carlton Banks; Ellis added that he was a "flamboyant dancer who uses awkward timing as a distraction" and a greater challenge than other early game characters due to his unique pattern.^[11][12] GamePro's Will Herring wrote that his design was "masterfully modeled and animated".^[13] GameDaily's Chris Buffa described him as a "dancing fool" and a humorous character with a distinctive personality.^[14]

Flamboyance and stereotyping

Disco Kid has been described as flamboyant, and as a stereotype of black Americans by critics such as Kotaku's Michael McWhertor.^[15] An editor for GameTrailers suggested that Nintendo was aiming for a certain segment of people with Disco Kid.^[16] GamesRadar's Brett Elston described Disco Kid as a stereotype due to his appreciation of cars, bass, and clubbing. He felt that these stereotypes were comparatively mild compared to other Punch-Out!! characters, with the exception of Mr. Sandman.^[3] One of the members of Retronauts stated that Disco Kid was stereotype new to Punch-Out!!, and that it was "unnerving."^[17]

References