Little Mac

Little Mac is the main protagonist of the Punch-Out!! series. A boxer from the Bronx, New York City, Little Mac trains under Doc Louis in order to become the world champion of the World Video Boxing Association (WVBA). Little Mac made his first appearance in Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!.

Little Mac is supposedly 17-years-old, and only 4 feet, 8 inches (5'7" in the Wii version of Punch-Out!!) and 107 pounds. While in New York City, he traveled the area in search of a trainer, though was rejected at least 200 times. However, a previous boxing pro named Jerome "Doc" Louis decided to help him. Ultimately it is up to the player to determine if Little Mac accomplished this goal of his, and if the player was good, he'd be required to go up against the toughest fighter of them all, Mr. Dream.

Punch Out!! (arcade)
The original protagonist of the arcade Punch-Out!! and Super Punch-Out!! titles fights several fighters for the world championship, and is depicted as a tall, green-haired man with a cleft chin who appears as a wireframe model during gameplay. The character "Little Mac" did not appear until Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System (also known as Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!), which featured a younger and shorter protagonist mentored by his manager and trainer, Doc Louis.

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!
In 1987, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! was released, and this marked the first game where the challenger whom the player controls gained an identity. This is the game where Little Mac gets his name and his background. Because this is the only Punch-Out game where the controlled boxer has a name, all Punch-Out!! games onward have dubbed the main challenger the name of Little Mac.

Little Mac was no taller than 5 feet, and barely weighed over 100 pounds, but his ultimate dream was to become the heavyweight champion of the World Video Boxing Association. Having Doc Louis, a retired pro boxer and former heavyweight champion, as his boxing coach, Little Mac trained day and night for the challenges in the ring. Boxers such as Glass Joe, Bald Bull, Mr. Sandman, and Super Macho Man make their appearances in this game.

Other notable boxers that challenged Little Mac were King Hippo and Japanese boxer Piston Honda. Little Mac worked his way up, earning titles from the Minor Circuit, the Major Circuit, and the World Circuit, until finally he made it to the Dream Fight, the fight which determined who would be the new heavyweight champion of the WVBA. Mike Tyson was a special character added to the game to be the last boxer. But when Nintendo's license to have Tyson as a special character expired in 1990, a new and official Nintendo character, Mr. Dream, replaced Tyson. So officially, it is Mr. Dream who Little Mac had to defeat in order to become champion.

Super Punch-Out!!
In Super Punch-Out!! for the SNES, there was initially confusion over whether the protagonist of the game was Little Mac or an entirely different character, due to said protagonist featuring sandy blond hair, a pair of blue shorts, and lacking a tank top. He is voiced by Charles Martinet in the game. When the game released for the Virtual Console on the Wii, the Wii Shop Channel description referred to the boxer as "Little Mac." On their website, Nintendo of America clarified that the two are the same character, with Little Mac having changed his appearance after splitting ways with Doc Louis.

When Fight Night: Round 2 was released in 2005, the Nintendo GameCube version included Super Punch-Out!! as a playable bonus, and that game's protagonist was also featured as an unlockable character. This game claims that this character is "Little Mac" (or simply "Mac" according to the boxers he wears). The official game details from the Wii Shop Channel referred to that blond boxer as "Little Mac". With Little Mac returning in his original shape in Punch-Out!! for the Wii, it is unclear what Nintendo's stance in the subject is. This version of Mac is referred to as Birdy by fans.

Punch-Out!! (Wii)
After a 15-year hiatus, the Punch-Out!! series was rebooted with a titular installment for the Wii, with Little Mac returning as the main protagonist. Little Mac is designed after his original appearance in the Nintendo Entertainment System version, although he was made taller, given a tan, and a different hairdo. Little Mac is a silent protagonist, as he only makes a few sounds such as grunting and hollering.

Little Mac and all the other characters are represented in a 3-D cel-shaded manner (similar to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker). His goal is once again to climb to the top of the ranks, defeating various opponents along the way (many of whom return from the Nintendo Entertainment System game Punch-Out!!). After fighting through all of his opponents once again, Little Mac gets tired of his fame and decides to go out in a blaze of glory. Dubbed Mac's Last Stand, Little Mac's condition for retiring and thus vacating the world championship is losing three times.

Doc Louis's Punch-Out
In Doc Louis's Punch-Out, Little Mac spars with Doc.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves
WarioWare: Smooth Moves features a microgame called "Punch-Out!!" based on the game of the same name. In it, Mac knocks out his opponent (who changes depending on the difficulty), and the player, as Mario, has to count down the KO. Mac cheers if the count reaches ten in time.

WarioWare: D.I.Y. Showcase
In the microgame Punch-Out!! in WarioWare: D.I.Y. Showcase, Mac, controlled by the player, has to dodge his opponent's attacks. If all of the attacks are dodged, Mac knocks him out, while getting hit results in Mac getting knocked out.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Little Mac appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as an Assist Trophy. Before the game's release, Little Mac was first announced on Smash Bros. DOJO!! on October 18, 2007.

When Little Mac appears, he throws a damaging against enemies while moving quickly around the stage. After a while, he will throw an extremely powerful uppercut that launches enemies far before disappearing. His sound effects are directly taken from Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

Little Mac is among the strongest Assist Trophies, as he can KO opponents as early as 35%. He is also invulnerable, although he can nevertheless be rendered useless if he falls off the stage.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U
Little Mac was revealed as a new playable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U on February 13, 2014, becoming the first fighter in the series to have previously been an Assist Trophy. Unlike in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Little Mac sports a slightly modified version of his design from the Wii version of Punch-Out!! As expected for a boxer, Little Mac is a close-ranged fighter, with all but one of his moves being some variation of a punch.

Although he is among the fastest characters in the game and his ground attacks are powerful, Little Mac is far weaker while in the air, as his attack power drastically decreases. Additionally, Mac's jumping and aerial attributes are very poor, with his air speed being his only aerial attribute that is at least average. To compound this, Little Mac is a lightweight, making it easy for fighters to send him flying.

Little Mac uniquely has a Power Meter that charges whenever he inflicts and/or receives damage. When the meter is fully charged, it changes his neutral special attack to the powerful KO Uppercut. However, as with his other aerial attacks, KO Uppercut is drastically weaker when performed in the air.

Little Mac's standard special is the Straight Lunge, which causes him to wind up his arm and then dash forward to perform a powerful cross. His side special is the Jolt Haymaker, which is a leaping overhand. His up special is the Rising Uppercut, in which he leaps into the air and first attacks with a corkscrewing uppercut and then finishes with a second uppercut with the opposite fist. His down special is the Slip Counter, in which he performs a full crouch stance and immediately counterattacks upon being hit by slipping inside and uppercutting the opponent. Little Mac's Final Smash transforms him into Giga Mac, a transformation that debuted in the Wii version of Punch-Out!! Giga Mac functions similarly to Giga Bowser: he boasts considerably stronger attack power and is immune to flinching.

Little Mac has a number of alternate costumes that reference the Punch-Out!! series. Four are from the Wii version of Punch-Out!!, which are based on his World Video Boxing Association (WVBA) Champion attire in Title Defense Mode; his attire in Contender Mode during the World Circuit; his attire during the Major Circuit; and his attire when used by player 2 in Head-to-Head Mode. Two are from the NES version of Punch-Out!!, which are based on his signature pink hooded sweatsuit used during training sessions, and how he appears after he defeats any opposing boxers.

Another is based on the blond protagonist in Super Punch-Out!!. Lastly, Little Mac also has "wireframe" variants of all his alternate costumes, based upon his appearance in the original arcade version of Punch-Out!! In addition to making his body consist of green wireframe, Little Mac's voice is replaced by 8-bit sound effects, while his boxing gloves and sweatsuit's colors are inverted to being green and pink, respectively.

The overweight version of Little Mac from Captain Rainbow also appears as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. If Little Mac wins a match, Doc Louis appears alongside him on the results screen. When Little Mac uses a taunt, Doc Louis also appears to encourage him.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Little Mac returns as an unlockable playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, retaining many of his moves from the previous installment. His Final Smash is now Giga Mac Rush; while he still transforms into Giga Mac like in the previous installment, he can no longer move freely as him, instead attacking opponents on the spot with repeated punches. Little Mac benefits from the game's universal changes: his already quick mobility is faster; his recovery is greatly extended through the reintroduction of directional air dodges; his short hop timing is shortened; his aerial attacks have less landing lag; and he can now use any grounded attack out of a dash and any of his aerials on ladders. Little Mac's recovery further benefits from his side and up specials travelling farther, while attacks like his forward smash lose their weak hitboxes to deal consistent damage. On the flipside however, his standard attack and forward and up tilts deal less damage, while some of his attacks deal less knockback. Also, his alternate costumes now consist of six normal costumes and two wireframe costumes, to keep the total number of costumes consistent with other characters.

Captain Rainbow
In Captain Rainbow, Little Mac has been out of boxing for some time and has become largely obese due to the events of the game. Nick helps him get back into shape. Little Mac's appearance from this game is also featured as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

NES Remix 2
In NES Remix 2, Little Mac makes an appearance in several mini-games based on the original Punch-Out!! game. They all involve Mac beating various opponents with different restrictions, like knocking out Von Kaiser with an uppercut, blocking Great Tiger's attacks while the screen fades out, or beating a powerful Glass Joe.

Super Mario Maker
Little Mac makes an appearance as a Mystery Mushroom costume in Super Mario Maker, which can be unlocked by scanning his amiibo or randomly after completing the 100 Mario Challenge on Expert or higher. Upon transforming into him, the bell from the original Punch-Out!! can be heard. The theme that plays after losing a match and the victory theme also play when the player loses a life and clears the course, respectively.

Luigi's Mansion 3
In Luigi's Mansion 3, Little Mac makes a cameo on a framed poster seen in one of the hallways in the theater. The poster also shows Doc Louis and Mr. Sandman, the final boss of the the Wii game. It appears alongside posters based on other Next Level Games-developed titles.

Appearances in other media
Little Mac was featured as the protagonist in the Punch-Out!! stories featured in Valiant Comics's Nintendo Comics System, appearing in the stories "The First Fight", "Outsiders", and "Fox and Hounds".

Little Mac makes a cameo in the prologue short of the Captain N comic books, suggesting that his stories are canonical to the Captain N continuity, although he never showed up in any of the actual Captain N stories (nor did King Hippo, a Captain N regular, appear in the Punch-Out!! stories).

Palutena's Guidance

 * Pit: This guy looks ready to fight!
 * Viridi: That's Little Mac. As a boxer, fighting is sort of his thing. No one can match his strength on the ground, but in an aerial battle, he's helpless.
 * Palutena: So you want to get him in the air, and keep him from landing.
 * Viridi: He has a power meter that, once full, lets him unleash a lethal attack.
 * Pit: He seems tiny, though...
 * Viridi: Maybe that's why he's LITTLE Mac. But even with his small stature, he's triumphed over many heavyweight boxers. Pretty impressive for a puny HUMAN.
 * Pit: Bring it on! The stronger the opponent, the more interesting the fight!
 * Viridi: That's the spirit!
 * Pit: Uh, I can keep using my weapons, right?
 * Viridi: Ugh! Yes...

amiibo

 * This little boxer from the Punch-Out!! series makes up in heart what he lacks in height. Under the guidance of his coach Doc Louis, Little Mac took on opponents several times his size on his way to winning the WVBA championship belt! No matter his opponent, Little Mac always puts his best fist forward.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Super Smash Blog bio

 * As a boxer, Little Mac fights with his fists alone—no kicks! When his Power Meter fills up, he can use a special KO Uppercut, which can really turn a battle around. For his Final Smash, he turns into Giga Mac and pummels the opponent with a furious rush of punches!