Glass Joe is the first opponent fought in Nintendo’s arcade boxing game Punch-Out!!
Glass Joe appears as the opening challenger in the game’s sequence of boxing matches. He is portrayed as a French boxer with a relatively weak record, making him an introductory opponent before the player faces more demanding fighters.
Nintendo’s Punch-Out!! debuted in arcades in 1984 and used a distinctive dual-monitor cabinet. The player viewed the boxer from behind while the opponent appeared across the ring, and players used transparent overlays and timing-based punches to exploit visual cues.
The arcade game’s roster is related to, but not identical with, the later NES title Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!. Characters such as King Hippo and Bald Bull became especially recognizable through the home version, which can lead people to misremember the opening arcade opponent. Glass Joe is the canonical first challenger in the arcade game’s progression.