The input delay from the emulator, if there is any from the emulator since modern computers are powerful enough to handle NES emulation, is really from the display the emulator is being run on. Using a laggy, input-delay heavy monitor will create issues. Low latency, gaming monitors in Game Mode will have less than a frame of latency which is really needed.

Best option is to try it out and see. You'll know pretty early on if the latency is too much for you on your setup.

Welcome to the speedrun. Emulation these days have come a long way and there are some runners who put up great times on emulators. Of course, once you get to the really advanced strats and seek lower and lower time, the instant response of OG hardware and a CRT can't be beat.

To see which emulators are permitted for use in submitted runs, click on the "Show Rules" button to see the list of allowed emulators. If an emulator is not listed there, it means that we will not permit it for submitted runs.

For general rules when using emulators, make sure that you aren't using frame counters or anything that you wouldn't see on actual hardware. (So input readers are fine since those are used on real hardware).

We would not be able to accept it as a submission here unfortunately. For Gold Punch-Out, we've only set-up IL boards for the fights that are distinctly different from the fights in the final retail release of MTPO/PO. (Don Flamenco 1, Soda Popinski, Super Macho Man). As all other fights in the game are the same functionally as in the retail release, any IL attempts for those fights need to be submitted to the official MTPO/PO leaderboards. (For which the Gold Punch-Out cart is unfortunately not an accepted version of the game there).

Version 1.0 has a soft-lock glitch on Super Macho Man. With the original release of MTPO, if you canceled Macho's mini-spin punch the crowd would permanently freeze thus causing the game to lock-up on the KO/TKO end-fight animations. The later release (1.1 / REV-A) corrected this glitch so it will not soft-lock.

If learning the game, it's best to use the 1.1 / REV-A version just in case you cancel a mini-spin punch in a run. Even if you have mastered the game, using the later release of MTPO is the better option for basically the same reason.

Sorry to disappoint you, but it is not a faster strategy. The time it takes to counter his Flamenco Punch with a gut-shot, dodge his subsequent punch, then throw the star is much longer than the time it takes to dodge his Flamenco Punch and hit him in the face five times.