Karate Man/Unused

Rhythm Tengoku
Karateka consists of the following versions in Rhythm Tengoku:

Unused Content
Version 01 goes unused in the game, and has weird properties. The first and most obvious is that a crudely drawn face appears in the background in response to the player's performance. While two faces can be seen when successfully punching objects or missing, a third face is loaded from the start but never shown. No face appears if the player misses completely. The other odd property is punching objects while the gauge is low plays the same punching sounds as when it's high.

Rhythm Heaven
Karate Man consists of the following versions in Rhythm Heaven:

Unused Content
Every single sprite from Karateka in Rhythm Tengoku was ported over, with several sprites going unused in Rhythm Heaven. Some were however changed, namely Karate Joe's face was made a separate sprite from his body, and a shading error in one frame of the straight punch animation (which was previously only visible in Remix 8 in Rhythm Tengoku) was fixed.

Rhythm Heaven Fever
Karate Man consists of the following versions in Rhythm Heaven Fever:

Unused Content
There is an unused "Hit 2!" image. While a "Hit 2!" did appear in Karateka in Rhythm Tengoku, it does not return in Rhythm Heaven Fever.

Rhythm Heaven Megamix
Karate Man consists of the following versions in Rhythm Heaven Megamix:

Early Ideas
The song for the short version of Karate Man was rewritten several times. The second proposal for it was repurposed for Karate Man Senior instead.

Unused Content
All objects can be used in all versions, though not all versions have sprites to go along with them. Karate Man, Karate Man Returns! and Honeybee Remix do not have sprites for the blinking Light Bulb, rendering them invisible. There are sprites of Karate Joe performing the kicks and combos in all versions, regardless if the moves are used in those games. Notably, the kick stance uses an older sprite in versions outside of Karate Man Kicks! and Karate Man Senior, resembling the one in Rhythm Heaven. Although this stance is still used for a single frame if the player punches open a barrel but never kicks.

Various features from Rhythm Heaven Fever are leftover, such as the recoloring used at the end of Remix 9, the "Hit 4!" cue and offbeat rock from Karate Man 2, and the unused "Hit 2!" image.

The Space Umpire exists as a punchable object in Karate Man, with a unique sound effect for punching it. Interestingly, while it does have a sprite in Karate Man Senior, the object itself uses the blue glow intended for Light Bulbs instead.

Regional Differences
The "来る！" (Kuru!) signal at the end of Karate Man Returns! and the middle of Honeybee Remix were both replaced with "Grr!", reused from other parts of the game, in Rhythm Heaven Megamix, Rhythm Paradise Megamix and Rhythm Sesang: The Best+. This is due to this cue being reused for the combos in Rhythm Heaven Fever, where it was localized as "Combo!". The 来る！ (Kuru!) signal lasts three beats in Rhythm Tengoku: The Best+, while the "Grr!" replacement lasts only one. Oddly, there is a subroutine to display "Grr!" for three beats, but it goes unused.

In Rhythm Sesang: The Best+, the color of the stripes in the Superb epilogue to Karate Man Kicks! was changed.