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Kid Icarus (series)

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Kid Icarus
Logo since 2012
Genre(s)Platform
Developer(s)Nintendo R&D1 (1986–1991)
Tose (1986-1991)
Project Sora (2012)
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Platform(s)Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Nintendo 3DS
First releaseKid Icarus
December 19, 1986
Latest releaseKid Icarus: Uprising
March 22, 2012

Kid Icarus[a] is a series of fantasy video games by Nintendo. The games are set in a Greco-Roman fantasy world called "Angel Land", which is a fictional setting that is loosely based on Greek mythology. The gameplay consists of a mixture of action, adventure and platform elements. The Kid Icarus franchise is known as a cult classic and a sibling series to the Metroid franchise.

The first installment, Kid Icarus, was released in 1986 for the Nintendo Entertainment System and was received to critical acclaim despite poor sales. A sequel, Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, was later released for the Game Boy. After a 20-year hiatus, Kid Icarus: Uprising was released in 2012 for the Nintendo 3DS handheld.

Development

Release timeline
1986Kid Icarus
1987–1990
1991Of Myths and Monsters
1992–2011
2012Uprising

After Nintendo's release of commercially successful platforming games in the 1980s, including Donkey Kong, Ice Climber, and Super Mario Bros., as well as the critically acclaimed adventure game The Legend of Zelda, the company was interested in entering a different genre. They began work on an action game. The game was called Metroid. Nintendo released Metroid for the Family Computer Disk System on August 6, 1986, and on the Nintendo Entertainment System one year later.[1] Kid Icarus was developed alongside as its sister game, as it shares elements and programmers with Metroid.[2] The game was produced by the same man who produced Metroid, Gunpei Yokoi, who previously produced Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. (1982) and the original Mario Bros. (1983), and it featured music written by Hirokazu Tanaka, who also composed for Duck Hunt (1984).[1]

After the release of its handheld sequel, Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, the series received no new installments for two decades. During 1990s, a different gaming magazine claimed another project named Kid Icarus: Angel Land Story, sometimes called Super Kid Icarus, to exist in-work for Super NES though it is unknown if the source is real or not.[3][4] An installment for the Nintendo 64 was rumored to be in development,[5] but was never released. During early 2000s, Capcom moved their resources to redo Dead Phoenix into a new untitled Icarus game, to debut on the GameCube.[6] A series revival was planned for Wii, developed by Factor 5, but this appearance eventually led to cancellation.[7][8][9] During the E3 event in 2010, Nintendo unveiled Kid Icarus: Uprising for the Nintendo 3DS, the first game in the series since 1991.[10]

Plot

Pit (left), Palutena (middle), and Medusa (right) are the central characters in the story

Pit initially appeared in Kid Icarus (1986). In the game, Pit plays a role in rescuing the Goddess of Light, Palutena, from the clutches of the wicked Medusa. Pit escapes his Underworld prison and descends the steep cliffs, fending off the armies of Medusa's troops, including snakes and the deadly God of Death. Along the way, Pit overcomes Zeus' challenges and gains stronger weapons to combat the Underworld's hordes. In conclusion, once Pit had completed the stage, he would explore a gigantic stronghold filled with traps and puzzles.[11]

In Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters (1991), Palutena's nightmare is interpreted by a fate teller as an imminent invasion by the demon Orcos and his goons. The goddess summons Pit, the leader of her army, and tells him to report for specific instructions so that he might use the priceless treasures of Angel Land. While Pit is on his quest, Palutena has these under the watchful eyes of three fortress guards to ensure their safety from Orcos. After Pit defeats the guards and finishes his training, Palutena gives him the priceless wealth.[12] Pit reappears in Kid Icarus: Uprising (2012) following a 25-year break, collaborating with Palutena to vanquish Medusa and her army.[13]

Characters

Pit

Pit's design was vastly updated for his inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and has become his standard design since then. According to Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of the Super Smash Bros. series and director of Kid Icarus: Uprising, he initially alternated between using Pit's 2D design, his cartoonish art design, and a 3D redesign for Pit's inclusion before ultimately settling on the latter.[14] Sakurai stated that Pit's redesign was based on the concept of how his appearance would have slowly modernized had the Kid Icarus series remained active, much like how Link's design has done throughout the various subsequent installments within The Legend of Zelda series.[14] In comparison to his previous design, Pit now appears approximately 13 years old in angel years.[15]

GamePro identified Pit's gameplay mechanics as taking elements from three of Nintendo's biggest franchises: Mario's jump, Link's ability-enhancing objects, and Samus Aran's projectiles.[16] Pit takes inspiration from Greek mythology, with IGN's Lucas M. Thomas viewing him as a combination between Eros and Icarus. Thomas identified both his bow and his wings as his most iconic characteristics.[17] He was featured as the front cover in Nintendo Blast's 2012 Portuguese book titled "Nintendo Blast Ano 3 Edições 25 a 36".[18] GameZone's Vito Gesualdi considers Pit a combination of The Legend of Zelda's Link, and American filmmaker Woody Allen saying that "Pit is equal parts Link and Woody Allen, a handsome young warrior with all the self-confidence of our favorite neurotic Jew".[19]

Eggplant Wizard

The Eggplant Wizard first appeared in the 1986 video game Kid Icarus. In the game, he serves as an arch-nemesis to Pit and depicted as an anthropomorphic eggplant sorcerer who can shoot eggplants at other characters and disable all of their abilities by encasing them into an eggplant.[20][21] He also appeared in the animated television series Captain N: The Game Master and serves as an antagonist.[22] The Eggplant Wizard was inspired by the game's creator Toru Osawa's passion for eggplants and the eggplant men from Wrecking Crew. Osawa said that he drew the character to celebrate his summer bonus.[11] Shigeru Miyamoto and Masahiro Sakurai both consider the character key to the enduring popularity of the Kid Icarus series.[23][24]

Since his debut in Kid Icarus, Eggplant Wizard has received largely positive reception from critics, with IGN writer Luca M. Thomas called him the "most popular, most cunning enemy character to come out" of the Kid Icarus series.[22] Shacknews writer Ozzie Mejia called Eggplant Wizard as the most aggravated antagonist in all of video games and she wrote that she throw her controller against the television after Eggplant Wizard turns her into an eggplant for the hundredth time when she was kid.[25] Destructoid writer Chad Concelmo ranked him as "the biggest asshole video game wizard" and stating that there is no other characters who has more hatred than Eggplant Wizard due to his high defense and his ability to transform Pit into an eggplant.[26] 1UP.com writer Jeremy Parish called him a weird idea for an enemy, but also Pit's most challenging. He compared the enemy to the Hammer Bros. from the Mario franchise because they often come in pairs and throw projectiles at the player character, but also noted that the Eggplant Wizards were worse because they would target Pit.[27] Nonstop Nerd staff wrote that Eggplant Wizard can completely ruin anyone’s playthrough of the game and he was manages to be the most threatening enemy because he can damage the player with his projectiles and magically transforms all who oppose him into eggplants. The staff also wrote that any gamer who has received the curse understands how terrible it is which after becoming an eggplant, players can't deal damage to enemies.[28]

UGO Networks writer Chris Plante ranked the moment when Eggplant Wizard was turning people into eggplants as one of the 20 most memorable Nintendo Entertainment System moments.[29] GamesRadar+ included Eggplant Wizard in their list of the "top seven edible enemies in gaming". They stated that he was "one of the strangest, most talked-about weirdos in all of gaming" and questioned why he is in a game about Greek mythology.[30] GamesRadar+ also claimed that the character was "clearly-designed-by-a-madman old bastard of the NES baddo fraternity" and that his "oddness belied a far more insidious property".[31] Eggplant Wizard has been suggested as a playable character or item for Super Smash Bros. series by critics.[22][32][33] Chris Morgan of Yardbarker named Eggplant Wizard as the true cult icon of early Nintendo and he noted of how could readers resist espousing his many charms.[34]

Eggplant Wizard has been viewed as synonymous with the Kid Icarus series even outside the gaming community. Jason Cipriano of MTV Multiplayer Blog wrote that he described Eggplant Wizard as the emblematic of series' wacky design and stated that fans would be excited to see him appear in Kid Icarus: Uprising.[35] To celebrate the release of the game, ABC News writer Lauren Torrisi featured several eggplant recipes.[36] Ishaan Sahdev of Siliconera reported about a GameStop promotion for Kid Icarus: Uprising gave away a selection of augmented reality 3DS cards, one of which features Eggplant Wizard.[37]

Other characters

There are a number of regular characters in the Kid Icarus series. Palutena, Viridi, Hades, Magnus, Dark Pit, Medusa, Pyrrhon, Pandora, Arlon, Poseidon, Phosphora, Dyntos, Thanatos, and Cragalanche are the few additional common characters in the series.

Notes

  1. ^ Known in Japan as Light Mythology: Palutena's Mirror (光神話 パルテナの鏡, Hikari Shinwa: Parutena no Kagami).

References

  1. ^ a b Metroid Retrospective Part 1 (video). GameTrailers. Defy Media. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  2. ^ Thomas, Luca M (2007-03-06). "Kid Icarus VC Review". IGN. Archived from the original on March 9, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
  3. ^ "Gamefan Volume 4 Issue 03 March 1996". p. 93. Retrieved June 3, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "10 Cancelled Super Nes Games That You May be Unaware of, Though I Don't Care if You Did Know About Them Already". Archived from the original on 2022-09-11. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
  5. ^ "Gaming Gossip". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 92. Ziff Davis. March 1997. p. 28.
  6. ^ "Missing in Action -- the Lost Games of GameCube: Dead Phoenix - IGN". IGN. Archived from the original on 17 December 2010. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  7. ^ Brian (2008-08-05). "Factor 5 officially developing Kid Icarus for Wii?". Nintendo Everything. Archived from the original on 2022-04-29.
  8. ^ "Wii Recomendations[sic]: Kid Icarus Wii Sequel". 16 April 2010. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  9. ^ "Factor 5's Lost Wii Kid Icarus Boasted a Dark Hero with 60fps Airborne Action". Nintendo Life. 19 September 2015. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  10. ^ ""E3 2010: Masahiro Sakurai Makes Kid Icarus Fly Again on the Nintendo 3DS"". Time. June 28, 2010. Archived from the original on December 1, 2023. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  11. ^ a b ""Making of a Myth: The Grueling Development of the Original Kid Icarus"". Nintendo World Report. March 19, 2012. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  12. ^ "The Tale of Kid Icarus". Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters Instruction Booklet. Nintendo. November 1991.
  13. ^ ""Kid Icarus essentials All the facts you should know before Pits return"". GamesRadar+. March 17, 2012. Archived from the original on May 8, 2024. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Sakurai Speaks on Brawl Character Development". Archived from the original on 2024-01-19. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
  15. ^ 4Gamer: プロジェクトソラの桜井政博氏が，新しいパルテナを解説！ニンテンドー3DSタイトル「新・光神話 パルテナの鏡」プレゼンテーションレポート Archived 2024-01-19 at the Wayback Machine (Japanese)
  16. ^ "Top 10 games deserving of a remake". GamePro. 2007-10-25. Archived from the original on 2010-09-02. Retrieved 2010-04-07.
  17. ^ Lucas M. Thomas (26 January 2011). "You Don't Know Kid Icarus". IGN. Archived from the original on 30 January 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
  18. ^ Nintendo Blast Ano 3 Edições 25 a 36 [Nintendo Blast Year 3 Editions 25 to 36]. Archived from the original on May 14, 2024. Retrieved June 3, 2024 – via Apple Books.
  19. ^ "Kid Icarus: Uprising review". GameZone. May 4, 2012. Archived from the original on June 8, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  20. ^ Kalata, Kurt. "Angel Land Story". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on September 12, 2011. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  21. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (February 29, 2012). "The Unsung Innovations of Kid Icarus". IGN. Archived from the original on June 3, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  22. ^ a b c Thomas, Lucas M. (June 29, 2007). "Smash It Up! - Volume 2". IGN. Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  23. ^ Kshofsy (July 7, 2010). "Kid Icarus Director Says Nintendo 3DS Will Change Gameplay". Wired. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  24. ^ Casamassina, Matt (May 19, 2005). "E3 2005: Shigeru Miyamoto Interview". IGN. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  25. ^ Mejia, Ozzie (December 26, 2011). "Most Anticipated of 2012: Ozzie's Picks". Shacknews. Archived from the original on November 23, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  26. ^ Concelmo, Chad (October 5, 2011). "The ten biggest asshole videogame wizards EVER!". Destructoid. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  27. ^ Parish, Jeremy (September 7, 2011). "Kid Icarus: A Retrospective". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on May 15, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  28. ^ "Gamers Still Hate the Eggplant Wizard". Nonstop Nerd. 2022-02-03. Archived from the original on 2024-07-22. Retrieved 2024-03-09.
  29. ^ Plante, Chris (February 27, 2010). "Top 20 NES Moments". UGO Networks. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  30. ^ "The Top 7 Edible Enemies in Video Games". GamesRadar. June 23, 2012. Archived from the original on August 17, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  31. ^ "The Top 7... Games where you play as food". GamesRadar+. June 23, 2012. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  32. ^ Reeves, Ben (January 6, 2012). "Dream Team: What We Want In A New Smash Bros". Game Informer. p. 3. Archived from the original on January 15, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  33. ^ "Blah Blah Blah - GC Launch Mayhem! Launch and Beyond". Nintendo World Report. November 18, 2001. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  34. ^ Morgan, Chris (October 6, 2021). "The most memorable characters from old school Nintendo games". Yardbarker. Archived from the original on October 6, 2021.
  35. ^ Cipriano, Jason (March 27, 2012). "'Kid Icarus: Uprising' Review - A Gift From The Heavens". MTV Multiplayer Blog. Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  36. ^ Torrisi, Lauren (March 23, 2012). "Kid Icarus: Celebrate the Return of the Eggplant Wizard With These Recipes". ABC News. Archived from the original on August 17, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  37. ^ Sahdev, Ishaan (March 14, 2012). "The Different Ways You Can Procure More Kid Icarus: Uprising AR Cards". Siliconera. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
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