Kid Icarus Uprising review

After 25 years of wait, Pit is back. His last starring game was back on the NES, with guest appearances in Smash Bros. Now at long last, he has flown into the 21st century with a lick of 3D paint.

The big question, is Kid Icarus worth the 25 year wait? The short answer is, oh hell yeah! The game is split up into on-rails flying and shooting sections, think Star Fox with Angels. The other part of the game is on foot, almost fps-like sections. The storyline involves the evil Medusa’s attempts at world domination, what it lacks in originality, it more than makes up for in gameplay and content. The flying levels are simply breathtaking, in terms of visuals and the sheer amount of goings on. Enemies swarm the screen, requiring split second dodging of attacks and pin point accurate shots to defeat them. The on foot sections sadly aren’t as fun, mainly due to the control method. That really is the game’s only downside, the controls are awkward after long sessions of play. The flying section utilise the left shoulder button, circle pad and stylus, which can lead to painful hand cramps. The on foot sections are even worse, requiring a swipe of the stylus to turn Pit around, then using the circle pad to dodge attacks. Why oh why couldn’t this game use the Circle Pad Pro attachment?

Kid Icarus features a wealth of unlockables and secrets to discover. Unique to the game is the ability to alter the difficulty level, using Pits heart collection. The harder the game, the more hearts you earn back and better weapons to find. If you get beaten, the difficulty decreases as does your reward. The multiplayer mode is pretty decent too, just a shame it’s limited to on foot battles. Things usually get pretty hectic so the frame rate tends to drop, but it’s a little price to pay.

Kid Icarus is without a doubt the best looking game on the 3DS. Beautiful graphics, brilliantly designed levels and epic boss fights make this a great all round package. Throw in a wealth of unlockables, AR cards and Streepass modes, you have the best game on Nintendo’s handheld so far. Kid Icarus Uprising for the Nintendo 3DS gets 9 out of 10.

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Kid Icarus Uprising review pics

Kid Icarus Uprising review screenshots

Kid Icarus Uprising review pics

Kid Icarus Uprising review screenshots

Kid Icarus Uprising pics

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