The Dark Pit Rises
I played this game not really knowing anything about the Kid Icarus franchise other than for years it was one of the most requested sequels from Nintendo fans. There were even talks of a potential "Man Icarus" game that took the franchise into darker, mature, territory. Thankfully that did not happen - insteand we have "Kid Icarus: Uprising", a funny, exciting, and weird game that is the most original game to come from Nintendo since Pikmin.
The game's story is being marketed as a battle to save the world from Medusa, Queen of the Underworld. I won't spoil too much, but just know that this only scratches the surface of how nuts this game gets in terms of its narrative. You will see more than a few Gods in this game, and they have the relationship of a very dysfunctional family - they hate each other but are kinda stuck with each other. It is very anime-inspired storytelling, which is to say its very....cute at times. The writing and voice acting is very well-done, and the run-time for a single play through might run between 12 -15 hours. That said, the game's life extends well beyond that.
The amount of unlockable content, loot, and achievements in this game is massive. I found myself going back and playing levels on harder difficulties to acquire more hearts and find stronger weaponry. All of this can potentially double or triple the amount of time you spend on the game.
The game is most controversial because of its control scheme, which uses the circle pad for movement and the stylus for aiming. This setup is definitely not the most intuitive, but I eventually got a hang of it and now the controls actually make a lot of sense for the system. In fact, I would say these are some of the best controls for a third person action game I've ever played, simply because it's never been done before yet works brilliantly. If you take the time to master the controls, you will reap the rewards, and this game is super-rewarding.
The multiplayer component is essentially 2 modes - free for all deathmatch and team deathmatch. Again, your enjoyment will come from how much you invest in terms of mastering the controls, as well as upgrading your weaponry. The multiplayer matches are very fast and usually last less than 5 minutes.
The game's presentation is outstanding. The graphics shine on both technical and artistic levels, and the game's orchestrated soundtrack is vibrant and characteristic of the game's fun-loving, adventurous hero.
And that's the bottom line with this game - it's just a fun adventure! It's a game that knows it's game, and is uber stoked about it. 3DS owners should all try this game, because the love and high quality of its production make it a true gem in the history of Nintendo franchises. Here's hoping we see more Pit in the future!
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