Despite how it definitely isn’t one of the most fondly remembered of Nintendo’s classics, the original Kid Icarus still holds up well enough to this day in my opinion, and even though it is definitely outshined by other titles on the system, it is still an enjoyable time regardless… for most of the game. That being said, many would rather forget about this title, instead drawing much more attention to Kid Icarus: Uprising, which, again, completely deserves all attention surrounding it, but… aren’t we forgetting something? Let’s see, we have the original game, Uprising… uh… fuck… OH, WAIT, I remember now! Yeah, there was actually a direct sequel to the original Kid Icarus that was made for the Game Boy, which, if you don’t remember it existing, trust me, I don’t blame you at all. But, nonetheless, it does exist, and it is known as Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters.
There is a reason that we as a society have collectively forgotten about this game’s existence, because a followup to the original, it is one of the least impactful sequels to a game not just from this era, but of any game ever made. This wouldn’t be so much of a big deal if it was a followup to a much more well beloved title, like with Mega Man: Dr. Wily’s Revenge or Operation C, but the originally Kid Icarus already isn’t really many peoples’ favorites, or too highly remembered fondly, and just kinda has the status of being the game that led to Uprising, and not too much beyond that.
That being said, despite how it may as well just be Kid Icarus except on the Game Boy, I would still say it is a good enough title, with key emphasis being placed on the “good ENOUGH” portion there. But frankly, if you were to go through your whole life without even trying it out, then I don’t blame you, because although it may still be a good game, it does not warrant any reason for existing other than to be the first handheld game in the series.
The story is that whole “nightmare leads to bad thing” trope we have seen plenty before, but I can excuse it because, really, who cares, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites are pretty good, and can be seen as a slight improvement over the original, the music is alright, but not as memorable as the original game’s music, the controls are actually a lot better this time around, and movement feels much better as well, and the gameplay is on the same level as that of the original game… in the most literal way.
Like I mentioned before, practically nothing about the gameplay in this game is changed from the original. The game is still a 2D action platformer, where you move through stages in various directions, getting hearts, defeating enemies, buying stuff from shops, getting upgrades to your arsenal along the way, as well as going through dungeon levels, fighting bosses at the end, and going through one side-scrolling platformer/shooter level right at the end of the game to finish things off. There is little to no change in this formula, and no new additions to Pit’s arsenal, but what the game does change are little things that most wouldn’t notice upon first playing.
First of all, the difficulty this time around is much more forgiving then that of the original. Yeah, it is still hard, but compared to what we had to go through in the original Kid Icarus, it is a lot more manageable, with changes such as enemies now being able to drop health, and you not dying whenever you fall down, which is a solid improvement overall. Not to mention, the bosses this time don’t suck… as much. They actually do provide a challenge this time around, despite their patterns not being too diverse, but they do have a new problem, that being they are now damage sponges. It takes a long time to kill any boss in this game, even with lots of upgrades, so if you are planning on taking on them all, prepare to be at it for a while.
And… that’s really all I can say in terms of the changes. Aside from what I mentioned, Pit’s new little flutter ability, the save feature, and the way levels are laid out, there really is nothing else that makes this entry stand out from the original, which could be seen as a problem for most people. Sure, other games can be pretty repetitive too when it comes to sequels, but at least in those sequels, there are always new powers to try out and new areas to go to in terms of level design and challenge, but this game, despite having those things, just feels like a complete retread of what we have already seen. There’s no wonder as to why nobody talks about this game alongside the other two, because it may as well just be a port of the original NES game.
Now, with that being said, in terms of which game I would say is better, I would say it is this game, but just like with Shinobi and Shadow Dancer, that is by a very SMALL margin. It is mainly the exact same experience as the original game, except this time with more balancing and tweaks to make things more bearable for the player, which isn’t bad, but again, a little more could’ve been done to make this title stand out more in comparison to the original, such as new weapons or new items, or maybe a separate new gameplay style, I dunno. That being said, anyone who enjoyed the original Kid Icarus will easily enjoy this game as well, and as the first handheld title in the series, it does do a great job at taking the gameplay of the original and putting it onto a Game Boy.
Overall, while it certainly isn’t the most creative sequel out there, Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters is still a pretty good game, even if it isn’t as noteworthy as many of the other games on the system. Oh well, I guess we will just wait to see how the third game wi- wait, what?... the series is going on hiatus for 21 years?....... well shit.
Game #205
There is a reason that we as a society have collectively forgotten about this game’s existence, because a followup to the original, it is one of the least impactful sequels to a game not just from this era, but of any game ever made. This wouldn’t be so much of a big deal if it was a followup to a much more well beloved title, like with Mega Man: Dr. Wily’s Revenge or Operation C, but the originally Kid Icarus already isn’t really many peoples’ favorites, or too highly remembered fondly, and just kinda has the status of being the game that led to Uprising, and not too much beyond that.
That being said, despite how it may as well just be Kid Icarus except on the Game Boy, I would still say it is a good enough title, with key emphasis being placed on the “good ENOUGH” portion there. But frankly, if you were to go through your whole life without even trying it out, then I don’t blame you, because although it may still be a good game, it does not warrant any reason for existing other than to be the first handheld game in the series.
The story is that whole “nightmare leads to bad thing” trope we have seen plenty before, but I can excuse it because, really, who cares, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites are pretty good, and can be seen as a slight improvement over the original, the music is alright, but not as memorable as the original game’s music, the controls are actually a lot better this time around, and movement feels much better as well, and the gameplay is on the same level as that of the original game… in the most literal way.
Like I mentioned before, practically nothing about the gameplay in this game is changed from the original. The game is still a 2D action platformer, where you move through stages in various directions, getting hearts, defeating enemies, buying stuff from shops, getting upgrades to your arsenal along the way, as well as going through dungeon levels, fighting bosses at the end, and going through one side-scrolling platformer/shooter level right at the end of the game to finish things off. There is little to no change in this formula, and no new additions to Pit’s arsenal, but what the game does change are little things that most wouldn’t notice upon first playing.
First of all, the difficulty this time around is much more forgiving then that of the original. Yeah, it is still hard, but compared to what we had to go through in the original Kid Icarus, it is a lot more manageable, with changes such as enemies now being able to drop health, and you not dying whenever you fall down, which is a solid improvement overall. Not to mention, the bosses this time don’t suck… as much. They actually do provide a challenge this time around, despite their patterns not being too diverse, but they do have a new problem, that being they are now damage sponges. It takes a long time to kill any boss in this game, even with lots of upgrades, so if you are planning on taking on them all, prepare to be at it for a while.
And… that’s really all I can say in terms of the changes. Aside from what I mentioned, Pit’s new little flutter ability, the save feature, and the way levels are laid out, there really is nothing else that makes this entry stand out from the original, which could be seen as a problem for most people. Sure, other games can be pretty repetitive too when it comes to sequels, but at least in those sequels, there are always new powers to try out and new areas to go to in terms of level design and challenge, but this game, despite having those things, just feels like a complete retread of what we have already seen. There’s no wonder as to why nobody talks about this game alongside the other two, because it may as well just be a port of the original NES game.
Now, with that being said, in terms of which game I would say is better, I would say it is this game, but just like with Shinobi and Shadow Dancer, that is by a very SMALL margin. It is mainly the exact same experience as the original game, except this time with more balancing and tweaks to make things more bearable for the player, which isn’t bad, but again, a little more could’ve been done to make this title stand out more in comparison to the original, such as new weapons or new items, or maybe a separate new gameplay style, I dunno. That being said, anyone who enjoyed the original Kid Icarus will easily enjoy this game as well, and as the first handheld title in the series, it does do a great job at taking the gameplay of the original and putting it onto a Game Boy.
Overall, while it certainly isn’t the most creative sequel out there, Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters is still a pretty good game, even if it isn’t as noteworthy as many of the other games on the system. Oh well, I guess we will just wait to see how the third game wi- wait, what?... the series is going on hiatus for 21 years?....... well shit.
Game #205