Once in a while there’s a game that’s part of a popular franchise that somehow goes under the radar. For some reason or another, people just pass it by even if it’s a good game. Recently Nintendo released a 3DS follow up to a game series that seemed to be lost in the past. Even if it gives me hand cramps, it was an amazing follow up, and is one of my favorite games on the system. I’m talking about Kid Icarus. And when Kid Icarus: Uprising came out, I heard from so many people “It’s about time they made a second one!”. Well, Pit actually battled it out against the baddies in 1991 on the original Game Boy, in all of it’s creamed spinach colored glory.
Get ready to draw back your bow once again!
Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, much like Metroid II of the same era, was a full fledged sequel to the original NES game. Unfortunately there were a lot of half-assed rehashes of NES games showing up on the Game Boy around the same time, which probably explains its obscurity. It wasn’t published in Japan until the 2012 Virtual Console release, making it one of the very few first-party Nintendo games to be released only in the west.
Watch out for falling…..feet? What is this, Monty Python?
Medusa isn’t your nemesis this time around. Instead we have the demon Orcos, also from Greek Mythology. In short, the Goddess Palutena has a nightmare about Orcos’ invading forces, and sends Pit on a training mission where he must once again gather the three sacred treasures to aid him in repelling the onslaught from Orcos. Except this time, the three sacred treasures weren’t stolen. Palutena put them in dungeons to keep them safe and had them protected by guardians. It seems a bit roundabout, but hey, we need a reason to go into labyrinths and slay those guardians who, from what I understand, are in Palutena’s employ.
Kill it! Kill it with fire! That’s what those arrows are for!
Most of the same gameplay elements from the original are here. Getting arrows from Zeus to give you power ups and passing his tests to get your other power ups, treasure rooms, the guys that steal your gear and sell it to the shops. You name it, it’s here. Except for Medusa. She’s not here. Eggplant wizard is, though. Yay.
Similar to the original, the concept is that you run through the levels shooting enemies with your bow while collecting hearts for money. In the vertical levels, you’ll find that you no longer die if you fall below where the screen has scrolled. You can backtrack all the way to the beginning of a level. This gives the opportunity for a lot more hidden areas and secrets, and there’s plenty of them. Pit also mostly stays in the center of the screen this time, and the screen will scroll freely left and right during the horizontal levels.
Happy little moon, just hanging out!
The control has been completely overhauled from the original, and the result is amazing. The original was very stiff, but this is smooth and precise. Jumping is a lot more accurate, and so is shooting. Of Myths and Monsters is generally a lot more forgiving than the original, which does make it a bit easier. The challenge is still there, though. The password system is also ditched in favor of a save system. However, you only get one slot which is kind of a bummer. You also have multiple lives, so you’re never “finished.”
Eggplant Wizards! Oh god, no!!
The graphics are impressive for an early generation Game Boy game. Again, just like the control, the graphics are leaps and bounds above the NES game which was unusual to see at the time. It looked good in black-and-white, but I’d love to see what a colorized version would be like. Everything is big and detailed, especially the final boss. However, a lot of the same goofy sprites aren’t here. What we do have looks good, but just isn’t quite as charming as the first game. That’s okay, I guess since they were Medusa’s guys in the first one, and Orcos’ in the second. But we still have Death, eggplant wizards, and the things that look like metroids but aren’t.
Trapped between a rock and…whatever that guy is.
The NES soundtrack has pieces bordering on iconic. Unfortunately the Game Boy version doesn’t really play much of a homage to it until the very end. I thought the music was very good. In fact some of it is better than the original, particularly the labyrinth music. The music in the third labyrinth is just downright creepy. However, it’s just not as memorable as the music in the original. Most people will say that’s because of nostalgia, but I actually played Of Myths and Monsters first. For fans, when you do finally hear the title music from the original, it’s going to pull at the heart strings. It’s a nice treat.
With a target this big, I guess I don’t need to be too accurate.
The Game Boy had an impressive lifespan so there’s a lot of games out there that I’d list as “must owns”. Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters is near the top of that list, along with The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, and Metroid II. It’s a solid classic, and I don’t know why so many people missed it when it came out. Maybe a lot of people who had an NES didn’t have a Game Boy? There weren’t any commercials for it, like Metroid 2, so unless you picked up a Nintendo Power people may not have known about it. I talk to so many Kid Icarus fans, even people with a tattoo of Pit, who not only have never played Of Myths and Monsters, but never knew it existed! If you liked the original at all, you don’t want to miss out on it. The Game Boy cart, as far as I know, never had a reprinting, so it’s a bit hard to track down. Fortunately, if you own a 3DS you can buy it on the Virtual Console.
I love the reference to the myth of Icarus at the end.
Remember it? Enjoy it? Get your long bow sold to the black market and want to lament? I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below or hit me up on Facebook or Twitter?
