Kid Icarus (NES) - Let's Play 1001 Games - Episode 28
13Ghost babies ruin everything!!!
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I'm Gaming Jay: Youtube gamer, let's player, retrogaming fan, and determined optimist... Join me in this series while I try out EVERY game in the book 1001 VIDEO GAMES YOU MUST PLAY BEFORE YOU DIE, before I die. The game review for each game will focus on the question of whether you MUST play this game before you die. But to be honest, the game reviews are just for fun, this series is more about the YouTube gamer journey. Let's try out those classic retro games we grew up with, have fond memories of, or heard of but never got a chance to try! And with that said, the game review for today is...
Kid Icarus
Released 1986
Developer(s) Nintendo R&D1
Platform(s) NES
Genre(s) Action, Platformer
Jay's Thoughts
Kid Icarus is a classic NES series that was never fully realized. As a kid, I never actually played Kid Icarus, but everyone knew the name and knew it was a decent Nintendo game. I never understood why they didn't follow it up with sequels the way they developed Mario, Zelda, and Metroid. But you know, sometimes you can never quite figure Nintendo out.
So Kid Icarus has you taking on the role of Pit, and working your way up a vertical platforming level as you take on snakes, grim reapers, weird flying eye balls, and ghost babies. I'm sure the enemies have real names, but hey, that's what they look like... ghost babies. The game itself is reminiscent of Metroid only with less of the free-roaming aspect. Levels are pretty linear but you collect "money" by picking up hearts that enemies leave when they die. I was never able to fully figure out how to buy anything at a store but with more practice I'm sure it would've been an interesting game mechanic.
I found the controls of Kid Icarus to be OK, but I know I died a lot too from missing jumps. A few enemies are tricky to get past as well, which lead to more deaths. All in all, Kid Icarus is a decent platformer with name-brand recognition. I can't help but feel if they had made sequels they would've refined the formula, reigned in the difficulty, and created a truly amazing game. As it is, because I didn't grow up with this game myself, I found it more challenging than I was hoping it would be. Kid Icarus did feel like a decent game, but I think there are better NES games out there.
Kid Icarus is a classic NES series that was never fully developed in sequels. It's strange considering its cult and iconic status. I'd never played Kid Icarus growing up and so playing it for this series was my first experience with it. I found the game to be quite challenging.
The basic idea is to climb up the level, the currency runs on hearts, the enemies are tricky but with enough practice I could see getting good at it. Is Kid Icarus a bad game? I don't think so. Is it great? I have some doubts. I would say it's a decent game and may be worth a try, especially if you like the old nintendo style of difficult yet interesting games.
➙ Must You Play It?
If you give this game a try, know you're getting into a difficult vertical platformer that has some pretty tricky enemies. That said, if you're up for the challenge it seems like it could be a very interesting game. For less devoted gamers however, watching someone else play may be the less frustrating way to experience this game.