Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters

Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters is the second installment of the Kid Icarus series, released on the Game Boy in November 1991 in North America and in May 1992 in Europe. The game wasn't made available in Japan until its Virtual Console release in February 2012, roughly one month before the release of Kid Icarus: Uprising, where it retained its English title.

Using the same engine as Metroid II: Return of Samus, the spritework appears larger and more detailed while the screen appears smaller in comparison to the original Kid Icarus.

Blurb
A Light-hearted Adventure With Mythical Challenges!

''All of Angel Land is up to its halos in woes! Mythical monsters are running rampant and Pit, the original Kid Icarus, must save the realm again. Armed with his trusty bow, he'll zap the bad guys and find the three magical treasures hidden by Palutena. Only after this grueling training will he be strong enough to take on the dark forces behind Angel Land's troubles.''

''Pit will encounter old friends and new enemies, from helpful Centurions to the dreaded Eggplant Wizard, as he journeys from the depths of the underworld to the towers of the sky palace. Find hammers to shatter special walls and reveal helpful items. Collect hearts by fighting off Pit's foes. Train hard and battle harder. Pit's challenges make the labors of Hercules look like a walk in the park!''

Plot
The Tale of Kid Icarus tells the events of the plot leading up to the start of the game. It is provided in the game's official manual.

The Tale of Kid Icarus
"Let us return to the past, a long long time ago, in an age when the Gods and Man lived together in harmony. At that time, there was a kingdom called "Angel Land" which was founded by the Goddess Palutena. Angel Land was a place where the sun was always shining and the people peacefully raised their crops. It was a good and happy place and a smile never left the face of Palutena as she watched over the country from The Sky Palace. But, one day her smile was wiped away as a result of a dream. A terrible dream, which seemed so real and was much more horrible than the worst nightmare. Calling a soothsayer to her, she asked him to unravel the dream and foretell what was to pass. Seemingly in pain, the soothsayer began to speak, "Angel Land will be attacked. Attacked by an invasion of demons from another world. Terrible demons by the name of O...Or...Orcos!" Upon uttering this name, the soothsayer was struck speechless, as voiceless as a stone.

Palutena immediately summoned Pit, the leader of the Icarus Army. The personal bodyguards of Palutena, the Icarus Army was responsible for guarding the peace in Angel Land and none took their job lightly. Upon arriving, Pit was asked to have a seat, a liberty not usually given by a Goddess. Looking directly into his eyes, Palutena began, "Pit! Thank you for coming. I have a task for you," she then told him of her dream and of the soothsayer. "Pit, this dream will come to pass. And, I believe that it will happen in the not-too-distant future. I trust you, but, you must tell no one else! News of these terrible demons will cast our peaceful Angel Land into chaos. I bid you now to begin training so that you may gain special magical power. I am placing all of my hopes and the fate of Angel Land on you Pit. You must be the one to battle the demons." Sitting back in her chair, Palutena continued, "Since the days of old, Angel Land has possessed The Three Sacred Treasures. These treasures, when worn, will give the wearer the special magical powers to battle any demon. Yet alas, poor Pit you do not yet have sufficient power to wear these Three Sacred Treasures."

So Pit, with the help of Palutena, devised a mission so that he might attain the power he needed to wear The Three Sacred Treasures. This mission was threefold: To battle his way up the Under World Tower, storm the Over World, and conquer the dizzying heights of the Sky World Tower. Only then would Pit have sufficient power to enter The Sky Palace and wear The Three Sacred Treasures. To keep The Three Sacred Treasures safe in case Angel Land was attacked while Pit was away on his mission, Palutena sealed them and sent one to each of the Fortress Guardians. She knew that once they had their hands on The Three Sacred Treasures, the Fortress Guardians would not give them up again without a fight. After Pit's mission of training was complete, and he had gained the ability to use The Three Sacred Treasures, the job to defend Angel Land from the Orcos would be his.

With this plan in mind, Palutena then dispatched Pit to the darkest depths of the Under World Tower.

You must help Pit on his life-or-death mission to collect The Three Sacred Treasures and return them quickly to the Sky Palace before the Orcos can overrun the land.

But.... Just what are the Orcos?!!!!!"

Gameplay
One of the biggest differences between this game and its predecessor is that Pit now has the ability to move in any direction without falling to his death. Pit's descent during a jump may also be slowed by repeatedly tapping the jump button to flap his wings, and he no longer takes an extra step when landing from a jump. However, he can no longer move while crouching.

Though Pit's life bar functionality hasn't changed, Pit now has three lives and will restart at the beginning of the current stage if defeated. If all three are consumed, he must restart from the last save point.

To obtain more segments of health, Pit must attain these total scores:
 * 2 Life Blocks: 4350
 * 3 Life Blocks: 9370
 * 4 Life Blocks: 18900
 * 5 Life Blocks: 28680

Pit can obtain three different weapons from Sacred Training Chambers, each of which requires a different amount of health to activate. Once obtained, the Fire Arrow will activate when Pit reaches two full segments of health, the Long Bow requires three, and the Protective Crystals needs a total of four full segments to activate.

Over the course of the game, Pit will proceed through each world and their four stages and obtain the Sacred Caskets guarded by the Fortress Guardians. He'll gain the ability to use the Sacred Treasures depending on his performance, though he'll always be allowed to use the Wings of Pegasus. Even if he doesn't qualify for use of some of the Treasures, Zeus will give him a second chance in two training rooms located in the last stage.

Rooms
Though doors seal like in the first Kid Icarus, Pit now has the option to use a Key to re-open a door. Rooms include:
 * Bat Chamber
 * Information Center
 * Hospital
 * Hot Springs
 * Sacred Chamber
 * Sacred Training Chamber
 * Store
 * Treasure Chamber

Items
Pit has a variety of items at his disposal. Some are earned in Sacred Training Chambers, some are discovered in Treasure Chambers, and others must be bought with Hearts in a variety of Stores.

Weapons
Unlike the previous adventure, weapons are not disabled in Fortresses and function depending on Pit's health. Each weapon requires a certain amount of health and cease to function if Pit's life dips below that point.
 * Arrow of Strength
 * Fire Arrow
 * Protective Crystal
 * Long Bow

Regular Items

 * Feather
 * Credit Card
 * Harp
 * Hammer
 * Key
 * Palutena's Key

Fortress Items

 * Check Sheet
 * Pencil
 * Torch

Recovery Items

 * Water of Life
 * Water Barrel

Under World Tower

 * Cyclops Skull
 * King Krab
 * Minotaur
 * Wormser

Over World

 * Big Toe
 * Cyclops Hopper
 * Globe
 * Gruff
 * Skull Wing
 * Sticky Talon

Sky World Tower

 * Fire Serpent
 * Komayto
 * Lunus
 * Merc
 * Octus

Sky Palace

 * Busy Bee
 * Orcos
 * Putt
 * Pythagoras
 * Shadow Mask

Fortress

 * Eggplant Wizard
 * Fireball
 * Fuzz Ball
 * Gubble
 * Slime
 * Spunky
 * Stone Golem

Multiple Areas

 * Bat
 * Reaper & Reapette
 * Snake
 * Spitball Blob
 * Totem

Trivia

 * There is confusion about whether or not this game is considered a sequel to the original Kid Icarus, since Of Myths and Monsters was initially released in North America and Europe, and only came out in Japan a month before the release of Kid Icarus: Uprising. As a result, Uprising makes no references to Of Myths and Monsters, and seems to disregard it entirely as it deems itself the official sequel to the first game.