3D Classics: Kid Icarus

The title card in the North American version of the 3D Classics: Kid Icarus.

3D Classics: Kid Icarus (3Dクラシックス 光神話 パルテナの鏡, Hikari Shinwa: Palutena no Kagami) is an enhanced port of the original Kid Icarus optimized for the Nintendo 3DS, developed by Arika. The game was released on the Nintendo eShop in Europe on January 5, 2012, in Japan on January 18, 2012, and in North America on March 23, 2012. It was released on the same day as Kid Icarus: Uprising in North America, and some stores offered the game as a free download with a pre-order of Uprising. In Europe, the game was given away in the form of a download code to users who registered two eligible 3DS games between November 1, 2011 and January 31, 2012 through Club Nintendo, Though the game plays identically to the NES original, new features have been added.

Changes from the NES version

• The Password feature in the US version has been removed. Game progress is now saved through internal data, just like in the Japanese Famicom Disk System version. Because of this, passwords are removed from the Game Over screen and replaced with "Continue" and "End" options.
• The player can enter his or her name, which is what in-game characters will refer to Pit as.
• The empty, black backgrounds have been filled in with various scenery, though the actual sprites remain unaltered. Levels now have day and night cycles.
• Stereoscopic 3D has been implemented, providing the illusion of depth between the foreground sprites and the level backgrounds.
• It added the Family Computer Disk System's extra sound channel for music and sound effects.
• The game has a new title screen, and a new music track as with previous 3D Classics games.
• The game has a new pause screen, displayed on the 3DS's touchscreen, which oddly, is disabled from usage on this menu. The new pause menu has two options; "Continue" and "End."
• The addition of a "Records" menu which notes the player's best score for every playthrough.

Gameplay differences

• There are two different control modes, Classic and Custom. Custom Mode changes the parameters of Pit's abilities to provide easier control over him, whereas Classic Mode retains the control limitations of the original game. In Custom Mode:
  • Pit moves with greater and more responsive speed.
  • There is less momentum in Pit's moving and jumping, allowing for more accurate stopping.
  • Pit can fire arrows repeatedly and more quickly by holding the Fire Button.
  • When falling, Pit can slow his descent by holding the Jump Button.
  • Pit is able to jump while aiming his bow upwards.
• Reapers no longer turn around to the direction they've been shot in the back at and will continue their path.
• The default weapon switch (from bow to mallet) is set to "Y" instead of "Select" be default.
• Extra life bars now come with full health for that bar when they are obtained.
• Since there is no Controller 2 for this version, the Intimidation trick for Stores is now done by pressing the "A" and "Start" buttons simultaneously.
• There is no longer a half-second pause when Pit exits Chambers, unlike in the original.
• Pit's arrows shoot farther into thin platforms, so Pit can damage enemies who are walking on certain thin platforms (such as ice or the orange platforms in Fortresses) above him.
• There is no longer a "New Game Plus" feature. In the original, Pit automatically restarts at 1-1 with item and upgrade he had obtained when Medusa was defeated. In the 3D Classics version, he restarts at 1-1 with no items or upgrades.

Gallery

The title card in the Japanese version of the 3D Classics: Kid Icarus.

The title card in the title selection in the Japanese version.

Video

Nintendo 3DS - 3D Classics- Kid Icarus How to Play Video

Trivia

• Due to the added scenery and progressing day and night cycles of each level—Overworld starting sunny and turning to night, Skyworld beginning with a starry night and shifting to daylight, and Palace in the Sky set at night again—it seems that the events of Kid Icarus take place over a two-day period.
• The original NES version of Kid Icarus is not available for the NES Virtual Console for the Nintendo 3DS, making this version the only way to play Kid Icarus on the system.
• Due to the closure of the Nintendo 3DS iteration of the Nintendo eShop on March 27, 2023, this version of the game is no longer able to be purchased.

External Links

• North American website of 3D Classics: Kid Icarus
• Japanese website of 3D Classics: Hikari Shinwa: Palutena no Kagami