Kid Icarus: Uprising is the welcomed return of a nearly forgotten hero.
After 25 years, the dreaded Medusa has been resurrected and seeks to reek havoc on the humans. So it's up to Pit, along with the guide of the goddess of light Palutena, to defeat Medusa and her forces of darkness. The story seems rather simple at first, but actually becomes much more expansive as you progress and manages to squeeze some surprising plot turns. It's a lighthearted and entertaining story filled to the brim with breaks through the fourth wall and a number of references to video games and pop culture. The often hilarious dialogue and story are excellently told through solid voice acting that perfectly fit the characters and tone of the game. It's a surprisingly long game that covers 25 chapters and can take you roughly eight hours to beat the game the first time through.
Gameplay in Kid Icarus: Uprising is divided into two fast-paced gameplay styles. The first half of a level has you control Pit through exciting on-rails sections as you shoot your way through enemies and avoid obstacles. It's a style that feels like a mix of Nintendo's hit Star Fox series and Sin and Punishment games. These sections typically last about five minutes (given the fact that Pit's wings would burn up around then). After that we go down to the ground and play the second part of the level. On foot, you control Pit from a 3rd person perspective where you navigate through linear levels destroying enemies. At the end of each level is where you will square off against a boss.
The game's biggest problem stems from it's control scheme. The controls themselves work perfectly fine for what they need to do, but the way you control your character feels rather uncomfortable. The default control scheme has you using the circle pad to move Pit, the L button to fire your weapon, and the stylus to control your aim (and direction while on foot). Having the weight forced on one hand can get very tiring very quickly. This especially becomes an issue for the on-foot combat. The most comfortable way to play this game is by using the 3DS stand. The game also allows you to customize the controls to your liking as well, but the default controls seem the most accurate.
The game offers a few good reasons to replay levels in the story. The levels are not only fun to replay to gain a higher score, but the game offers up a unique difficulty setting and tons of weapons. Before the start of each level you are shown an intensity meter from 1-9. The higher up on the scale you go, the more challenging the levels become and there are more hearts and rewards you can potentially receive. Certain passages in levels even require you to be at a certain difficulty. If you were to die during the stage, your difficulty will be dropped down and you will lose hearts.
Kid Icarus: Uprising offers tons of weapons to use in battle. The weapons come in several types ranging from bows, to claws, to clubs, to staffs, etc. Each weapon has their own strengths and weaknesses in regards to melee and ranged attacks, as well as secondary effects like poison or confusion. You can either buy weapons, obtain weapons in the levels, or fuse two weapons together to create a new one. In addition to weapons you can also add in secondary abilities, like added armor or regenerating health. However, you can only use them a limited number of times. The sheer variety of weapons you obtain or create encourages you to try them in the single player as well as its multiplayer.
Multiplayer offers two modes: Free-For-All and Light Vs. Dark. Free-For-All obviously has you duking it out with everyone available whereas Light Vs. Dark has you in one of two teams with three players each. Your goal in Light Vs. Dark is to defeat the opposing side and have their life bar depleted. Once that happens, the losing side has one player turn into either Pit or Dark Pit. The losing side is defeated completely when the angel is defeated. Both modes allow you to bring in your own weapons and secondary abilities. Both multiplayer components are rather fun and can offer some intense competition. Both modes can be played either locally or through Wi-Fi.
This is certainly one of the best looking games on the 3DS. It's technically on par with that of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and features vibrant colors and a unique art design. The game also features a fantastic soundtrack filled with orchestral pieces and guitar riffs, as well as returning pieces from the original Kid Icarus game.
To sum things up:
PROS:
-Entertaining story
-Great voice acting and hilarious dialog
-Fun, fast-paced gameplay
-Great soundtrack
-Fun multiplayer
CONS:
-Uncomfortable control setup
If you can deal with the occasionally tiresome controls, you are going to find a lot to like in Kid Icarus: Uprising.