It may be an "Angel Land Story", but you'll be lucky to see the pearly white gates when Pit is done with you.
Medusa, the goddess of darkness who was banished by Palutena, Angel Land's goddess of light, has returned from the dark Underworld to wage war on Angel Land and all of its inhabitants. This hostile takeover results in the defeat of Palutena's army, Palutena's capture, and the stealing of the Three Sacred Treasures. With the last of her strength, Palutena sends a magical bow to Pit, a flightless and imprisoned angel. Pit is now tasked with defeating Medusa and recovering the Three Sacred Treasures.
If you're a fan of mythology, you'll probably notice that most of Kid Icarus is rooted in Greek myths and legends. From Pit's rogue gallery, to Medusa, to items such as the Pegasus Wings, to Pit's own origins (Icarus and Eros), you'll see that similar to how The Legend of Zelda is rooted in the mysteries of Japanese mountainsides, Kid Icarus stems from extraordinary, yet plausible, Greek lore. Simply put, it's a cool and interesting spin on mythology.
Gameplay could perhaps be described as a fusion of Mario, Zelda, and Metroid. Pit's main goal to successfully traverse through each of the game's levels. Unlike most platformers, Pit must trek in all directions (up, down, left, and right) in order to bring peace to Angel Land. Of course, various underlings (and bosses) will stand in Pit's way. Luckily, Pit is equipped with a bow (among other items) to help him take out the trash. Along the way, Pit will eventually retrieve the Three Sacred Treasures, granting him new abilities such as flight. And if that wasn't enough (and it probably won't be), various rooms and shops along the way will provide Pit with useful items and powerups.
Sure, it seems simple enough, but the implementation is another story. It will definitely take awhile for you to get the swing of things regardless of how great a gamer you are. This can be attributed to one main fact: Pit is severely underpowered from the start and game throws blisteringly-fast curveballs at you from the start. Since Pit won't start to gain the means to effectively defeat his enemies (i.e. increased attack power, attack range, defensive power, and health) until the end of the first world, the first three or four levels will be like a one-way bullet train to hell. And that's putting it nicely.
Plus, unlike the sequel (Of Myths and Monsters), Pit lacks the ability to flap his wings in order to slow his descent. On top of that, none of the platforming stages scroll in all directions. That can lead to many a death when you miss a jump while trying to ascend. And since the only checkpoints in the game exist through a password system, you'll find yourself dying many a death at very inopportune times.
However, if you should make it past the Underworld (with the right equipment, may I add), the rest of the game should somewhat mellow out. The game will still be tough, but it won't be unbearable.
The graphics are very similar to that of Metroid. Go figure; the two games share the same engine. It's quite nice, even though the amount of detail fluctuates from character to character.
I must applaud the musical score. It's colorful, happy-go-lucky, and gives off this high-flying vibe. If there's one reason to pick up this game, it's definitely the music.
After my time with Kid Icarus, I can understand why Metroid overshadowed Pit's angelic adventure. Don't get me wrong; Pit Icarus is a good game, but it's not nearly as great as people say. If you can handle the spike in difficulty from the start without having to sell your soul, then go ahead.