...It feels uncalculated in a way that very few games do anymore. It's unlike any other game currently available for the 3DS, and is fundamentally fun to play despite its flaws. And so while the adage "Your mileage may vary" is particular true in this case, I have gotten a good number of miles out of Kid Icarus: Uprising, and when I look to the future, all I see are more miles, stretching out to the horizon.
Kid Icarus: Uprising was always going to be a risky move from Nintendo, pegging it as one of the key Nintendo 3DS titles right from launch, but thankfully it was delayed long enough for Masahiro Sakurai and his team at Sora Ltd to spend sufficient time ironing out as many of the issues raised in early preview builds as possible.
I already know reactions to this game will be polarized, and it basically comes down to whether people can get used to those (again, admittedly) uncomfortable controls. And I feel a little embarrassed, exposed even, to see myself on the positive side of that divide. But I can't help but be glad I stuck it out through the overlong adjustment period. The upbeat, funny, deep action game that comes after is totally worth the investment.
It won't be long now before stateside gamers have their hands on Kid Icarus Uprising - the first new entry in the series for more than 20 years. You could spend the rest of your Icarus-less time replaying Metroid Prime Hunters and developing stylus strategies for minimum hand discomfort or, instead, you could mosey on down to the videos below for a sneak peek at a few of the things you can look forward to in Pit's soaring adventure...
That image above is from Sakurai's Twitter. Looks like he has 9 3DS' and 9 copies of Kid Icarus: Uprising. I guess he's already set up for local multiplayer when friends come over!
Multiplayer (1/2): You can generate computer players in Light vs. Dark when you can't get enough people to join. You can have anywhere from 2 to 6 players in a Free-for-All match with the CPUs filling the empty spots.
Weapon: Atlas Club shots don't pass through obstacles, but its dash attacks travel fast with a high homing ability.
Weapon: Switch to continuous fire after raising a shield by firing a charged shot from the Guardian Orbitars.