isn't it counterproductive to tell people the game is 9 chapters short if you want it to do well

25

feathers

25

it's a terrible gimmick level that disposes of all the great gameplay elements from the rest of the game in favor of terrible flight portions, endlessly immediately respawning annoying ass lasers, no special attack to help clear shit away, and tons of cinematic breaks that were cute the first time but incredibly annoying now.

- Thanatos "now approaching 3rd floor" and his bat sounds
- Hades.
- Pit alone inside Hades impersates Plautena

Phosphora Bow,

Chapter 20

hard boss rush

It's intense but it's not too bad if you're always on the move. The whole time I just moved around so it would be harder to get hit. Outside of that just be quick and accurate with your shots. Also be really careful in the last bit. I had problems because I thought past hades eye lazer but I was closer to it than I thought.

25

the idiot but B^) in me thought the space invaders were gonna be star fox snes enemies and andross the end boss :O , but lol Pyro had to go in and fuse

Exotank, Cherobot, and Ring boxes? Also, does it mean just running into things with the Exotank, or killing them with the boost button speed?

Boss Battles on hard

get past the Great Reaper.

Hewdraw's part. I did all the Ring boxes on that one and the Cherobot ones naturally on the Reset bomb factory. Sadly, I'm just as stuck as you on the Exotank boxes

Let's start off with the story. Now this is probably the most un-Nintendo story that has ever been put on a Nintendo explain. Now I'm not saying that Nintendo games have never had good and deep stories, the Paper Mario games are testament enough to that, but it's the overall "feel" of the production. I mean just look at the voice cast and the lines upon lines of spoken dialogue, have Nintendo ever really done that before? I mean, you could say that Other M was another example, but Uprising is well...good. Not just good, fantastic, in terms of story.

That's not to say the story is particularly deep, it's very much played like a Saturday morning cartoon, with plots and villains coming at you at a breakneck pace. Seriously, this game doesn't waste time on trivial matters, it gets more and more epic and involved as it progresses. I mean seriously, Medusa is really own a prelude to everything that happens next, and she was meant to be the big bad guy! The story will leave you breathless, perhaps even exhausted.

But My God, the story just soo entertaining to actually witness. I think this is mostly due to the characters. Holy hell did they get this right. Every character, and I literally mean every character is instantly memorable and well-written. This is probably one of the few games in which I can remember each character, even if they appeared for the best part of a few seconds. Not one of these characters is wasted. I would try and list all the best ones, but they're all of such a good standard that it makes it difficult.

Pit, Dark Pit, Viridi, Hades, Medua, Pyrrhon, Thanatos, Pandora, Phosphura, Arlon, Magnus...do you see show many I've listed? And I mean, that's not in any particular order, these characters are just as fanfastic as ever. But of course, if I had to pick out one standout, it would be Palutena. She's just brilliant. The way she teases and even torments Pit is hillarious to watch, but the bond that the two obviously share is heartwarming. It also helps that she has many of the best lines in the script.

That leads me to the writing. Part of what makes the characters so great is the lines they have. This game is hillarious, whether it be through Pit's corny one-liners to some nice Nintendo references, I usually had a big grin on my face whenever the characters spoke. And since the characters speak a lot, you can imagine what I was like most of the time. Again, there are far too many to list in order to give a proper scope to how funny this game is. There really is some brilliant banter here, especially between the various gods and Pit.

But the game doesn't just excel at humor. The way it's written actually gives the characters some nice nuances and hidden depths. Pit and Palutena's relationship. Viridi's hypocritical hatred of humans....these characters aren't just vehicles to spout joke after joke. They all have their own flaws, strengths and weaknesses. A lot of the time this is played for laughs, but it's never treated without care.

The writing highlight (and arguably of the entire game) is Chapter 18. This is probably one of my favourite Nintendo moments ever. It's just breathtaking, seeing Pit so helpless, having his faith in Palutena strained to the very limit. Chapter 18 also remembers to keep the humor, as well as establishing new alliances as well as reinforcing some old ones. The amazing thing is, that despite it being obvious that Palutena is being possessed at this point, the previous chapters make sure to sow that tiny little seed of doubt in your mind. In essence, you go through the same journey as Pit does through the whole chapter, both in terms of gameplay and story. Not many games do this, and to see it happen in a Kid Icarus game of all things? Just wow.

Oh, and the story was also written by Sakurai himself. Y'know, the same guy who gave us the Subspace Emissary. My mind was blown, I seriously hope this guy continues to do so. I would love to see what he could do with Smash Bros.

Voice acting also deserves a lot of credit. Y'see Nintendo, this is what you get when you hire people with a bit of talent and experience. I mean just look at the names on the cast: Ali Hillis, Troy Baker, Kari Wahlgren, Fred Tatasciore, Cree Summer, Hynden Walch....there's a lot of talent on display here, and they all do very well. Even newbies such as Anthony Del Rio (Pit) do a great job. I don't think there was one bad performance in the entire game, which says a lot considering how much these characters talk. Again, standout performance goes to HIllis for Palutena, but again she has the advantage of having so many good lines to play with.

Now enough about story, let's move on to gameplay. As we all probably know, the gameplay is split into three sections: Air, Land, Boss. The air sections are much like Star Fox, in which Pit is on-rails while you shoot and dodge. The ground sections actually have you control Pit on the ground as you make you way to the boss, defeating enemies as you go. The Boss sections is obvious: you fight a boss. Each chapter follows this pattern, but there are some mixups here and there to keep things fresh.

Let me just first say that the air sections are great. Pit controls almost flawlessly as you duck, weave and shoot the oncoming Underworld army. They'll keep you on your toes as well, these enemies don't pussyfoot around. You make mistakes, and you WILL die. Intense stuff.

The ground sections are my favourite part however. Now I know that's probably the minority, but it's probably because I attuned to the controls almost instantly. These sections are just as intense as the air sections, but have much more variety in gameplay. Whether you be storming a fortified castle, plundering a spaceship, or stealthily avoiding Reapers, no ground section is ever the same, and they're exceedingly fun. The bosses are also fantastic, with 25 (yes, you read that correctly) that all require different strategies to defeat. I believe all the bosses are unique as well, though you do fight some bosses more than once. But still, you fight Medusa, Hades, Palutena and Pit! In the same game! It's just mesmerising how many bosses there are, yet they've sacrificed nothing in terms of variety.

Speaking of variety, let me briefly go over the weapon system. Now I haven't unlocked everything yet, not even close,but my god there's a lot of things to blow shit up with in this game. There are 9 weapon types, all with varying strengths and weaknesses that can be suited to your playstyle. From clubs to bows to blades, this game gives a lot of impetus to the player to experiment with what is best to go forward. I believe there are 12 weapons for each class, which equals out to around 108 weapons (don't quote me on that though), add to the fact that you can fuse the weapons to make them stronger, and you have a surprisingly deep weapon system. Did I also mention powers? Things like super-speed, healing, mega lasers...you can kit Pit out with some pretty impressive loadouts, all tailored to how you want to play.

Another way in which the player is given room for experimentation is through the intensity system. I seriously hope future games use this as the standard, because it just works so well. Wanna have a nice gentle stroll through, appreciating the story and set pieces? Go ahead. Want a balls to the walls hardcore experience where one mistake can send Pit to his doom? You can have that too. The game never judges you for playing the way you want, which I think is great. The fact the game accommodates for what you find fun rather than making the player accommodate feels surprisingly fresh. The risk-reward system is also a great incentive to reply, as higher intensity grants you better weapons and more hearts. The highest I've successfully passed is 7. 9 completely owned me. This is the most hardcore game that Nintendo has released in a long time, and if you so choose, you don't even heve to notice it! Genius.

The multiplayer is also frantic and fun. I originally though it would be a throwaway mode, but its reliance on the weapon and powers system give the mode some fantastic depth. It's also nicely balanced in terms of gameplay, with the weapon value taken into account in Light vs Dark mode. You can have the best weapon in the game, but if you mess up, it will cost your team dearly. Like the singleplayer, there's a risk-reward element to the multiplayer, which makes it all the more engaging.

Now for presentation. At this present moment, this is the 3DS equivalent to Mario Galaxy in my eyes. The music is one of the best soundtracks produced by Nintendo. From the kicking orchestra theme, the somber notes of Chapter to 18 to the rocking guitars of the boss music, all the tunes are hugely memorable and very listenable. I especially love Dark Pit's theme and the aforementioned Boss Fight theme. They even use old NES samples to great effect. Amazing stuff. I've already mentioned the great voice acting, so I'll skip to the graphics.

Again with the Mario Galaxy comparison, I think this game is the prettiest on 3DS by far. Okay, it might not be as technically good as something like Revelations, but godamn this game is a sight to behold. The characters animate beautifully, both through their 3D models and the 2D drawn ones on the bottom screen. It helps that the design is mostly spot-on as well. Viridi is adorable. while Hades is flamboyantly macho in this animations and design. The amount of graphical variety is also staggering. From burning towns, space flotillas, azure oceans, and techno palaces, this game is just beautiful in every respect without getting repetitive.

Okay, I think I'm done gushing. Is this game perfect? No. While the controls were easy for me, there is definitely a learning curve to the "spin the globe camera" and aiming. I feel that they have a love it/hate it vibe, which is a crying shame for all those who'll dislike it. They're missing out on one hell of an experience. I didn't get hand cramps personally, but I can totally see why some would. I think a dual-analog option should have been made available, but I hope most will persevere. Other nitpicks could be that the characters talk too much, but personally that's no bother considering the quality of the script. Also, some Chapters run for what feels like forever. It's fine because the game is so fun to me, but others may get a sense of tedium.

But honestly, this game is just stunning. Pure brilliance on every level, Nintendo at its best. Sakurai, I commend you. I eagerly look forward to Smash Bros if you're in this form

14

15

14

Rings of Chaos (the chapter 18 flight theme)

Hades' theme

the Chaos Vortex

Chapter 23, when you're going to fight Hades

Viridii is so incredibly tsundere and a complete ロリババァ in Japanese, can't have enough of her!