Reboot: Kid Icarus Wii

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In late 1986, Nintendo's Research and Development 1 unit, led by Game Boy creator Gunpei Yokoi, was about to release two very ambitious projects for its Famicom game system in Japan. The first, directed by Yoshio Sakamoto, starred a space bounty hunter named Samus Aran. The second, helmed by Satoru Okada, featured an angel named Pit on a quest to save his beloved goddess. Created by nearly identical development teams and utilizing the same game engine, Metroid shipped in August and Kid Icarus in December. Both games debuted in America the next year -- only a month apart. Despite so many commonalities, the Metroid series has not only survived the decades with notable sequels or spin-offs on Super NES, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance and DS, but has also seen a revolutionary rebirth in 3D for GameCube and Wii. Meanwhile, Kid Icarus was granted only one sequel for Game Boy in 1991, and again, it used a game engine originally created for a Metroid title.

No doubt, Metroid has overshadowed Kid Icarus since both franchises launched, a truth that I feel is well-deserved. Stacked side-by-side, Metroid is simply the better game, not only exuding a more thoughtful balance, but tighter play controls, a more compelling universe and a more satisfying re-traversal design. At the same time, Kid Icarus remains one of my favorite NES releases, a true classic full of tricky platforming made all the more difficult by an unforgiving stage setup that repeatedly dares you to trek on, time and time again, having just fallen to your doom or been struck down by one of the many mythological enemies. I think one of Kid's biggest issues throughout the years is that is has by and large proven too damned hard for most players. I invite you to download the Virtual Console title and play through the first four stages of the opening world to discover for yourself just how challenging it really is.
Pit, as seen in the manual for the original Kid Icarus

For years, every time I would sit down to interview Nintendo's legendary designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, I would always reserve at least one question for Metroid. "When will we get a new Samus Aran game?" I asked from the early days of Nintendo 64 and when the series finally showed up again courtesy Retro Studios, I stopped badgering the poor guy about Samus and shifted my focus instead to Pit. At E3 2005, Miyamoto responded to my query for a Wii Kid Icarus title by in return asking if we would play such a game if Nintendo published it. Absolutely, I said. "Well, obviously we can't ignore that," Miyamoto mused. "Okay, we'll get the Eggplant Wizard coming back."

A lot has happened since E3 2005, and several news outlets, IGN included, have heard from sources that Nintendo may have tapped development studio Factor 5, a longtime partner, to bring Pit to the third dimension. Die-hard Nintendo fans will remember that Factor 5 not only co-developed the audio solution for GameCube, but pushed both N64 and GCN to the max with graphically stunning titles like Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. These guys are old-school coders who understand how to get the most out of GameCube (and in turn Wii) better than just about everybody out there, perhaps even Nintendo. Confident in the various information I'd come by, I chatted with Miyamoto again at E3 2008 and pressed him on the issue of Kid Icarus for Wii. I've linked his response and suggest you read it. In no way did he confirm that such a title was under development, but neither did he deny it. And to really understand the potentially hidden meaning behind his responses, you had to be there to see him smiling as he seemed to think of ways to sidestep the questions.
The cancelled GCN project Dead Phoenix. Click on the image to watch the trailer.

Obviously, I do believe that Kid Icarus for Wii is not merely a possibility but a rapidly approaching eventuality. The question is, how do you reboot a franchise that has been on hiatus (at least for the most part) for the better half of the last two decades? I think the answers lay within the parallels that can be drawn between the Kid Icarus and Metroid franchises and also within what we know about the companies allegedly designing this newest Wii effort.

Prior to the launch of GameCube, few purists really believed that Retro Studios would be able to effectively translate the Metroid series into the third-dimension. I knew many of the developer's founding members very well, having enjoyed a close relationship with them when they worked for other companies like Iguana Entertainment, and even I was skeptical. But like Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time before it, Metroid Prime delivered and was, to me, revolutionary. I've always been religiously devoted to the series, mind you, but Retro's first-person adventure was executed so brilliantly that it is to this day my favorite game, dethroning Super Metroid for the title. And Retro pulled it off by boldly throwing the presentation of the games out the window, attempting to really immerse players with a inside-the-visor viewpoint. Might a Kid Icarus sequel prove so brave or might it instead stay true to the roots of the series?
"I'd love to see Kid Icarus remain 2D, at least as far as gameplay goes. The series and 2D still have a lot of steam left and Swedish developer, Grin, did an amazing thing for the Bionic Commando series with Rearmed. But honestly, that probably isn't nearly epic enough, even if another 2D-style Kid Icarus would be a nice way to segue into something larger," says Tyrone Rodriguez, head of development studio Nicalis, presently underway with Cave Story for WiiWare.
A 2D Icarus would definitely be true to form, but I agree with Rodriguez that such a project would probably not prove revolutionary enough to satisfy today's Wii owner. A 2D side quest would make an excellent companion piece, ideally delivered as a downloadable over Nintendo's WiiWare service. However, if Factor 5 really is involved, I doubt the studio would so willingly travel back to its 2D days when it has made a name for itself pioneering 3D engines. Say what you will about Lair for PlayStation 3, but the title featured some pretty impressive 3D tech, especially when you consider it was made by a company working on a difficult-to-program-for new hardware and also for said system's launch window.
Pit's rebirth in 3D is a potentiality that has me excited, not nervous. If you take a very high level view of the series, ignoring some of the fundamental play mechanics of the original game, it's an undertaking entirely possible and already proven -- kind of, anyway. Capcom did it with the cancelled GameCube project Dead Phoenix, an ambitious action title featuring a winged hero capable of mid-air combat. See the game in motion for yourself. Dead Phoenix was an exciting title that sadly never came to fruition, but over the years fans have never stopped asking about it and neither have they ceased to speculate that it might've been terminated to make way for a Kid Icarus game instead.
The whimsical presentation from the original game.

The thing is, that is Kid Icarus from the clouds -- literally, I suppose. But when you sit down with the original title, you quickly discover that while it does star an angel who eventually takes flight, the bulk of the game revolves around platforming. Incredibly challenging platforming at times. And this is where some hard choices will undoubtedly need to be made from a development standpoint -- ones bound to change the entire nature of the end experience. For a 3D Icarus to stay true to its roots in the same way that Prime did its classic predecessor, the Wii title will need to include, if not center on a high amount of tricky platforming obstacles. Pit jumping across chasms, using his underdeveloped wings to glide softly to the next pillar when necessary. In other words, a lot of on-ground work. And with all due respect to rumored developer Factor 5, well, this hasn't traditionally been the company's forte, as the character-based missions in Rogue Squadron 3 demonstrated.

To be fair, Rogue Squadron 3 is a generation old and while Lair had significant camera and a few control issues by all accounts, it also showed noted improvements where character weight and physics were concerned. It was much more realistic than controlling an X-Wing in Squadron, whose lack of authentic vehicular momentum made it possible to turn or flip in any direction without believable consequence. I bring this up only because I think a genuine sense of weight and momentum represents half the battle in fostering immersive platform elements in a title like Kid Icarus. As Pit floats toward a platform, you need controllable weight. I liken it to Joust in 3D, flapping about until you're able to touch down precisely on the desired platform.
The alternative, of course, is to take exclusively to the skies, effectively realizing the vision that Capcom had but never fully executed with Dead Phoenix. A game about flight and mid-air combat. A game that would certainly capitalize on all of the developer's knowledge of flying-based scenarios, whether X-Wings or dragons. And one sure to push the boundaries of what is technically possible on Nintendo's latest console.
The original Kid Icarus featured a compelling character upgrade system. In the beginning, Pit could not fly, but by the end he could. His weapons also advanced in power. I'm certain that any developer making a new Kid Icarus for Wii would probably look just as closely, though, at Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Nintendo's hit fighter. The game included a fully playable polygonal rebuild of Pit complete with an assortment of weapons and powers. The ability to float around the fight arenas. To use two separate blades that when combined together formed a bow. To shoot angelic arrows that could be guided in various directions. And to execute a special move in which he called upon an army of centurions to defeat other players. "The game should take a more open Metroid-vania approach.? Leveling up your wings to fast travel to a place you've been, double jump, fly or dash or leveling up your bow for new combos and attacks.? I loved the dual-blade from Smash Bros. Brawl, so we got to keep that in there," says Jeremiah Slaczka of development company 5th Cell, best known for the Drawn to Life series. "And definitely throw in a lock-on system similar to Zelda's 3D games."