Oh, Kid Icarus. Finally back after 21 years.

Kid Icarus: Uprising stars flightless angel Pit, who is on a quest to save the world from the Underworld. Older generation players who hold the original Kid Icarus dear to their heart will consider Uprising to be a welcome addition to the 3DS. For newer players, however, the game is more likely to swing for either favor.

Upon starting up the game, I had several first impressions, the first being that the graphics aren’t quite on par with most games in this day and age. The 3D is superb, but the graphics with the 3D turned off appear as if they were meant for a system a few years older than the 3DS.

Uprising jumps very quickly into the storyline, and while there is little room for error with the standard save-the-world-from-evil plot, there is quite a bit of dialogue. The game tries to remedy this by having the dialogue play during gameplay, but often times that only distracts from the gameplay. This doesn’t mean the dialogue is a mess of words meant to get in the way. At times, it offers game tips and plot points. Other times, Pit can be found making jokes (often with the enemy) about being in a video game and other video games owned by Nintendo. These jokes are exceptionally cheesy and littered everywhere throughout the game.

There are two types of gameplay involved, both of which resemble a third-person shooter. The gameplay in the air has Pit on tracks, automatically moving forward at a set speed, while the gameplay on the ground requires the player to move Pit around and rotate the screen with the stylus. The creators of Uprising managed to make the controls work, but they don’t work very well.

The basic controls are this: use the L button to fire, the stylus to aim, and the analog stick to move. The controls work fine when Pit is in the air, but when on the ground, Pit is no longer on tracks. The player needs to move around with the analog stick and use the stylus to rotate the screen. It puts priority on multitasking and fast reactions, especially when the dialogue starts to play in the background and a swarm of monsters is attacking Pit. Not only does the controls cause the gamer to potentially suffer in the game, but physically playing the game can be uncomfortable. Holding the 3DS in one hand and trying to balance everything else in the other hand is difficult. While the game comes with a 3DS stand, use of it requires you to find a flat surface that is also at a reasonable height for you to play the game.

But the gameplay does not entirely ruin the game. There is enough content outside of the gameplay that saves Uprising, including weapons to collect, accomplishments, and local and internet multiplayer. If the gameplay causes so many problems that it’s impossible to pass a level, then you can adjust the difficulty of the level prior to entering it. In addition to all this, the game’s soundtrack is so good that it should be a point of interest when considering whether or not to add Uprising to your 3DS library.

There are a few other noteworthy features about purchasing a new copy of Uprising. While it comes with the standard package of the game and an instruction booklet, it also comes with the 3DS stand and six AR cards. The AR cards can be scanned with the 3DS to attain a few small incentives within the game.

• Pros: Excellent music. Large amount of content. Adjustable difficulty. Good use of 3D effect. A new copy of the game comes with a few additional items. Local and internet multiplayer.
• Cons: Difficult gameplay controls. Graphics without the 3D are not particularly good.