The Kid gets his Wiings

[LBD_Nytetrayn]

Sorry to kind of break in after so long away, but I thought some of you might be interested.

First concept art of Kid Icarus for Wii.

--LBD "Nytetrayn"
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[Goten8905]

They should just keep his Brawl design...
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[Tachyon360]

Last I heard, the idea for a new Kid Icarus has been on the table since Pit was announced to appear in Super Smash Bros Brawl.

I can't say I'm especially excited about reviving something that was practically dead on arrival. I mean, sure the first Kid Icarus was hailed as both a technical achievement and a leap forward in gameplay at the time, but I can't see it making the leap from 8-bit NES graphics to modern a 3D game engine while still being comparably revolutionary, or even hype-satisfying. The gap can be traversed, but it's too big to salvage the good ole' days.

Kid Icarus has a sort of cult around it, and a legacy that would be pretty difficult to live up to. It's often said that Kid Icarus combined elements of Zelda, Metroid, and Mario, making for gameplay that was more rich and engaging than much of what was on the table at the time. It had graphics that were previously unseen, and an amazing musical score to boot. What it's doubly noteworthy when you consider that people rave about graphics and music in a game made in 8-bit times, when features beyond gameplay didn't factor in nearly as much as they do today.

Fast forward to today. Games are still judged by gameplay, but today's typical gamer also expects intoxicating levels of eye candy, spiffy animations that react in complex ways to the environment, a gripping story that pans out as you play the game, high replayability value, and an epic orchestral score for a soundtrack. If gameplay is alright, but not amazing, it can be forgiven if the rest of the criteria hold up. If the gameplay is bad, well, nothing short of major revision can save the game. Nothing too new, even by old-school standards, right? Where things differ today is that unless a game's quality and originality of gameplay border on something you'd think would be born of Athena's womb, if a game doesn't dazzle the senses and blow the mind, it's not going anywhere.

If this rumor of a new Kid Icarus game does come to fruition, this is a game that's going to have to go toe-to-toe with titles as diverse and highly rated as (oh, let's say...) Super Mario Galaxy, God of War, and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, not to mention come up with innovative graphical techniques and visual style, and a soundtrack that would blow everyone away, if it's to seriously take up the challenge of living up to its predecessor's legacy. The bar is set high.

Let's look at the studio rumored to have Kid Icarus in the works: Factor 5. It's a shoddy game studio, to the point that describing it as third rate is being generous. Not one of their games was particularly notable, unless you count Lair, which most people point to as an example of how not to make a game. (I'm sure some people out there have fond memories of the Rogue Squadron series, but they're barely worth a footnote in gaming history.) One can argue that it doesn't matter too much what ground a new game breaks as long as it's fun, but that argument fails to note what astronomically high expectations would undoubtedly arise from such an announcement. Even in the unlikely event that Factor 5 could actually pull off a good game, it might not be enough to satisfy people.

What am I putting my money on? I expect that should there be a new Kid Icarus, the inevitable beast of a hype machine, coupled with Factor 5's lack of ability will yield the a epic failure the likes of which have been unseen since Daikatana. But that's just my two cents. If there is a new Kid Icarus on the spoke, I could only hope to be pleasantly surprised.
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[HeatShadow]

As you said, I have fond memories of Rouge Squadron, but that's all that they are, memories. Rouge Squadron 2 was wonderful, but not without its fair share of faults. Then Rouge Squadron 3 rolls around and, despite having the POTENTIAL to be better at everything than its predecessor, it actually ended up worse overall. And then Lair just ended up being a bomb. Really, I wish I knew what those guys over at Factor 5 are thinking that could cause them to make such bad decisions.

And the "Kid Icarus" in those concept art shots doesn't look like much of a "kid" to me.
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[LBD_Nytetrayn]

Consumers are fickle beasts. Things like "innovation" aren't quite the movers they once were, with only odd exceptions here and there.

Doesn't mean it still can't be good, though. That, plus a nice bit of hype would help it. And KI fans will hype it to the moon, on top of whatever Nintendo does.

Of course, sometimes even good games get overlooked for crap. There isn't really any standard formula for success, really, short of whatever gets people talking the most.

--LBD "Nytetrayn"
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[Anime Master ZERO]

Well I can't say I'm thrilled with Pit's concept designs. However, this does catch my interest and I'm willing to see just what they have planned for this new game.
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[Unknown Neo]

Well that picture isn't so bad but this "Factor 5 had imagined a plot starring a grown-up, adult Pit, who is "cursed for thousands of years for a crime and becomes a 'fallen angel.'" The pitch adds that "a tattoo on Pit's arm bears the inscription of Pit's crime." is. That's not a good idea.

[Tachyon360]

I'd argue that hype will only act as detriment to the game, LBD_Nytetrayn, with the only exception being those rare games that meet or even beat hype. Kid Icarus fanboys will jump and shout as the hype machine will steamroll its way onto shelves, and all the game publications will piss on it noting that it failed to meet expectations, with blogs and forums will following suite. (There are, of course exceptions to that formula. Assassin's Creed got tepid reviews, but nevertheless was praised by bloggers and gamers.) None of that matters for a company's bottom line, of course, until it starts to eat away at the bottom line. Hype pushes sales initially, but it never has any long-term benefit unless the game can show something for it.

As for innovation, I'm talking about the real thing. Not incrementally better graphics and AI with money pumped into marketing to spin it as something new. I'm talking about games that really bring new mechanics to the table, or polish and expand upon existing mechanics to the point that they can be called new. Those almost always sell like hotcakes.

The problem with hype is that many good games get overlooked because of too much hype, while less worthy games get better scores because less was invested in marketing. A new Kid Icarus might be a good game. (With Factor 5 at the helm, though, even that's doubtful.) But even if it's a good game, just being good isn't enough for a game bearing the legacy of the NES Kid Icarus.
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[Viewtiful Starman]

[Tachyon360]

All the titles you listed are from the early to mid 90's. Compare that to the downward spiral of their games' quality and their latest blunder, Lair. There hasn't been a good game out of that studio in years.

Further, referring to Turrican specifically now, there are no doubt some people that will refer to those games fondly, but really, what impact did they have on gaming? Very little, I'd argue. What people note those games as shining relics of video game history, noteworthy for breaking new ground or setting a golden standard for other games to live up to? Not many, that's for sure.

I stand by my statement that Factor 5 is incompetent, and that if by some chance, they do get to make a new Kid Icarus, it will very likely be their coup de grâce.
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[Viewtiful Starman]

Yeah not so much innovating, but I'm really not seeing the "Factor 5 is terrible there's almost no way they could possibly make a good game ever look at how terrible they are everybody hates them" bit. Most of their games I could find were fairly well received, and even Lair's reviews seem to be pretty much average right across the board.

[xfyrethespooky]

i don't know. some of the designs are a bit too badass. i mean, i'll probably end up getting the game anyway, but he looks too... evil. you know?
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just call me xfyre. not xfyrethespooky.

[Unknown Neo]

Exactly. He's not evil. He took out Medusa. Now, the black costume he had was kind of cool but, it's just not him.

[xfyrethespooky]

in the first picture that has 4 different designs of him, i prefer the fourth one, with his wings outstretched. that's probably better than a total badass Pit.
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just call me xfyre. not xfyrethespooky.