The Nintendo Direct a few days ago left fans reeling and motivated everyone who didn’t already own a Switch to buy one, announcing a healthy mix of new games as well as ports and remakes. As excited as I am for the remake of one of my favorite games ever, Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story, and of course I’m shaking in anticipation of any and all news on the new Super Smash Bros. entry, I can’t help but feel like something’s missing, an unsung and underrated hero early in the 3DS’s extended lifespan being left behind.
In case you couldn’t tell from the title or page image, I’m of course talking about Kid Icarus: Uprising, which finally got its third entry of the series in March 2012 after a 21-year hiatus. Sitting comfortably with an 83% on metacritic, Uprising garnered a small but loyal fanbase and became my personal favorite portable game (yes, I preferred it to the aforementioned Bowser’s Inside Story) of all time before the Switch came along with Breath of the Wild. It looks great by early 3DS standards, the writing is great and only made better by the voice actors, the music is sublime, the gameplay is varied, the difficulty is completely customizable, and the controls… well… the controls leave a bit to be desired. They don’t ruin the game, but they’re clunky and get uncomfortable after a while.
A Switch port, however, could be the perfect version of the game. The Switch is already portable, has a larger screen than the 3DS, and can be played on the TV so you can finally see Hades laugh maniacally at you in glorious full-screen. The superior processing power could make the game look better (although personally I wouldn’t like a full art-style rehaul a la Superstar Saga), and most importantly, the dual analog sticks would be far better than “support the entire system with the same hand that’s holding L and moving the analog stick while the using the stylus with the other”. It’s depressing to me to see such an amazing game get held back by its awkward control scheme, and if done right a Switch port could be near flawless.
Kid Icarus: Uprising is one of the top 50 best-selling 3DS games and brought several influences to Smash 4, such as the fiend’s cauldron in single-player mode and the achievement system. With fan favorites such as Okami, Dark Souls, Undertale, Hyrule Warriors, and even Captain Toad (which I enjoyed, don’t get me wrong, but it’s such a niche title) getting Switch ports or remakes, it’s just saddening to see such a great game get seemingly forgotten to time. It took twenty one years for Uprising to follow Of Myths and Monsters, and we’ve heard nothing even hinting at a new entry to the series. Pit at least deserves a last hurrah on the Switch before disappearing for another two decades or longer.
